why do brits hate yanks?

Question

recently i heard that anti americanism is rampant in britain. why is this? what sense does it make to hate millions of people you never met? do you control what your government does?contrary to what the media tells you, we are not all fat loud obnoxious and uncooth and think we are better than everyone. sure we have jerks living here, but name one country that doesnt. if we believed everything the media says about you, we would think youre all snooty rich pompouses with bad teeth and your women don't shave their legs or armpits. but we know better.

Answer 1

I'm originally from Ohio and have lived in Britain for over six years now and I will tell you that yes, there is definately a perception that all Americans are fat, loud and have a major superiority complex. Yet hand on heart, there are PLENTY of fat, loud and obnoxious Brits who have major superiority complexes (football hooligans anyone?). You see these obnoxious Brits in Greece, Cyprus and Spain expecting to be treated extra-special just because they're Brits. Pop into Harrods in London and you'll see the same type of Yanks. Embarrassing on both counts! My point is this, there are lots of horrible Brits AND Yanks out there. Why not ignore them and just focus on the friendly ones..the ones that bend over backwards to make you feel welcome in both countries and STOP this insane popularity contest and slagging match. Hearing insults thrown back and forth is so tiring and childish and whenever we start doing that we're all (Brits & Yanks) just living up to the stereotype that the rest of the world has set for all of us.

P.S. And as far as the Yanks being way too patriotic do any of the Brits remember how INSANE this country got during the World Cup and European Championships? If you're going to accuse the Yanks of being overpatriotic then you need to own up to the fact that you all are as well when football is involved.

Peace everybody!


It's Just a Junk: Hate is a strong word and I feel so sorry for you if you feel you have to "hate" an entire country of people based on a post on Yahoo Answers. :-(

Answer 2

All of these posters are saying that the America media is lying when they say that a lot of people hate the US in Britain. Maybe it's been exaggerated, but the vast majority of British people I know can't stand most Americans for the following (rather stereotypical) reasons:
1. Nationalism bordering on insanity
2. Rude juggernauting through everywhere they go
3. Obesity
4. Embarrassing war-mongering President

Sure, the media might not be 100% accurate, but from the people I've encountered from the UK, the view of Americans isn't in an exactly positive light.

Some of you answerers are doing a stellar job bashing the asker for being a stupid yank for believing that a lot of Brits have a negative view of Americans while simultaneously showing how much of a hypocrite you are. Great job, gents.

There is absolutely no point in hating an entire population, especially if the faults that one country is supposedly guilty of also affects the countries that accuse the former. There are bad eggs in every country, every group.

For the record, I'm American, or whatever.

Answer 3

I think the reality here is 95% of all people from all counties have little to no issue with 95% of all people from all other countries. Sadly, you get the 5% inward looking bigoted types in all nations, and it is this type of person that draw's the greatest attention. Do the majority of Brit's hate Americans - No. Having been in America for several months moving around the East coast I can also say: Do American's hate Brit's - No. Yes, you do get the odd American idiot who believes their country is the be-all and end-all, but you get people like that in all countries. I admit that the shear lack of understanding many Americans have toward the rest of the world is immensely annoying. However, some of the best people I have had the pleasure of meeting have been American. I also found Americans to be the most hospitable people I have ever met while over there, with a genuine interest in knowing where I was from and why I decided to come to the US.

Answer 4

Firstly, your statement is too severe. You should never generalize on the basis of the most eccentric. Secondly, if there are some negative feelings (hate is an inappropriate word when dealing with people you don't know that well), in my opinion, it's mostly political. So you shouldn't worry about it. Finally, I'm sure there's a number of Americans that don't like the Brits, or even Europeans in general.

Answer 5

The Brits aren't the ones you should be worried about,It's more like the whole world. And if you really don't know why anti-Americanism is on the rise, well I guess I won't tell you .. but I'm sure your media can , you seem to believe in it a whole lot , true or not.

Answer 6

i think it's not a matter of "anti-Americanism" in Britain, but rather that *most countries* find Americans too brash! It's your politics and the media that's the cause. Plus, just about everyone has a story about that American tourist that they met!

BTW, i thought it was Frenchwomen who are said to not shave their legs or armpits?

Answer 7

You're probably listening to the same media that says that all Muslims hate Americans. Things that American media makes money off: Anti-Bush sentiment, Anti-American sentiment (at least policy), and people dieing.

Answer 8

Real Brits love Americans. I know because I have friends in UK for over 35 years, and my neighbours here in California on both side are Brits. Very nice people. Very nice neighbors. And their teeth are in fine shape.
I Corinthians 13;8a, Love never fails!!!!!
10-16-6

Answer 9

Your question should be "What sort of Americans do Brits hate?)". The answer is the unculitvated and loud Americans who visit British museums, theatres etc and have no idea what they are looking at.

Answer 10

I have never heard that British women dont shave their legs or armpits - this is complete rubbish. British women would shave as often as any Aussie woman.