AnarWiki/markdown/Hellenophobia.md

**Hellenophobia** (also known as **Anti-Greek Sentiment**,
'''anti-Hellenism '''and **Mishellenism**) refers to
[racism](racism "wikilink"), negative feelings, dislike, hatred,
derision and/or prejudice towards Greeks or people of Greek descent.

## Historic Hellenophobia

### Ancient Rome

In the mid-Republican period Rome phil-Hellenic and anti-Hellenic Roman
intellectuals were involved in a conflict over Greek influence. One
author explains, "the relationship of Romans to Greek culture was
frequently ambiguous: they admired it as superior and adopted its
criteria, while they remained skeptical of some aspects; hence they
adapted it selectively according to their own purposes."<sup>\[9\]</sup>
An anti-Hellenic movement emerged in reaction to the primacy of Greek
led by the conservative and reactionary statesman Cato the Elder
(234-149 BCE), who was the first to write a Roman history in Latin, and
was prominent for his anti-Hellenic views.<sup>\[10\]\[11\]</sup> He saw
Hellenism a threat to Roman culture, but did not find wide support,
especially in the upper class.<sup>\[12\]</sup> However, Erich S. Gruen
argued that Cato's "anti-Greek 'pronouncements' reflect deliberate
posturing and do not represent 'the core of Catonian
thought'."<sup>\[13\]</sup> The prominent philosopher and politician
Cicero (106–43 BCE) was "highly ambivalent" about
Greeks,<sup>\[14\]</sup> and practiced "anti-Greek
slur".<sup>\[15\]</sup> The first-second century poet Juvenal was
another major anti-Hellenic figure.<sup>\[16\]\[17\]</sup>

### Latin West

Following the East–West Schism of 1054, anti-Greek sentiment became
widespread in the Latin West (dominated by the Catholic Church). It
reached its climax during the Fourth Crusade and the 1204 sack of
Constantinople, the Byzantine capital, and the establishment of the
Latin Empire.

### East Sicily and Malta

In East Sicily Malta, Christian Greeks were persecuted by Arabs during
the period of the Emirate of Sicily. And later Latin speaking Catholics
persecuted the Orthodox Greeks in Eastern Sicily and Arabic speaking
Catholics persecuted the Orthodox Greeks in Malta.

## Modern Hellenophobia

### Albania

In the Interwar period (1918–39), the Albanian government closed down
Greek schools as part of its policies of assimilation.<sup>\[19\]</sup>
During the Communist rule in Albania (1944–92), the government
restricted the use of Greek language and Greek names by the country's
Greek minority in an attempt of forced assimilation.<sup>\[20\]</sup>
Anti-Greek sentiment dominated the thinking of Enver Hoxha, the
communist leader of Albania, during the Greek Civil
War.<sup>\[21\]</sup>

In post-Communist Albania, "there are no significant explicitly racist
or chauvinist political parties", although, according to James Pettifer,
"there are many individual politicians who adhere to very strong
anti-Greek views, which in turn affects the orientation of virtually all
ethnic Albanian political parties."<sup>\[22\]</sup> In a 2013 poll in
Albania, Greece topped the list of countries perceived to be a threat to
Albania (18.5%), although the plurality of respondents (46.4%) agreed
with the statement "No country is a threat to Albania".<sup>\[23\]</sup>

### Australia

*Main Article: [Racism in Australia](Racism_in_Australia "wikilink")*

Greeks in [Australia](Australia "wikilink") have been subject to
discrimination. During [World War I](World_War_I "wikilink"), due to
King Constantine I's pro-German sympathies, Greek immigrants were viewed
with hostility and suspicion. Anti-Greek riots occurred in Perth in 1915
and in Kalgoorlie in 1916.

The word "wog" is an ethnic slur used in Australia to refer to Southern
European and Middle Eastern people of the Mediterranean region,
including Greeks. It is also sometimes used against South Asians. The
term has also been adopted and used by Greek Australians to refer to
themselves, including through the sitcom *Acropolis Now* (1989–92), the
television spin-off of the 1987 play *Wogs Out of Work* and the 2000
film *The Wog Boy*.

