Personal Narrative: What It Mean To Be A Minority In America

Challenges are events that are used to change you for the better should you choose it accept it. The challenges I have faced wasn’t a matter of choice but of something that I have no control over. Some people will tell you it’s a burden, some say it’s an entitlement or free ride. Science says it’s just having a high amount of melatonin due to geographical location for survival. To me though, being black probably one of the biggest challenges a human can have in America at least I find it terribly perplexing. I say this because of what is portrayed in the media, the people I have been raised with, and racism itself in the black community. Keep in mind that this is from my own personal experiences and perspective so everything I say is just applies from my point of

Maya Angelou once said, “Your ancestors took the lash, the branding iron, humiliations and oppression because one day they believed you would come along to flesh out the dream.” I am a black woman who isn’t tragically cursed by the color of my skin but privileged to to understand the trials of my ancestors. Within the works of Lorraine Hansberry, Zora Hurston, and Alice Walker, I have learned that as a black woman I must never let my creative mind go to waste because of the great oppression my ancestors have faced. Coming to Spelman has made me go through many challenges and has helped me to think outside of the box. With just reading the works of these creative black women and going in depth of these works has taught me lessons of how to appreciate my ancestry, to continue the dream, and never be afraid to take that jump with the knowledge that I am given.

Growing up in an immigrant household in America, was difficult. I didn’t live, I learned to adapt. I learned to adapt to the fact that I did not look like any of my peers, so I changed. Adapted to the fact that my hair texture would never be like any of my peers, so I changed. Adapted to the fact that I was not as financially well off as my peers, so I changed. Adapted to the fact that unlike other people who have families of four, I had a family of seven and numerous amounts of close relatives. That my parents, although lived in America for quite sometimes grew up in Nigeria, so English was not their first language so I adapted and changed myself in order to fit into societal standards. I learned to understand and interpret my parents’ native Igbo dialect but left that part of myself at home so that people will view me as the perfect American citizen.

I 'm a first generation Asian-American. I was born in Lima, Peru, right before my parents came to America from China, and we moved to America when I was one. Growing as a first generation American, my parents worked a lot. I can 't say that I wasn 't loved, but my bond with my parents was weak because I was always home alone, being babysat by others, or going out because they had to work. As a child, I would do things like steal from my mother 's wallet and use the money on those claw machines with the stuffed animals. A few times, I poured out all of the body soap and shampoo into the drain. Looking back to it now, I realize that I only did these things because I wanted attention from my parents. I remember one

In the past I have struggled with my biracial identity. As a child I was confused about which community I belonged in because I am a mix of Navajo and Caucasian. As I got older, I began to question myself and who I was. I felt like I did not belong to either the Native or Caucasian community because in both groups I felt like someone else. I felt as if I had to live two lives that were completely separated. When I was on my reservation I felt like I had to act “Navajo” and when I was not on the reservation I had to try to blend in and not act “too native” . This situation was stressful because I was internally battling with myself. I did not want to make others uncomfortable by being “too native” or “too white” so I would change how I acted

The diversity that may be found all around the world and in our very community has always fascinated me. I am aware that it is a widely held belief that being a minority is considered a disadvantage in various aspects and I would disagree with this. Diversity and culture is a two-way street- as a community, whether that be society as a whole or simply a freshman class, we have the potential to be able to learn from each other. I believe that my status as an underrepresented minority has shaped me into the person I am today. Despite moving to the United States at a young age and being a first-generation college student , I am grateful for the privilege to be able to further my education at the University of Utah.

Upon meeting me, not many people know that I am a first generation American. However, they are usually interested in the orgin of my last name. I am in fact Ukranian. Both my parents and my older sister were born in Ukraine. They immigrated to America in 1992 because of religious persecution that they were facing. After immigrated, they had three more children. I was the second child to be born in America in 1996. I have lived in Denver Colorado my entire life and I currenty am attending Regis University.

