Identity Crisis?

 

Thinking a bit about what we went over in class yesterday, I couldn’t help but think about what it means to be a part of the dominant culture. I also can’t help but think about the attributes that make up my culture. While I can think of many different cultures and what makes them unique, I am having issues identifying what makes my culture unique. How do I find my roots? I think I’m having a bit of an identity crisis.

Henry talked a bit about “inhaling” what people say about your culture. I think that has become a problem in my generation. We have become more aware of what Caucasians have done to minorities and the result is, there is a certain amount of self-hate and a certain part of me doesn’t want to identify with my culture. Am I proud of where I came from? That’s hard to say. Where I came from is Chula Vista. My best friends were Filipino, African-American, and Mexican. When I started school, I quickly learned how to curse in both Tagalog and Spanish. I grew to love Mexican and Filipino food. I loved spending time with the big families that were always congregating at my friends’ houses. I envied my friends’ extended families and relished the affection that was bestowed on me by my adopted aunties and tias. My music tastes are vast, and I have my exposure to different cultures to thank for that. I also appreciate my willingness to try new and exciting foods…This comes from loving hands urging me to try chitterlings, Sinigang, and menudo. 

I identify as American. But to me, that means an absorption of many different cultures. One could say that I should identify with Irish culture since that is where my family originated. My great, great, great, great, great, great Grandfather was Colonel Blood. He is famous for being the first (maybe only) one to successfully steal the Crown Jewels from the Tower of London, even though he was caught as he escaped. So should I identify with Irish thieves? 

I typed in Caucasian Culture in Google and I could not find a single thing that could help me answer my inquiry. What is “my” culture? I typed in Hispanic Culture and there were A LOT of scholarly articles and websites devoted to Hispanic culture. *SIGH* 

Henry was kind enough to recommend resources for me. I’m hoping that this will help with my identity crisis…Let’s make it an identity journey.