### Bulgaria

*Main Article: [Racism in Bulgaria](Racism_in_Bulgaria "wikilink")*

In 1906, during the Macedonian Struggle, anti-Greek rallies and violent
attacks took place in a number of Bulgarian cities. In Plovdiv, Greek
Orthodox churches and schools, Greek-owned properties were looted and
plundered. In Pomorie (Anchialos) the Greek population was expelled
after the city was set up on fire and up to 110 Greeks were killed.
Pogroms also took place in Varna, Burgas and other locations. Following
the pogroms, around 20,000 Greeks fled Bulgaria.

### Canada

*Main Article: [Racism in Canada](Racism_in_Canada "wikilink")*

On August 2–5, 1918, a three-day anti-Greek riot occurred in Toronto.
"Mobs of up to 5,000 people, led by war veterans returned from Europe,
marched through the city's main streets waging pitched battles with law
enforcement officers and destroying every Greek business they came
across." The consequence was damages of $100,000 to Greek businesses and
private property.

### Italy

*Main Article: [Racism in Italy](Racism_in_Italy "wikilink")*

When the Italian Fascists gained power in 1922, they persecuted the
Greek-speakers in Italy.

### Republic of North Macedonia

The Macedonia naming dispute since the breakup of Yugoslavia has given
rise to anti-Greek sentiment in the Republic of North
Macedonia.<sup>\[32\]</sup> According to one author, there was
"considerable popular anti-Greek feeling in Macedonia" as of
2004.<sup>\[33\]</sup> On the contrary, German diplomat Geert-Hinrich
Ahrens (ger) wrote in 2007 that he "had never detected any anti-Greek
manifestations" in the republic.<sup>\[34\]</sup>

The main opposition party of the Republic of North Macedonia, Internal
Macedonian Revolutionary Organization – Democratic Party for Macedonian
National Unity (VMRO-DPMNE), founded in 1990, includes the name of
Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization, a revolutionary movement
active in the early 20th century, which is regarded by Greeks "a
notorious anti-Greek terrorist organization."<sup>\[35\]</sup> During
the party's First Congress, Ljubčo Georgievski, first leader of the
party, declared that "the next Congress will convene in Solun"
(Thessaloniki in South Slavic languages).<sup>\[36\]</sup> According to
Dimitar Bechev, a British-based international relations researcher,
Macedonian Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski (the leader of VMRO-DPMNE)
exploited "anti-Greek nationalism" during the 2008 parliamentary
election.<sup>\[37\]</sup> In 2012 Gruevski accused Greece of having
waged "political genocide" against his country. Greek Foreign Ministry
spokesman Gregory Delavekouras responded that Gruevski's statements
"stoke the systematic negative government propaganda that is aimed at
turning public opinion in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
against Greece."<sup>\[38\]</sup>

### Romania

*Main Article: [Racism in Romania](Racism_in_Romania "wikilink")*

As Romanian nationalism grew overtime, a rift grew between Greece and
Romania. In 1892, Romania refused to hand over the property of the
recently deceased Greek expatriate Konstantinos Zappas to the Greek
state citing an article of the Romanian constitution forbidding foreign
nationals from owning agricultural land. The Trikoupis government then
recalled its ambassador in Bucharest, Romania followed suit thus
severing diplomatic relations between the countries. Diplomatic
relations were restored in July 1896, in response to a rise of Bulgarian
komitadji activity in Macedonia. In 1905, the two countries exchanged
accusations regarding the [Vlach Question](Vlach_Question "wikilink").
Romania claimed that Greek armed bands targeted ethnic Romanians in
Macedonia, whereas Greece accused Romania of trying to create a false
equation between Aromanians and Romanians.

