Ah, the age-old European tradition of poking fun at the geography skills of our dear American friends. It’s a pastime as old as time, rooted in the sense of historical superiority and the belief that the Old World is the center of the universe. But let’s not forget that many Europeans can hardly point to Minnesota on a map, and some don’t even know that the USA stands for “United States of America.” They might know what the word “state” means, but in this context, they think it’s just another word for “province.” This kind of lazy stereotyping leads to all Americans being labeled as fat, religious gun-toting, death penalty-supporting evolution-deniers.
But wait, hold on a second! Being sloppy and disregarding detail is not very European of us, now is it? So, I’ve taken it upon myself to refine European prejudices of the US by educating my fellow continentals on the diverse and varied geography that the US has to offer. Why settle for broad generalizations when we can assign specific stereotypes to different regions? The more nuanced and specific our bigotry becomes, the less it will be perceived as such because people are trained to associate stereotypes with generalizations. And let’s be honest, isn’t that much more fun?
Source: Atlas of Prejudice