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I was born to expat parents far away from my home country - we came back just when I was about to start grade school. As an adult I spent 4 years in Italy which

by Tade0 5y ago

I was born to expat parents far away from my home country - we came back just when I was about to start grade school. As an adult I spent 4 years in Italy which started off with my SO participating in a volunteer program and me tagging along because I secured a remote position, so I was flexible in terms of location. The general conclusion is that you have to have something to run away from or an opportunity to chase. For my father it was a lucrative contract. For my SO a method of breaking away from the environment she grew up in. Also you don't really have to travel to be an outsider. I spent a great deal of time in high school in a catholic bible study circle, even though (or actually - because) I'm an atheist. They were very kind and we had many interesting discussions.

jdmoreira 5y ago
> I was born to expat parents Do you mean your parents were immigrants? Because that's what they were. Expat is the most pretentious colonialist term I can think of.
- jandrewrogers 5y ago
  An expat is not an immigrant. The term "expat" usually denotes a person living outside their native country for a significant period of time. There is no implication that an expat is seeking permanent residency, it is more transient status.
  - toyg 5y ago
    This came up before - the problem becomes that you then have "expats" who never actually go back, but never stop calling themselves such. So transiency is not really the discriminating factor. The term "expat" is indeed a leftover from British colonial times, when you look at things objectively. People who define themselves as expats are typically some sort of migrant for economic reasons, exactly the same as somebody coming from, say, Ethiopia; they just have enough money and culture to escape the label. If we really want to look for something that differentiates expats from regular migrants, we'll find that it is a certain obstinacy to not "go native", to maintain a separatedness from the local culture even after years or decades. Which is, again, a typically colonialistic mindset.
    - yarky 5y ago
      > they just have enough money and culture to escape the label. Exactly. But isn't that true about everything ? Isn't economic/cultural capital what makes us call someone a Doctor/Sir? An expat/immigrant ? > is a certain obstinacy to not "go native", to maintain a separatedness from the local culture even after years or decades. Not exactly, I've met tons of immigrants who never wanted to "go native" as well as several expats who adopted their new culture as theirs. All of this happens in people's minds and whether they ever end up leaving isn't really in the equation.
    - Existenceblinks 5y ago
      And expat in asia gets more biased appreciation than the other way around. Ask asian countries' governments they know exactly how expats work (pun intended).
  - ncpa-cpl 5y ago
    That is the textbook definition, but in reality expat is usually applied to those from higher income countries only. Do this quick experiment, do an image search "expats in <destination_name>" vs "migrants in <destination_name>" and compare the pictures: See what their income appears to be, clothing, skin color and circumstances. Dubai: https://duckduckgo.com/?q=expats+in+dubai&t=h_&iax=images&ia=images https://duckduckgo.com/?q=expats+in+dubai&t=h_&iax=images&ia... https://duckduckgo.com/?q=migrants+in+dubai&t=h_&iar=images&iax=images&ia=images https://duckduckgo.com/?q=migrants+in+dubai&t=h_&iar=images&... Costa Rica: https://duckduckgo.com/?q=migrants+in+costa+rica&t=h_&iar=images&iax=images&ia=images https://duckduckgo.com/?q=migrants+in+costa+rica&t=h_&iar=im... https://duckduckgo.com/?q=expats+in+costa+rica&t=h_&iar=images&iax=images&ia=images https://duckduckgo.com/?q=expats+in+costa+rica&t=h_&iar=imag... For example, for 'expats in Costa Rica' I got shown a couple in an outdoor hotel, and for 'migrants in Costa Rica' I got shown the Immigration Police detaining a group from Africa and a dozen people sharing a bed.
    - jdmoreira 5y ago
      Exactly. Calling yourself an expat is essentially: 1. Detaching yourself from the label immigrant because you feel it's demeaning 2. Assuming you are better than other people
k__ 5y ago
"you have to have something to run away from or an opportunity to chase." I ran away from local companies, because they paid shitty and didn't let me work from home. Fast forward, Corona hit, and my job didn't change, it even got better.
TimedToasts 5y ago
> Also you don't really have to travel to be an outsider. I spent a great deal of time in high school in a catholic bible study circle, even though (or actually - because) I'm an atheist. They were very kind and we had many interesting discussions. I have a similar type of experience with a religious group and it's stayed with me for a long time. I had a lot of great experiences with them and it absolutely changed me for the better. Peace to you.