Hellenophobic articles began appearing in the Romanian press. On 2
August 1905, the Society of Macedono–Romanian Culture organized an
anti–Greek protest in Bucharest, attended by army officers, student
and Vlachs. After decrying Greek war crimes in Macedonia, the organizers
called for a boycott of Greek products and services. Rioting was
prevented by a large force of Romanian police. On the same day a Greek
owned cafe in Bucharest was vandalized and its owner beaten. Several
days later three editors of the Greek language newspaper Patris were
expelled from the country for sedition. On 13 August, protesters burnt a
Greek flag in Giurgiu. An official remonstrance by the Greek ambassador
Tombazis was rebutted leading to a mutual withdrawal of embassies on 15
September. In November, the Romanian government allocated funding for
the creation of armed Aromanian bands in Macedonia, a parallel motion
closed numerous Greek schools in the country. In February 1906, six
leading members of the Greek community were expelled from the country,
citing their alleged funding of Greek bands in Macedonia. In July 1906,
the Greek government officially severed diplomatic relations with
Romania. In 1911, Greek prime minister Eleftherios Venizelos used the
occasion of the Italo-Turkish War to improve relations with Bulgaria and
Romania, restoring diplomatic relations with the latter.

### Soviet Union

*Main Article: [Racism in the USSR](Racism_in_the_USSR "wikilink")*

Between 1919 and 1924 around 47,000 Greeks emigrated from
[Russia](Russian_Empire "wikilink") to [Greece](Greece "wikilink") as a
result of the official and unofficial anti-Greek sentiment in
[Russia](Russia "wikilink"), which in its turn was a result of the Greek
intervention in the Black Sea region in the [Russian Civil
War](Russian_Civil_War "wikilink") against the
[Bolsheviks](Bolsheviks "wikilink"). Tens of thousands of Greeks were
deported to the remote parts of the Soviet Union during [World War
II](World_War_II "wikilink") in the [Greek Operation of
NKVD](Greek_Operation_\(USSR\) "wikilink").

### Turkey

*Main Article: [Racism in Turkey](Racism_in_Turkey "wikilink")*

A 2011 survey in Turkey revealed that 67% of respondents had unfavorable
views toward Greeks, although only 6% of Turks said Greece was their
country's main enemy in a poll carried out in the same year. Journalist
Dr. Cenk Saraçoğlu of Ankara University argues that anti-Greek attitudes
in Turkey "are no longer constructed and shaped by social interactions
between the 'ordinary people' Rather, the Turkish media and state
promote and disseminate an overtly anti-Greek discourse." Although
others have argued anti-Greek sentiment is decreasing as appreciation
for Greek culture grows.

During and following [World War I](World_War_I "wikilink"), almost all
of the [Greek population of Anatolia was either
exterminated](Greek_Genocide_\(1910s\) "wikilink") by the Ottoman
government or later transferred to Greece as part of a population
exchange. In September 1955 the Turkish government sponsored [anti-Greek
riots and pogrom in Istanbul](Istanbul_Pogrom_\(1955\) "wikilink"). The
[conflict over Cyprus](Cyprus_Conflict "wikilink") kept anti-Greek
feelings in Turkey high. At the height of the intercommunal violence in
Cyprus, thousands of Greeks were expelled from Turkey, mostly Istanbul.
In March of that year all persons (over 6,000) with Greek citizenship
were expelled "on the grounds that they were dangerous to the 'internal
and external' security of the state." Additionally, in September 1964,
10,000 Greeks were expelled. Around 30,000 "Turkish nationals of Greek
descent had left permanently, in addition to the Greeks who had been
expelled." Within months a total of 40,000 Greeks were expelled from
Istanbul.

In 1999 Turkey was again swept by a wave of anti-Greek sentiment,
encouraged by the Turkish government following the capture of the
[Kurdistan Workers' Party](Kurdistan_Workers'_Party "wikilink") leader
[Abdullah Öcalan](Abdullah_Öcalan "wikilink"). However, as a result of
the "earthquake diplomacy" and the subsequent rapprochement efforts
between Greece and Turkey, the public perception of Greece as their main
enemy decreased in Turkey from 29% in 2001 to 16.9% in 2004.

