If Mexico hates Spain so much then I must ask why do they continue to speak Spanish and follow our religion and call themselves hispanic. Once Mexicans stop putting a bunch of "Mexican" TV in reality leftovers of Spaniards (they didn't just disappear) in their soap operas and news channels then I will take their message seriously. In otherwords till they stop putting Spaniards on their TV shows and using our language and relgions I say cut the BS.
Unvision is perfect example they do not show one true Mexican on their TV but only Spaniards.

Quintos, why do you think Spaniards have ownership of Catholicism? It really isn't "your" religion. In addition, the practice of that religion doesn't look much like what happens in Spain in many of the more indigenous areas. They have remnants of what the missionaries brought with them, but frequently it is liberally mixed with their version of it. Check up on the Yaqui Easter celebrations, for example.

As for language: that is what happens when a conquering country takes over. That's why Spanish is a Romance language and why every province in Spain doesn't have its own language. That's also why there are Arabic based words in Castillian Spanish that don't exist (or are seldom used) in the Americas. The dominant country imposes its vocabulary and most of its grammar on those it conquers. But never fear...the indigenous populations that lost their native language are working hard to bring it back and are being taught in schools. Mexican youth around Mexico City have been trying to resurrect Nahuatl for at least 20 years.

Movies and soap operas...can't say.

Many years ago, when I first moved to the Southwest, I was baffled by the Mexican attitude towards Spain as well as their attitude towards me as a US citizen. I have spent quite a lot of time and energy trying to make sense of it, and here are some of my observations. Take them or leave them...

First, while Columbus and Co. arrived in 1492, Mexico was under Spanish rule until 1810. You wouldn't have been surprised to find Spaniards annoyed about the Moors in, say, the year 1200, would you? The Spanish system meant that native born Spaniards had total power over indigenous people and even over the children of native Spaniards born in Mexico. So, if a wealthy Spaniard had a son born in Mexico, any other Spaniard from Spain could come down and govern over the son born in Mexico. In addition, the encomienda system gave the landowners (hidalgos) the land, whatever was on the land, and the natives to work it. That created the filthy rich/spit poor situation that exists there today. Furthermore, the Spanish system was patriarchal. Nothing could be planted or harvested in the New World without express permission from the King of Spain. Now, back before email, that could take the better part of a year. So crops withered on the vine and not much happened here by way of industry (in contrast with the British system which wanted industry to generate money.)

Every year, on the 16 of September, the Grito de Dolores is reenacted. In addition to "Viva Mexico", you may very well hear the original ""Mueran los gachupines" (gachupines was the most deprecating thing they could call a Spaniard...probably the equivalent of the n word, and curiously, when pronounced in a Spanish class full of adolescents it has the power to bring that group to paroxysms of laughter.)
The point here is that the scab of this particular wound is picked on once every single year.

Mexico now is on the verge of implosion. The poor are so desperate to come to the States to make a living that men (normally tremendously protective of their women and children) will carry diapered babies on their shoulders through hundreds of miles of desert in the middle of summer to get here. There are many reasons for the economic problems in Mexico, but it is easy to say that IF the Spaniards hadn't meddled with Mexico, then surely the greatness of the Aztec Empire would still exist and things would be wonderful. Simplistic, unrealistic, but infinitely better than looking at the mordida system and all the other forms of corruption that exists down there and dealing with it.

So, that is what I am coming to understand about the Mexican attitude towards Spaniards.

Espanol: Happy to report that there is no institutionalized effort by Mexico to debase and defame Iberia. Of course it's never happened the other way around either, regardless of what your textbooks may or may not say. I've had deep experiences in both nations, and have been treated equally well in both places, my peninsular accent notwithstanding. BTW: You're going to absolutely fall in love with Galicia.

Maestra said: Not much has changed for Mexico. It is a country that is a shambles. It's tech infrastructure is built gracias a international investment. The local governments are consistently bribed by the narcotraffickers, and the national government just put out a pamphlet for the aspiring illegal immigrant to "el norte." That doesn't put a lot of faith in the incorruptibility of the leaders at the top.

"Give me your tired, your poor..." has become the mantra of Mexico's leadership in the following form: "We're going to advocate exportation of our tired, our poor in order to alleviate our burden of responsibility for them. Then we'll freely allow the billions in dollars that they export from your nation tax-free back to our economy and give them nothing in return."

Political pontificating aside: I love the people of both countries, but it is no surprise to those who know me well to see that I have zero interest in returning to Mexico, which lies a scant 150 miles to my south, and is a land where I have dear friends. Instead I'll break my leg trying to catch a flight and spend time in Spain, which is thousands of miles away. The difference is not in how I've been treated, but rather in the level of security I feel in each place...and that's including an active ETA in the equation.

lamaestra writes I dont think Spaniards own Catholicism what I meant by our religion is that it is a religion that has its core population of followers in Europe and then it was applied to Mexico more specifically by Spain it is essential an occidental religion which Mexicans decide to follow it was imposed on them by Spain.

