Should You Be Offended?
We got to the point where people even email us to tell us they feel offended by the word Gringo. I think there is some explanation needed.
The term Gringo is used in different ways, but let’s focus on Colombia. If a person calls you Gringo, they don’t mean to offend you unless they say it in a rude way. Instead of calling you Gringo they could call you “extranjero” which means foreigner.
Back in the days, it was mostly used for North Americans but these days it’s a general term used for foreigners.
People in Latin America are not so fond of political correctness. Meaning they call you the first thing they noticed on you, which can mean they call you, fat, black, skinny, Chinese, etc. This is in no way meant to sound offensive but just another way to communicate here.
Latin America is not the place for political correctness and this is important to know before coming here. Don’t get offended by those terms, visiting another country with other habits and cultures requires an open mind to understand differences.
Watch the whole video in order to find out more about the word’s origin.
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