I was introduced to the United States and American culture at the age of three. In the initial three years of my life home came in the form of two locations: a military base in northeastern Peru and the capital, Lima. As a result of the economic instability occurring in Peru, my parents, at the ages of 28 and 29, decided to leave their families and migrate to the United States in order to raise me in a sound environment. Eighteen years have passed since that conclusive action. My parents determined to settle in a suburban cultural melting pot in south Miami called West Kendall. Many of the families that resided in this community shared similar circumstances and had recently immigrated with their children or were beginning to build a family …show more content…
It entails a series of linguistic, ideological, and societal factors that are all intertwined and weaved into a unique and diverse perspective of the world. Meanwhile I believe it to be fundamental to appreciate, assimilate, and integrate into a societies culture in order to be a proficient and apt member of a community, it is also essential and beneficial for individuals to embrace, learn, and maintain any form of their self-identity. All aspects and experiences dealing with a person’s identity can contribute and serve as vital sources of knowledge, perspective, and decision-making. Unlike many of my friends, I took a different path and approach when it came to how I became part of the American community. I chose to hold on and cherish all factors of my cultural identity, including language, food, and traditions, and fused them with my newfound appreciation for American culture. My parents served as an instrumental factors and mentors for this experience. Even though they understood and spoke English to a certain degree, my parents stubbornly refused to speak to me in any language that was not Spanish. They preached on the future benefits and possibilities that may open if I maintained my language since English would be taught to me in school regardless. I was indoctrinated with close-knit and traditional Hispanic family values, such as holidays, contacting family members for every …show more content…
My experiences have evolved in a profound understanding and admiration for individuals and different communities regardless of socio-economic status, culture, religion, or any factor that may form a taboo in someone head. As I embark on the final stages of my academic career and prepare to enter society as a laborer, I am without hesitation or doubt that my diverse self-identity will provide me the tools to mature into a better person, professional, and leading member of
Sara says, "I remember once asking my dad if he felt like he belonged in America. He said he didn't know. He said he always felt like an outsider, like he was always observing but never really participating" (Saedi 4). This demonstrates how difficult cultural assimilation can be for some people, particularly those who have strong ties to their cultural heritage. Sara's father's experience demonstrates how cultural assimilation is a difficult process, with individuals facing unique challenges based on their cultural background and personal
As an Indian-Americans, I grew up with two very different cultures influencing me in to distinct worlds: my home life and my school life. It wasn’t until I became a freshman a few years ago that these two cultures fused into one. I used to think using my mother tongue in public was weird, and that I had to be just like my Caucasian friends to be “cool”. As an early teen, I never acknowledged my own religion, culture, and ethnicity; sometimes I disgraced them. But, as I matured, I realized that my religion, culture, and ethnicity is a gift.
At first I wrestled with where my identity lay. The strong values and traditions of the Indian culture sometimes made it difficult to fit in with the crowd. As I grew older, I began to understand that I was not part of an individual culture, but a fusion of two rich and colorful histories. I recognized that there is remarkably more to an individual than where she comes from, and more to her than where she currently lives. Importantly, being from two cultures allows me to incorporate the best qualities of both.
Taking my very first steps into the United States at 10 years old, I naïvely thought that becoming an immigrant only meant enduring a bumpy plane ride. I was a boy, unaware of the challenging events that would significantly impact my life. Disguised in those events though, were valuable lessons that taught me about overcoming the tides of change. My first time attending a class in the United States, my heart dropped at finding out how significantly behind I was in the curriculum. Compounding to my feeling of alienation and discouragement, were many classmates that found it fun to mock me for my appearance and how I spoke.
