I’ve been picking up some disturbing scuttlebutt about foreigners behaving badly in our community, making me worry that a few “Ugly Gringos” may give all of us expats a bad name.

Political correctness be damned, I use the term gringo loosely to refer to an immigrant of any nationality who would likely be identified as such by appearance, attitude or behavior. And here are some examples of the unforgivable actions that put us in a bad light.

Last week a high ranking city hall official said he caught sight of an “American” woman dumping a load of building rubbish on the shoulder of the Libramiento by-pass. He pulled over and got out of his car to tell her she was breaking the law. She jumped behind the wheel of her pick-up and sped away, burning rubber in the wake. 

Now I have my beefs about some ways the local government does business, but the current administration has made a commendable effort to keep the gateways to the community looking tidy and free of litter. It’s no easy task. There’s no excuse for gringos to add to a persistent problem.

And that goes for the folks who put their garbage bags out on the curb at all hours, creating temptations for roaming animals and scavengers to bust them open and spread filth on the streets. Although service is often irregular, shouldn’t we try to adhere to trash pick-up schedules to keep the community clean? And why not separate reusable materials from other household wastes to help the garbage men cull stuff for recycling.  

I‘ve  heard numerous accounts of gringos chewing out bank clerks, restaurant help, office workers and other service providers over petty grievances.  There’s nothing wrong in expressing dissatisfaction. It can be done without shouting, cursing and snapping fingers.  Bullying, in fact, is often counterproductive. It’s especially offensive when it comes with an air of superiority.   

Like me, you’ve probably overheard gringos conversing in public places about the things they abhor about this country, its people and customs. They don’t seem to know or care that any one of the Mexicanos within hearing distance may be fluent in our language. Who are we to think we can impose our “better” ways? Nobody made us come here.  

Then there are the gringos who admit to shelling out bribes, or blowing off traffic tickets because they drive foreign-plated vehicles that can’t easily be tracked down by the authorities.  It takes a lot of gall to flaunt the law and then complain about Mexican corruption. 

The Chapala area’s native folks have been dealing with foreign intruders for centuries, generally coping with our peculiar demands and idiosyncrasies and with grace and aplomb. We have taken over a lot of their territory and brought deep changes to the cultural landscape. 

In this era of rising friction with the country’s northern neighbor, more than ever it behooves each of us to be sensitive to the insults we may incur with our words and actions, to be good neighbors, mind our manners and foster the idea that “gringo” is a term of endearment, not an embarrassing label.