Why do some Americans feel threatened by the growth of the hispanic demographic?

Question

Take this guy as an example.
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AogZNcVcC3qqK0Z8A2VwhuTsy6IX;_ylv=3?qid=20071121173524AAcIIOw&show=7#profile-info-big9IoOAaa

I say Some Americans, and by judging the answers, the majority. If you read the example page, there was nowhere where it specified illegals.

Answer 1

So your judging all American by one question on yahoo answers. How racist of you. (Sorry, just had see how it felt to use the race card.. and not so good)

Answer 2

They don't feel threatened by Hispanics who legally come here and assimilate and make this country strong, as they have done for hundreds of years. They are afraid of opportunistic, criminal parasites who are here to take, steal, abuse and make enough money to go home a live in squalor. The people they are scared of (rightly so) are the ones who refuse to assimilate, refuse to speak english, demand things, piss on this country and are turning our cities into the same slums where they came from. They are under the impresssion they can live like animals, just like back home and also rake in the money, all while abusing the system. Its like a giant illegal immigrant heaven!

Answer 3

Yanks hate/fear Spanish, people who speak Spanish, Catholics, and many other people.

But Hispanic population is growing, as I heard on TV, because of the immigration ( legal or illegal ), and because the growth rate is much higher than any other group.

Obviously, the yanks have sex strictly according to the law, and since here it is illegal to have sex, they don't do it, or very limitedly. Hispanics, on the other hand, don't believe that nonsense and have sex whenever they want to

To jessica3:
Since I came here, I keep being amazed by the insistence of the yanks in being ignorant and how they brag about it.
I would have never believed it had I not seen it with my own eyes. But still I cannot understand it.

In my country, the more languages you knew, the more you were respected. You were considered a cultured person, but here the yanks brag about speaking only the dialect they call english ( they don't even speak correct english, to begin with ).

To make things more interesting, I have seen yanks who ask ME, the foreigner, how to say something in THEIR language.
I could not believe that

Answer 4

im not "threatened" by anybody. but i recently moved to miami, and before living here i was the biggest supporter for hispanic immigrants and immigrants in general, as my husband is an italian immigrant. but since i have been down here my stance has completely changed and i understand why most americans get annoyed by the recent growth and here it is.....
they refuse to speak english, they have come in such large numbers that they have little need for learning the language of our country and this is very annoying. it shows no respect for the country that let you in. people down here cant even get a job if they dont speak spanish, which it flat out wrong, i have actually met people in businesses, corporate not family owned, who spoke no english, which is annoying for customers like me. the attitude i have come across from many spanish speakers is disrespectful, they actually got mad at me for speaking english.

another reason are jobs, i know i know we talk about it too much, but it is a major factor in people opinions toward specific groups. like i mentioned before if americans cant even get a job because they only speak english, that creates great discontent. also cheap labor, many many people here are not legal, which means they cannot hold a legitimate job only under the table, which puts alot of americans like construction workers etc out of work because the illegals will work for much less money. this is an issue that should be handled by the government.

overall its the despise that grows after a population disrespects a country that allowed them in, by not even assimilating to the smallest degree, which is the language. a medium must be met in communication or conflict will arise.

Answer 5

People, including Americans, always feel threatened by change. For example, look at how the Irish were treated when they started coming to America to escape famine. It's the same concept.

Answer 6

The most obvious reason (which no one else really seemed to address) is that Hispanics are different from the ideal image of an American and it makes those "Americans" feel uncomfortable. Like that person said, there's a lot of stigmas associated with people who are different from "us," and because they're everywhere around "us" it makes the situation different, maybe even a little scary. If you think in terms of what a Caucasian-American might think and how she would feel upon seeing a "cholo" shopping at her local grocery superstore as she's pushing along a stroller, it might help. Not only that, but they eat different food than "us" and have different cultural family values, have lower income, and use their resources differently than we do. Of course they're going to act different from "us" because they really are different from us.

So, if Americans really do, as a whole, feel threatened by the growth of the Hispanic race, this might be a piece of a large puzzle as to why.

Answer 7

i thought race didn't matter in this country. and you guys call yourselves non racists. why would you be conserned about that, europeans took it over, so maybe the indians should be conserned, and now the same natives, only a little to the south are taking it back.
and how racist are most people that posted?? i saw that everyone is concerned about crimes. that means all mexicans do is crimes? if they are born here then their the same american as you so i dont understand the problem if they are born here and the parent isnt what makes the child american???
and for the person that posted above, english isnt an official language of usa, so where is the problem? and florida is originally spanish, so i honestly dont see a problem

Answer 8

Maybe they are just tired of cleaning up after people who don't have the initiative to do it themselves?
I think the Chicanos/Latinos/Hispanic (whatever they call themselves now) should feel threatened. After all, there doesn't seem to be much that they can do. Look at the mess they made in Mexico, Cuba, Argentina, Peru...

Answer 9

I do not think Americans are so threatened by the illegal immigration as they are furious that those who came here legally have to suffer for the invasion of Mexicans.Call it racism if you will, but to see New Haven ,CT become a sanctuary city because the Mayor issued cards, is stuck in my craw. Here is a city with the highest drop out rate, with one of the highest costs per capita for students, highest paid school superintendents, one of the highest subsidised cities in the state giving our tax dollars to support illegals. So much for Liberal Democrats and the useless representative from District Ms, Rosa.

Answer 10

Of all the cultures or legal immigrants from all other countries Mexicans are the only ones who want to be here, but refuse to assimilate themselves into the culture of America.

I worked for a Korean company here in the US and the workers they brought over from S. Korea not only ALL spoke English, they also took on American Nick-names to help themselves to fit in. Yet Mexican demand that we learn their language. In fact recently San Diego experienced wild-fires and a local News-cast on an English station would switch to Spanish. It make no since when there are several Spanish broadcast.

How long will Uncle Sam continue to kiss Mexico's butt?

Answer 11

Americans are not threatened by legal immigration. They are angry with illegal immigration. You of course would rather think its the heritage or background so you can in turn hate Americans. Hispanic is just your security blanket so you can ignore the real issue.