Born and raised as an “ABC” - American Born Chinese - in Las Vegas, I have been steeped in and connected to the culture and community of one of the most diverse and unique cities in the world. Throughout my upbringing in a Chinese household located in what many refer to as “Sin City” and during my time at a boarding school on the East Coast that values the differences within its inclusive community, I have encountered people from a wide range of cultures and backgrounds. This has provided me the opportunities that have led me to understand and appreciate all that diversity has to offer, such as distinctive traditions and contrasting perspectives. As someone who identifies multitudinously herself, I believe I can effectively bring my own flavor
Throughout my experiences in this course so far, I have had many opportunities to reflect on my own past and have begun to better understand my own cultural identity. It has been much more difficult to wrap my head around than I would have predicted it to be because so many things play into the construction of an identity that it can be hard to look at all of those separate pieces together. My cultural identity, like all others, is more complicated than it first appears. I identify as a white person, a woman, an American, a gay person, and a feminist, just to name a few. While all of these labels carry with them stereotypes and expectations, they also interplay with the cultural influences I was subject to throughout my childhood.
I am the child of a Jamaican Immigrant and Bronx native, raised in a single parent lower-middle class family in an affluent suburb, 18 miles outside of New York City. My father was absent for much of the first couple years and constituted monthly visits for most of the first two decades of my life. It wasn’t until I was 16, that I truly started building a relationship with my father and as a consequence my mother was the central influential figure in my life. Growing up there was always a strong emphasis placed on the importance of education, as I watched my mom juggled working two jobs and going to school while simultaneously raising me. She made it clear that the reason she stayed in America was in order to pursue her education and that
Current identity characteristics include: white, female heterosexual and age group 17-30. My new identity characteristics include: first people/ native, bisexual and differently abled. When researching portrayals about this identity I decided to break it down into three separate characteristics. There are stereotypes that go along with my first identity of native. A common one being that this identity is all alcoholics1.
Not knowing anything about my father’s culture or family created a barrier in my cultural competence until I began working at Leos. Communities are first built on a single relationship before it flourishes into something bigger than us all. Communities encourage stepping out of comfort zones and breaking barriers between yourself and others. The most valuable relationship I have broke cultural barriers, evoked my passion of combining sociology with care, and advocating for cultural competence.
From an old brick building with many pleasant memories, to an uncertain apartment that was entirely unknown, my mom and I moved, she forced me to attend my new school. On the very first day, some kids started to make “jokes” of my speech. I tried to ignore them, but it was difficult since they kept going; it was like an endless nightmare that was impossible to wake up from. Nevertheless, I still survived. When the year was over my mom got a promotion, so a different school again, it just happened again, but they made it all about my look, but with each insult, slowly but surely they stole something, my voice.
When asked to describe myself, only one thing comes to mind. How does one describe oneself? That is a question I have struggled to answer my entire life. Anxiety and depression are two things I have struggled with as long as I can remember. What I once thought was the worst thing that ever happened to me turned out to be the greatest gift I have ever been given.
Until recently I really hadn’t thought much about my social identity, but thanks to this question I’ve really started to notice how much people really are affected by their own thoughts. We base our lives off of what we believe in and it affects almost everything, from the way that we act to the people that we talk to on a regular basis. I believe that I, like most people, fit into more than one category and don’t have a set social identity. Over time the way you think and what you believe in can definitely be changed, especially after experiencing something new, such as a new culture.
I believe that I should be defined by neither my sexuality nor my ethnicity. I do not think that neither one is an accurate description of the person I am. I think those two things make me who I am, but they do not define whom I am. I think how I practice my beliefs in my everyday life define who I am. The way I choose to live my life on my own terms defines who I am.
Looking over myself as a teen I would define myself as being a procrastinating slacker who never wanted to do anything. I went from an all A student in elementary to a kid who made C’s, D’s, and F’s in my first 2 and a half years in high school. As I look back on my past I regret my outlook on life as a teen with no goals set until I joined marching band and my school’s debate team. Going into my freshman year I was joining the “Mighty Hawk Band” and I had no idea how this would change my outlook towards life. I remember before my first audition to obtain a marching spot that morning I thought to myself “It is just marching band.
In fact, it should be highly encouraged for children to speak multiple languages and know to properly communicate with their parents. To be able to connect with their parents and learn about their ancestry will give them a wider look on life and will shape and define them more in depth. Parents and non-native English speakers have been brainwashed into thinking that speaking their native language will simply be detrimental to their new life in America. “.. a number of parents… who have chosen not to speak their native language to their children… have been persuaded to believe… will hurt them socially or academically…”