Everything about Anti-americanism totally explained
Anti-Americanism, often
anti-American sentiment, is opposition or hostility to the people, culture or policies of the
United States. In practice, a broad range of
attitudes and
actions critical of or opposed to the United States have been labeled anti-Americanism. Thus, the applicability of the term is often disputed. that configures the United States and the American way of life as threatening at their core—what
Paul Hollander has called "a relentless critical impulse toward American social, economic, and political institutions, traditions, and values." However, it has also been suggested that Anti-Americanism can't be isolated as a consistent phenomenon and that the term merely signifies a rough composite of
stereotypes,
prejudices and
criticisms towards Americans or the United States.
Whether sentiment hostile to the United States reflects reasoned evaluation of specific policies and administrations, rather than a prejudiced
belief system, is a further complication. Globally, increases in perceived anti-American attitudes appear to correlate with particular policies, such as the
Vietnam and
Iraq wars. For this reason, critics sometimes argue the label is a
propaganda term that's used to dismiss any censure of the United States as irrational.
Discussions on anti-Americanism have in most cases lacked a precise definition of what the sentiment entails, which has lead to the term being used broadly and in a impressionistic manner, resulting in an incoherent nature in the many expressions described as anti-American.
Etymology
In the first edition of
Noah Webster's
American Dictionary of the English Language (1828) the word 'anti-American' was defined as "opposed to America, or to the true interests or government of the United States; opposed to the revolution in America." In France the use of the noun form 'antiaméricanisme' has been cataloged from
1948, entering wide
political language in the
1950s. The related noun "
Americanization" (which is thought often to elicit anti-Americanism) has been dated to a
French source as early as 1867; the verb form, "
Americanize"—"to render American; to assimilate to the Americans in customs, ideas, etc.; to stamp with American characteristics"—was registered in Webster's dictionary of 1828. Labeling earlier attitudes and commentary "anti-American" may be a partly retroactive exercise, but numerous examples of hostile sentiment directed at the country can be found, from at least the late 18th century onwards. The political employment of the word 'Anti-American' may be traced to the end of the
War of 1812 (
1812–
1815), when the
Federalist Party was accused by the
Democratic-Republican press of near-treasonous events at the
Hartford Convention, such as (unfounded) claims of
secession proceedings, and framed as the anti-American Party.
Theory
Definitions
Definitions of the term anti-Americanism have been much debated. German newspaper publisher and political scientist
Josef Joffe suggests five classic aspects of the phenomenon: reducing Americans to stereotypes; believing the United States to have an irremediably evil nature; ascribing to the U.S. establishment a vast conspiratorial power aimed at utterly dominating the globe; holding the United States responsible for all the evils in the world; and seeking to limit the influence of the United States by destroying it or by cutting oneself and one's society off from its polluting products and practices. Other advocates of the significance of the term argue that anti-Americanism represents a coherent and dangerous
ideological current, comparable to
anti-Semitism. Anti-Americanism has also been described as an attempt to frame the consequences of U.S. policy choices as evidence of a specifically American moral failure, as opposed to what may be unavoidable failures of a complicated foreign policy that comes with
superpower status.
Its status as an "
-ism" is a greatly contended aspect, however, and it's often called a
propaganda term by critics who feel it's used to dismiss any censure of the United States as irrational. Brendon O'Connor notes that studies of the topic have been "patchy and impressionistic," and often one-sided attacks on anti-Americanism as an irrational position.
"The concept "anti-American" is an interesting one. The counterpart is used only in totalitarian states or military dictatorships... Thus, in the old Soviet Union, dissidents were condemned as "anti-Soviet." That's a natural usage among people with deeply rooted totalitarian instincts, which identify state policy with the society, the people, the culture. In contrast, people with even the slightest concept of democracy treat such notions with ridicule and contempt. Suppose someone in Italy who criticizes Italian state policy were condemned as "anti-Italian." It would be regarded as too ridiculous even to merit laughter. Maybe under Mussolini, but surely not otherwise. Actually the concept has earlier origins. It was used in the Bible by King Ahab, the epitome of evil, to condemn those who sought justice as "anti-Israel" ("ocher Yisrael," in the original Hebrew, roughly "hater of Israel," or "disturber of Israel"). His specific target was Elijah."
