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More handpicked essays just for you.
Assimilation and multiculturalism
The impact of cultural assimilation
Racial and social identity
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I looked at my cousin in dismay as she said, “Be proud that your skin is light, primo. People won’t judge you.” Despite my Hispanic family’s efforts to instill me with pride in my Hispanic culture, I often felt conflicted with a sense of identity. Here I was, standing outside the house, consuming every ray of sunlight that danced upon my skin in a desperate attempt to be darker. My Hispanic family tried their best to teach me to be proud of my heritage, but my Caucasian family always taught me that white was superior. I grew up in a world where I was torn between who I was and what others wanted me to be. I was a biracial child in a monoracial society. My Guatemalan father and my Casuauain mother were often ridiculed for having “impurities”
Thesis Statement: Society often forces biracial and multicultural people to identify themselves with one ethnic group by denying other part of their ethnic background. An analysis of the many scientific studies, literature, and art reveals the complexities of growing up with parents of different races. The American tendency to prefer lighter skin effects how biracial children form their identities and often causes them to deny their black heritage.
El Norte and My Family, Mi Familia, films directed by Gregory Nava, depict how Latino-Americans migrate from their native countries to the United States, challenges they face through their journeys, and the time they spend in America. Some critics say that El Norte is a stronger film politically in comparison to My Family, Mi Familia because of how El Norte keeps the journey raw and emotional. Through the trials Enrique and Rosa face as they travel from Guatemala to California, the viewer gains sympathy for them and rejoices with them when they reach Los Angeles; however, as the protagonists live in Los Angeles, we as the viewer learn through their failure to assimilate to America’s lifestyle, they will never reach their ultimate goal, the
Growing up in a Mexican-American family can be very fun and crazy. Having two different perspectives on two different cultures almost daily really shapes you to become a certain way as you grow up, which is what happened to me. Ever since I was about three months old I have been taking trips to my parents home town for a month time each time we have gone. Practically growing up in both Mexico and the United States for six years has really helped me understand my cultural background and the different parts of my whole culture, such as the food, heritage, language and culture.
Clara E. Rodriguez wrote an essay titled, "What It Means To Be Latino". On this essay she explains the difference between the terms Hispanic and Latino, elaborating on how the term "Hispanic" was created by the U.S. census in 1970, to use it as a general term to describe all of the people who came from, or, had parents who came from a Spanish speaking country. Then she states that the term "Latino", is a term considered to be more neutral and racially inclusive by many people of this population, although she made a good point of view, it still failed to describe the more complexity on the meaning of the term Latino.
Since before I was born, my Hispanic heritage played a huge role in who I am and what I have achieved. My great-grandfather immigrated to this country with the desire to provide his family with a better future than his own. My grandpa grew up in Texas on the boarder of Mexico and traveled to Blue Island, Illinois as migrant crop worker. This desire passed down by my grandparents and my great-grandparents has played a tremendous role in propelling me to where I am today. Each generation sought to make the the lives of their children better than their own. My grandma received the opportunity to live in the country of opportunity from her father, and my grandpa paid for my mom to get an education. My mother pushed me to do my best in school and
Growing up in a marginalized minority is a difficult task because there are a lot of differences between cultures. In the Mexican American culture, family is crucial, this is where one comes when one needs someone to talk to. In my experience, I had was raised being stuck in the middle of two different cultures I had to know what my identity was through, family, school, and through my travels.
