Anti-Americanism, anti-American sentiment, or sometimes Americanophobia is dislike of or opposition to the United States governmental policies, especially the foreign policy practices of the United States, or American people in general. Criticism largely originates from the perception that the United States military wants to act as a "world policeman". Political scientist Brendon O'Connor of the United States Studies Centre suggests that anti-Americanism cannot be isolated as a consistent phenomenon and that the term originated as a rough composite of stereotypes, prejudices and criticisms toward Americans or the United States, evolving to more politically based criticism. French scholar Marie-France Toinet says use of the term anti-Americanism "is only fully justified if it implies systematic opposition – a sort of allergic reaction – to America as a whole". Discussions on anti-Americanism have in most cases lacked a precise definition of what the sentiment entails (other than a general disfavor), which has led to the term being used broadly and in an impressionistic manner, resulting in the inexact impressions of the many expressions described as anti-American. Negative views of the United States are generally strongest in the Middle East, Russia, and Europe, and weakest in Sub-Saharan Africa.

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