My Wandering Mind: American Insecurity
May 23, 2010 2 Comments
The following is a journal entry written at some point during my travels. I offer it to you in hopes of inspiring you to consider the world we live in during your own travels. It is one thing to be a visitor in a foreign land and another to be mindful and conscious of the people and culture you find yourself a part of, even if only temporarily.
When I began traveling, I was worried about how I would be perceived by the world for being American. Leaving the comfort of the United States brought with it an insecurity about my nationality. I worried about how people might respond when they realized that I wasn’t one of them. Would I find myself needing to defend myself for being American? What if I encountered someone who hated me for American foreign policies that I didn’t even understand?
During my trip to Iceland, I overheard conversations of others who were facing the same questions, insecure about being an American in a foreign land. The first of these was while I was waiting to board the plane in Minneapolis. A young girl began chatting with an Icelander, excessively professing her desire to not be one of those Americans, that she represented a different type of American. I wondered to myself if this declaration of superiority over the rest of America wasn’t anything more than a sub-conscience manifestation of her insecurity about not being any different than anyone else.
The next conversation I overheard was in our hostel, when a new guest asked the person working at the desk what he really thought about Americans, and “c’mon, be honest.” I didn’t stick around to eavesdrop on the ensuing conversation, though I wish I would have, since I’ve never been able to be so forthcoming.
While traveling abroad, I have had occasion to discuss America and our politics. In my experience, the world does not hate us as individuals for being American, nor do they hate the United States. The politics and policies of our country may be called into question, though most people understand that not all citizens agree with or even realize the impact of our government around the globe.
Recently I have had people tell me how excited they are about Barack Obama being our President. It isn’t only America that is filled with hope with the election of our President. In Germany, when the owner of a candy store in Heidelberg found out that I was American, he pulled out a big poster of Obama and gave me a big smile and a thumbs up. In Iceland, when I told someone that I thought it was great that their country has more than two parties to choose from, they told me that they were excited about the future of America with the election of Obama. Love him or hate him, Barack Obama is changing the worldview of America.
As you travel the world, be proud to be an American. We live in a great and beautiful country, we should not be insecure. We should be proud but respectful of cultures different from our own. Even though we are searching for affirmation that people do not hate us, rather than proclaiming how different we are compared to other Americans or confronting people about their opinion of a complete stranger, represent yourself in a way that projects a positive image of what it means to be an American. Your behavior and actions are more influential towards forming people’s opinion of Americans (and you) than anything else.
Safe travels!
About Steven
I’ve known some American travelers who would put Canadian flags on their backpacks so that they wouldn’t have to deal with this. I don’t hide that I’m American and so far it hasn’t been too much of a hassle. Most people don’t care. However, some are really confrontational about it. I just try not to get sucked into an argument since that won’t help anything.
@Steve: Welcome! Thanks for the comment. I have heard of people putting the Canadian flag on their bags, I always thought it was stupid. Yeah, the American image is poor around the world but putting another country’s flag on your bag does nothing to improve the image of the US. Admittedly, I haven’t been to “hostile” countries where my citizenship might cause much trouble but no matter where I go, I represent myself (and my country) in a way that is respectable. People might say that it has less to do with the individual than it does that policies of our country, and they might be right, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t project a positive image of Americans.
I think you are right about most people not caring and when I have discussed American politics with people during my travels, they have all been willing to have a conversation which isn’t confrontational. It just depends on the person, I suppose. The only places I’ve ever had issues about being a tourist was when I was in New York City when some guy was complaining to himself about how much he hated tourists.
I think there is a lot of good that can come from having real conversations with people about our country, whether they gain something from you or you gain something from them. For me, travel is all about learning and gaining new perspectives of our world, our culture and our country. Things don’t need to be confrontational, just listen to what they are talking about and empathize with them and their situation. You as an individual aren’t the one making the decisions, and I really think most people realize that. Of course, there will always be nutjobs out there.
Safe Travels!