by Tade0 5y ago

jdmoreira 5y ago

> I was born to expat parents Do you mean your parents were immigrants? Because that's what they were. Expat is the most pretentious colonialist term I can think of.

jandrewrogers 5y ago
An expat is not an immigrant. The term "expat" usually denotes a person living outside their native country for a significant period of time. There is no implication that an expat is seeking permanent residency, it is more transient status.
- toyg 5y ago
  This came up before - the problem becomes that you then have "expats" who never actually go back, but never stop calling themselves such. So transiency is not really the discriminating factor. The term "expat" is indeed a leftover from British colonial times, when you look at things objectively. People who define themselves as expats are typically some sort of migrant for economic reasons, exactly the same as somebody coming from, say, Ethiopia; they just have enough money and culture to escape the label. If we really want to look for something that differentiates expats from regular migrants, we'll find that it is a certain obstinacy to not "go native", to maintain a separatedness from the local culture even after years or decades. Which is, again, a typically colonialistic mindset.
  - yarky 5y ago
    > they just have enough money and culture to escape the label. Exactly. But isn't that true about everything ? Isn't economic/cultural capital what makes us call someone a Doctor/Sir? An expat/immigrant ? > is a certain obstinacy to not "go native", to maintain a separatedness from the local culture even after years or decades. Not exactly, I've met tons of immigrants who never wanted to "go native" as well as several expats who adopted their new culture as theirs. All of this happens in people's minds and whether they ever end up leaving isn't really in the equation.
  - Existenceblinks 5y ago
    And expat in asia gets more biased appreciation than the other way around. Ask asian countries' governments they know exactly how expats work (pun intended).
- ncpa-cpl 5y ago
  That is the textbook definition, but in reality expat is usually applied to those from higher income countries only. Do this quick experiment, do an image search "expats in <destination_name>" vs "migrants in <destination_name>" and compare the pictures: See what their income appears to be, clothing, skin color and circumstances. Dubai: https://duckduckgo.com/?q=expats+in+dubai&t=h_&iax=images&ia=images https://duckduckgo.com/?q=expats+in+dubai&t=h_&iax=images&ia... https://duckduckgo.com/?q=migrants+in+dubai&t=h_&iar=images&iax=images&ia=images https://duckduckgo.com/?q=migrants+in+dubai&t=h_&iar=images&... Costa Rica: https://duckduckgo.com/?q=migrants+in+costa+rica&t=h_&iar=images&iax=images&ia=images https://duckduckgo.com/?q=migrants+in+costa+rica&t=h_&iar=im... https://duckduckgo.com/?q=expats+in+costa+rica&t=h_&iar=images&iax=images&ia=images https://duckduckgo.com/?q=expats+in+costa+rica&t=h_&iar=imag... For example, for 'expats in Costa Rica' I got shown a couple in an outdoor hotel, and for 'migrants in Costa Rica' I got shown the Immigration Police detaining a group from Africa and a dozen people sharing a bed.
  - jdmoreira 5y ago
    Exactly. Calling yourself an expat is essentially: 1. Detaching yourself from the label immigrant because you feel it's demeaning 2. Assuming you are better than other people

k__ 5y ago

"you have to have something to run away from or an opportunity to chase." I ran away from local companies, because they paid shitty and didn't let me work from home. Fast forward, Corona hit, and my job didn't change, it even got better.

TimedToasts 5y ago

> Also you don't really have to travel to be an outsider. I spent a great deal of time in high school in a catholic bible study circle, even though (or actually - because) I'm an atheist. They were very kind and we had many interesting discussions. I have a similar type of experience with a religious group and it's stayed with me for a long time. I had a lot of great experiences with them and it absolutely changed me for the better. Peace to you.