Why do some people in other countries hate Americans so much?

Question

I've seen lots of questions since I've started to use YA! about people disliking Americans. I never knew so many people harbored such ill feelings towards us. I've never hated a whole country of people before. Why all the hostility towards Americans. Is it the war thing? Is it the people? Is it our president? Is it our politics? Is it a lack of knowledge about the actual people of America? Why?

Answer 1

It's our politics, I think. People are not differentiating between the government and the citizens. The people are, on the average, very good and we Americans are known for our hospitality towards others and our willingness to help. Again, some people are arrogant, small minded and have too high of an opinion of themselves and they give us all a bad name.

Answer 2

I think that they feel that America is interferring with other countries and their politics. In some ways they could be right. America is a powerful nation and we have the technology, the money (well, not any more!), the diplomacy, and education to achiveve great things. Right now, things have gotten out of hand. I believe that America's involvement in Iraq has put other countries at risk-the ones closer to the Middle East. It's true that we need to continuously be on guard for terrorism in our country, but we also need to look out for other countries. It is a catch-22 situation.

Our troops are over-worked and exausted. the resources that have been squandered are not actually making it to the military troops that need it the most. Many of them are staying far too long overseas and are sleep-deprived.

I know many men in the militaray (and a few women), and they all concur with what you stated, that they don't like us. It's the interference that they don't like because they sometimes get caught in the fallout. Bush has made some unwise decisions and now our country is over a trillion dollars in debt-the worst in history. When Clinton was in office we were debt-free for the first time in history. These times are unfortunate and hopefully we will be able to recover and become stronger as a nation before too many holes begin to expand...kind of like Alzheimer's/dememtia! Once the holes begin to widen, the intellect is lost and can never be recovered, which is what has happened in so many of the Middle Eastern countries.

I hope that I answered your question, even though it reflects my own opinion. Have a wonderful day and try not to let this get you down. There is only so much that one person can do. Collectively as a planet we could achieve great things...wouldn't that be the day? What a lovely thought...

Answer 3

I wonder the same thing. Even though I was not borne here, I'm an American citizen and feel the same as you do. I believe that most of it is due to lack of knowledge of our lifestyle and our country. This is the greatest place there is to live in at this time in the history, almost everybody wants to come here.And envy can take you to ugly places. They just don't understand or don't want to understand that people have here great opportunities in all fields to build a successful life. I don't think is the war thing. In that case, the hate would be against the president only. There is a lot more involved in this. One thing I can tell you, most of the people who hate Americans and USA, once the come here and stay for a while and live the way we do...they change their minds.

Answer 4

I don't hate, hate is such a strong word, but I do dislike the general arrogant "know it all" attitude displayed by Americans. There is a world outside of the US and some of us are not impressed by the political double standards that we see. You feed starving people? Great! Then why are some states trying to create laws against feeding homeless people? (Some places have already done that haven't they?) You speak up in the UN but you don't pay for your UN membership. (Or is the debt payed now?) How about the US sending medical aid to other countries while their own people have a need for medical aid? Isn't the Americans worth the effort?
My opinion is that you clean your own house first before you have the right to have opinions about how others clean theirs.

Answer 5

This is the general view of most people I know in britain:

-You all live in the lap of luxury and still complain lifes too hard.
-Your'e all fat
-You have irritating accents
-Very self-centered, you pollute the world and don't give a damn
-Your petrols cheap and ours isn't
-You murder black people in Asia over oil and claim you are their saviours in the process
-You have a psychotic hillbilly in charge of your country
-You butchered the native indians
-America is responsible for Hip-hop
-America has no history yet, thats why its invading everyone, to try and generate some history.
-America is responsible for most of the filth on the internet

Other than that and some other things, what is there to hate about you?

As I can see from other comments, you love yourselfs so much, you think everyone else wants to life in America - Totally not true, a lot of people I know wouldn't go there if they were paid to; Canada, Europe and New zealand are the places everyone in the Uk wants to move to. So shut it!

Answer 6

Due to our lack of nationalism, or because of it, we insert ourselves into situations that do not concern us. It's fine when we are talking about aid but not when it's simply our own interests. If we were truly philanthropic at the government level then we would be actively backing a free Tibet, solving the East African Hunger crises, and there would be no homeless/ hungry here at home... however, none of those things further the capitalistic agenda of those in power.

Answer 7

I’ve been to other international forums, and here’s what I have to sum up from my observations. In the Muslim countries, it’s because of our military support of Israel and our support of the Saudi Royal Family (whom other Jihadist Muslims see the Crown as a lackey to the US). In South America, parts of the Caribbean, and Central America, it’s of our support of their cruel military dictators (since they’re anti-Communist). They have a lot of socialists-communists in Latin America. We also have a 200 year troubled history in Latin America because of the Monroe Doctrine. In Western Europe many of their citizens are going through a self-loathing feeling because of their imperialistic and nationalistic past which later on lead to the Great War (WW1) which beget WW2. Both Conservative and socialist liberals (they also have a lot of socialists in Western Europe) see the United States as a mirror image of their own Superpower past and both loathe and fear its unchecked superpower. So these are some of the main reasons for anti-Americanisms I’ve observed. It’s not because of jealousy. Maybe some of the poor countries might be jealous of their fellow countrymen that immigrated to the US and became successful. (It’s called crab mentality.)

Answer 8

You are Obviously Reading,Watching and Listening to the WRONG Media Coverage!

There are Always going to be People Critical of The Richest, Most Successful Nation on the Planet!
Relax! You're Blessed! Infact we ALL Are!!

Answer 9

They are jealous. Many countries don't have the opportunities we do. People in other countries wish they had the things, theprosperity, the health, the power that we have.

It comes off as arrogance and it seems that we don't share. They often don't look at all we do as a nation and as individuals to help those in other countries.

Answer 10

I think a big part of it is we have a lot more here than people in other countries. Everyone wants to live here but a alot of those people also badmouth America. Never could understand that.