Brutally Beaten in Recoleta

bloody_bloo said:
What's wrong with your logic? Not enough plasticity with neurons? Why take so much attention in labeling white, black, brown, what's the point? Can't you see that such things contribute in growing a mob prejudice against a kind? My god you are flat.
Click to expand...

The point is that people who live here want practical advice that might save them a lot of trouble and actually save their lives. Take your academic boilerplate finger-wagging elsewhere. No one assigned you to be political officer on this forum. And if you have doubts about the relationship between race and criminality, check out black crime rates in NY.

In Argentina you're not likely to get assaulted by old ladies in Recoleta, Recoleta older men in English suits, or blond haired blue-eyed teenagers of German descent. More likely than not your assailants are going to be young and brown, with certain kinds of clothes and body language, and people better be wise to that. Many Argentinians take precautions about Peruvians for example. Is that "racist" or is it just good policy? I've heard fewer bad things about Bolivians here, and even some good things, so I don't think race is what motivates Argentinians to say this. But if it is, so what? What's worse, being called "racist" by dimwit internet warriors, or being dead?

For the original post, sorry this happened to you I walk at night in areas like that all the time and never had the slightest problem. Always been under the impression BA is a mostly safe city. Anyway, you might want to look into some pepper spray or something as a means of self-defense.

One more thing: to all the people who say "never resist" when you're being mugged...that's bad advice. You have to take it on a case by case basis. There are cases when not resisting or not running can cost you a beating or worse. I would say this...NEVER get in the car if there's a kidnapping attempt...no matter what. I would guess you're safer getting shot on the street.
 
OK, as this thread is winding down, I just have to share this story with you so we can all have a good laugh. I was targeted by the policia kitten patrol.

I feed the wild cats on my block and one night they brought a kitten with them. As I was putting food on my steps I noticed it under a car. Awwwww, a kitten!

I got down on my knees in by the side of the car to waggle my finger. Cooing sweet words to it, I kept my guard up by looking around as I crouched. A police car cruised by an adjacent street and seemed to take note of me huddled in front of a rather decrepit car. They've got bigger fish to fry than me, I thought.

The next thing I knew a squad car pulled up and two uniformed officers jumped out.

"Ah, gatto bebe, gatto bebe," I said in Caveman Spanish, pointing under the car.
Just then wild kitten stuck his fuzzy head out to back up my alibi.

Now imagine, a middle-aged tourista, in front of her own house, feeding cats, suspected of being a potential car thief (and a junker at that). The irony, considering everything being discussed on this thread, is positively Shakespearean.

We had a nice little chat--me in Caveman Spanish--they in Caveman English--about how long I was here, was I on vacation .... the fact that I like cats, I like dogs, I live here in the little blue house, see the dishes on the steps? I pulled out every word I knew. Oh, and of course, the inevitable was asked: was I married or single?

Don't you just love it?
 
BSS said:
Sorry to hear about your ordeal and I'm glad to hear you came out ok. I'm not trying to diminish what happened to you and you have a right to be upset, but when posting those feelings on-line you might want to think about not calling people brown.
Click to expand...

To chime on the "brown" sub-topic running thru this thread. If you read my above post about when I got jumped, hit in the head and needed stitches, my four attackers had "brown skin." I also know a few people who have been mugged and all their attackers had "brown skin." There is nothing racist about saying this, it is reality.

The point of this forum is the help out each other about the "realities" of life in Buenos Aires. That isn't just where to eat the best steak. It applies to everything.

If I am walking down a dark street at night and I see a group of 3 "brown-skinned" 12 year olds in dirty clothes with glares on their faces, I am going to take more of a pre-caution than if there is a group of 3 "white skinned" kids wearing Locoste and converse, chatting and laughing. This is based on personal experiences (i have been beaten by "Brown skinned" kids in BA and so have every single person I know who has been a victim of a crime here) and just common sense. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to determine that you are more likely to be mugged by a poor "brown skinned" peruvian immigrant than 3 white middle class porteno kids. If this makes me a racist by some peoples definition, so be it. I call it living in the real world and not some academic wonderland. This is not to neglect that the only crime in the city is by Bolivian and Peruvian immigrants. A lot of scams and muggings that happen in Brothels that try to lure in gullible tourists are by all kinds of people. But I think for this type of crime, "the late at night mugging, beating, pickpoketing" kind, a lot of it occurs from young immigrant kids.

This is a sad reality. There is immense poverty amongst many immigrants here in Buenos Aires which is going to result in a lot of desperation and muggings. I think you are doing more of a service by bringing up the fact that they are "brown skinned." You are not perpetuating a stereotype, you are bringing up a harsh reality that will hopefully bring more light to this issue.

