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My first exposure of the wonderful people of Colombia

About a year after I moved to Florida, I became friends with the cashier at the local 7-11 type store. I was attempting to learn Spanish at the time and he would only speak to me in Spanish and I always try to follow through and respond to him in Spanish. Of course, I would screw up and he would correct me. We both always got a good laugh at my Spanish. But his command of the English language always amazed me. He had only studied English two years at the time. I asked him how he studied and he said that he listened to alot of American music as well as the usual study. I have been doing that ever since and on occasion, I can fool a Latino when I speak. I would put my Spanish at 3rd grade level at this point and that's pushing it.

One day, we were just talking and I had mentioned my passion for Salsa dancing. He told me about a club in Florida that we should go to and get some Salsa dancing in. He took me to this nightclub where 90% of the people there were Colombian and about half of them were in the US illegally. As we entered, I was frisked and checked with a metal detector then paid a $3.00 cover charge. After about an hour, I felt as though I was among friends and family, yet I only knew my friend. It felt like I was at a wedding reception. I started meeting people and everybody was friendly. I got good at ordering a beer at the bar in Spanish.

During the course of the evening, the DJ put on this old scratchy song (I mean no disrespect) and the dance floor was packed. Everybody did this special dance where they would turn around in a circle in a certain motion pointing one finger up in the air. I had asked my friend about this. He explained that it was a Colombian tradition. A love of country is what was explained to me. I wish I could remember the song but it was a while ago.

A wonderful evening for a gringo

Chris

By chrispej on Apr 7, 2004, 23:28 in Friendly Talkzone.

RobertoNY says on Apr 8, 2004, 04:45:

Now, how the... hell would you know that HALF of the people in the club were there illegally? Sometimes people on these boards knock me for being harsh on people. Your "story" is one of the reasons that I do come down hard on people. It's the typical stereotype they place on Colombians here in the U.S. Most people here would classify Colombians as coke peddling illegals. Your story mentions the illegals, but the coke part must be in the back of your mind also.
Unbelievable.

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markdeinglaterra says on Apr 8, 2004, 11:55:

stereotyping of colombian/latin people you have every right to be pissed, robertoNY
why does this keep happening???

to an englishman it appears to be pretty irrational. we have immigrants here, and sometimes they are stereotyped for there actions/religious beliefs or whatever (i am far from perfect and probably stereotype regularly!), but i don't believe it to be as frequent or ingrained as the u.s stereotyping that goes on regularly on this board. i have no doubt that some of the people who say these crazy things are perfectly nice/decent people, but that they need to think before putting mouth into gear (or typing in this case for any pedantic so and so!)

i mean, what possible foundation in reality could the 50% illegals comment have?? did he go round the club individually questioning each person 'excuse me, are you an another illegal?'. probably not.

it is fact that there are illegal immigrants, but i would like to know the real percentage in w.european countries and the U.S.

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Gator says on Apr 8, 2004, 12:23:

Was the dance... Cumbia? Whoa! Time for me to tie up the burro, pull down el sombrero and take la siesta under the palm tree.

"Credidi pretio parvo emere et magno vendere tibi in animo fuisse!" .

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isaactraveler says on Apr 8, 2004, 13:01:

dont get so hot, RobertoNY, I'm in Houston.... and I think if you throw a rock in any direction you will probably hit a colombian. ok thats an exageration, but since meeting my fiancee, and hanging out with my sisters latin friends AND working in the apartment industry for about a year now, I have noticed a ton of colombians. probably 50% of them are here illegally ( meaning expired visas) and are waiting to either renew or just having a good time. Of the 5 good friends my sister has that are colombian, only one has a visa. another has political asylum and 2 others are here on expired visas. the last guy wont say, hehe.

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markdeinglaterra says on Apr 8, 2004, 14:27:

the illegal immigrants don't declare themselves.... ....to the censuses...well blow me down with a feather tinto!!, that's hardly fair of them is it??

sorry for the sarcasm, but i'd kind of taken that as a given already!!!

cheers for the quote from the miami herald though. 139,000 colombians to 300,000/400,000 colombians is quite a gap. though to be honest, how balanced is the U.S. media???? is this close to reality or just right wing scare tactics??? it's an honest question, no offence meant. i just get the impression the U.K. media is more balanced, left and right. maybe i'm wrong.

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RobertoNY says on Apr 8, 2004, 16:11:

I really couldn't care less... if they're illegal or not. The original poster tried to impress us with his wonderful experience with the beautiful people of Colombia. Then he berates them by saying at least 50% of them were here in the U.S. illegally. Nice. Another thing I'd like to know is how did he even know that 90% of them were Colombians? I couldn't pick out all of the Colombians in a room full of Hispanic people. I couldn't even tell you if 90% were Colombians. Colombian people are a diverse group also.
Yes, there are plenty of Colombians here illlegally. The U.S. also has plenty of illegal Dominicans, Haitians, Cubans, Mexicans, Peruvians, Bolivians....... Most of them come here with good intentions. Most of them are hard workers. If you were in their shoes you would do what you could for your family and yourself also. They just want a chance.

