My Cultural Identity

709 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Issues involved with racial inequality

My background, my culture plays a huge part of my identity, it is the part of me I cannot change nor do I ever want to. The love and patriotism I have for my country is undeniable. I am Haitian born in Haiti, raised in the USA. At some point, being Haitian was not “cool” nor was it acceptable. I remember being in third grade coming from Haiti, not speaking any English, not to mention I went to a dominantly white school with very few black or African American students. Being in Haiti, I never felt different, never knew what bullying was, never faced any hardship nor what it means to feel and look different, unlike many of my peers who came from Haiti, I did not suffer a hard life. My dad lived in the United States and at the time my mother …show more content…

I vividly remember third grade, I was mostly lonely, I didn’t have any friends; I remember one day crying and yelling pleading my dad to go back home, to my country because the kids never want to be around me, they always made fun of the way I dress, the food I brought for lunch and the way speaks English because I had an accent. By fourth grade, I can say I learned to speak and understand English and that’s when their words really began to hurt; they would say mean things like "Haitian eat cats", "Haitians are ugly"," Haitians are poor", "Haitians can't dress". Then when the earthquake happened on January 15, 2010, the bullying got so much worse, the kids would say stuff like did your tent go blown away and just mean thing for the first time in my life I am the fact I was Haitian. I hated being called Haitian, I hated speaking creole, I hated my accent, I hated the fact that I was dark skin, I hated the fact that I had kinky curly …show more content…

When I moved to Orlando that’s when I for the first time since I moved to the US I was happy. When I started school because I did not speak good English, I was still in ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages), my new fourth-grade class had a lot of Haitians and it was fun it was it wasn't until I started middle school the for my country really started as you can. In my middle school, it seemed like it was cool to be Haitian, everyone would try to learn creole even then I still wasn't proud being Haitian. May 18 my counting took me to my first Haitian day festival, which at the time I didn't know they had when I have seen so many people with their Haitian flag regardless of their ethnicity. To me being Haitian mean being prideful, being strong, being determined. it was because of that determination It was the first black republic in the world and the first country in the Western hemisphere to abolish slavery

Show More
Related

  • Personal Narrative: Growing Up Haiti

    199 Words  | 1 Pages

    Growing up Haitian, it’s the cultural norm for the parents to depend on the oldest to care for the youngest and household needs. At the young age of eight years old, my parents taught me responsibility and how to humble myself. They depended on me while they both worked long hours, my mother as a Certified Nursing Assistant and my father as a truck driver. When my parents were growing up in Haiti, they were the lucky ones to have the opportunity of going to school to gain an education. Haiti is a poor country and poverty is at an all-time high still to this day. So my parents strived to live the American dream and moved from Haiti to Miami and planted within my brother and me the seed to dream big and make a difference. Thanks to my family

    Read More

  • The Culture Of Haitian Culture

    919 Words  | 2 Pages

    Haiti means “mountains country” Haitian culture represents a specific mix of physical characters especially skin color, hair texture. hair color and facial features the African culture is an ethics mix of African and European elements due to the French, African and indigenous dialects. Major customs of Haitian culture are Catholicism and voodoo a mixture of African animism which means belief in spirits and nature, some Haitians even practice both at one time. There are significant holidays in the Haitian culture as well voodoo is considered a holiday(is a belief system based on practices and traditions that originates from west African traditional regions)

    Read More

  • Haiti Essay

    1231 Words  | 3 Pages

    Haiti as a rich history, filled with many peoples’ blood and countless hopes of freedom. With such a rich history, the country has yet to become financially stable because of their past. From the beginning of the French settlement where slaves were brought over from Africa to harvest crops, to the dictatorship of the Duvalier family. Haiti has yet to see a time when they are not in need of help. After the racial caste systems were set in place, many people would not see a truly independent country. When France finally gave independence to Haiti, they did it for a price. After they paid that price, the US occupied them because of their location and many resources. Every year in Haiti’s history as a nation and before has effects on the world today. These effects are not hidden in fine print, but blatantly found within Haiti and those who have been involved with Haiti.

