Being A Mexican-American Research Paper

I grew up in a two-parent household with my parents being married before they had children. My father has always been the one that provides finically, while my mother was the one who took care of my siblings and I throughout my childhood. Being that both of my parents were born in Mexico, I consider myself Mexican American. I am proud to be Mexican American. Culture plays a huge role in shaping your identity. A person’s beliefs and morals are made up by culture and remain throughout your entire life. Culture is what made you the person you are today and also determines who or what you choose to associate yourself with. My identity would not exist if it were not for my own culture and the values I have carried from it along the years.

I am not white, but I am not Mexican either. I am, however, a first generation Mexican American with parents from San Luis Potosi, Mexico. Perhaps I do not know what it is like to cross the border that refrains me from being Mexican, or the color of my skin that refrains me from being white, but my own personal experiences make me the Mexican American that I am today. Growing up I celebrated the Fourth of July with fireworks, and the Day of the Virgin of Guadalupe with matlachines.

I believe the term, hispanic, itself does not define who I am. I define who I am and who I want to become. However, I do come from a Mexican heritage. Coming from a Mexican heritage has influenced and deeply impacted my life. My heritage has taught me a lot.

Hispanic Americans, or Latinos, are a very large and diverse ethnic group in the U.S. Altogether, they make up about 44 million people or 15% of America’s population. Individuals who make up this category can identify with various nationalities and backgrounds. However, the 2010 U.S Census – as stated in the textbook -- reported that 75% of its total Latino respondents identified being of Mexican, Puerto Rican, or Cuban origin. According to the lecture notes, 65% of Hispanics claim to be Mexican Americans, while 8.5% are Puerto Ricans and another 3.5% are Cuban Americans. These are the three most common Hispanic origins and the rest of the Latino population identifies with other Hispanic nationalities. Of the three common nationalities that

American, Asian, Russian, Mexican; we all belong to an ethnic group. While some let their culture and ethnic background define them others allow it to shape your life. Being a Mexican-American I’ve had to simultaneously learn two languages at once; Spanish for when I’m at home or with family and English only at school and with friends. Growing up, my parents didn’t speak much English, so my sister and I had to step up as the family translator. Speaking Spanish is important to my family in many ways, not only is it a way for us to communicate with our family in Mexico, but also a reminder of where we come from. Being from a Mexican family and growing up in Washington has influenced my life to be the way it is.

Being a child of immigrant parents is not easy. You are constantly living in the fear that one day you’ll wake up and you parents won’t be there with you anymore. Specially now that we have a new president, things are getting more challenging. But don’t get me wrong, I live a happy life. I am proud to call myself a Latina. Being a child of immigrant parents has taught me so much. For example, being able to work hard for what you want. At school, I always strive to get A’s. My parent’s have taught me to never settle for anything less than a B. They know that in order for me to go to college and be successful, I not only have to get good grades but work hard to get there. I love a good challenge. Sometimes it’s not about the obstacles you face,

societies in the world. These sub-cultures include Whites, African Americans, Asians, Irish, Latino, and European among others. Chicano refers to the identity of Mexican-American descendant in the United State. The term is also used to refer to the Mexicans or Latinos in general. Chicanos are descendants of different races such as Central American Indians, Spanish, Africans, Native Americans, and Europeans. Chicano culture came as result of a mixture of different cultures (Shingles and Cartwright 86). Despite the assimilation by the majority whites the Chicanos have preserved their culture. This paper seeks to prove that Chicano culture has deep cultural attributes that would appeal to the larger American culture, leading to strengthening of

When my dad told me that we were coming to the united states, I was excited but at the same time, I was mad that we were leaving some close family members behind. The people that I was mad about leaving behind were my grandfather, grandmother and my cousins. But I had to accept the fact that my education comes first and with better education comes a better life and that is all I want. Coming to America wasn 't hard at all financially because my dad was already here since he was a teen.

Though, I know people with similar physical dispositions that struggle with the question every time it arises and others complain about the limited options that make them feel pigeonholed into too broad of an identity. What makes it so easy for me? I identify as primarily African American with a secondary Native American identity and to a much lesser degree European heritage. I do not write down the latter identities due to my lack of membership in the tribes that I am ancestrally tied to and my personal disinterest in the European ancestor that forcibly inserted himself by means of master-slave relations. I readily accept the label African American

One of the toughest adjustments, having been born to Mexican parents, is migrating to an unknown country where traditions and languages differ from one 's own. Though many pursue an education and strive for a better life, the purpose behind an immigrant, like myself, differs from the typical American. Immigrants strive for a life that was once impossible, going to school is not only to attain an education, but to better prove that we can also become successful regardless of our traditions and skin color. I lived in a country for over fifteen years, fearing deportation, not only losing a home, but potentially saying goodbye to a bright future. Although many feel empathy for Mexican-Americans, it is undeniably difficult to truly comprehend the immense trauma children and even adults undergo  upon experiencing racism and prejudice. Attending a

Las Vegas is where I was born and raised. That doesn’t mean that I just gave up on my Mexican culture. Like many others, I have a culture that is both American and Mexican. My culture has shaped my values, perceptions, and behaviors. The culture of my family, community, and society has made who I am as a person in numerous ways. Culture impacted my personality and how I act and feel. To me, culture is a very important part of every person’s life.

Being Hispanic has taught me a whole world of things. It has taught me that the world is not what you expect it to be. Going to a public school and being th minority is completely different than going to a see my cousins where every thing is different. The way we talk, the food we eat. Its all different. To me, being hispanic is probably the biggest blessing I could ever get. I love being hispanic. Being able to know that my culture is completely different than those at school. It has brought so much knowledge that telling other people about makes them want to be hispanic. Although the majority of it is happy experience, I have had my share of negative experiences. From racism or being mistreated for being the minority. Although those things do impact how I feel, I

Being the first generation Asian-Hispanic American, I recognize the importance of being the first in my family in gaining an education. Throughout my youth, I seen my parents work in difficult jobs just to keep food on the table. Especially my mother was an immigrant, arriving to this country at age 16 and her highest education is just a middle school diploma. She struggles in finding jobs due to lack of education, thus she works in jobs that nobody wants such as factories, fields and even traveling across the country as a migrant worker. She would accept any job, no matter how hard it is and how low they pay because she only wants the best for me. My father is also an immigrant, arriving all the way from Sri Lanka at age 22 with his best friend. They came here to escape hardship in their country in order to experience the American dream. He worked hard all his life just like my mother, holding a physical demanding job at a shipyard for over 20 years. While they are now divorce but they still both mutually putting me as the first in their priority. They make sure that I have my basic needs met and also keeping me happy and content with life. Seeing them sacrifice everything for me since the day I was born, I want to reassure her that I will not live a difficult life in poverty and the only way to get out of poverty is through a college education.

Cultural influences people on how to communicate with one another and its methods of communication from one culture to another. Culture plays a significant role in intercultural communication.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention define the term, “Latino” or, “Hispanic” as “a person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin” (Arias, 2010). In the United States, Latinos have comprised 16 percent of the population, making them the largest minority. Some sources project that this proportion will increase to 30 percent by 2050 (Juckett, 2013). With such a presence of Hispanic people, it is very likely that nurses will have the opportunity to provide culturally competent care to these individuals. As such, it is important to know how the Latino culture generally regards health, illness, disease, and death.