Some have attempted to recognize both positions. French academic
Pierre Guerlain has argued that the term represents two very different tendencies: "One systematic or essentialist, which is a form of prejudice targeting all Americans. The other refers to the way criticisms of the United States are labeled "anti-American" by supporters of U.S. policies in an ideological bid to discredit their opponents." Guerlain argues that these two "ideal types" of anti-Americanism can sometimes merge, thus making discussion of the phenomenon particularly difficult. Other scholars have suggested that a plural of anti-Americanisms, specific to country and time period, more accurately describe the phenomenon than any broad generalization. The widely used "anti-American sentiment", meanwhile, less explicitly implies an
ideology or belief system.
Proposed origins
Amongst theories developed to explain the causes of anti-Americanism two are considered decisive by Rubin et al.: resistance and scapegoating. The first holds that sentiment against America is a response by non-American realists seeking to protect their national interests against U.S. influence. From this perspective, hatred of America reflects "real-life experience" and isn't an irrational or imagined perception. The authors argue that the primary reason for anti-Americanism is "the belief that what underlies all U.S. actions is a desire to take over or remake the world". The scapegoating theory instead regards anti-Americanism as an irrational perception, based on jealousy, delusions or ideological prejudice. Similarly, ideological resistance against the individualism and capitalism which the United States has come to represent has also been mentioned as a source of anti-Americanism.
The scapegoating theory proposes that political elites manipulate anti-American perceptions among the public to distract from domestic problems."
Eighteenth and nineteenth centuries
The degeneracy thesis
In the mid- to late-eighteenth century, a theory emerged among European intellectuals that the New World landmasses were inherently inferior to Europe. The so-called "degeneracy thesis" held that the
humidity and other
atmospheric conditions in America physically weakened both
men and
animals. Purported evidence for the idea included the smallness of American fauna, dogs that ceased to bark, and venomous plants. Native Americans were also held to be feeble, small, and without ardor.
The theory originated with
Comte de Buffon, a leading French naturalist, in his
Histoire Naturelle (1766).
The theory was extended to argue that the natural environment of the United States would prevent it from ever producing true culture. Paraphrasing de Pauw, the
French Encyclopedist Abbé Raynal wrote, "America hasn't yet produced a good poet, an able mathematician, one man of genius in a single art or a single science." The theory was debated and rejected by early American thinkers such as
Alexander Hamilton,
Benjamin Franklin, and
Thomas Jefferson; Jefferson, in his
Notes on the State of Virginia (1781), provided a detailed rebuttal of de Buffon.
Roger suggests that the idea of degeneracy posited a symbolic, as well as a scientific America, that would evolve beyond the original thesis. He argues that Buffon's ideas formed the root of a "stratification of negative discourses" that has recurred throughout the two countries' relationship (and has been matched by persistent
anti-Gallic sentiment in the United States). Other writers critical of American culture and manners included the bishop
Talleyrand in France and
Charles Dickens in England. O'Connor suggests that such prejudices were rooted in an idealized image of European refinement and that the notion of high European culture pitted against American vulgarity hasn't disappeared. He famously stated that, "I am willing to love all mankind, except an American."
World wars
As European immigration to the United States continued and the country's economic potential became more obvious, anti-American stances grew a much more explicit geopolitical dimension. A new strand of anti-American sentiment started to appear as America entered the competition for influence in the
Pacific, and anti-Americanism was widespread among the
Central Powers after the U.S. entered the
First World War. Furthermore, many of the anti-American ideological threads spread to other areas, such as
Japan and
Latin America, where Continental philosophy was popular and growing American power was increasingly viewed as a threat. In political terms, even among the allies of the United States,
Britain and
France, there was resentment at the end of the war as they found themselves massively in debt to the United States. These sentiments became even more widespread during the
interbellum and
Great Depression and sometimes tended toward the
anti-Semitic: the belief that America was ruled by a
Jewish conspiracy was common in countries ruled by
fascists before and during
World War II.