The [Grey Wolves](Grey_Wolves_\(Turkey\) "wikilink"), a far-right
organization associated with the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP),
routinely demonstrate outside the Ecumenical Patriarchate of
Constantinople in Fener (Phanar), Istanbul and burn the Patriarch in
effigy. In October 2005 they staged a rally and proceeding to the gate
they laid a black wreath, chanting "Patriarch Leave" and "Patriarchate
to Greece", inaugurating the campaign for the collection of signatures
to oust the Ecumenical Patriarchate from Istanbul. As of 2006 the Grey
Wolves claimed to have collected more than 5 million signatures for the
withdrawal of the Patriarch and called on the Turkish government to have
the patriarch deported to Greece.

### United States

*Main Article: [Racism in the USA](Racism_in_the_USA "wikilink")*

In the early 20th century Greeks in the United States were discriminated
against in many ways. In 1904 Greek immigrants, unaware of labor
conditions and largely inexperienced, served as strikebreakers during a
strike in Chicago diesel shops. This fueled anti-Greek sentiment among
union members. Three Greek immigrants were killed during a riot in 1908
in McGill, Nevada. On February 21, 1909, a major anti-Greek riot took
place in South Omaha, Nebraska. The Greek population was forced to leave
the city, while properties owned by Greek migrants were destroyed.
Greeks were viewed with particular contempt in the Mormon stronghold of
Utah. The local press characterized them as "a vicious element unfit for
citizenship and as ignorant, depraved, and brutal foreigners."
Anti-Greek riots occurred in Salt Lake City in 1917 which "almost
resulted" in lynching of a Greek immigrant. In 1922, as a response to
the anti-Greek nativist xenophobia by the [Ku Klux
Klan](Ku_Klux_Klan "wikilink") (KKK), the American Hellenic Educational
Progressive Association (AHEPA) was founded, which sought to Americanize
the Greek immigrant in America.

In December 2014 MTV aired the first episode of its new reality show
*Growing Up Greek*. It was immediately denounced by Greek Americans and
characterized as "stereotype-laden" and "offensive". The American
Hellenic Educational Progressive Association (AHEPA) called for it to be
canceled.

### Western Europe

*Main Articles: [Racism in Germany](Racism_in_Germany "wikilink") and
[Racism in the UK](Racism_in_the_UK "wikilink")*

As a result of the Greek government-debt crisis, starting in 2010,
anti-Greek sentiments grew in some European countries, especially in
Germany.<sup>\[64\]\[65\]\[66\]</sup> A 2014 study found, "An anti-Greek
sentiment evolved and spread among German citizens and solidarity for
crisis-hit Greece was mostly rejected."<sup>\[67\]</sup> In 2012 Pew
Research Center found, "Among the major European countries, Greece is
clearly the least popular. And its reputation is slipping. In no
country, other than Greece itself, is there a majority with a favorable
view of Greece." Only 27% of respondents in Germany viewed Greece
favorably.<sup>\[68\]</sup>

Hostile and unfavorable views towards Greece and Greeks were especially
pronounced in the tabloid press. A 2013 study found that "British and
German news sources indicate bias against Greece in financial crisis
coverage, although likely with important differences; both, however,
include stereotypes, the recommendation of austerity as a punishment,
morality tales, an absence of solidarity, and fear
mongering."<sup>\[69\]</sup> The popular German tabloid *Bild*
"published numerous reports that implicitly and explicitly constituted
the myth of the corrupt and lazy Greeks in comparison to the
hard-working Germans."<sup>\[67\]</sup> Dutch TV producer Ingeborg
Beugel (nl) claimed that "the \[anti-Greek\] propaganda of the
mainstream media provides Europe and the Netherlands with a convenient
scapegoat to exploit."<sup>\[70\]</sup>

German politicians, such as Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle and
former Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, publicly criticized the anti-Greek
sentiment in their country and called for solidarity with
Greece.<sup>\[71\]\[72\]\[73\]</sup>

## References

[Wikipedia](Wikipedia "wikilink") - [Anti-Greek
sentiment](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-Greek_sentiment)