POLL: Are we Ex Pat's or Immigrants? - Page 11

obviously thats the important point in this...grammar and speech...now its pronouns...

I think people are very naive and have not done a lot of research when it comes to the history of the so called English being the bad slave traders  and conquerors of the world,  for one it was the British (which included all the four nations), along with many other European countrieswho were in fact involved in the black slave trade and it was the British who also put an end to the slave trade. Who sold slaves not only to the British but to many European countries and others accross the world black African slave traders. Ironically would black Africans now be living on the Caribbean Islands the USA the UK and across Europe without slavery?.

On here you blame the English (British) for our history, do you forget about other European countries history who colonised Africa and other continents the  French Germans Italians Belgians  Dutch, Portuguese and the Spanish who colonised central and South America, not to mention the Otterman empire (Turkey) Asia,South East Asia infact nearly every country in the world have had its history of slavery,but it's always the big bad British who get blamed, now don't you find that strange?

People probably don't know but there have been more white slaves than blacks in history and slavery still goes on in the world.

Why only go back 200 years or so in history why not go back further to the Scandinavian countries with their rape and pillaging, the Roman empire. Who built the pyramids yes slaves, should we pull those down because it was part of the slave trade we could go on and on and on about who has a bad history, so remember all who think they hate the English (British) we ended the slave trade across most of the world.

There are a lot of people in this world who know nothing of our history or the history of the world but cling onto snippets of what they hear instead of maybe doing a bit of research and finding out facts.

I tend to agree. Quite often before retiring to bed, I read the news about war, pestilence, covid, murder, racism, global warming & the political ongoing maneuverings.

It helps keep my mind of things.

V

Firstly, I would like to point out that the word is 'expats' and not as shown 'ex pat's' (sic).

An expat is usually someone who has been sent on assignment from their home country to work abroad.  This assignment involves the person being provided with furnished accommodation, utilities and other expenses paid for and a preferential tax rate.  Unfortunately, over the years, the Brits in Spain and other countries outside the UK have hijacked this term to apply to them.  This cannot be further from the intended use of the word.

All Brits in Spain are either foreigners or immigrants.  I have never heard the Germans or Dutch in Spain refer to themselves as expats.  They will use the name given to the their country of origin.  If pushed, they will say immigrant.  Furthermore, if you look at the situation from the other side, you wouldn't hear a Polish plumber in Reading refer to himself as an expat!

Unfortunately, the Brits and the English especially, have a feeling of superiority outside the UK and tend to look down on those who are not British, and more alarmingly, natives of their host country.  This is a very elitist and appalling attitude and one which should be brought to an end.

It's even more relevant now that Brits in Spain are referred to as immigrants and not expats since their status as non-EU citizens has relegated them to third country nationals, a tier below residents in Spain from the EU and EEA countries.  

The choice of pronoun is deliberate and indicative of a particular mindset.

It matters a lot.

You have made some excellent points. Thanks for your post as I found it interesting. 

Steve 

No, just ignorant and prejudice to boot.  And ignorant about the slave trade as well. It was black people that sold black people to Europeans by the way. 

Shame you and the minority will always think this , times will never move on with backward attitudes like yours 🙄

Me and many others move with times and get on with anyone no matter what colour or country they are from, or who they have upset this past few hundred years .

Have a wonderful day surrounded by the English you have chosen to live with in Spain 😂(I’m presuming you live in the alicanti area 👍🏼) 

Cheers 🍺

What a load of nonsense one minute it's the English then the British, I take it you are speaking for yourself when you say the Brits think they are superior, I for one don't think I'm superior and really what does it matter if you call yourself an expat or an immigrant, it's only a word, I am a British subject living as a legal resident in Spain.