Im glad of that too at least I know that Spain is a constitutional monarchy and not a republic. Thanks for the compliment.

Silvita,

Thanks for putting things into perspective. Often, threads like these start because someone has a negative attitude to a subject, (in this case Mexicans), they would like to "discuss". What follows then are posts of the nature, "I know a Mexican who dislikes Spain/Spaniards..." therefore all Mexicans do in fact hate Spain.

And when a Mexican posts a reply saying that in fact they themselves and none of the people they know has this "attitude" toward Spain, well it seems it doesn't count.

Then when there is sparkle of interesting debate, like the present state of Mexican politics or borders and immigration, you can be sure someone will ruin this and bring up something dum like 'white Mexicans are Spanish immigrants', which brings me back to the subject of this thread. "Mexicans Hating Spanish?" Ok, it has a question mark, but what a ridiculous way to start a "discussion".

Miche and Silvita: I think that most of us have at one time or another used "to large of a brush when painting a picture." I know in my case that has happened on more than one occasion, and will probably happen again.

I think that the country that most Mexicans have a beef with right now, is none other than the USA. Vicente Fox and GWB use to be governors of adjoining states and developed somewhat of a freindship. Fox has tried since he got in office in Mexico City, to persuade his old pal George to let him send his economic problems north of the river. We that live in the south border states don't have problem with the Mexican wanting to come and work. What we have a problem with is the social problems, and added burden on our taxpayer subsidised programs. One of the small border towns here in Arizona, the hospital has millions in uncollectable accounts receivable, so much so that the hospital is in danger of closing. Take a guess at who has ran up those bills. Not all of them of course, but the overwelming majority.

Another problem that we have with the immigration is the way it is done. "Well there is the border, 150 mile north of there is the work, why should we bother with the normal port of entry?" So they cut across farm and ranch land, leaving in their path a trail of trash and debris. "While we are here we just as well tear down this fence so our cousins can cross easier manana." This problem is so bad that there are vigilanty groups starting to sprout up. That makes all of us in the desert look bad to have that start.

Then also along the border here in Arizona, is a very large military bomb range. Those pilots are flying at such a speed that they are not able to see more than a second in front of the plane when they make the training bomb run. When one of our border brothers or sisters gets killed of course guess what sort of bad press the US gets on the news down there over "the old mean US using combat jets to gun down their innocent people for only wanting a job." Never mind the fact that to get on the range in the first place they had to cross some of the most hostile terrain in the world, and in the summer some of the hottest temps. with no water around for miles. Still not to mention that it is posted for miles in both English and Spanish as well as drawn symbols in an effort to drive home the point "don't get in here." Every year hundreds die in this desert from heat and dehydration.

Once they get into one of the metro areas they are for the most part home free. They stand on street corners and wait for people to pick them up and work them at various types of work. It seems that here in Phoenix, Home Depot and Lowes are the best places to wait for some gringo to come along and work him for the day.

Those are a few of the reasons the Mexicans would resent the US. You would have to dig deep to find a reason for them to resent Spain, and the Spaniard. Someone made the comment about the radio making statements about reclaiming the southwest from the US, you don't have to get very far into Mexico to start hearing that.

Miche writes:
I have stayed out of this discussion because of the way the topic was phrased, as Miche rightly pointed out, as a ridiculous notion. I found this thread to be very insulting to Mexicans, and I am not a Mexican.

Generalizations without facts are just unfounded opinions. Anecdotal evidence lacks any type of validity. The only analytical way this question can be answered is if you have a random sample of say 2% of the Mexican population, that shows the assertion to be true or false, then you have something to discuss. I don't think studies like these have been done because of the stupidity of the premise.

Quintos, your assessment is ridiculous.

It is clear that you know nothing about Mexico or Spain.

