Hello everyone here. I am considering moving to Spain and just wanted to share the links below as my point of reference. Currently, I am based in Los Angeles and own a movie marketing firm that works for major Hollywood studios.

I grew up in America (but father’s side is from St. Thomas, VI) and I speak Spanish. Barcelona is in my sights. After coming across news reports that Spaniards regularly abuse black footballers playing in Spain, I thought to ask you directly here about the quality of life in Spain for English or Spanish-speaking blacks (Cuba, Puerto Rico, Nicaragua, Dominican Republic, etc.
Not as a tourist but as someone residing in Spain. I want to believe that living in a country where people are colorblind is possible but that’s not realistic—unfortunately. 

I’d appreciate any insight you can provide for a professional black male whose considering Barcelona as his future home. Is Health care easily accessible for foreigners? Can someone give me an idea of what one should budget per month to live in Barcelona for a studio or 1 bedroom apartment, car fuel, groceries, entertainment, etc.?

Most sincerely,
IV

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup-2010/teams/england/4588720/Spanish-police-to-protect-England-players-from-racists.html

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup/england-refuse-to-play-spain-after-racist-chants-959736.html

Hey there,

First and foremost: your biggest hurdle getting there will be immigration. It’s a real pain in the neck for Americans! They’re not just letting folks in willy-nilly anymore. Regarding health care, I’m fairly sure it’s accessible as long as you’re paying into the system by working. I’m here on a student visa and do not have the right to public healthcare. However, part of my scholarship is private insurance through a company called MAPFRE, which works great!

I can’t give you any figures on Barcelona living costs. I’m up near Bilbao. My fianc? and I spend approximately 300 Euros a month on diesel, but we have a commute of approximately an hour each way. Gas has been fluctuating around 4.01 EUR/GALLON (1.06 a liter - price from early June). Check out sites like loquo.com or idealista.com to get an idea about average rents.

Having lived in the US, I find Spain shockingly less accepting. However, we have to take into account that immigration in Spain is a relatively new phenomenon and many in the older generations are finding it hard to adapt!!! However, I’m willing to venture a guess that such a multi-cultural city like Barcelona should be better than other spots. People where I am still assume I’m a tourist, and I’ve caught some people talking about the “guiri,” assuming that since I’m blonde I can’t possibly speak Spanish.

Best of luck!

Thank you very much Halydia. I figured the immigration issue would have a lingering effect.

May your studies be successful and rewarding!

IV

industryvisionary,
i live in area in madrid were there are a lot of dominican immigrants.
once i was walking down a street with a nephew and a friend, and a group blacks to mulatos started making sounds imitating chinese while looking at us and started laughing. i was about to make monkey sounds to get back at them. (sounds so racial, ain’t it) my nephew stopped me.
we are filipinos. many blacks do not distinguish among asians and chinese are the butt of jokes.
i only experienced this once or twice from spaniards about 2 decades ago.
now i hear verbal abuse thrown at me mostly by immigrants: blacks (blatino), latin americans (indians), romanians.
i suppose they feel they are native spaniards. maybe because they speak spanish (american); romanians think they are latins.
they usually stop when i answer back in gutteral castillian.

i would not gauge immigrant acceptance by the way football fans react to colored immigrants from opposing teams during a match.
never had problems getting a job because i am asian. but now that there is economic recession and racial friction may be more frequent.

i would advise you to get a student visa and study catalan if you want to live in barcelona. that way you get to experience first hand if you really want to live here.  you can have access to public health if you have a working resident permit. if you have student or non working resident permit you are required to have private insurance. affordable. when you have the resident or student cards you can apply for a public health card by registering your domicile at the nearest junta municipal.

aritz - 11 July 2010 12:02 AM

when you have the resident or student cards you can apply for a public health card by registering your domicile at the nearest junta municipal.

Unless I’ve been lied to, you cannot get a public health card with a student card even if you’re registered/empadronado.

halydia,
so why can illegals get it?
try, carry a new certificado de empadronamiento and try going to all the tesoreria de seguridad social in your area and apply for a social sec number till you get one once you get that go to the centro de salud to get the card.

aritz - 11 July 2010 12:26 AM

halydia,
so why can illegals get it?
try, carry a new certificado de empadronamiento and try going to all the tesoreria de seguridad social in your area and apply for a social sec number till you get one once you get that go to the centro de salud to get the card.

Because they don’t have a student card and they’ve managed to find a way.

Some nitwit falsified a NIE using MY number and got himself into the social security system because someone wasn’t being all that careful while processing papers. I got a nice call from hacienda to wake me up at 9 am on my day off, asking if I was who I said I was and if my NIE # was what I said it was. This all ended with a nice little trip to extranjeria and hacienda to plead my case. What a headache. The lady at hacienda even commented that this had been a fairly common problem recently.

halydia,
give a try you do not lose anything.
say you want a sec social number para la tarjeta sanitaria.
and you need the requirements. if you get them and
if they give you a form to fill out, then you are almost there.

as a student you are requiered to get private medical insurance to renew the student card.
but as somebody empadronado you are supposed to meet requirements for the tarjeta sanitaria to get public health service.

check this out

http://huy.es/inmigracion/como-conseguir-la-tarjeta-sanitaria-en-madrid

hi IV, so glad you asked, as I was wondering about it… I am moving from NYC to Barcelona in Feb 2011 and wondered what the atmosphere was like.

Hi IV,
Welcome to the forum.

I am white, British, female etc.. so cannot answer your Q from a personal POV.

See my post ‘Polictial Topic’ on Lifestyle section of the forum.
Oddly though, no one has replied?
I was shocked myself at the reaction/treatment of Spanish nationals. (As you also cite in your original post).

My only experience of black people in the South (I am near Malaga city), is that the majority are from Senegal and although
the majority are legal, I think they get a rough ride.

I hope that your idea that a cosmopolitan city would not have the same prejudices is true.
Speaking fluent Spanish will no doubt help you (although remember they are staunch Catalans/prefer to speak Catalan) in Cataluynya!

I guess if one were lucky enough to work with the great Almoldavar, then one might be more ‘accepted’. *In your immediate circle at least.

RE health care etc… Just make sure you get all the papers as it can be very expensive if you have to go private.
(I am sure if you are ‘Autonomo’ then you will be in the system.  Current monthly Social Security contribution around Eu 270, which acctually IMO is a lot!)

PS as a white, non-Spanish national I am certainly treated differently than a Sp native.  But I ‘live with it!’  😉

I have lived in Spain twenty years and I do not believe that I have ever been treat other than an equal. Possibly that is because I have never lived on the costas where foreigners form ghettos their by excluding native Spaniards. I was probably amongst the first 5 to live in the Almanzora valley and before the ex-pats started their demands. I believe that both Arboleas, Albanchez & Albox have English speakers workng in their Ayuntomientos because the idle ex-pats can not be bothered to learn Spanish(at 50 years old I did not speak a word of Spanish and although I will never speak it perfect, I get through with the help of my Spanish friends)

IV, did you ever make the move? If so, how are you finding it?

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