They Call Our Currency Lettuce: Waking Up Globally

by Neely Baugh

"No, the United States is not socialist."

"But...the healthcare?"

"It’s a socialist idea, like an experiment. We have some systems that are based on socialism, but we’re still a capitalist nation."

"...how?"

"...that’s just the basis of the country. I would like it to change, but I don’t think that will ever happen."

"So the United States is not socialist?"

"........"

That is a roughly translated conversation that I had with two of my new friends in Santiago, Nelson and Edwin, the night guards at the front desk of our apart-hotel. Rachel C. and I met these two wonderful people our first week here, and have occasional conversations with them when we wander through the lobby while they are on duty. These conversations usually last upwards of an hour and a half and the topics of discussion range from the Beatles (VERY popular here in Chile), the history of “chilenismos” (Chilean slang), or swapping old family photos. That night, they brought up the U.S., asking questions about Obama: What things has he tried to improve? How did he get re-elected? And of course, Is the U.S. socialist now?

Regardless of whether the U.S. is or ever will be socialist, Chileans are often quite interested in U.S. politics and government. Granted, the United States does affect the global economy quite a bit and our culture is pervasive to some extent in most parts of the world. But Chileans (as I have been told is also the case in many other countries) can demonstrate a rather impressive interest and/or knowledge about U.S. politics. On the other hand, I had never heard of important Chilean figures such as Pedro de Valdivia, Salvador Allende, and Michelle Bachelet before preparing for this trip. I had no idea that Chile’s current democracy is only slightly older than I am, or that September 11th to Chileans means the day in 1973 that the socialist government was overthrown in a military coup (aided in part by the U.S. CIA), or that they underwent a dictatorship from ’73-‘89 that Chileans do not bring up in polite conversation to this day.  

My observation of the Chileans’ heightened sensitivity to goings-on in the U.S., contrasted with my stunning lack of knowledge about this country before living in it has made me realize the importance of being globally aware. Not every country is like the States; in fact, no country really is at all. And it doesn't matter how prominent our culture becomes or how many U.S. dollars (or “lechuga” [lettuce] as some Chileans call them) we print, we’re still part of a world made up of countries vastly different from our own, with something unique to offer the global community. Through many learning experiences I have had in Chile (still in progress and too numerous to discuss here), I hope to be a different person in many ways when I return to the States. I hope to be more conscious of other cultures, more aware of how spending money affects the global economy, and more interested in the kinds of lives people are experiencing all over the world.