Post-Cold War
Anti-globalism
See also: Anti-globalization
According to its opponents, neoliberal
globalization has magnified the visibility of trade conflicts and decreased job security, and is often attributed to either U.S. or Anglo-American influence Anti-globalist sentiments stem from perceptions that the United States was the inspiration and architect for
globalization and
neoliberal free trade policy, which those opposed to it claim is exploitative, and leads to conditions that either impoverish or don't enrich developing nations. According to some critics, globalization also exposed previously isolated countries to the spread of the English language and American
popular culture, a process that some have labeled
cultural imperialism (see
American Cultural Imperialism). The 'Anglo-American' corporate business model is the subject of much opposition ("
the EU constitution on offer, Laurent Fabius had argued, was too low on social protection and too high on shameful Anglo-Saxon economic liberalism")
Post-Cold War policies
The
fall of the Soviet Union may have brought an increase in anti-Americanism because the U.S. was left as the world's only
superpower and people who formerly saw the United States as a bastion against Communism or needed the American security umbrella no longer felt the need to support the United States. Where the governments of allied states in particular had felt disinclined to openly criticize U.S. policy during the Cold War, they've had fewer such qualms since. "
By cultivating an anti-American position, Europe feigns membership in a global opposition of the downtrodden by America." In addition, criticism of American economic sanctions and embargoes toward various countries, including
Cuba,
Sudan,
North Korea and
Iran, while maintaining commercial relations with countries such as
China generates resentment.
French author Jean-François Revel wrote that "
For skeptics of democratic capitalism, the United States is, quite simply, the enemy. For many years, and still today, a principal function of anti-Americanism has been to discredit the nation that stands as the supreme alternative to socialism. More recently, Islamists, anti-modern Greens, and others have taken to pillorying the U.S. for the same reason.". Also the apparent dismissal of
international law, for example the treatment of detainees, in the
War on Terror has intensified criticism .
Regional attitudes
Anti-Americanism in some form has existed across different American presidential administrations, though its severity may wax and wane considerably depending upon particular economic or geopolitical issues.
George W. Bush's presidency, for instance, is widely seen as inducing a major increase in Anti-Americanism, with the
2003 invasion of Iraq affecting global opinions of the U.S.
Europe
Fabbrini (2004) reports the American invasion of Iraq in the spring of 2003 brought anti-Americanism to the surface of public debate in Europe. The reaction to U.S. unilateralism has been nourished by a complex of fears, two in particular: the presumed economic and cultural Americanization of Europe and the Americanization of the European political process. The overwhelming global power acquired by the United States in the post-Cold War era and the unilateral exercise of that power, especially after
9/11 attacks September 11, 2001 fed the anti-American sentiment contributing to its most militant manifestation. During the
George W. Bush administration, public opinion of America has declined in most European countries. A Pew Global Attitudes Project poll shows "favorable opinions" of America between 2000 and 2006 dropping from 83% to 56% in the
United Kingdom, from 62% to 39% in
France, from 78% to 37% in
Germany and from 50% to 23% in
Spain.
In
Britain, a traditional U.S. ally, public affection for the USA has measurably declined in recent years. A June 2006 poll by Populus for
The Times showed that the number of Britons agreeing that "it is important for Britain’s long-term security that we've a close and special relationship with the U.S." had fallen to 58% (from 71% in April), and that 65% believed that "Britain’s future lies more with Europe than America". Only 44% agreed that "America is a force for good in the world." A later poll reported in
The Guardian during the
2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict said that 63% of Britons felt that Britain is tied too closely to the U.S.
In early 2002, the #1 best seller in France was, which claimed that 9/11 was a conspiracy orchestrated by the U.S. government. It broke the French record for first-month book sales. In Europe in 2002, vandalism of American companies was reported in
Venice,
Athens,
Berlin,
Zürich,
Tbilisi, and
Moscow.
European anti-Americanism well predates the invasion of Iraq and the Bush Administration, with criticisms of American "hegemonism", the coining of the term "hyperpuissance", and the dream of making the EU a "counterbalance" to the United States all flaring up in the '90s. The usual criticisms were also levied, that America was enforcing sanctions against Iraq for oil, and attributing sinister motives to
the bombing of the Chinese embassy in Serbia. French anti-americanism predates the founding of the United States with the belief that it was a barbaric land and all who went there also degenerated.
East Asia
In
Japan and
South Korea, much recent anti-Americanism has focused on the presence and behavior of American military personnel, aggravated especially by high-profile crimes by U.S. servicemembers, such as the
1995 Okinawan rape incident. The on-going U.S. military presence in
Okinawa remains a contentious issue in Japan.
