Yemeni-Khaliji-Kalb-Britani-Paki
There is a large Yemeni community in UK (mainly Birmingham, Sheffield, London and Liverpool). It’s amazing. I’ve learned more about my Yemeni traditions living in the UK more than when living in UAE (we’re talking about 17 years here). Actually I feel that in the UAE they are more westernised than many of the people born and bred in the UK.
What I find funny is here among my peers they call me ‘Khaleeji’ (meaning from the Gulf), in UAE its ‘Yemeni’ (if not Yemeni-Kalb) and in Yemen I’m ‘Briatani’ (British). To the yobs in UK I am a ‘Paki’ (any brown color person is a paki to them). Now that’s multiculturalism for you.
Why are we so fixated on affiliating people to a country, a community, a culture and/or a political movement?
Me I prefer just saying I am Arab or Arabi.
What I find funny is here among my peers they call me ‘Khaleeji’ (meaning from the Gulf), in UAE its ‘Yemeni’ (if not Yemeni-Kalb) and in Yemen I’m ‘Briatani’ (British). To the yobs in UK I am a ‘Paki’ (any brown color person is a paki to them). Now that’s multiculturalism for you.
Why are we so fixated on affiliating people to a country, a community, a culture and/or a political movement?
Me I prefer just saying I am Arab or Arabi.
posted by tobasco at 3/12/2007 12:48:00 pm
4 Comments:
aha.. very true.. you know what i like to call myself in the UK "a politically incorrect irhabi" hehe
they love it (the white folk) coz they can't say much to add to it..
excuse me but what significance does the word KALB come into this?
I think it's quite stupid to think of nationality when you're meeting someone for the first time. That dreadful question "where you from?" lol it's so ridiculous! As for the yobs you write about, they're just uneducated. I think most western/educated people don't ask where somebody is from, unless they are intrigued by someone's "exoticness".
The Kalb part was just a joke between me and some old school friends (back in the days) ;)
Thanks for visiting i*maginate. I don't mind people asking where I'm from? Its the way they sometimes draw a generalised persona from the answer.
And Arabi you are :)
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