Although our society is slowly developing a more accepting attitude toward differences, several minority groups continue to suffer from cultural oppression. In her essay “How to Tame a Wild Tongue,” Gloria Anzaldúa explores the challenges encountered by these groups. She especially focuses on her people, the Chicanos, and describes the difficulties she faced because of her cultural background. She argues that for many years, the dominant American culture has silenced their language. By forcing them to speak English and attempting to get rid of their accents, the Americans have robbed the Chicanos of their identity. She also addresses the issue of low self-esteem that arises from this process of acculturation. Growing up in the United States,
As a child, I never really knew that there was anything different about having parents of two different races because that was the norm for me. But as I started getting older, there was confusion when my dad picked me up from school because friends had seen my mother the day before and she was white. There was never judgement, but they just sort of made me feel weird for something I’d never even considered a problem. Being biracial has shaped my life experience in many ways. It’s given me insight to the theme “don’t judge a book
Growing up in a Mexican household where education isn’t a priority or important has been one of my major obstacles that I’ve had to overcome. Although my family’s culture believes that education isn’t necessary their experiences and lifestyles have influence and motivate my choices for my future. I come from a home where I have no role model or someone influential. I have no one to ask for advice for college or anything involve in school. In most homes, older siblings help their younger siblings with their homework or projects but in my house no one was able to provide me with any help. I grew up to be independent and to do anything school related on my own. My parents are both immigrants who didn’t get to finish elementary
A case study focused on mixed race individuals reactions to certain social situations mentioned that “the majority of the respondents experienced identity conflict or discomfort, usually in the form of not belonging” (Motoyoshi,176) . People with mixed races struggle to fit into the little categories that society wants to place them into. Society likes to categorize people based on race and give each race a certain set of expected behaviors, so when people who fall under two different categories society does not know what to expect from them. Mixed raced individuals sometimes struggle to fit into their own skin because although their bodies scream once race, their cultural beliefs express a different race. People also struggle to fit in because sometimes their own racial groups will unintentionally exclude them because they express too much of their “other”
I was born in Mexico and raised in beautiful San Diego since the age of four. Coming to the United States at a very young age I had to face many challenges that have shaped me to the person that I am today. I consider myself a Chicana woman who has overcome the obstacles to get were I am know. Being raised in a Mexcian household has thought me to embrace my culture and its roots. The Spanish and native blood that is with in me remind me of many Americans today. The reason I consider my self Chicana is because of the similar background that I shared with many Americans today. Living in the U.S. I have learned to adapt and embraced the American culture so much so that it came a point of life were I struggled to find my own identity. Taking
This stage of my adolescent life was very memorable. This was the time when my life was becoming more complicated as I struggled to find my own racial identity, and constantly questioning myself, “Who am I?” “Where do I belong?” while facing the pressure of “fitting in” as a biracial teen in prejudicial Asian society.
As soon as I arrived to the Perez family reunion, I immediately felt out of place. Since my family and I were the only ones not wearing the designated family reunion shirts, we stuck out like a sore thumb. Nevertheless, we received a warm welcome from the hostess who was my step-dad’s cousin. Although my stepdad, Shawn, has been in our family for a few years, we had never met any of his outside family. We’d heard the stories about my step-grandma and her fifteen brothers and sisters but we were excited to finally meet them. The first cousin that we encountered commented how she hadn’t seen Shawn in fifteen years. That would probably explain why she thought my sister and I were his daughters. I thought this was a strange assumption at first seeing as he is dark complected and my sisters and I are blondes. The longer we stayed, however, the more I realized that nearly all of the children below 25 were blond or near
My parents have always referred me to as a Mexican-American, simply because I was born in the US. The proper term to refer my kind is "Chicanos". I recall speaking with a teacher in middle school telling him that I was Mexican-American and would often tell me I was wrong because neither one of my parents is an actual American. I have been called Latina as well but have always been used to being called a Mexican-American. I have utilized my diverse life and perspectives and have contributed to my local community. My ability to speak two languages helps a great amount of people. I am translating nearly everyday whether it is to assist my mother, or to help translate at my jobs. At my recent job, I found myself working at a department near mine,
Times are changing and I feel like I am forced to conform to the everyday social norms of America, which makes me feel impuissance. Racial identity, which refers to identifying with a social group with similar phenotypes and racial category, is the only experience that I have with life (Organista, 2010). Racial ethnicity was used to build my self-esteem and to keep me in the dark when it came to how society treats individuals of darker complexion. However, once I left the confines of my family and neighborhood, I was forced to befriend and interact with individuals that had different cultural values and beliefs than me. This experience caused me to learn how to appreciate other racial and ethnic groups and their cultural values and belief. This is an accurate definition, of acculturation because I was able to understand and fit in with individuals different from me, while maintaining my own culture and ethnic identity. Therefore, knowing the importance of my ancestry, while acculturating and developing my own identity was all used