To be honest,I never expected this to happen:I have always been proud of my origin,but it seems to spark feelings of pity and even rejection nowadays!
The horror stories from relatives and friends living abroad are numerous. On stating their origin,many are treated with suspicion and irony. Greeks in Germany are the recipients of jokes about our financial state as a country. They feel like Europe’s beggars. Friends in the UK feel that stating their ethnicity on their CV’s is a major handicap.
Obviously,one should not take such conditions into consideration:stereotypes about ethnic groups have been around for centuries. But what happens when you feel they are becoming a barrier to progress in the workplace,in society,in business?
How does one react to this?
Each one of us is an ambassador of our ethnicity. We are therefore obliged to counter the commonly held reactions towards our country and our national character. We should stand up to this unfair treatment and re-establish the image of a proud,inventive,cosmopolitan and resourceful people,the characteristics that have followed us for thousands of years!
I am confident we can turn this around.
And we will.
Ο Ρόμπερτ Πεφάνης είναι λέκτορας Επικοινωνίας και ΜΜΕ. Διαθέτει μακρά εμπειρία στον χώρο της επικοινωνίας και διαφήμισης (ΔΟΛ,Adel Saatchi,Spot JWT).