Good timing! My few French friends do not understand who anyone could be fooled by Trump and thus they view Americans as stupid or much like him which is frightening since I am an American in France. I do not want to be thrown out of the country and I do not want to be ostracised because other Americans make bad choices. For the past six years I have lived here I have been explaining and I am exhausted from it. Fortunately, the majority of Americans who moved to France are liberals, so we have a chance of convincing our French friends and neighbors we are the good guys.
France has it's own problem with right wingers, extremist populists, anti-immigration voices, and the rest of it. Maybe some of the awkwardness you notice is people disagreeing with your more left-leaning positions? I've only talked politics with a few people here and mostly (like you said) they don't understand how people vote for (or even tolerate listening to) Trump. That said, I've found people in Montpellier to be curious and able to discuss politics more politely than in the US. It's probably easier to talk dispassionately about the politics in a place you don't live. From everything I have read and experienced, the French enjoy a good and spirited debate/conversation and don't consider it rude to say something controversial to start a good discussion.
That is true though it is frustrating when the information they read in French is incorrect and sounds very right wing. Not all the French journalists get it right in translation but in substance too, and end up repeating conspiracy theories. Those are the challenging discussions and I find myself being viewed skeptically. Otherwise, I totally agree it is easier to have a discussion here than in the US. I just came home from a trip to the northeast of France, Marine LePen territory, and they seem to feel differently about Trump and Americans. I would love to hear from Americans living around Calais and Lille. Where I live in the SW is still left leaning with some small village exceptions. We literally pulled up the French government voting heat map before selecting a place to live because we did not want to deal with both American and French fascist leaning people.
Good timing! My few French friends do not understand who anyone could be fooled by Trump and thus they view Americans as stupid or much like him which is frightening since I am an American in France. I do not want to be thrown out of the country and I do not want to be ostracised because other Americans make bad choices. For the past six years I have lived here I have been explaining and I am exhausted from it. Fortunately, the majority of Americans who moved to France are liberals, so we have a chance of convincing our French friends and neighbors we are the good guys.
France has it's own problem with right wingers, extremist populists, anti-immigration voices, and the rest of it. Maybe some of the awkwardness you notice is people disagreeing with your more left-leaning positions? I've only talked politics with a few people here and mostly (like you said) they don't understand how people vote for (or even tolerate listening to) Trump. That said, I've found people in Montpellier to be curious and able to discuss politics more politely than in the US. It's probably easier to talk dispassionately about the politics in a place you don't live. From everything I have read and experienced, the French enjoy a good and spirited debate/conversation and don't consider it rude to say something controversial to start a good discussion.
That is true though it is frustrating when the information they read in French is incorrect and sounds very right wing. Not all the French journalists get it right in translation but in substance too, and end up repeating conspiracy theories. Those are the challenging discussions and I find myself being viewed skeptically. Otherwise, I totally agree it is easier to have a discussion here than in the US. I just came home from a trip to the northeast of France, Marine LePen territory, and they seem to feel differently about Trump and Americans. I would love to hear from Americans living around Calais and Lille. Where I live in the SW is still left leaning with some small village exceptions. We literally pulled up the French government voting heat map before selecting a place to live because we did not want to deal with both American and French fascist leaning people.
We did the same!
Thank you, whereas i have no words
It is fascinating to see what journalists and news outlets in France see as most important. This page from LeMonde (trusted centrist newspaper) has a list of articles from their own journalists. https://www.lemonde.fr/en/2024-us-presidential-election/?lmd_medium=email&lmd_campaign=trf_edito_lmie&lmd_email_type=audience&lmd_email_recipient=inscrits&lmd_email_send_date=20241031&lmd_variant=J-7_US&M_BT=122881601324156