While protests have arisen over specific incidents, they're often reflective of deeper historical resentments. Robert Hathaway, director of the Wilson Center's Asia program, suggests: "the growth of anti-American sentiment in both Japan and South Korea must be seen not simply as a response to American policies and actions, but as reflective of deeper domestic trends and developments within these Asian countries." In Japan, a variety of threads have contributed to anti-Americanism in the post-war era, including pacifism on the political left, nationalism on the right, and opportunistic worries over American influence in Japanese economic life. Korean anti-Americanism after the war was fueled by American occupation and support for authoritarian rule, a fact still evident during the country's democratic transition in the 1980s. Speaking to the Wilson Center, Katherine Moon notes that while the majority of South Koreans support the American alliance "anti-Americanism also represents the collective venting of accumulated grievances that in many instances have lain hidden for decades."The American military situated in South Korea is portrayed as uncaring about the effects their activities have on the locals. The chemical agent used by the American military to combat the monster in the end, named "Agent Yellow" in a thinly-veiled reference to
Agent Orange was also used to satirical effect.
The
CGI for the film was done by
The Orphanage, which also did the CGI of
The Day After Tomorrow.The director, Bong Joon-ho, commented on the issue: "It's a stretch to simplify
The Host as an anti-American film, but there's certainly a metaphor and political commentary about the U.S."Because of its themes that can be seen as critical of the United States, the film was actually lauded by
North Korean authorities, a rarity for a South Korean blockbuster film.
Middle East
The Middle East region has been a focal point of much anti-American sentiment in the latter decades of the
20th century and the beginning of the
21st, often blamed on specific U.S. policies in the region, particularly its close relationship with
Israel and its stance on such matters as
Sudan's civil war and
Darfur. However, some argue that the real roots lay in government policy as reflected in state-directed media. By this reasoning, America is blamed for failed systems in the Middle East, as a means of re-directing internal dissent outwards, towards what Osama Bin Ladin has called "the far enemy", America, instead of at indigenous regimes.
The term
Great Satan, as well as the chant
"Death to America" have been in continual use in
Iran since at least the
Iranian revolution in 1979.The Iranian capital
Tehran has many examples of anti-American murals and posters sponsored by the state; the former U.S. Embassy in the city has been decorated with a number of such murals.
In 2002 and 2004, Zogby International polled the favorable/unfavorable ratings of the U.S. in
Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco and the United Arab Emirates.
In Zogby's 2002 survey, 76% of Egyptians had a negative attitude toward the United States, compared with 98% in 2004. In Morocco, 61% viewed the country unfavorably in 2002, but in two years, that number has jumped to 88 percent. In Saudi Arabia, such responses rose from 87% in 2002 to 94% in June. Attitudes were virtually unchanged in Lebanon but improved slightly in the UAE, from 87 % who said in 2002 that they disliked the United States to 73% in 2004. However most of these countries showed a marked distinction between negative perceptions of the United States, and much less negative of Americans. The report also demonstrates strong unfavorable views of Jews and weakly favorable views of Christians predominate in the Middle East. In Jordan, 61%, Pakistan 27%, and Turkey 16% have favorable views of Christians while in Jordan 1%, Pakistan 6%, and Turkey 15% have favorable views of Jews. Qutb, the leading intellectual of the
Muslim Brotherhood, studied in Greely, Colorado, from 1948-50, and wrote a book,
The America I Have Seen based on his impressions. In it he decried everything in American from individual freedom and taste in music to Church socials and haircuts,.
"They danced to the tunes of the gramophone, and the dance floor was replete with tapping feet, enticing legs, arms wrapped around waists, lips pressed to lips, and chests pressed to chests. The atmosphere was full of desire..."
