Colombian Transculturation:

The United States seems destined by Providence to

plague America with misery n the name of liberty

The stigma of Paisas--natives of Medellín and its surroundings--being involved in drug trafficking has been ongoing since their victory of the Colombian-Cuban drug war in Miami during the seventies. In the streets of Colombia the story is different. Millions of citizens are haunted by memories of homicide, kidnapping and extortion. Colombians fear narcotraficantes because they have witnessed over and over how they betray their countrymen to achieve their purposes. To avoid crime and violence Colombians have protested, formed paramilitary groups against the narcotraficantes and thousands have given up their lives. Colombian citizens, including Paisas, are not in agreement with the trafficking of drugs. Most unfortunately, the effort of the majority of Colombians to end this war is overshadowed by the wrongdoing of a few. United States hegemony has ultimately shifted the blame to the oppressed country. Many Colombians feel guilty because of the constant criticism they rec

m in the United States. The portrait of Colombians in Hollywood as modern antagonists not only inferiorities upstanding Paisas but spreads a bad reputation throughout the world. The results are movies like this one made in New Zealand:

Unfortunately, many fail to see the potential. The achievements of all Paisas are eclipsed by the destruction caused by a few narcotraficantes. Nevertheless, Medellín is one of the most prosperous cities in Latin America. Paisas built the first metropolitan train system in the Colombia and one of the firsts in Latin America. Like most Colombians, Paisas driven to success, letting little stand in their way. Milton S. Eisenhower author of the book The Wine is Bitter: The United States and Latin America had this to say about them: “They are the most engaging persons I have met in a lifetime of travel to most parts of the world.... They are a hard-working people who cherish individualism and human dignity” (xiii). There’s a common saying that un Paisa nunca se vara--Paisas always overcome the most difficult odds--which perfectly describes them. It captures the cleverness and tenacity typical of Paisas. They are also Colombia’s most successful entrepreneurs!

White (Creole or European) Indian Mestiso

isolation in the interior highlands of Colombia is reflected in a determined conservatism and a marked cultural particularism. Being Antioqueño

such interposition, in any form, with indifference.

The need for Paisas to compare themselves to another’s standards began with the discovery of Latin America. Mary Louise Pratt, author of the book Imperial Eyes, talks about the discrepancy between the European and the Latin American individual. She defines these differences as contact zones or “social spaces where disparate cultures meet, clash, and grapple with each other, often in highly asymmetrical relations of domination and subordination--like colonialism, slavery, or their aftermaths as they are lived out across the globe today“ (4). She exemplifies her contact zones by referring to an old text written by an Andean named Felipe Guaman Poma de Ayala. In it, Ayala describes to King Phillip III of Spain the Inca Empire as being made up of both Amerindian and European laws. This Peruvian writer sent his King a letter in which the Inca laws were fixed to please him. Unfortunately, he also risked losing an empire’s identity. But Ayala was neither the first nor the last to accept foreign influence at a high cost. Since its discovery, Latin America has found itself in confusion, in a search for an identity. Schutte illustrates; “[The Latin American] is a divided and incomplete being since the time of the colony. ‘A historic destiny placed those men in the midst of two worlds neither one of which is fully theirs. He is no longer European, because he lives in America, nor is he American because he preserves a European sense of life atavistically”’ (81). Paisas have been struggling to compare themselves to Europeans since they conquered the Americas. Up until the 18th century, the purity of the white race was a factor major importance in Latin America. In fact, a system was developed to classify purity among Latin Americans. The following table is an extract of a longer list of categories:

Some topics in this essay:
Latin Americans, North American, Latin American, Latin America, Paisas--natives Medellín, Sadly Colombia, United Colombians, United Fidelity, Colombia United, South America’, latin america, latin americans, latin american, american individual, latin american individual, discovery latin america, discovery latin, drug traffic colombia, throughout world, consumption united, america paisas, negro negro, paisas realize value, creole european, latin america paisas,