[lettertodaddy]

I'm an American who doesn't always get pegged as American who has lived here for 10 years (because of how I look, most people assume I'm from the Caribbean).

In that ten years, I have heard and read some of the most dismissive yet completely off-handed biased and sometimes outright bigoted comments about Americans that I've ever heard. When I speak up about it, I generally hear "Oh, well, we didn't mean you!" in response. This is the same sort of lazy bigotry that I've heard from white people who, when making racist comments about blacks, are quick to turn to me and say "Oh, well I didn't mean you!" in reply. Bigotry is bigotry, and I'm calling it as I see it.

Do I need to provide you with a transcript, subeee? Because if that's what you're waiting for, I'm afraid you'll just have to keep waiting.

I once did a little experiment with a Canadian friend of mine who was one of the worst offenders when it came to these kinds of lazy assumptions. For one day, I decided that every time she made a bigoted, uniformed, broad sweeping comment about Americans, I was going to poke her in the ribs. I told her in advance that I was going to do it, just so she could see how often she was making comments that I took offense to and were hurtful. After about the fifth or sixth poke, she started to become annoyed. After about the tenth, it finally sank in that she was making these comments without even thinking about them.

Dismissive? Sure. But it isn't any more dismissive than some of the things I've heard over the years. I think what's different is that maybe many Canadians haven't had many Americans call them on it before.

To you it may matter that you're speaking about the group and not the individual. But I'm a member of that group, and I take my membership in that group very, very seriously. I am here to tell you that it is hurtful, and that it needs to stop.

And please don't get on me about being respectful. I've been nothing but respectful in this thread. I just have a different opinion. But as it seems that this opinion isn't welcome here, I'll bow out and leave y'all to your little Canadian oasis. Don't mind me as I whistle "O Canada" on my way out.