U.S. and them

Th e sharp edge of the anti-American stick

KERRI WOLOSZYN STAFF

When I was young, my mom would tell me that the world was made up of many diff erent kinds of people who had many diff erent ideas about many diff erent things. Th is was what made the world interesting, and she assured me that if we were all the same, life would be boring. Th is was demonstrated recently at the United Nations General Assembly, when Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez called U.S. President George Bush the “devil” and said that the podium “smells of sulphur still.” Chavez held up a copy of Noam Chomsky’s latest book, Hegemony or Survival: America’s Quest for Global Dominance, as he said his piece. Now, as useful for purposes of talk show fodder as Chavez’s comments were, they also work to spur on anti-American sentiments that are often misguided and misinformed.

“Anti-Americanism” as a concept has often been complicated by the fact that the term is used so often in a variety of ways. Some people believe that anti-Americanism refers to an informed criticism of the policies and actions of the government of the United States while others believe it has more to do with a prejudiced belief system. Th e problem with anti-American sentiment is when it moves from informed criticism to prejudice.

It is easy to see the folly of the United States government and George Bush himself. It is easy to criticize the government of any country when it is made accountable for its actions. Th e United States is a country that is in the media all the time and thus, even if we do not know a thing about what the government of the U.S. and its military are doing in the rest of the world, we can pretend to.

Anti-Americanism as a prejudice becomes a real problem when people confuse the government of the United States for the people of the United States. If you are against the “war on terror” it is useful to know that according to a 2005 CNN poll 57 per cent of U.S. citizens think that going into Iraq was not “worthwhile.” People should be able to, and do, criticize the actions of their own government and the governments of other countries. Th at’s what free speech is all about. However, criticizing policies is diff erent from criticizing people.

Chavez did not say that the people of the United States were the devil’s henchmen, but when a politician makes a comment at the UN people hear it. People hear things all the time. We often forget that people are listening even to us. When we say, “Americans are stupid,” someone is listening. Many will laugh these kinds of comments off (Bush doesn’t really have horns, nor does he carry a pitchfork) but other people listen and remember.

Anti-Americanism as prejudice becomes as problematic and as useless as patriotism when one relies on making grandiose statements. We all have to live somewhere. Is it helpful to say we are better than any one else because we are located in a diff erent portion of the world? Th e United States is a country made up of specifi c individuals and these individuals should not carry the weight of our prejudice. Would we like people to judge us by our current leader? I would rather not.

Suggesting that people be stifl ed in the way that they speak and the way that they write is not the solution. Having free speech means that people should be allowed to say and write whatever they think. However, politicians are working diligently to make sure that the world loves the U.S. and all it has to off er. I’m not suggesting that we shove everything told to us by the U.S government down our throats. In fact, I think being critical is an extremely useful practice. Th e future is bleak for a country that everyone hates.

Th e danger for U.S. citizens is when they are not seen as human beings but simply cogs in the giant America machine. It would be useful if the U.S. government could clearly diff erentiate itself from the American people. But then the government is supposed to speak for the people that it governs. It is then, of course, up to us to see this diff erence and to speak it.

We grow up and we forget to share and make friends. We forget that people are human beings no matter where they live and who runs their country. We forget that these are the things that make life more interesting. I’ve been guilty of this too. Sorry, Mom.

Kerri Woloszyn is the Manitoban’s roving reporter and a fourth-year fi lm studies student.