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litost says on Apr 8, 2004, 17:51:

Who cares who was legal or illegal, what does it matter? We're all human beings, trying to get by and enjoy life as much as possible... the poster probably shouldn't have made the 50% comment even if it's most likely true, but there's no need to get so upset about it. The main message was a positive one about colombians, so chill out!!!

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vanwely says on Apr 8, 2004, 18:10:

My 2 pesos One of the things I love about Colombia vs the US is the lack of this kind of bul**hit political correctness. From what I have experienced down there, people are just more confortable about who they are. People call each other marica, negra, moreno, rolo, etc. and you just get a smile not a lawsuit.

Vanwely

Colombia - Tierra Querida

Colombia - Tierra Querida

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Mr. Hollywood says on Apr 8, 2004, 18:16:

Odd reaction It does strike me as a little strange that this new person writes a whole giant post about how much he loves Colombians, what great people they are, and everyone just fixates on a single aspect of his comments. I'm guessing that he was just relaying what his Colombian host told HIM about the demographics of the room. Either way, I glad he had such a great experience and likes Colombians so much.

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saint says on Apr 8, 2004, 19:29:

I agree.. That some of you are hard on this guy. For all we know the guy that took him there is the one that gave him that information and he is just telling the story. He is telling us how wonderful of an impression he had with the culture but the focus is on something negative.

Personally I often find that the people of a particular country that emigrate to the USA are often the harshest critic on their own country and the people there. I hear more Colombians talking about how dangerous Colombia is and how they are scared to visit than Americans.

I'm reading a few books on Colombia and all the struggles the country has gone through. It's quite nice that for all the problems the country has endured the people are so friendly.

I know several people in Dallas from other countries (most girls from Brazil) that are here illegally. They overstayed their tourist visas. It's sad because they can't go back to visit their family now. I really could care less about the people that are here illegally as long as they aren't a menace to society and living productive lives. I've found that most of the people from other countries (Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Cuba, etc.) that are here illegally are the hardest working people and more honest than anyone else I've met.

Frankly, I wish there were more Colombians in my city. Illegal or not...ha, ha. Good luck all.

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asmith says on Apr 8, 2004, 20:25:

How would you know RobertoNY.Dear Sir: I am in full agreement with your response. I am sure you are aware that most gringos are so stupid that they have never taken the time to learn the great diffrence between Colombians and other Latin People especially the Mexicans. The gringos in general believe the Latin people are like the Mexicans. The Mexicans are in a group of their own but, the gringo has had more contact with the Mexicans because there are so many Mexicans in the U.S.A. and most of them are illegal or at the very least their parents were. I believe the U.S. should consider exchanging the 30million Mexicans for 30 million Colombians, but, the Mexicans would have to return to Mexico. I believe within 30 days the gringo would have a much better opinion of the Latin people in general. With respect to the coke, first of all coke is not a problem that it was 20-25 years ago but the poor gringo is missinformed. It disturbs me when these ignorant gringos make a comment about Colombia, Colombians and coke. My response is: What do you know about coke? I then kindly explain to them that they are simply missinformed or are they puppets of the governments? You should see the expression change on their faces.

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isaactraveler says on Apr 9, 2004, 14:06:

coke puppets i see your point, and clearly agree with you. it made perfect sense. thanks for that insiteful bit of wisdom. now excuse me while I go wash out my eyes.

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RobertoNY says on Apr 9, 2004, 14:23:

Yes, asmith.... you are correct about the generalizations when it comes to Hispanics. However, in my experience, people tend to classify more Hispanics as Puerto Ricans then they do as Mexicans. Perhaps it depends on the part of the country you're in. They frequently ask "are you Puerto Rican?" That deserves the response: "No, are you white trash?"

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Mr. Hollywood says on Apr 9, 2004, 14:44:

Does that mean Speaking of generalizations and predjudice, does your hypothetical response mean you equate Puerto Ricans with the Latino equivalent of White Trash?

In California latinos are assumed to be Mexican. In Miami they're assumed to be Cubans. And in NYC they're assumed to be Puerto Rican. It's just a numbers thing, like how Canadians are usually assumed to be Americans wherever they go because they're outnumbered by us.

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RobertoNY says on Apr 9, 2004, 14:57:

I knew someone would... come up with that analogy. No, that wasn't my intent. It would be a way of telling them to mind their business. It's irrelevant and they shouldn't even ask. I said it deserves that response, but it's not the one I give.

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