Mexico is a country that like many Latin American nations is made up of mestizos. Yes, there are light-skinned Mexicans, there are Mexicans with indigenous features and there are Mexicans that have both. This is a result of the mix that happened when the Spanish conquered Mexico. My Mexican father's grandparents were from France, but that does not make him a Frenchman living in Mexico. That would be absurd. He is Mexican, considers himself just as Mexican as the indigenous person sitting next to him on the Mexico City subway.

Please learn, Quintos.

OK, it's anecdotal and it's not evidence but it made me fatflmao. I was studying in Seville in the mid-90s. I was sitting in the cathedral in Seville, for a couple of days straight, describing some of the biblical stories told in the paintings (especially in the retablo).

A young man of my age, but obviously of Latin American/indigenous heritage, walked past the crypt of Christopher Colombus and flipped him the bird. I figured it was a long way to travel to flip off the old guy.

Donna

here´s my two cents. I have lived in colombia and currently am in barcelona for a year. I have also traveled throught various parts of south america and the carribean. while living in ny i lived mostly in the colombian/latino neighborhood.

I have found that most latinos are a lot more friendly than spaniards. they like to know a lot about you and ask all sorts of questions. i do not find this here in barcelona, it seems like they don`t really go for foreigners. i must admit that i find a lot of the locals here kind of "stuck up". a lot of i has to do with the way they speak, it can sound (not that it is) a bit insulting. what is normal speech and facial expression here can seem rude to an outsider. I have spoken to several spaniards here who talk quite badly about immigrants. it seems to me when i am in south america, the people are a lot warmer. Most colombians that i know in colombia said they felt a lot better in the us than when they were in spain. hope i helped

I've read many of the messages posted on this thread, and many contain false or not accurate information. For example, in Mexico, Spaniards are not called Gallegos, this is a term used in South-America. Probably the average Mexican doesn't even know what Galicia is. A Spaniard was called a “gachupin” in Mexico, this term was rude, but later became as common as calling an American a “gringo,” which is used in a totally casual and friendly manner. However, the term “gachupin” is kind of old-fashioned and most young people don't use it.

Someone else mentioned that Fox and Bush were governors of adjunct states and since then developed a friendship. Fox was the governor of the State of Guanajuato in central Mexico, while Bush was the governor of Texas which is located across the border of northern Mexico. They became friends for other reasons, both are wealthy, religious, pro-business, and own agricultural land.

Mexicans do not hate Spaniards, but you have to understand that if you read the history of your country and see that someone came to your land and forbade your ancestors' religion, their language, burned and destroyed many of their sacred places, treated them like slaves, imposed a new religion on them, and looted the richness of the country for many years, you don't think it is funny or feel appreciation for that people. On the other hand, this happened so long ago that it is hard for a Mexican to take it personal. In addition, during the Spanish civil war thousands of Spaniards migrated from Spain and formed a vibrant community in Mexico and other Latin-American countries. Usually, these Spaniards were grateful to have formed a Mexican family and to have found fortune in Mexico.

The truth is that during the last decades these two countries have grown apart. Spain has focused on Europe, while Mexico on its relations with the U.S.

Richie, that is because most latin americans in Spain are the ones nobody wants...since there are no effective controls of our borders (thanks to our wonderful government).

As a Spaniard, if you were to ask me, on a scale of 1-10, what "value" I place on a Latin American, I would have to give a 1 (i.e., I do not respect the immigrants who come here and commit crimes and insult us).

As with everything in life, there are few exceptions. For example, none of the Mexicans I know are problematic and on the contrary, wonderful people...since most Mexicans in Spain are not the tiny people you see in the US...but rather, people with Spaniard ancestry.

And in the case of Moroccans...well, I think you know by now what we think here in Spain.

PS: Barcelona is a bad city...you should have chosen Madrid, la capital.

Funny that, most Spanish I met during my 6 months stay last year in Madrid did not share this opinion (although I did meet one or two who did). And even during my short stay I saw many Latin Americans who were working on building sites or in bars or as a nanny. None of them were committing crimes or insulting others. Unlike you seem to be doing. There are bad and good people in all communities.