Being Hispanic Doesn T Define Me

Growing up in a Hispanic household has shaped and built my values in life. At Appleton North High School, I am one out of the few Hispanic students. Knowing that my parents have migrated to America to give me a better future has motivated me to make it happen. Although, as a Mexican-American, I have felt out of place as a minority. However, with time I learned to accept my cultural differences. In fact, to this day, I thank my widowed father for the sacrifices and greater opportunities he has given me. My goal is to keep representing the few Hispanic students in college by working hard to achieve my career goals; not all Hispanics are fortunate enough to attend college. I also work to inspire young Hispanics to find their potential and follow

Being Hispanic is a big part of who I am. I am proud to represent a race that is so full with hard working people with big aspirations and diverse culture. I am proud to be a female Hispanic that will be the first generation in my family that will go to a four year

I'm a Hispanic student and naturally that means that I must have lived a difficult life. My mom must have been on some kind of television talk show screaming at her “baby daddy” for the child support. I’m Hispanic, so I must have crossed the border ether from Mexico or Central America. I’m Mexican, so I must have friends that are in a gang. I’m Hispanic, so I must have something to do with the increase in poverty, crime, and and teen pregnancies. And of course, when applying to the University my personal statement would about the challenges in my life and how I overcame them, because I am Hispanic and therefore my life has to be complicated. I must have had a set of obstacles that others don’t. Right?

I’ve always been proud to be Mexican-American. I recognize that this aspect of myself makes me unique. I represent a rich culture with so much to offer. My family immigrated to North Carolina in the late 90’s; however, almost two decades of separation from our hearth hasn’t dulled our Mexican culture and pride. Now, more than ever, it is important for young Hispanics to embrace their roots. It is imperative for young Hispanics to send a message that being American and Hispanic isn’t mutually exclusive. Hispanics, first-generation, second-generation, or even fourth generation, have so much to offer to the United States. I embrace my Mexican heritage- my Hispanic heritage, because I want other young people to do so too. I want to lead by example and one day be able to pass the torch to a next generation of young Hispanics.

I am a U.S. born citizen. My parents moved to the United States in 1984 without knowing anything about this country. Looking for a fresh start and new opportunities, my parents settled in Houston. With hardly knowing any English, my parents knew this was the place to make dreams become a reality. Luckily, I had older siblings to look up to whenever I needed help. Like Lahiri, I was trapped in between two different cultures while I was growing up. At home, I only spoke Spanish, but in school it was English. My habits and customs were different than others. Life as an immigrant’s offspring can be very difficult. As I grew older, I allowed myself to open my eyes and see the beauty of being an American from Hispanic descent.

My grandmother resided with one of my aunts for the last 15 years of her life. As her health started to fail her, she became more and more dependent. My grandmother was always a very independent woman and the rock of our

Being Hispanic is being able to enjoy and demolish your mom’s tamales at Christmas. Being Hispanic is also being able to explain horchata to your friends and watch soccer games with your family. It’s being able to be proud of your culture and roots. However, being Hispanic is living in fear. Being Hispanic means sometimes you don’t know if your parents will come home from work. It’s being petrified that your dad may get pulled over because he is driving without a license. Being Hispanic is seeing your mom come home, tired from a low paying job, because she could not pursue an education. Hispanic means working hard in life to make your parents proud, to make all the looks of discrimination worth it. Being Hispanic is also being told “no” repeatedly,

My Hispanic culture is exceedingly unique contrast to other cultures because we have countless of beliefs, holidays, lifestyles, etc. My world of Hispanic culture raised me to become an independent and determined person because being the first generation of a Hispanic family to attend college has my family beyond thrilled for me to put value to our heritage. Putting value in our heritage is a magnificent emotion because people anticipate Hispanics to fail; but, we prove them wrong when we accomplish our goals. The Hispanic culture’s strength is unbelievably astonishing because we are ambitious of our dreams and we don’t cease until we fulfill our wish. Including the Hispanic culture at University of Washington may open people’s mind that we

Growing up as a first-generation college-bound Hispanic woman has proven to be a difficult journey. Both of my parents left their home countries at a young age and came to this country without any ideas or real opportunities on where to begin. At a young age, I have been taught that having a higher education is the key to having a successful and plentiful life. However, the journey towards achieving my dream of receiving a higher education has been filled with moments where I have challenged the stereotypes about getting pregnant and dropping out of high school, facing my grandma’s unexpected illness that affected me both academically and mentally, and the challenge of being a first generation college bound student in my family.

Undocumented students come from all over the world, not just Mexico, or Spanish speaking countries as many close-minded people believe. It is sad how when someone sees a Hispanic/Latino student they automatically think they are undocumented and are from Mexico. That is not always the case. There are Hispanic/Latino students in the United States that are documented. The reason why many parents risk their life to come here to the United States as an immigrant is because they want a better future for their kids. Even when they have children in their native country, they try their best to bring them to the United States along with them as young children so they are able to get a better education and life. For their kids to be able to receive and have a life that will be a million times better than the one they would have if they stayed in their native country. Every day I am grateful for the risk my mother took for me. For giving me the chance to grow up in a country where I know I am getting a better education. Where I was taught English as my second language and have mastered it just as much as Spanish that is my native language. The United States is where I feel like I am home. Although at times I had the fear of being deported, or have racial comments said to, this is still home. Mexico is only a country where I was born at, raised for the first two years of

When one thinks about Hispanics, all too often the image of a field full of migrant workers picking fruit or vegetables in the hot sun comes to mind. This has become the stereotypical picture of a people whose determination and character are as strong or stronger than that of the Polish, Jewish, Greek, or Italian who arrived in the United States in the early 1900's. Then, the center of the new beginning for each immigrant family was an education. An education was the "ladder by which the children of immigrants climbed out of poverty into the mainstream." (Calderon & Slavin, 2001, p. iv) That ideal has not changed, as the Hispanic population has grown in the United States to large numbers very quickly and with little fanfare. Now, the

I have learned more about Hispanics’ unique perspective of race that it doesn’t necessarily fit with the definitions of United States officially. Hispanic is considered more as an ethnicity than a race and that Hispanic individuals can come from any racial category. However, the census makes it difficult for Hispanics to describe their racial identity as there not many relevant options to choose from. This is why they fill in the “other” section of the census. I think it’s completely irrelevant to categorize Spanish-speaking individuals into one single group as they come from different parts of the world, such as Central and South America and parts of the Caribbean, different European nations, indigenous regions, Asia, and Africa. I am glad

When I was little my grandmother on my dad’s side done my sisters and I so dirty. She favored my cousins who are not related to her at all. As for my sisters and I, we felt left out when they would come over and visit. I remember how my sisters and I got in trouble for fighting each other and got a spanking.

My mother had it rough growing up. Forced to be out of the house nearly by dawn and only to return by nightfall, she was ignored and turned away by her mother. All throughout her childhood, and most of her young adult life until she ran away, my mother was

Her father always came home drunk and was not only mean to both her sisters and her, but the worst of it was saved for her mother. This always put her mother into a bad mood, making her home life basically awful. My grandma left home sooner than she should of but, she needed to get out of that situation anyway. She married at fourteen, and was dragged into another bad relationship. My grandma always told me to straighten up, put my shoulders back and hold my tongue. I guess her mother and father would say the same thing to her.