I confess. Watching Emily in Paris has been my guilty pleasure for the past 3 years. The protagonist Emily is a North American girl who lives in Chicago, being sent to Paris for a year by the marketing company she works for. Throughout the seasons she decides to stay in Paris for an unknown amount of time and eventually ends up moving to Rome due to her job.
And if you haven’t watched the series don’t worry; I explain everything as the paper progresses.
After watching the last season, I checked Lily Collins’ Instagram account and saw a reels she made for the Center for U.S. Voters Abroad, ''Hometown Project''. Quote, unquote she says:
''This one is for all my expats. If you are like me and you are an American living abroad, you may not think that it is possible or important for your voice to be heard this election, but that is simply not true. There are 3 million American eligible voters out there, and we really, really, really need to have our voices heard with this critical, crucial election...''
I love how empowering and inspiring her message was. On the other hand, I was left with a big, important questions.
How come all 3 million eligible-to-vote US citizens who live abroad can fall under the category of expats? Is Emily in Paris an expat or an immigrant in Europe? Moving onto the main question, what is the real distinction between an expat and an immigrant?
Definitions vs. Experiences
a- Definitions
Expatriate (noun) (abbreviation: expat)
Immigrant (noun)
A person who has come into a foreign country in order to live there. (Cambridge Dictionary) (3)
A person who comes to a country to take up permanent residence. (Merriam-Webster Dictionary) (4)
In the EU context, a person who established their usual residence in the territory of an EU Member state for a period that is, or expected to be, of at least 12 months, having previously been usually resident in another EU Member State or a third country. (European Union) (5)
While the definition of immigrant seems to be well determined, I found the definition of expat to be insufficient and, therefore, open-ended. Also, I want to note that in the EU legal framework UK, USA, Canada, New Zealand are considered as third countries. (6) And being a third country has nothing to do with geography, economy, or the level of development of the given countries.
Photo by Christian Lue on Unsplash
As I kept digging sources deeper, I was faced with 2 very interesting nouns, highly qualified migrants and nonimmigrants. According to the European Union highly qualified migrants are defined as:
Highly Qualified Migrant
In the global context, a person falling within ILO ISCO-88 Classes 1, 2 and 3, e.g. a person qualified as a manager, executive, professional, technician or similar, who moves within the internal labour markets of transnational corporations and international organizations, or who seeks employment through international labour markets for scarce skills. (7)
In the EU context, a third-country national who seeks employment in an EU Member State and has the required adequate and specific competence, as proven by higher professional qualifications. (7)
According to Jessica Bolter’s explainer created for the USA’s Migration Policy Institute, nonimmigrants are defined as:
Nonimmigrants
In casual usage, ‘’immigrant’’ can refer to any foreign-born person, but in the United States, some are technically considered ‘’nonimmigrants’’. While immigrants intend to stay in a new country permanently, nonimmigrants remain only temporarily, whether that’s for a few days on a business trip, a few months as a seasonal worker or a few years as a student.(8)
It is important to note that there are several categories of immigrants such as Refugee/Asylee; Unauthorized; Twilight Statuses and so on. Yet, these categories have nothing to do with Emily’s ongoing situation and to stay in our determined lane, I prefer not to dive into those topics.
In line with the terms and definitions we have learned, it would be useful to recall Emily’s exact circumstances to name her status in Europe. As I previously mentioned, Emily was an employee of a Chicago-based marketing firm called the Gilbert Group. Somehow, Gilbert Group decided to buy a Paris-based luxury marketing firm called Savoir. In order to smooth the transition Gilbert Group sends Emily to Paris only for a year to assist French employees and meanwhile work as a marketing executive. Throughout the seasons, Emily resigns from Savoir and decides to work for Paris-based Agence Grateau. In the end, the owner of Agence Grateau, Sylvie Grateau, opens a branch of her firm in Rome. Emily ends up moving to Rome to lead the branch.
Hence, in the very beginning, Emily’s status falls under the category of an expat. As the story progresses, she clearly changes her initial intention to be temporary in Europe. Her employment at the Agence Grateau and her romantic connections with first French Chef Gabriel and then the Italian businessman Marcello Muratori can be seen as evidence of her intention to stay in Europe for the long term.
I infer that Emily is a highly-skilled immigrant in Europe. But how realistic it is to see an American get called an immigrant in our daily lives, even though high-skilled? It does not sound right, does it?
In fact, the actress Lily Collins refers to all the 3 million eligible voters as expats due to a common social perception. I am certain that while some individuals are legally recognized as expatriates, not all fall into that category.
b- Experiences
Without doubt, social perceptions on immigration and expatriation are highly relied on socio-economic factors.
According to UN Migration Report 2024, more than 40 percent of all international migrants worldwide in 2020 (115 million) were born in Asia, nearly 20 percent primarily originating from six Asian countries, including India (the largest country of origin), China, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Philippines and Afghanistan. Mexico was the second-largest country of origin and the Russian Federation was the third. (9)
Inevitably, the term immigration gets associated with the concept of poor people trying to go live foreign land with a better income and life standard even though this is not always the case. Wandering online, I soon found Mawuna Remarque Koutonin’s paper published by The Guardian. The headline was striking enough: Why Are White People Expats When The Rest Of Us Are Immigrants?
''Africans are immigrants. Arabs are immigrants. Asians are immigrants. However, Europeans are expats because they can't be at the same level as other ethnicities. They are superior. Immigrants is a term set aside for ‘inferior races’. Top African professionals going to work in Europe are not considered expats. They are immigrants. Period.'' (10)
This is a quite powerful message and fully reflects how social perception and prejudice dominated our ways of seeing people. In contrast, Don Mateo argues in his opinion piece for The Tico Times that the distinction is purely economic and does not depend on race at all.
