Dispelling Cultural Myths: My Autistic Perspective on Ignorant Misconceptions About the Spanish Ethnicity
The Spanish ethnicity is as beautiful as it is diverse...
"They say Spain is pretty, though I've never been. And Daniel says it's the best place he's ever seen. Oh, and he should know, he's been there enough." Sir Elton John, Daniel
Sorry I haven't been posting much content lately. I've been dealing with some emotional issues over the current state of the world and have been offline for extended periods to drown out all the negative crap out there. Unfortunately, it's difficult to avoid 24/7 toxicity. As such, I thought it would be therapeutic to get some of these frustrations off my chest in a constructive way, as I often do when dispelling autism myths.
This time, the topic concerns BS directed towards an entire ethnicity that I partially belong to. Being of mixed ethnicity is such an awesome experience that exposes you to all sorts of cool traditions from both sides of your family. Unfortunately, it also makes you acutely aware of all the annoying stereotypes that affect half of your relatives. While such prejudices are nothing new, sadly, they seem to be magnified in today's tumultuous political climate. So, I'd like to take a moment to set the record straight on a few ignorant myths directed towards those of Spanish ethnicity. While I obviously can't cover everything, I'll be going over some of the most prevalent misconceptions.
One such myth is that everyone with Spanish ancestry, including those in Spain, the birthplace and namesake of the entire language and culture, are "Mexican". Sadly, the stereotypical practice of lumping several different cultures together happens to a lot of other folks around the world as well, such as those of Scandinavian, East Asian, Slavic, Middle Eastern, Gaelic, and other backgrounds. Personally, I've never experienced the "Mexican" stereotype firsthand, most likely on account of me not matching the expected "look" (more on that with our next myth).
However, one of my older cousins was once called "Speedy Gonzales" by a group of teens outside a convenience store, while my younger cousin was nicknamed "Tex-Mex" in high school, even though our family is neither of Mexican nor Texan descent. While Mexico has a beautiful culture and people, referring to everyone of Spanish ancestry as "Mexicans" is akin to referring to anyone with English heritage, such as Australians, Canadians, New Zealanders, or those from the United Kingdom, as "Americans". There's a lot more to a culture than its language, and as with any other ethnicity out there, each society of Spanish origin is different from the rest, with their own unique accents, traditions, music, cuisine, etc.
The Spanish-speaking world encompasses so much more than just "Mexico"...
Our next myth, that everyone of Spanish descent belongs to the same "brown-skinned" race, is one that I have experienced firsthand...for not matching this physical description. I've had people question whether I'm really of mixed ethnicity. I once met the mother of one of my "Tex-Mex" cousin's friends, who expressed genuine surprise that I'm "white" like her and her daughter. Contrary to what many mistakenly believe, those of Spanish heritage aren't members of a single "race", but rather an ethnicity, a shared language, heritage, culture, etc.
There are plenty of "white" Spanish people, either with ancestry from Northern Spain or those descended from other European countries, some of whom have non-Spanish surnames that reflect such heritage. Those who trace their lineage to the Spanish Mediterranean may have the "olive" complexion shared by those from the same regions of France, Italy, Greece, Egypt, Turkey, Israel, etc. Those living in tropical regions, such as the Caribbean or South America, may have a "bronze" complexion from constant exposure to the sun. Those with a "brown" complexion may be mixed race, European combined with Indigenous, African, Middle Eastern, etc., as such blendings date back centuries. As with many other cultures around the world, the Spanish ethnicity is racially, culturally, and religiously diverse, with all skin, hair, and eye colours represented.
Those of Spanish ancestry share the same ethnicity, but not the same "race"...
Our final myth of the day concerns the lingering misconception that all of South America (when it isn't being mistaken for Mexico) is just one great big, rural backwater society, solely comprised of antiquated adobe huts, muddy dirt roads, donkey-drawn wagons, and flocks of chickens running about. Anyone who believes such nonsense has clearly never been to South America.
Well, I have been to South America and can tell you its many diverse countries are full of big cities with both beautiful colonial architecture and towering futuristic skyscrapers, paved highways, and modern infrastructure (I never saw any donkeys or chickens). It's a beautiful region of the world with warm people. Rather than believing everything seen in a Hollywood movie, why not try watching an international film from a South American country and see what the continent is really like for yourself?
Hollywood's version of "South America":
South America:
As you can see, the Hollywood version is completa mierda.
So, there you have it; just some of the many absurd stereotypes half my family is forced to endure. Sorry for the rant, and thanks for reading! Do you have any thoughts on this post? If so, feel free to reach out by leaving a comment, dropping me a line, or signing my guestbook to share your opinions on this or any other topic. Also, feel free to press the "like" button if you enjoyed this post, as "likes" help me gauge audience interest in the content I post. After all, I don't want to bore anyone, ha-ha. Until next time, love, peace, and chicken grease!
Posted in "Autistic Perspectives" on Wednesday, April 2, 2025.