Fantastic intro! I feel the same way. Stereotypes aren’t a problem as long as they are flexible and nuanced and always evolving. And also it’s best to make stereotypes with some input from people who understand the place or people better than you.
I didn’t really have this image, but then again I don’t watch many Hollywood movies or pay attention to drug news. My image of Colombia is more like a jungle with a few friendly cities, maybe not super rich and maybe not safe for naive North Americans but with a lot of really beautiful peaceful and natural people. I guess my first thought when I think of Colombia is “aren’t they one of the countries that got fucked by my home country?”
I want to learn more about the real Colombia from you!
You do not watch too much mainstream media, indeed, if you don't match Colombia with cocaine. In my brainstorming, I also included the one you mentioned: Colombia as a big forest, along with violence (but it's a reality rather than a stereotype), superficial women, etc... In the end, I chose the harshest one and focused only on that one.
Yes, Colombia has a ridiculously huge debt with the IMF, and the USA, and perhaps with the EU, and the rest of the alphabet... It's a paradox since capitalism got stronger thanks to the gold and silver of these lands. However, Colombia is one of the richest countries!!! I mean, not economically speaking, but countries like China, Canada, and Spain know that, and now they are buying our rivers, mountains, and forests... and yes, Colombia is also in the loooong list of countries being fucked by the USA.
This world is a mess!
I send loooove to you, thanks for dropping your comment :)... For sure, I´ll coninue making posts about Kolombia since I realized it's kind of a therapeutic exercise.
However slow it might feel sometime, I think we are all waking up, one by one, to the fact that we are one big family and need to start acting like it. The people at the top will be the last ones to figure it out, and by then they will already be irrelevant. <3