Expats: we’re Americans, but we’re also outsiders. As we’ve stepped outside the bubble of America and often times the west in general, we’ve exposed ourselves to different cultures, ideas, and ways of life. We’ve chosen to live and work in other countries and cultures, built lives, “expat families” and friends. We’ve adapted to new cultures and gained different perspectives on our home country and the world in general. Since moving abroad, every return trip to the US has brought up a lot of the same feelings; disconnected and often unable to relate to the people I’ve left behind.
The disconnect between expats and the rest of America seems even more apparent during this pandemic and comparing the response of our home country to the countries we live in. People argue that the pandemic has brought out the best in people, and it some instances it has. Personally, I can’t help but feeling that the worst of America is on full display, not only within the country, but to the world.
Isolationist mindset – but not an island
When COVID-19 first started popping up in countries outside of China (mostly in Asian
countries) many of my expat friends (particularly in Korea) received panicked requests by concerned family to come back to their home country where it was “safe”. This sort of weird idea that America was somehow safer because it lacked physical proximity to COVID-19 shows an isolationist attitude that has become all too common in America’s approach to dealing with the world. With world travel easier and more accessible than ever before, the idea that the virus wouldn’t make it to the US was absurd. America shares borders with Canada and Mexico; and has over 52 airports with international flights in and out of the country. However, that seemed to be the mindset of not only the leadership, but also many average Americans. COVID-19 is a global problem, that will have global effects for years, and while other countries are coming together in summits to discuss vaccine research and funding, the US notably sat out with the Trump administration saying it “wasn’t worth their time”. For expats, the US’ isolationist. attitude is likely to have a big impact on our lives as the rest of the world works together on solutions and practices to deal with this global problem, the US is excluding itself even though we wish to keep being on the global stage.
Them not Us
A related idea to the “isolation will keep us safe” mentality, is the idea that the virus would only be brought into the country by Chinese citizens, and this later expanded to pretty much anyone of Asian ethnicity. While I’ve heard a lot of people tout Trump’s China travel “ban” (this was later expanded to include Iran, the UK, Ireland and EU Schengen countries), there seems to be a lack of understanding around the ban. First, there isn’t an outright travel ban, there are restrictions. US nationals, their families and permanent residents are free to enter the US from travel and indeed travel back and forth from the US and China. The restrictions prevented non-nationals from entering the US if they had traveled to China 14 days prior. The restrictions were announced on Jan 31st, a month after the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) first admitted there was a new virus and in that month 300,000 individuals traveled between China and the US with no screening or quarantine as the entered and after the restrictions were in place an additional 40,000 individuals traveled to the us from China. Even after the restrictions were in place, no health screening or mandatory quarantine for people returning from oversees was in place (this is still true as of 2 weeks ago when I repatriated from Japan). US nationals and friends of mine, who arrived from South Korea (whose major outbreak started mid-February) and Italy (with an early March outbreak) in mid-March did not receive any health screenings and were not asked to self quarantine, even though COVID-19 was really starting to take off in the US.
Travelers who were given a hard time re-entering the US even as US nationals or permanent residents were those of Asian ethnicity. A friend of mine who repatriated in early April from Indonesia via Japan spoke of seeing a Japanese American man being given a hard time at immigration as to why he was traveling to the US (he is a permanent resident with a job and family in Michigan), she on the other hand breezed right through with immigration not even opening her passport. The idea that he was somehow more likely to be carrying the virus for being ethnically Asian. This them not us idea seemed to transfer a bit as time went on to include people who have traveled abroad vs Americans who have not. Even as it was clear community transfer had been taking place for weeks within the US, those of us returning from abroad were often treated by family and friends as if we were more likely to have the virus then they were.
Land of the free, home of the arrogant…and ignorant
One of the biggest things to stand out to me is the arrogance and ignorance that
Americans continue to exhibit. Due to America’s lack of preparation and acknowledgement that the virus was a potential threat, what many have called drastic and draconian measures have been put in place to help get the virus under control. Playing catch up, it turns out has devastating effects on a country, particularly to employment and the economy. There has been no standard set on the federal level for how the pandemic should be handled, as the president of the US has consistently demonstrated his personal ignorance and arrogance of the situation (but really can you expect anything else from a reality TV personality?), an attitude echoed by his base of support. This has included everything from a denial of COVID-19 as a legitimate threat, to applauding America’s reaction to the virus and refusing to follow basic preventative measures, but nowhere in sight is humility or accountability…from the government or Americans.