''An expat chooses to live in another country for reasons beyond the economic, while immigrants usually move to better their economic status. For example, at the first place I lived in Costa Rica, we employed an entire rural family. Dad was our caretaker and agricultural assistant, his son helped after school, his daughter was our empleada [employee] and babysitter for our two young children… In the end, as with so much of modern life, it’s all about the Benjamins.'' (11)
In his entire paper, he argues that the term "expatriate" should be used only to describe those who can afford it.
Moving onto the article by Johanna Leinonen ‘’Invisible Immigrants, Visible Expats?’’, she reflects on her analyzes of contemporary immigration discourses in Finland utilizing the experiences of immigrants originating from the USA.
''Here is an example of a response to the question whether interviewees saw themselves as immigrants in Finland: ‘’No, no (…) I am thinking about Russians, the Romany, Somalis, those people are immigrants, [they have] issues of education and integration into the community. I have never felt those issues of being an immigrant.’’ This quote is from an interview that I conducted with an American man who moved to Finland first in 1982 and then, after living for years in different parts of Europe, again in 1996. He associated being an immigrant with having problems of integration into Finnish society, which he personally has not experienced — and therefore he was not an immigrant.'' (12)
Leinonen also gives the example of Darryl Parker, an African-American professional basketball player, leaving Finland due to extreme racial harassment by 4 Finnish neo-Nazis. With a further investigation, I found out that the assault was covered by the American media which came as a big surprise to the Finnish government. The executive of the basketball team Kataja, which Darryl Parker played for at the time, describes the harassment as:
''In 1995 we had this American player, Darryl Parker, who upon walking home one day became a target of racism, and he was chased with baseball bats. This led Parker’s contract being dissolved, because he was afraid of being here and had to go home’’ Lasaroff recalls.''(13)
Although Darryl Parker could be considered an American expatriate, as he came to Finland on a temporary contract, he has experienced harsh and traumatizing treatment because of his race.
To Be Politically Correct Or Not To Be Politically Correct
To be politically correct or not to be politically correct, that is not the question. We see, at this point the definitions, the legal frameworks or the post-modern claims on the expatriate and immigrant makes a little to no impact in day to day experiences. In order to be politically correct, one can call a Bangladeshi marketing executive in Paris an expat. But, would it really change her experiences, how she is treated in her daily life? Would the treatment that Bangladeshi woman experience be anyhow similar to Emily’s experience in Paris? The answer seems to be a simple no.
The micro and macro treatments that migrants/expats receive are clearly influenced by a variety of factors, including individual perspectives, education, religion and environmental context.
Effectively managing these perceptions requires proactive engagement and awareness-raising from both locals and foreigners, with governments playing a crucial role in facilitating this process.
Bonus Part
Rome vs. Paris: Fighting Over Emily For Public Diplomacy
In the fourth season of Emily in Paris, Brigitte Macron made a notable cameo appearance in episode 7. This choice not only added an interesting layer to the storyline but also served as a significant opportunity for public diplomacy.
In this scene, Emily tells Brigitte Macron that she loves France, and the First Lady replies as: ‘And my country loves you, Emily.’’
When his wife’s appearance on Emily in Paris was asked to Emmanuel Macron by Variety he said: ''I was super proud, and she was very happy to do it. It’s just a few minutes, but I think it was a very good moment for her. I think it’s good for the image of France. ‘’Emily in Paris’’ is super positive in terms of attractiveness for the country. (16)
Upon that, when Variety asks Macron his thoughts on Emily moving to Rome for season 5, Macron answers:
''We will fight hard. And we will ask them to remain in Paris! ‘’Emily in Paris’’ in Rome doesn’t make sense.'' (16)
Shortly after the publication of this interview, Rome's Mayor, Gualtieri commented on Macron's thoughts as:
‘’Dear @EmmanuelMacron take it easy: Emily is just fine in Rome. Besides, the heart wants what it wants, let her choose 😉’’
The Hollywood Reporter makes a phone call with the Mayor of Rome. To THR Roma, Gualtieri explains his thoughts: ‘’I would like to believe, at least I would like to hope, that Macron was joking, because he ought to know that a production company like Netflix does not take orders from heads of state or make decisions based on political pressure.’’ (18)
‘’We see Emily’s move to Rome as a confirmation that our city is becoming more and more important and we are quite relaxed about Netflix production decisions. They know what they are doing. To be honest, we think Mr. Macron should just relax.’’ (18)
Photo by Julien Doclot on Unsplash
Gualtieri added that he had a conversation with Mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo about that: ‘’We talked, we chuckled about Macron.’’ As the Mayor Hidalgo confirmed, she added ‘’I love Rome and we are both exclusive cities.’’ (18)
There’s no question that Emily in Paris is a massive hit. The stereotypes, cliches, and accents portrayed in the series spark lively debates, yet these very controversies contribute to its popularity and enhance interest in the city and its culture.
Emily in Paris, regardless of its cultural accuracy, captivates a global audience, establishing itself as a powerful tool for Public Diplomacy.
Bibliography
Lily Collins' Video: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DABb6DCAqhM/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
12-Leinonen J, INVISIBLE IMMIGRANTS, VISIBLE EXPATS?: Americans in Finnish discourses on immigration and internationalization, Nordic Journal of Migrations Research, Vol. 2, No. 3 (2012), pp. 213-223 https://www.jstor.org/stable/48711162
15-https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/1995/12/15/furthermore/c7c24ad8-0c60-4888-8056-60ca167cf719/
Comments