Ethnic Identity : What One Eats, And How One Communicates? Essay

The experience of food consumption is something shared amongst all humans across the world; however it is also something that can separate or differentiate us from one another. Food is greatly intertwined with identity in that is our food choices can say a lot about our personality,

How one does in school, one’s social ability, and one’s awareness of others are all guided by how an individual identifies. Identification with one’s gender, race, religion, social class, and ethnicity are all driving forces behind an individual’s future self. Identity is a crucial part of who you are, and in recent studies and experimentation researchers have been trying to identify new, untested factors that influence behavior in people. Although, in the past there hasn’t been a strong focus on the positive effects of race and ethnicity, the conversation is now shifting to align itself with the current times. With America becoming increasingly more ethnically and racially diverse, we must take the time to see how certain factors, specifically race and ethnicity, impact a person’s development and behavior in both positive and negative ways. Attributes and characteristics such as good academic standing, one’s well-being in terms of health, and one’s well-being in terms of self-esteem have all been the focus of studies focused on ethnic and racial identity.

Cultural identity is what makes you who you are. Cultural identity can range from a variety of different things. But in today's culture people do not take the time to learn one another's back ground, they judge others based upon appearance. I am mainly looked at as a spoiled, stuck up white girl who went to catholic school, when none of that is true. I have a lot of things that make me who I am, from my family's traditions, to how old I am, the food I enjoy, the music I listen to, and the sport I play.

Upon entering the class I was anxious, curious, and also oblivious to the ideas I would be encountering. Like other students who had not previously spent time discussing topics of race and ethnicity, I myself had nervous tendencies in assuming that such a class may not strengthen my understanding of ethnic and race relations. I realized I knew little about race or ethnicity, and even the possible similarities or differences. However, I welcomed the opportunity to further discover the possibilities of the class. My understanding of race was concentrated in a definition that could be understood as different skin colors. My limited conception of ethnicity applied to people’s origin or where they lived. It seemed as though my lack of

I was born into a mixed family much like Tiger's. My mother's father was Chinese-American, orphaned by his birth-family and raised in the South. My mother's mother was African-American and, following the family legacy, she received a degree from Fisk University in Nashville, TN. My relatives were instrumental in the foundation of the Avery Normal Institute in Charleston, SC, an educational institute for African-Americans founded in 1865 (now associated with the College of Charleston). My mother grew up in a segregated society where choices were rarely available. She received her Master's degree in Library Science from HBC University. My father's family is of German/Scottish/Irish/Danish decent. When faced with racial classification forms,

I have chosen the video on food, Would You Eat It? 10 Weird Foods We Dare You To Try, to make connections between cultural norms, language, and personal identity. There are many cultural norms and values presented in the video, and it is interesting to be able to compare them to my cultural norms and values. Culture is what makes everyone different. Through enculturation we learn our norms and values through this process at a very young age. With culture, we have comfort and meaning for life. There are many cultures around the world have very different norms and values, as seen within this YouTube video. When the video first started I was caught off guard when I heard “10 most disgusting delicacies in the world” (TheRichest, 2015). It was shocking to hear the word disgusting, because everyone in the world has different taste buds and enjoys different things that others do not. Something disgusting may be delicious to another culture. Since we are grown up eating certain foods, we are accustomed to that taste and style, so cultures are use to their traditions and style of eating. Through out the video we hear ten disgusting foods that are from all over the world. There are so many cultures across the world and it was interesting to see so many and their norms and values they grew up with. The delicacies seen in the video are sometimes beliefs and symbols for cultures. They are norms, which are normal for them, and may come across strange to other cultures, but are meaningful

My racial identity and ethnic identity are tied to my everyday experiences as an African American. I identify as African American or black because it’s my culture. I born by two black parents and grew up in a black household. Although I was often told by my parents that I’m black, I would say that the term “Black” was given to me before I even entered the world. The term “Black” was given to Africans by Europeans when they took us as slaves to the Americas. Ever since then, the one drop rule applied to anyone with African heritage in the United States. In “What White Supremacist taught a Jewish Scholar About Identity” by Abby L. Ferber, she proves that race is a social construct. While researching the readings of white