Pride goeth before the fall
As American’s we do have a lot to be proud of, just not how we have handled this pandemic. Americans elect officials at all levels of government, who have done the citizens of this country a disservice in how the pandemic has been handled, yet we shy away from holding them accountable. From saying, we got this wrong and we failed. “Americans can’t do any wrong. If they criticize (America) then they’re somehow lowering themselves” Steve Mendenhall an American expat living and working in South Korea shared his thoughts on America’s pride and how it plays a role in the COVID-19 response. Despite the Trump administration (I’m looking at you Jared Kushner) calling this response a success and when compared with many other countries (South Korea, Taiwan, Germany, and New Zealand just to name a few) it is clearly not. Instead of being able to admit that this has been handled badly and looking to countries who have handled it well to see what strategies and measures have been used and what could potentially be implemented in the US. Instead the government keeps talking about what a great job it has done, even calling the response better then South Korea's while failing to come up with a clear path forward, because they are too proud to admit that we messed up and could use some help.
A/ME/rica
The US and indeed many other western countries have long promoted and valued the individual and competitiveness, while the good of the group is generally ignored. In Asian countries, the good of the group is an important part of the culture. And while there is a lot of competitiveness, in the end it’s about how it will benefit society rather than just the individual. Throughout the pandemic Americans have continuously demonstrated this “me first” mentality through panic buying, protesting, and ignoring guidelines put into place to help curb the virus. With social distancing in place in most states, the internet and protests are rife with complaints about how it is “un-American”, “a violation of my rights”, “overbearing and government overreach”. Given the kind of people showing up at these protests, I can say pretty with a lot of confidence that they have never lived in a country with a government that is actually authoritarian and overreaching. The focus is very much on individual wants and not on how it could affect the country as whole, who cares about social distancing? I want a haircut! It’s also a symptom of short-term thinking, no one seems to be thinking about the long -term consequences to the country (both internally and globally) if we re-open with little to no preparation, lack of ability to test, before we’ve seen a decline in cases and no real plan as a country.
Let’s play the blame game
A central theme in the response (or lack thereof) form the federal government is to blame anyone and everyone for both the virus and the response. Donald Trump has led the blame game front with some governors and other state appointed officials following suite…and of
course the American public. Blame has been placed on China, Europe, the media, democrats, local officials (mayors and governors) private companies…literally anywhere it can be thrown, but what is clearly missing is the ability to be humble and accept our own shortcomings, as a country and in our government. People want to blame China and the CCP for the virus and what’s happening in America and the world. Where the virus originated and that country’s response has zero impact on how we react and our actions, so stop blaming China for the US governments lack of preparedness and ability to adjust the response to better handle the situation.
But America is the best in the world…
There’s nothing wrong with national pride, but as I’ve lived in other country’s I’ve come to realize a country is just that… a country. They all have good and bad points to them, however, American’s (especially Trump supporters) tend to view the US through rose colored glasses and have this strange idea that America has the best systems and services in place (healthcare, emergency response, etc…) and products or care in countries outside the US are somehow inferior. We saw Italy’s hospital system become overburdened due to the influx of patients with COVID-19 and I saw many American’s saying this it is because Italy has a socialized healthcare system and this would never happen in America because we have the best healthcare system (I guess they mean private). Other countries have healthcare systems that are just as good, or as the pandemic is proving better. These healthcare systems are private, socialized and a mix of both, and varying budgets and capacities. Having a Good healthcare system is irrelevant if you don’t control the spread of the virus, the hospitals become overwhelmed and staff lack proper PPE and equipment to care for patients.
Panic at the Grocery Store
What really baffled me was the panic induced purchasing of well just about everything, but especially toilet paper and guns. In general America is a country if excess, everything is available at all times in the grocery store and there are an overwhelming number of product options (have you ever been in the cereal aisle?!). While living in various countries in Asia I became accustom to only buying what I would need for a few days, and to having limited options (turns out seasonal produce IS in fact seasonal). In America where access to everything all the time is normal, the idea of having to adjust your consumption to what’s available that day. Panic buying led price gouging and shortages in toilet paper, cleaning supplies and even laundry detergent. People were hoarding masks even before the CDC advised wearing them, while doctors and nurses begged for PPE and states got into bidding wars with each other, the federal government and even other countries trying to acquire them.
I’ve been told that I must hate America and that I have an “anti-American” attitude, this is far from true. I consider myself lucky to have been born in the US, it makes it possible for me to have a job I love and to travel with relative ease. However, I don’t have the luxury of viewing the pandemic in America as a short-term or America only problem. Because I travel in and out of the US frequently and predominately live in a different country, I have to consider how it will impact my life and my ability to return to the US and visit my family and America's standing in the world. Living abroad has vastly changed my perspective and how I view America, and admittedly it’s been frustrating and eye-roll inducing to watch how Americans, both politicians and citizens have acted during this pandemic. As I talked with my expat friends, I found I was not alone in this feeling and that’s how this article came to be. I’d like to give a big thanks to all the expats who shared their thoughts, both quoted and unquoted.
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