Why are white people expats when the rest of us are immigrants?

[Cal Carpenter]

Why are white people expats when the rest of us are immigrants?
Surely any person going to work outside their country is an expatriate? But no, the word exclusively applies to white people
by Mawuna Remarque Koutonin

In the lexicon of human migration there are still hierarchical words, created with the purpose of putting white people above everyone else. One of those remnants is the word “expat”.

What is an expat? And who is an expat? According to Wikipedia, “an expatriate (often shortened to expat) is a person temporarily or permanently residing in a country other than that of the person’s upbringing. The word comes from the Latin terms ex (‘out of’) and patria (‘country, fatherland’)”.

Defined that way, you should expect that any person going to work outside of his or her country for a period of time would be an expat, regardless of his skin colour or country. But that is not the case in reality; expat is a term reserved exclusively for western white people going to work abroad.

Africans are immigrants. Arabs are immigrants. Asians are immigrants. However, Europeans are expats because they can’t be at the same level as other ethnicities. They are superior. Immigrants is a term set aside for ‘inferior races’.


----snip----

http://www.theguardian.com/global-development-professionals-network/2015/mar/13/white-people-expats-immigrants-migration?CMP=share_btn_tw

[blkmusclmachine]

1. n/t

[NoJusticeNoPeace]

2. Cant be, discrimination based on race? Nah, you are making this up

White people getting privileges nobody else gets?

NEVER


No, I do NOT get privilege

[Igel]

16. You draw the wrong distinction.

It's what you see. That's the problem with unchecked confirmation bias.

The western EU countries have a thing about immigrants. They don't like them. They had big public controversies over Bulgarians, Poles, Serbs, Croats, Slovenes, Balts, and even Czechs. "Polish plumber" was a scare-term in the British media. Russians are also immigrants.

A large proportion of Poles are blond. Balts have a higher percentage of blonds. Few are what most would, these days, call "non-white." And yet they were denied white privilege? Heck, some of them make a lot of German "master racers" look like they have a permanent tan.

Although there was an interesting observation made in the mid-70s that given the percentage of Polish-American citizens, there were more African-American representatives in Congress than Polish-American-surnamed representatives. So I guess there's that. Still, the easy answer doesn't seem to be the right answer.

I've known expats in the US, and most were from Western European countries (oddly, some were also from African countries, some Arab but most from Africa were sub-Suharan; none that bore that title were from Asia). Most were here under their own juice--not brought by parents. Most had funds for surviving, or decent jobs; and most were here because they felt alienated from their countries of origin, or their families. All were legal. Most were fully adult, often older, and this was back in the '90s. It's sort of an outdated term, if you ask me. Or perhaps British, since it was mostly Commonwealth countries or natives that used the term. I think I heard it mostly in a British-style pub in Santa Monica, when I lived Santa-Monica adjacent.

I've also known some expats in Prague, back when Prague had an American ex-pat community worth the name. Mostly white, they were a bit diverse. But again, there weren't any economic refugees that weren't also political refugees. Some of the Americans sort of got stranded and kept the name: They went native, married local, or managed to be made long-term and get set up economically on their own. The term's still a bit outdated, and got stuck on the Americans on the Vltava because they fancied themselves sort of a "lost generation" on a 1990s East European "West Bank." "Expat" isn't what the Czechs called them, of course, but what they pretentiously called themselves.

[ND-Dem]

19. People who don't know history say dumb things.

"An Interview with Expatriate Richard Wright in Paris" 1951

https://books.google.com/books?id=8IH-sVhHmrMC&pg=PA151&dq=expatriate+richard+wright&hl=en&sa=X&ei=0bgDVZn0ItTloASvqoG4Aw&ved=0CCcQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=expatriate%20richard%20wright&f=false


...the expatriate lifestyle proved to be a liberating experience for (James) Baldwin...

https://books.google.com/books?id=5xGOpEVNU5UC&pg=PA72&dq=expatriate+james+baldwin&hl=en&sa=X&ei=hbkDVcTOB5CeoQSy7oDQCw&ved=0CCgQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=expatriate%20james%20baldwin&f=false


Eugene Bullard, Black Expatriate in Jazz-Age Paris
https://books.google.com/books?isbn=0820328189

Craig Lloyd - 2006 - ?Preview - ?More editions
There, for twenty-five years, he helped define the expatriate experience for countless other African American artists, writers, performers, and athletes. This is the first biography of Bullard in thirty years and the most complete ever.


Deep Are the Roots: Memoirs of a Black Expatriate
https://books.google.com/books?isbn=1558490205

Gordon Heath - 1996 - ?Preview - ?More editions
This work presents the memoirs of Gordon Heath (1918-1991), an actor whose career spanned five decades on the stages of New York, London and Paris.


Black Writers Abroad: A Study of Black American Writers in ... - Page 145
https://books.google.com/books?isbn=081532751X

Robert Coles - 1999 - ?Preview
Toward the end of the 1960s, the impact of black expatriate writers upon American society began to subside. In Paris, the twentieth century home for black expatriates, with Richard Wright dead, James Baldwin gone, and William G. Smith ...



