I know it has its problems I have lived there before so going into it with both eyes open. What I’m not so sure on is if things are getting better or worse. With the way mexico is trending as the US continues to crumble I could see guate going either way
You’re a chapín? How old were you when you lived here? I’ll be honest with you. If you think the US is fascist then you’re going to find it even worse here, especially if your family lives outside of the more left-leaning areas like Guatemala City.
Things at the moment are in a deadlock because of how bad the Right-Wing has infiltrated the government. The attorney general was given way too much power and has prevented anything good from passing. I personally think we could move in the same way as Mexico but it’s going to be decades of undoing the damage done from the right-wing in order for that to happen.
My department in particular has seen more left-wing activity increasing because of the work our org has put in but they still have a long way to go. Queer acceptance among them is low and there’s still a good level of sexism.
I would personally advise you to come here only if you have the means to live well. Or if you really, really want to help and not in the bullshit “build a house” missionary approach.
I heavily suggest Mexico, Belize, Nicaragua, or Costa Rica as alternatives. They still have issues but it’s much less than Guatemala.
Edit: I do want to add that I was a lot like you when I decided to come back. Spent my teenage and tween years in the US and came back after an injury ended my D1 athletic career. It was a huge adjustment after living in the US for as long as I did and I chose to stay in my hometown as rundown as it is which added even more to the culture shock. If you choose the city it might be less of an adjustment for you to make.
If you think the US is fascist then you’re going to find it even worse here
I think a lot of PoC in the US are wanting to leave because they’re worried about racism leading to full-on genocide. People are probably thinking it will be easier to deal with fascism and reactionaries if they don’t have to deal with randomly getting arrested for their skin color and sent to a concentration camp.
Personally, I’m not sure because of how things played out in Japan vs. Germany in WWII. Japan did its fair share of persecution of minorities in that time period, such as the Ainu and Okinawans. Or the mass murder of leftists carried out before the war. Yes, Germany carried out the Holocaust, something uniquely evil because of how methodical it was in murdering millions of people. But Japan made up for it in brutality and fervor. Leaving the US only to move somewhere that gets invaded by the US in its final attempts to survive is a whole other set of problems.
Dunno. It’s frustrating living here and dealing with white people who are fucking useless.
It’s 100% the risk of like, can I guarantee I will come home to my family? Even if I’m a citizen if I am in the wrong place at the wrong time can I get swept up? Or if they decide to start going after commies in earnest? Like you know they have our data, Snowden was 20 years ago. The risk is small admittedly but it is nonzero.
It’s hard to know if I’m being cautious or alarmist.
I was afraid you would say that… I haven’t lived there since the 90s but my parents moved back almost a decade ago. I would be fine from a money standpoint since I could probably find a way into earning USD by working remotely for US companies.
Like I get that it’s less than ideal but I wouldn’t run the risk of getting thrown into a van and disappeared. Also there would be the opportunity to contribute to helping folks in a meaningful way.
Its a shame guate ended up so fucked. God bless Amerikkka. At least it’s not el Salvador which somehow bizarrely all the white folks seem to be in love with bukele even though they hate trump
If your family lives in Guatemala City then you should be okay. Obviously stay out of certain zones because they can smell foreigners a mile away regardless of what you look like. People might recommend Antigua but that place might as well be “White People Land” with all the expats living over there. I would still recommend Mexico or Belize but if you still have the citizenship it wouldn’t hurt to give Guate a shot.
Guate actually I have family there
I know it has its problems I have lived there before so going into it with both eyes open. What I’m not so sure on is if things are getting better or worse. With the way mexico is trending as the US continues to crumble I could see guate going either way
You’re a chapín? How old were you when you lived here? I’ll be honest with you. If you think the US is fascist then you’re going to find it even worse here, especially if your family lives outside of the more left-leaning areas like Guatemala City.
Things at the moment are in a deadlock because of how bad the Right-Wing has infiltrated the government. The attorney general was given way too much power and has prevented anything good from passing. I personally think we could move in the same way as Mexico but it’s going to be decades of undoing the damage done from the right-wing in order for that to happen.
My department in particular has seen more left-wing activity increasing because of the work our org has put in but they still have a long way to go. Queer acceptance among them is low and there’s still a good level of sexism.
I would personally advise you to come here only if you have the means to live well. Or if you really, really want to help and not in the bullshit “build a house” missionary approach.
I heavily suggest Mexico, Belize, Nicaragua, or Costa Rica as alternatives. They still have issues but it’s much less than Guatemala.
Edit: I do want to add that I was a lot like you when I decided to come back. Spent my teenage and tween years in the US and came back after an injury ended my D1 athletic career. It was a huge adjustment after living in the US for as long as I did and I chose to stay in my hometown as rundown as it is which added even more to the culture shock. If you choose the city it might be less of an adjustment for you to make.
I think a lot of PoC in the US are wanting to leave because they’re worried about racism leading to full-on genocide. People are probably thinking it will be easier to deal with fascism and reactionaries if they don’t have to deal with randomly getting arrested for their skin color and sent to a concentration camp.
Personally, I’m not sure because of how things played out in Japan vs. Germany in WWII. Japan did its fair share of persecution of minorities in that time period, such as the Ainu and Okinawans. Or the mass murder of leftists carried out before the war. Yes, Germany carried out the Holocaust, something uniquely evil because of how methodical it was in murdering millions of people. But Japan made up for it in brutality and fervor. Leaving the US only to move somewhere that gets invaded by the US in its final attempts to survive is a whole other set of problems.
Dunno. It’s frustrating living here and dealing with white people who are fucking useless.
It’s 100% the risk of like, can I guarantee I will come home to my family? Even if I’m a citizen if I am in the wrong place at the wrong time can I get swept up? Or if they decide to start going after commies in earnest? Like you know they have our data, Snowden was 20 years ago. The risk is small admittedly but it is nonzero.
It’s hard to know if I’m being cautious or alarmist.
I was afraid you would say that… I haven’t lived there since the 90s but my parents moved back almost a decade ago. I would be fine from a money standpoint since I could probably find a way into earning USD by working remotely for US companies.
Like I get that it’s less than ideal but I wouldn’t run the risk of getting thrown into a van and disappeared. Also there would be the opportunity to contribute to helping folks in a meaningful way.
Its a shame guate ended up so fucked. God bless Amerikkka. At least it’s not el Salvador which somehow bizarrely all the white folks seem to be in love with bukele even though they hate trump
If your family lives in Guatemala City then you should be okay. Obviously stay out of certain zones because they can smell foreigners a mile away regardless of what you look like. People might recommend Antigua but that place might as well be “White People Land” with all the expats living over there. I would still recommend Mexico or Belize but if you still have the citizenship it wouldn’t hurt to give Guate a shot.
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