As I grew up, race was always a weird concept to me. Like I said in my last Short Reflection Essay, I grew up in a small town that was predominantly white and Christian. My father and I were basically the only ones that identified as Arab or Muslim, so I grew up around the concept of being unlike the other kids in my grade. I never really understood why some kids treated me so differently because I looked and acted just like them. My father did not make me wear a hijab, and I was literally born and raised in my small town exactly like them, but because I was not of the Christian faith and had a 'weird' name, I was alienated by kids who thought it was bizarre to be different. I remember in elementary school, teachers would call roll and say everyone's first, middle, and last name. My middle name is Islam and as you can imagine, that did not really go over well with the kids that weren't exposed to anything other than their white parents, predominantly white church, and mostly white town. I got called a terrorist and was asked if my father was a terrorist. I got told I was going to hell because I did not

The African, Mexican, and Native persons have all interacted with the Dominant American culture in some magnitude; consequently altering each different group’s racial and ethnic Identity. Throughout the semester, I have discovered that in much literature writers had an ideal perspective on their own identity as well as the identity that the dominant culture influenced them to have. While doing some research I wanted to see what would be a transitional time frame for a person to be un-conditioned of many negative symbolic meanings in regard to minorities and immigrants. My research has shown that there was a hierarchical scheme where an individual can monitor his/her identity progression from one level to the next. This

I believe that everyone has their own perspective on identifying different race, ethnicity or gender, etc. I think it is hard for people to have exactly the same perspectives on human traits because everyone has their own opinions and thoughts. However, something I found interesting is that people who have similar thoughts seems to hang around together because they have the same beliefs. For example, at University of Nevada, Las Vegas, we can easily see that people who have same race, ethnicity, class, or religion, etc, they are always gathering together. The question of the essay is how do I identify and why? Personally, I identity people by looking at their appearance and the apparel they are wearing because it is easiest way to figure which

The discussions of race, identity, and social norms begins to seem almost unavoidable in a society that is subjected to disproportionate ideas of equality. We tend to only recognize racism that occurs in the United States, ignoring the fight for acceptance of those of African descent around the world. The articles, “Being African in India: ‘We are seen as demons’” & ‘Shock in India Over Mob Attack On Tanzanian Student” both effectively highlight the presence of race as the determinant of the choices you make, the way you are viewed by others, and ultimately the way in which you are treated in society.

Paper 1: Race & Ethnicity in Your Life When one thinks about an experience where racial and ethnic differences has influenced actions or behaviors towards a person of color, one would think that the persons involved would have different races and ethnicities. Well in my specific case, the people involved had the same race and ethnicity as me. This experience actually happened recently, I was working in the multi-cultural office of Witte Hall last summer where the majority, if not all of my coworkers were black themselves. One day, my coworkers and I started talking about our significant others. When it was my turn to talk about my own the first thing that I was the identity of her race and ethnicity.

Many circumstances oblige people to move from their native country to a foreign one. From this movement of migration have emerged many ethnic groups. An ethnic group is a restraint number of persons living in a larger society and sharing the same distinct cultural heritage. Some people tend to bury their habits and accommodate to the new way of life. However others hold on to their identity and try to identify their race and maintain it. This enriches societies and makes them multi-racial. Therefore, every ethnic group is essential to complete the mosaic. Although they are sometimes threatened, minorities must fight to preserve their principles. Why must they fight? Because racial identification has many positive impacts on the members.

My immediate family, father, mother, two older brothers and myself would technically be considered of the same ethnic group: White. However, my mother is full Italian and my father is half Italian and half Polish; thus my brothers and I are the same ethnically while differing minimally from our parents. My extended family could be considered all ‘White’ as well. My mother’s side is simply Italian; Italians marry Italians, while my father’s side is comprised of Italians and Polish. My father’s sister married a Swedish man, and their daughter married a Russian Jew. So while all of us may be considered ‘White,’ we are all very ethnically different.

We live in a country that prides itself on multiculturalism yet those who have different or multiple cultural identities and do not speak English to a certain degree of proficiency are ridiculed and suffer from prejudices and racism. Cultural identities and the ideology behind the language we speak can bring prejudice or privilege depending on how the cultural identities and ideologies are viewed by society. Most people who speak a different language also have a different cultural identity. In today’s society being different can have two effects either it is seen as foreign, exotic, and interesting or it can be viewed as an inferiority, a disability, or an unpleasant attribute. I had the luxury of being seen as interesting and exotic by my classmates. I grew up in a small town and was one of the few Spanish-speaking students in my school. Thankfully, I did not have to deal with racial slurs or discrimination as constantly as students in more densely populated school systems. The lack of prejudice helped positively shape my culture identity, but prejudice and racism can negatively affect cultural identity as well.