American Africans in Ghana: Black Expatriates and the ...
https://books.google.com/books?isbn=0807830089

Kevin Kelly Gaines - 2006 - ?Preview - ?More editions
In 1957 Ghana became one of the first sub-Saharan African nations to gain independence from colonial rule...

etc.

https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&hl=en&q=black+expatriate&=

[melman]

21. pwned

As the kids used to say.

[DCBob]

3. I think the distinction is the reason the person is there.

An expat would not be working there due to dire economic need as opposed to a typical migrant worker.

[rogerashton]

4. Interesting. My first thought was

expatriates are immigrants with money. But then, there are Arabs with potloads of money and they are immigrants.

Russians, too. But -- are Russians white? Are they really?

[Cal Carpenter]

5. Russians are called expats if they were "fleeing communism"

Versus just being here for school or some other reason. Then they are immigrants.

[Blue_Tires]

6. I though "expats" were people comfortable enough financially

to move/live/work/retire in a different country? Also expats may or may not stay long term, i.e., an American expat moving in Italy for a couple of years may decide to live in Malta for a couple of years...

While "immigrants" are more people moving to their new country more out of desperation (war, political instability, lack of opportunity) than choice...Also "immigrants" are in their new country for life -- Have families, and try to fully integrate themselves to their new land...

[Art_from_Ark]

20. In Canada, they use the term "landed immigrant"

to refer to "a person who has changed their permanent residence to a Canadian state where they have residency rights even though they don't have Canadian citizenship rights".

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

7. I always thought the difference was

'expats' are people who left 'here', 'immigrants' are people who are coming 'here'. (For any given value of 'here'.) 'emigrants' sounds too similar to 'immigrants'.

I don't go around calling white Europeans in America 'expats'.

[daleo]

12. That's always been my take on it

Also, immigrants usually want citizenship in their adopted country, while expats often prefer to hold on to their original citizenship, regardless of how long they have been gone from it.

[WDIM]

8. in midwest "america" ie oklahoma texas anybody that doesnt speak with

"An american accent" is an immigrant. You'd never hear the word expatriat except maybe in scholarly settings.

If you are from out of country in that part of the US you are an immigrant by most people's standards.

When does this label get applied? Is this in customs on the passport? It is an interesteding question if only white euros are labeled expats.

[treestar]

9. I've never seen that

Europeans who immigrate the United States are immigrants.

Expats are Americans who went abroad to live and work elsewhere and become citizens of another place. It is simply the view from the country left.

Emigrant is another word. You're an Emigrant from the country you left. You're an immigrant to the country to which you go. Your assertion about use of the word expat seem false to me. Nobody calls immigrants here expats. They may call themselves that, but in calling themselves that, they are referring to the country they emigrated from.

A Kenyan immigrant to the US is as entitled to the term expat (of Kenya) as a Swedish immigrant to the US is to expat of Sweden.

[romanic]

10. The author of the article

clearly ignored the many Europeans who came to the US; they too were called immigrants. What a shit article. :/

[Nye Bevan]

11. So we should be referring to all the Irish and Italian "expats" in New York City? (nt)

[WillowTree]

13. I guess I'd rather be called an immigrant than a former patriot. Just sayin'.

[Nay]

15. The 'patriate' part of expatriate doesn't refer to the patriotism of the expatriate. It simply

means 'country.' Thus, ex (out of) patriate (country) means a person who is gone from his country. Not that he is unpatriotic toward his country.

[Igel]

17. Not "ex-patriot."

Someone who was "expatriated."

Dictionary.com. Rather than introspect too much.

verb (used with object), expatriated, expatriating.
1. to banish (a person) from his or her native country.
2. to withdraw (oneself) from residence in one's native country.
3. to withdraw (oneself) from allegiance to one's country.
verb (used without object), expatriated, expatriating.
4. to become an expatriate: He expatriated from his homeland.

adjective
5. expatriated; exiled.

noun
6. an expatriated person.

All expats are immigrants; not all immigrants are expats.

Strikes me that a low frequency also helps: Otherwise you're assumed to be one of the many who wasn't banished or withdrew for political/social reasons but are simply economic or wartime refugees.

ex 'out of'
patria 'fatherland'
Latinate word.

[WillowTree]

18. Geeze guys!! It was a little teeny joke!

I mean, my folks spent a lot of money sending me to college and all.................

[anotojefiremnesuka]

22. Becasue in 'merica for the last 50+ years if you is white you is all right if black or brown

keep em down.

Yes white immigrants were single out and discriminated against too mainly because of their religion the 2 of the biggest examples the Irish Catholics and Jewish Immigrants.

[woohaha]

23. Numerous online examples of "expat" being applied to non-whites

What I find fascinating about this case, is that the assertion underpinning the article simply doesn't stand up to the most cursory scrutiny.

Spend 5 seconds searching google and you'll find a bunch of examples of "expat" being applied to non-whites.

http://www.newindianexpress.com/nation/Sushma-Denies-Indian-Expats-Death/2015/05/29/article2838271.ece

http://www.gulf-times.com/qatar/178/details/441049/118-deaths-of-indian-expatriates-reported-this-year

http://www.theroot.com/articles/culture/2015/05/black_in_thailand_we_re_treated_better_than_africans_and_boy_do_we_hate.html

I think Koutonin should get down off his high horse and learn how to use a search engine.