    Read More

  • The Haitian Revolution Essay

    1080 Words  | 3 Pages

    The island of Saint-Domingue was made up of a mixture of people including whites from France, creoles, free people of color, and slaves. Once sugar became a major cash crop on the island, an estimated half-million African slaves were brought in to work the land. These slaves outnumbered their white masters more than ten to one and made up the majority of the island inhabitants. Even so, the island had the most secure slave regime in the Caribbean because of the cooperation between masters and free men of color. Due to the difficult policing jobs given to the freed men with little reward, the communication between them and the white masters broke down. Now that the white slaveholders were on their own, it was only a matter of time before their brutal treatment of slaves would lead to an uprising. Once enslaved Africans received word of the revolution in France they too began demanding freedom. After years of civil unrest and vicious fighting, Haiti declared its freedom from France in January of 1804. What makes the Haitian Revolution more radical than the two before it is the fact that it was led by slaves. Throughout the previous revolutions, the main goal was for white men, essentially, to be free from oppressive government rule. There were few thoughts regarding the rights of slaves, even though they too were men. The fact that this group of people were able to remove the colonial authority and establish their own country during this period of time was particularly radical and unheard

    Read More

  • Research Paper On Family Of Origin

    2120 Words  | 5 Pages

    My family of origin is Haitian. My grandfather was a crop farmer in Haiti. My maternal grandmother passed away when my mother was eight years old. As a result, my mother became somewhat of a foster child. While her father was living, his work prevented him from taking care of her, so he sent her to live with multiple families so that he could provide for her. My mother was abused in many of the homes she was placed in. My Mother came

    Read More

  • Essay On The Haitian Revolution

    1075 Words  | 3 Pages

    The island of Saint-Domingue was made up of a mixture of people including whites from France, creoles, free people of color, and slaves. Once sugar became a major cash crop on the island, an estimated half-million African slaves were brought in to work the land. These slaves outnumbered their white masters more than ten to one and made up the majority of the island inhabitants. Even so, the island had the most secure slave regime in the Caribbean because of the cooperation between masters and free men of color. Due to the difficult policing jobs given to the freed men with little reward, the communication between them and the white masters broke down. Now that the white slaveholders were on their own, it was only a matter of time before their brutal treatment of slaves would lead to an uprising. Once enslaved Africans received word of the revolution in France they too began demanding freedom. After years of civil unrest and vicious fighting, Haiti declared its freedom from France in January of 1804. What makes the Haitian Revolution more radical than the two before it is the fact that it was led by slaves. Throughout the previous revolutions, the main goal was for white men, essentially, to be free from oppressive government rule. There were few thoughts regarding the rights of slaves, even though they too were men. The fact that this group of people were able to remove the colonial authority and establish their own country during this period of time was particularly radical and unheard

    Read More

  • My Race, Ethnic And Cultural Identity

    812 Words  | 2 Pages

    I classify my race, ethnicity, and culture as a white, Irish-Italian- American, woman. My mother was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland and my paternal grandparents are from Sicily, Italy. I imagine being first generation Irish and second generation Italian helps me relate with my ethnicity.

    Read More

  • Identity Essay: My Cultural Identity, Is Haitian American

    1240 Words  | 3 Pages

    I wanted to wear brand clothes/shoes they did, I wanted to do my hair like them, and make good grades like them. I wanted to fit in. My cultural identify took a back seat. But it was not long before I felt black and white did not mix. I must have heard too many comments asking to speak Haitian or I do not look Haitian, but more than that, I am black, so I always had to answer question about my hair or why my nose is big, and that I talked white. This feeling carried on to high school because the questions never went away and the distance between me and them grew larger. There was not much action my family could take for those moments in my life, but shared their encounters or conversations to show me I was not alone in dealing with people of other background. I surrounded myself with less white people and more people of color and today, not much has