He offered a distorted chronology of American history and was disturbed by its sexually liberated women:
"The American girl is well acquainted with her body's seductive capacity. She knows it lies in the face, and in expressive eyes, and thirsty lips. She knows seductiveness lies in the round breasts, the full buttocks, and in the shapely thighs, sleek legs -- and she shows all this and doesn't hide it.". Qutb's writings influenced generations of militants and radicals in the Middle East who viewed America as a cultural temptress bent on overturning traditional customs and morals, especially with respect to the relations between the sexes. As Paul Hollander has written:
"The most obvious and clear link between anti-Americanism and modernization is encountered in Islamic countries and other traditional societies where modernization clashes head on with entrenched traditional beliefs, institutions, and patterns of behavior, and where it challenges the very meaning of life, social relations, and religious verities. What becomes of the world when women can go to work and show large surfaces of skin to men they're not related to? In a recent case, the indignant male members of a Kurdish family in Sweden were "provoked" by the transgressing female of their family who had the temerity to have a job and a boyfriend and dress in Western ways. She was finally killed by her father."
Hollander went on to explain that:
"In Arab countries and among Muslim populations, anti-Americanism isn't only the monopoly of intellectuals but also a widespread disposition of the masses. In these areas, traditional religion, radical politics, and economic backwardness combine to make anti-Americanism an exceptionally widespread, virulent, and reflexive response to a wide range of collective and personal frustrations and grievances-and a welcome alternative to any collective or individual self-examination or stock-taking.
More generally, it's the rise of alternatives, ushered in by modernization, that threatens traditional societies and generates anti-American reaction. The stability of traditional society (like that of modern totalitarian systems) rests on the lack of alternatives, on the lack of choice. Choice is deeply subversive-culturally, politically, psychologically.
The recent outburst of murderous anti- Americanism has added a new dimension to the phenomenon, or at any rate, throws into relief the intense hatred it may encapsulate. The violence of September 11 shows that when anti-Americanism is nurtured by the kind of indignation and resentment that in [turn] is stimulated and sanctioned by religious convictions, it can become spectacularly destructive."He is a member of the prestigious and wealthy bin Laden family. In conjunction with several other Islamic militant leaders, bin Laden issued two fatawa—in 1996 and then again in 1998—that Muslims should kill civilians and military personnel from the United States and allied countries until they withdraw military forces from Islamic countries and withdraw support for Israel.
He has been indicted in United States federal court for his alleged involvement in the 1998 U.S. embassy bombings in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania and Nairobi, Kenya, and is on the US Federal Bureau of Investigation's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list.
Bin Laden, on behalf of Al-Qaeda, has claimed responsibility for the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States of America in videos released to the public.
Latin America
In Latin America, anti-American sentiment has deep roots dating back to the 1830s and the Texas Revolution.Other significant 19th century events which led to a rise in anti-American sentiment were the 1846-1848 Mexican-American War, in which Mexico lost almost half of its territory to the US, the 1855 American intervention in Nicaragua and the Spanish-American War of 1898 - which turned Cuba into a virtual dependency of the United States.Perceived racist attitudes of the white Anglo-Saxon Protestants of the north towards the populations of South America also caused resentment.In the twentieth century American support for the 1954 coup in Guatemala against Jacobo Arbenz Guzmán, the United States embargo against Cuba, the 1964 Brazilian coup d'état, Operation Condor, the 1973 Chilean coup d'état, the Salvadoran Civil War, the support of the Contras and the refusal to extradite a terrorist, continued to fueled anti-Americanism in the region.Similarly, U.S. support for dictators such as Augusto Pinochet, Anastasio Somoza, Alfredo Stroessner has influenced regional attitudes.Fidel Castro the revolutionary leader of Cuba has throughout his career tried to co-ordinate long standing South American resentments against the USA through military and propagandist means.
The perceived failures of the neo-liberal reforms of the 1980s and the 1990s intensified opposition to the Washington consensus, leading to a resurgence in support for Pan-Americanism, support for popular movements in the region, the nationalization of key industries and centralization of government.America's tightening of the economic embargo on Cuba in 1996 and 2004 also caused resentment among South American leaders and has prompted them to use the Madrid based Iberian Summit as a meeting place rather than the American dominated OAS.One of the most vocal of these leaders has been Hugo Chávez of Venezuela, who is known for his strong opposition towards the American government, particularly George W. Bush, driving him to address him in many ways; referring to him as "the devil" before the United Nations.He has clearly stated his intent to use Venezuela's oil resources as a card "against the toughest country in the world, the United States."
Quotes
- "The heaviest blow ever dealt at liberty will be dealt by this country [America], in the failure of its example to the earth" - Charles Dickens
- "America is the only country that went from barbarism to decadence without civilization in between." - Georges Clemenceau
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