Their pride of being Indian sure doesn't show I was watching a Mexican movie a while ago and it was just a bunch of white people will they start talking Nahuatl soon? Most Mexicans connect with their "Aztec" past although their empire was a very very small portion of modern day Mexico.

Thats a racist statement to make then I could state that if all these immigrants weren't meddled with Europe we wouldn't have all this crime and other social problems. And eventually it will become corrupt just like Mexico just apply the shoe to a different foot.

Alot of Mexicans are partly Spanish many are more Spanish then Indians so how can they call us Gachupines when some of they themselves are Gachupines.

Qunitos, when you figure out the answer to that last question, please let me know! One of the must puzzling aspects of Mexican culture is that they don't seem to want to admit to either component of their culture. Many Mexicans bristle at the thought that they may be "indios" because that group to this day has the least amount of prestige and the least amount of power. Nor do they want to be associated with Spain because, of course, they were the conquerors. It has been said jokingly, though, that there are no rich Mexicans. Once they get money they all claim to be criollo...of direct Spanish descent! Imagine what you would feel like if you hated both sides of your family at the same time!

The Nahuatl was being encouraged by disenfranchised young people who are looking to regain some power, pride and identity. The Mexican people are fiercely proud of being Mexican and related to the great Aztec Empire (whether they were or not!), but also unhappy that their country cannot provide enough for them to eliminate the need to go elsewhere to find work. The fact is, many young folks, encouraged by the oldest in their communities, are trying to hang on to their languages...which is a good thing.

Many other religions are gaining ground in Mexico now. Jehovah's Witnesses have made some converts, as well as the Mormons. A lot has to do with people whose lives seem out of their control right now. They want to find answers, and some feel different approaches to religion may help them find answers.

Please keep in mind, Quintos, that a lot of hatred and mistrust comes from insecurity about oneself. It is terribly egotistical, in my opinion, to think that when I walk down the street of a country, people look at me and think about my ethnicity and whether or not I am "beneath" them. Yet some of my Mexican friends (people who have quite a bit of clout in this country) think that Spaniards judge them when they walk down the street!

Mexico is going through a very difficult time. The population is increasing tremendously, meaning you have a huge group of young people who are looking at a very uncertain future. While the government talked a good deal about improvements, nothing has gotten better...and now it seems that Fox is more interested in having us take care of the problem than he is about taking charge of his own country and cleaning up the corruption and abuse.

I felt angry when the hatred was directed at me, but I have come to understand that many of those who hate the most are terribly frustrated and frightened, and they vent all of this on us. I still don't like it, but I think I deal with it better now.

Mexico has to be one of the saddest story in the western hemisphere. It has as much or more in resources than the US, and or Canada. Yet is has always been near the bottom as far as GNP is concerned.

The current President of Mexico, Vicente Fox seems to feel that the way to cure his countries economic problems is to call his buddy in Washington, GWB, and have him take in all of his unemployed. We who live on this south border can attest to the problems that that mentality has created on both the economic ends and the social arena. Fox wants to send his people up here to work, but wants the American taxpayer to pick up the tab when one of his people checks out of the hospital. He wants the money flowing back to Mexico, but wants his people to be able to get US taxpayer subsidised housing. Not to mention the food stamps and any other govt program that they can find to jump on the band wagon.

As Calibasco said the Narcotraffic dollars are what Mexico is run on, and until that comes to an end, graft, corrution and payoff are the way of life. The average Mexican citizen is not allowed to own a firearm, yet all the criminal element owns firearms. Here in the US anyone can own a firearm,assuming they can pass the background check. Look at the way the average Mexican lives, look at the way the average American lives. "When guns are outlawed, outlaws will have guns."

The greatest gift that England gave the US, something that Spain did not give Mexico, was a legal system.

GWB likes to talk about a guest worker program, there are far to many details to be worked out on that and there are still years to go before it will be in place. At least one that will pass muster of us living on the south border.

About the only thing that Spain and Mexico have in common anymore is the language. While all governments have some degree of corruption, Mexico seems to have gained more than it's fair share.

This thread has been educational and a real eye-opener to me. Here in the UK we know next-to-nothing of the history and politics of Mexico. I suspect that Mexicans may distrust Spain in the way that (some) Irish distrust Britain. There is a glimmer of hope in the fact that Ireland's per capita GDP is now greater than that of the UK. Whether this is down to their membership of the EU, their educational system or foreign investment is something that can be argued about. It does show however that circumstances change. Maybe in 30 years time Mexico too can have a Tiger economy?

In fact, 30 years ago Mexico had a greater per capita richness than Spain

Fernando

Yea 30 years ago. Back then Spain was still in bad condition because of Spanish Civil War and other ecenomic problems.