Cardenas Feasibility Study

The sweet smell of tres leches cake baking in the oven, the overwhelming odor of tamales being made in the kitchen, the destruction and cracks of the piñata, the laughter radiating from the adults enjoying their beers. If there was one keystone that holds together my identity and life, it would be my Mexican culture. This culture has an extensive history and tradition that unifies people together. There exist many stereotypes and stigmas recently about Hispanics due to the ongoing War on Drugs. Some people are afraid of us. There is plenty of hateful rhetoric spread around, and I am here to prove those assertions wrong. There is a certain degree of pride in being Hispanic. What many fail to realize is that wherever I go, whoever I encounter,

I was so thrilled that I finally got to see them after a decade as well as exploring the pueblo that I had distant memories of. When we landed in Mexico, my brother and I immediately received many looks from the people over there. At first, I didn’t really think much of it, but as the trip progressed, I realized that they were staring at us because we looked “too American.” I found it humorous actually because they thought we didn’t speak any Spanish. When I ordered my food, they expected me to speak English, but as soon as I started speaking Spanish, their eyes lit up in amazement. Every time I spoke an ounce of Spanish, my extended family was surprised. Pretty much everyone was surprised. While it’s sad that they would invalidate me as a Mexican since I was born in America, I know that there is no perfect way of being Mexican since each of us are mixed and come from different

A couple years ago, on Cinco De Mayo, we had a soccer game. We went to the game and afterwards Taylor’s family and my family wanted to go out to eat. Because it was Cinco De Mayo, we decided to go to La Mesa, a

Even though my mother was Mexican it was hard for me to speak to my friends who knew mostly Spanish and a little English because Spanish was not my first language. As years went on, I went to high school, where now I can have a full conversation with my Spanish speaking friends, and since it is an international high school, it brings in more cultural diversity. With this international high school in El Paso, it has helped me learn new cultures and experience the dozens of traits they do for activities or how they celebrate

Although people didn’t think I was Hispanic why? Well 2 years ago when I went to Mexico my father’s family would ask me what I’m I all I would say is I'm Hispanic. Some of them would laugh and say “your other Mexican your American” just by the way I looked since that day I felt confused of who I’m.

Subsequent to wandering into the room full of Spanish posters, I made eye contact with the teacher. I was expecting a “Hello, ready to learn Spanish?” when the words that were projected throughout the classroom were “¡Buenas tardes!” followed by “¿Cómo te llamas?” I was undoubtedly puzzled by the few words said by the teacher. At that moment I realized how beneficial being bilingual is and that the knowledge of another language could be used in different parts of the world.

Being born into a small town in Texas where a heavy influence on Mexican culture applies to almost everyone. It makes me realized that food really plays a major part in identifying myself as a Mexican. Because the food, makes our culture unique. In addition, learning to make my very first ever batch of tamales made me realized that it was a memorable experience.

New Year's eve was the first time meeting my Hispanic boyfriend's family, of course I had taken a few Spanish classes back in high school, but not even the most advanced class could have

I come from a Mexican family that never forgets about their traditions and foods. My sisters and I grew up with my parents always cooking Mexican food for the holidays, but when my cousin married a Guatemalan lady, Virginia, she introduced us to her food. When we first tried her tamales we didn't really know what to expect. I guess since I was used to my mom's tamales I expected them to taste the same. Well, I was wrong. To begin with the Guatemalan were a lot smaller than the tamales I was used to. Tasting the Guatemalan tamales was a moment I would call life changing because that's when I realized that even though their food and ours have similar names they won't all be the same. Every food that

I once went with my family to an accessory shop where the cashier was a white woman. As we were checking out the items, she told

We lived in such a small, culturally varied town, there were many opportunities to overhear conversations in another language. It was mostly Spanish, but our neighborhood was situated directly in the hood, so many languages through the area speaking their own languages, such as English, Chinese, Tagalog and more. The surrounding area was also the residence of many Asians, White, Asian and African American people. I grew accustomed to hearing their language spoken, as well as knowing a lot about their culture. As you can see, I’ve been exposed to a variety of languages and situations, people and places. I hope that by furthering my knowledge of other languages, cultures, and people, I can overcome many of the prejudices that I have learned from parents, friends, or associations. I hope that one day I’ll be able to interact with people of all different races.

I have light skin and green eyes. It could be said that they’re my defining features, setting me apart from most girls, especially for a Mexican. At first glance, people tend to assume that I’m barely Mexican or not Mexican at all. It was always the same routine in a new class, at first glance people decided that I was not Mexican, then my name, Azucena, is called and they get thrown off. Maybe she is Mexican. It is only when I speak Spanish, which I do often with pride, that they realize that I am Mexican. They’re assumptions didn’t affect me. I liked who I was and kept them guessing. However, I wasn’t always as confident. In Mexico, when I was not yet fluent in Spanish and where I was easily influenced, my defining features became my biggest insecurity.

The staffs made us feel very uncomfortable so we decided to leave the store. In addition, I have noticed that people tend to stayed within their race and culture. For example, some white people stay within their race, they form relationships within their own race, they live in neighborhoods where white people predominate, and they have their own life style, and consider other races lower than theirs. This makes me think about my own Mexican culture. I have heard some of my Central American friends say that Mexicans think they are better than they are. I do not say anything but I know many Mexicans who have said that we are better than other cultures. I have to say we are different in the way that we do integrate and have close friendships with people from other cultures. Unlike some white people, who say they have close relationships with other races, when in reality they do not. Anderson and Collins, stated, “We want readers to understand that race, class, and gender are linked experiences, no one of which is more important than the other; the three are interrelated and together configure the structure of U.S. society.” (Anderson and Collins, 2010)

While they talked about Latinos, I kept quiet; I didn't want them to think of me negatively. This experience lasted throughout the school year. When I returned to school after the summer break, half of my classmates were Latinos.

When I was in Sixth Grade, I transferred schools from Cesar Chavez Middle School to Frank Ledesma Elementary in Soledad. A city that was full of diversity, to a city that was ethnically homogenous. I knew that there were two things that you never tell most mexicans, your favorite football team and your favorite color. Why? Because most of these kids were in gangs and telling them that my favorite team was the 49ers or my favorite