    Read More

  • The Haitians From Haiti And The Myth Of Community

    1351 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Haitians that I am speaking on the Haitians who are from Haiti, also known as The Haitian Republic. Haiti is a Caribbean country that takes up one third of the island of Hispaniola), and it resides near the Dominican Republic (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014). Haiti is linguistically affiliated with France as its official language is French (Every Culture, 2014). Haitians are also known to speak Creole and Patwa, and some Haitians are able to speak English as well. There is a lot of diversity within the community of Haiti, which consists of nearly 10 million people (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014). Everyone is unique and individual and has their own style.

    Read More

  • Haitian Culture Essay

    1267 Words  | 3 Pages

    People who are part of the Haitian-American culture, like myself, are either born in Haiti and moved to the U.S. and have assimilate to the American culture or were born in the U.S. and have parent who were originally from Haiti. I was born in Haiti and raised in the U.S. I can relate to other people, female and male, who were also born in Haiti and have moved to the U.S at a young age. Members

    Read More

  • Identity and Culture

    1522 Words  | 4 Pages

    When we think about our identity we often think about the way we look. Such features as hair color, eye color, skin tone, height and weight come to mind. Whilst these features are part of our identity, there are many more complex factors that make us who we are. Whilst psychological issues are paramount to the formation of our identity, I will be addressing the nature of our identity in relation to socio-cultural factors (Austin, 2002, p.9). During the course of this essay I will be discussing the term of Identity and some of the axes of identity, including Race, Class and Gender. It is important to understand some of the significant issues of identity so that we have more of an understanding of who and what we are, which in turn may help us to begin to better understand others.

    Read More

  • A culture of my own

    623 Words  | 2 Pages

    The smell of the ocean, palm trees, and the sound of the salsa beats in the distance, characteristics of a beautiful culture. But is that really what My culture is. As a Cuban in America, culture is much different than that of a island native. My culture, or should I say, the culture that my family has molded into our own, is a spectacular one. It may not be the same as it was one-hundred years ago, or even twenty years ago for that matter. But one things makes that okay, culture is not written, nor are you born with in. We humans are taught culture. And what I’ve learned and discovered on my own is that being Cuban means many things to me; it means music and loudness, A lot of family memories, and most definitely pride.

    Read More

  • Haitian Revolution Research Paper

    699 Words  | 2 Pages

    Introduction The Haitian Revolution (1791-1804) was started by the slaves in Saint Domingue as a rebellion against their French owners, but the free men and Mulattoes pushed these slave revolts into a revolution because of the unhappiness felt by them as a result of their status in the country. Though not the first revolution to plague the Caribbean, it was the largest and most successful slave revolt that ever occurred in the area, resulting not only in the freeing of slaves, but also the end of French control over the colony, transforming the small country from the French colony known as Saint Domingue to the independent country formally known as the Republic of Haiti (abolition.nypl.org). This is an important topic to discuss because of

    Read More

  • My Cultural Identity

    1009 Words  | 3 Pages

    My culture identity, as I know it as is African American. My culture can be seen in food, literature, religion, language, the community, family structure, the individual, music, dance, art, and could be summed up as the symbolic level. Symbolic, because faith plays a major role in our daily lives through song, prayer, praise and worship. When I’m happy I rely on my faith, same as when I’m sad, for I know things will get better as they have before.

    Read More

  • My Identity And Identity Autobiography Of Cultural Identity

    1624 Words  | 4 Pages

    Who am I; my beliefs, values, morals, and views on society have assisted in molding me into the person that I am considered to be today. I was raced with specifics values, traditions, and norms. Being raised in a small town made being socially aware very easy. I was raised under the southern Baptist Christian religion. Church was always the same and it had a majority of women in attendance although the men and elderly people ran the church overall. It was always the same, repetitive habits and events that occurred in my town but after a while I became accustomed to always being near or known by others.

    Read More

More about My Cultural Identity

Open Document