I am a first-generation Hispanic-American. Being born and spending my childhood in south Florida made my Hispanic culture so accessible that I would think in Spanish instead of English. In my home, Spanish was the first language spoken since my father and mother are from Panama and Peru respectively, and most of my family did not speak English. I was so immersed in my family’s culture that I even learned the “Peruvian dance”-Marinera. I loved walking into my home and smelling the fresh Peruvian dish my mom was cooking. That was all about to change. In 2009, Florida was struggling with unemployment and real estate issues. We moved to a small town near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania called Cranberry Township. We moved because my father’s job transferred

What does it mean to be an American today? Or rather, what does being an American entail? Does that pertain to a certain individual’s perspective? Or is Americanism defined through a collective consciousness projected around the world? Over the course of time, Americans have gone through various embodiments of who they are, without loosing the essence of what they represent. In the 1800’s, America was known to be the state of slaveholders, a country represented by “whiteness” and “white elites.” In 1965, African Americans were allowed the right to vote. In 2004, the U.S State of Massachusetts allowed for same sex couples to be married. As of 2015, 43.3 million people in the United States are considered to be immigrants. Throughout the centuries,

I identify as Black. Growing up as a minority in America has shaped my identity by making me a creative, hard working, and understanding individual. By being Black in America I realized that there is this stigma that Black kids can’t excel in certain areas of education because the majority of our neighborhood and public schools lack the proper resources for us to do so. While this stigma holds truth, I refuse to let this stigma handicap me. Growing up with less resources allowed me to be creative. If there was something I did not have I was sure that I could create an equivalent to what I did not have by using materials that I did have.

The American Identity is more than just being a citizen in America. What makes the American Identity is the diversity that exists in America. America is a melting pot, which consists of many ethnic groups, religions, and ideas. It isn’t the appearance that makes you American, it is your mind and the way one acts make one American. I am a kid who is part Korean, French, and Chinese. My mom is Korean and Chinese, and my dad is French and Chinese. I do celebrate Lunar New Year with some of my relatives on my mother’s side, but my dad doesn’t celebrate any French holidays. To be qualified as an American, one must be unique in their own way, and love freedom.

The injustice that occurred to the farmers awoke very different feelings in me, ranging from anger to pride. Anger from seeing just another way that people are oppressed, thrown to the side and invalidated in the eyes of white supremacy. Yet I was proud of my Latino community because in the face of this abuse they fought for their rights as people and did not let the oppressor just do what they always do with no resistance. This situation with the garden and the farmers is a very specific example of the way a group of people of color trying to advance and better themselves and their community, but is again being stopped and cannot grow and develop in this country, which has happened to numerous communities and population the moment these land

Growing up in a family where my mom was a doctor and my dad was a musician, I was exposed to a lots of things in my life. For example I was able to see Broadway plays and and go on family trips to Disney every year in the winter. A lot of people would say I was very fortunate to be one of the family where I knew both my parents and they did there best to give me a lot of life experiences. But me being an African-American male it seems like I not supposed to how do experiences, I was supposed to not know my father not to be able to go on these trips with my family. It came to appoint where ever African-American in my peer group what tell me I 'm less black than they are because of the experiences I have, the way I dress, and the way to talk.

I have learned that African American studies courses are very vital to American history and culture. I have had the opportunity, through lectures, readings, research, class discussions, notes and personal opinions to be enlightened. With the trough of new knowledge that I have acquired from this class I am able to carry on meaningful conversations and dialogues about the African American and the struggle for equality. Unlike gender inequality that transcends both white and black, the African American struggles were confined to a single race.

The world is filled with people, and like snowflakes, each person is not the same as another. Each person identifies with different aspects of their lives to create their own personal identities. I personally identify with my Italian side of my family to help form who I am today. I have found myself connecting with this side more so than the other parts of my identity. It affects how I live my life by becoming the center to the culture surrounding me. However, my ethnic identity as an Italian American also influences how I live when it comes to my religion, and how my religion affects my life alongside my ethnicity. I will expand on this issue on how I express my ethnic and religious identity in regards to each other.