The sign posted on the building reads "Honduras Resist. No to the Coup D'etat" I think we all want to know two things. Why is this mess still going on? And when will it end?
Showing posts with label Latin America. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Latin America. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Honduras: No Al Golpe de Estado
What do the rest of the Americans think of the Honduran coup d'etat that overtook the government almost a month ago? It's bad. It's bad for Honduras. It's bad for the region. It's bad for democracy. I stumbled upon a rally outside the central building of the Universidad de la Republica today where Uruguayans gathered together to protest the forcible removal of president Manuel Zelaya. Uruguay has a reputation for having one of the most stable democracies in Latin America, so it is only natural they would display a zero tolerance policy for military political takeovers which happened to have left a dark shadow on its own history less than 3 decades ago.
The sign posted on the building reads "Honduras Resist. No to the Coup D'etat" I think we all want to know two things. Why is this mess still going on? And when will it end?
The sign posted on the building reads "Honduras Resist. No to the Coup D'etat" I think we all want to know two things. Why is this mess still going on? And when will it end?
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Do You Have a Boyfriend?
I find it amusing the types of questions I've been asked since arriving in Latin America. People tend to ask much more personal questions than we do in the States.
The first time I visited students in the schools they asked me things like: "How old are you?" "Do you like children?" "Do you have children?" ""What are your parent's names?" "How did you get to Uruguay?" "What's your favorite animal?" "What's your favorite color?" "Do you have a boyfriend?" They want to know everything; even things we consider improper to ask upon just meeting someone.
And it's not just the children who are inquisitive. The other day a fellow teacher asked me, "How much do you weigh?" I was taken aback. I actually said, um, you can't ask me that; but then I felt bad, because I realized it wasn't out of the ordinary for her to ask people that question. She proceeded to tell me how much she weighed and so forth.
Communication norms are different here. I generally live by the principle of very slow self-disclosure, revealing things about myself to others over a long period of time. In Uruguay, that process seems to be much faster, something that as a North American I struggle to get accustomed to.
The first time I visited students in the schools they asked me things like: "How old are you?" "Do you like children?" "Do you have children?" ""What are your parent's names?" "How did you get to Uruguay?" "What's your favorite animal?" "What's your favorite color?" "Do you have a boyfriend?" They want to know everything; even things we consider improper to ask upon just meeting someone.And it's not just the children who are inquisitive. The other day a fellow teacher asked me, "How much do you weigh?" I was taken aback. I actually said, um, you can't ask me that; but then I felt bad, because I realized it wasn't out of the ordinary for her to ask people that question. She proceeded to tell me how much she weighed and so forth.
Communication norms are different here. I generally live by the principle of very slow self-disclosure, revealing things about myself to others over a long period of time. In Uruguay, that process seems to be much faster, something that as a North American I struggle to get accustomed to.
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