Back to the idea of helping out people on this forum. By Matt's story and my experience, hopefully people will maybe use ALL of the factors we have stated about our experiences to make themselves safer here in Buenos Aires. Why is the fact that my attackers and Matt's attackers had Brown Skin relevant? Because it might help you out to draw your own conclusions as you live your life here in BA. If you want to a hero to your College Sociology professor and walk down an empty street that has 3 "brown skinned" kids in dirty clothes, don't come crying to me if something happens. Am I saying it is not possible to be a victim of a crime in Buenos Aires by someone of "white skin?" No, not at all. I am simply saying that you are more likely to be mugged by someone very very poor living in poverty. In Buenos Aires, the sad reality is a majority of those living in that poverty are of brown skin color.

Maybe if we talk about this issue a little bit more instead of trying to hide behind some bullshit PC wall, some day these poor immigrants won't need to be mugging rich tourists to make ends meet each day.
 
The hard part of being robbed is not to turn into a racist or to blame the police.
And Matt, thanks for sharing this story. It's in all our interests. And sorry this had to happen to you.

Lee said:
Hey dude...clearly it's all about context that it was used in.

Please don't hijack Matt's thread with irrelevant comments as is often the case. ;)
Click to expand...

It's not irrelevant because you were being a hypocrite. You're PC when it's about gay people but not towards brown people, could that be because you're gay and white? Also you wrongfully accused me of being a homophobe and then when I asked why, you just ignored me.

citygirl said:
Edited to say Matt - while it probably won't do any good, I still think it's a good idea to report the crime. At least the policia can know if it's a systemic problem in that area as opposed to an isolated incident. Not that they'll catch them but still, it's information.
Click to expand...

In case you don't remember how they look, the only thing that will happen by going to the police, like citygirl said, is that you will update the crime statistic, hardly something worth the while unless you have a lot of time to kill, IMO.

iStar said:
Tinelli says his comments weren’t aimed “against anyone,” but he implicitly criticized President Cristina Fernández for her constant talk about “human rights,” implying that while she spends her time talking about human rights, Argentines are getting slaughtered in the streets by violent criminals who kill with almost complete impunity.

Here are the latest stats:
Click to expand...

Not aimed at anyone and then criticizes the president for talking about human rights, all in one sentence.
Those statistics doesn't say much except that crime hasn't changed much in that period. Would be more interesting to see statistics over the last 10 years.
Middle class Argentines are getting robbed, in the mean time poor Argentines are starving and going through the trash. Not trying to justify anything here but just maybe the main focus in on other stuff and righteously so.
And like bloody_blo correctly pointed out, the root of the problem is poverty, if you address that crime will go down.

kurtdillard said:
Bloody Boo, you do not seem to be out to make new friends. Perhaps better words could have been chosen, but the original post clearly did not contain consciously racist content, please don't sidetrack this important conversation with that type of criticism. I request that you take your quest for political correctness and strip clubs to another thread, or even better, another forum.
Click to expand...

He has the right to his opinions and you have the right to disagree. But why are you suggesting he should move on to another forum?
And this is not sidetracking at all. I disagree with him but I do see the importance of that type of discussion.
 
A couple of years ago I went to the annual fete held at the British embassy gardens to raise money for the British-American Benevolent Society (BABS) retirement home. It was around 11 AM and I was walking near the steps that lead up the hill to the British embassy. Before I knew it, a homeless looking person threw a bottle at me that fortunately missed me. I was pretty shaken up. That area may be in Recoleta but it is dark and lonely at night. The same can be said for that park area below Design Recoleta. I've seen a lot of scary looking people around there. You've got be careful at all times in BA. Yes, you can have problems in London, New York or other cities but there is more control there. The police are vigilant and you can trust them. That's not so in BA. The police are poorly trained and they know that the justice system simply doesn't work. There is a reluctance in Argentina to impose punishments. It's even worse under the current government. If you doubt this, talk to an experienced criminal lawyer. Just about every Porteño I know has been a victim of crime at some time or other. I can't say that about friends and family in the US or UK. I am sorry about what happened to you. It could happen to any of us.
 
Why not get a stun gun?

It is far more effective than pepper spray.
Click to expand...
Carefull, you might be accused of torture and trialed for crimes against humanity. I don't know if you guys are aware of the recent taser scandal. It´s a good example of why it is so hard to make improvements in security issues.

Sorry, spanish only. http://diarioce.com/index.php?secc=nota&nid=36580&pagina=4

Basically the left argues that the Taser is a torture devise and shouldn't be used, much less by our corrupt police man.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Thread starter Similar threads Forum Replies Date
W Just got beaten bashed and molested for being a Jew Expat Life 10
R Off the beaten path art? Street Art? Newcomers Forum 5
B A night out tonight off the beaten track? Expat Life 0
Similar threads
Just got beaten bashed and molested for being a Jew
Off the beaten path art? Street Art?
A night out tonight off the beaten track?
Back
Top