Hispanic cultural practice - I just learned something!

[Anonymous]

I am South American and never heard of this "evil eye" maybe it's a specific country practice not a "hispanic" practice, don't generalize!!!

[Anonymous]

It's mal de ojo.
I am from south america and have heard about mal de ojo, but we don't cover babies because of this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's mal de ojo.
I am from south america and have heard about mal de ojo, but we don't cover babies because of this.

^^ also it is not a big deal, and no one does anything about it. If anything I though people from India cared about this.

[Anonymous]

Perhaps the "hispanic" women you observed, just wanted to keep their child out of the sun, wind, germs, nosey passersby, the child could be asleep etc...

[Anonymous]

The author probably put that in the article as another example emphasizing their lack of education. Why do they squander the opportunities their parents fought so hard to provide for them? They could be poor, have no education and have babies as teenagers in the countries their parents came from.

[Anonymous]

In the middle east, the evil eye is something many people believe in.

[Anonymous]

I always thought the evil eye was a Greek thing. One of my Greek friends growing up always wore one on her necklace.

[Anonymous]

Here is a link to the WP article:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/10/AR2009121002346.html

Here is what OP was referring to in the article:

"When Angela takes 9-month-old Kimberly out for a stroll, she is careful to conceal her under a blanket to prevent strangers from putting "el ojo," the Central American version of the evil eye curse, on her. "

[Anonymous]

Angela is also a 17 yo high school dropout. So maybe that adds to her belief in the "el ojo".

[Anonymous]

OP- I've also noticed that many (certainly not all) Hispanic women cover their babies. I always thought it was because they wanted to make sure they were warm and to protect against the elements. When I read the WP article, I too was excited to learn about "el ojo" and to finally understand why I've seen so many babies totally covered even in the summer.

I don't think anything about your post is racist. I just think there are many people who are overly sensitive. FWIW, I think it's more "racist" to assume that all people who believe in "el ojo" are uneducated and poor. I have an advanced degree and have never been poor. While I don't really believe in superstitions, I still wouldn't let my dr schedule my c-section on Friday the 13th. If I grew up hearing about "el ojo," perhaps I would cover my baby up even if I thought "el ojo" was a bunch of bunk.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP- I've also noticed that many (certainly not all) Hispanic women cover their babies. I always thought it was because they wanted to make sure they were warm and to protect against the elements. When I read the WP article, I too was excited to learn about "el ojo" and to finally understand why I've seen so many babies totally covered even in the summer.

I don't think anything about your post is racist. I just think there are many people who are overly sensitive. FWIW, I think it's more "racist" to assume that all people who believe in "el ojo" are uneducated and poor. I have an advanced degree and have never been poor. While I don't really believe in superstitions, I still wouldn't let my dr schedule my c-section on Friday the 13th. If I grew up hearing about "el ojo," perhaps I would cover my baby up even if I thought "el ojo" was a bunch of bunk.

How is that racist? Or how is that less racist than assuming all Hispanic people believe in "el ojo"?

[Anonymous]

Meant more, not less, racist.

[Anonymous]

I always assumed it was that people who were first-generation immigrants from warm countries who were covering their babies up so much, and it was just based on their personal temperature tolerance. A nanny in my neighborhood who grew up in the Caribbean puts hats and parkas on the two kids in her nanny-share on days that I'm wearing a long-sleeve cotton shirt. I tend to see that a fair amount at playgrounds. Just figured it was the same as when my friend who grew up in Minnesota wears t-shirts on the days I'm (native Southern Californian) wearing sweatshirts!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What I find incredible, OP, is that after all this, you continue to think you "gained some new knowledge" today. You heard one person's opinion and you (or that person) overgeneralized to an entire culture. That's called a s-t-e-r-e-o-t-y-p-e. I'm hispanic. The women in my family routinely overdress their children, in my opinion. It has absolutely nothing to do with any "evil eye."

"After all this"? You think that the harranguing of one angry (maybe) hispanic person is more weighty than something published in The Washington Post?

Go read the article if you think this the Post and not the OP.

[Anonymous]

What in the hell is an evil eye?