Family Strengths Of The Mcewan Family

To be Mexican-American is to unconditionally love one’s family and all it stands for. Mexican-Americans are an incredibly close-knit group of people, especially when it comes to family. We are probably the only culture that can actually recite the names of our fourth cousins by heart. In this respect our families are like clans, they go much further than the immediate family and very deep into extended families. (p. 173)

Mexican-American culture has been characterized as a family-focused, community-oriented culture. Even second and third-generation Mexican-Americans place a higher value upon their relationships with others versus personal autonomy, in contrast with the dominant values of the United States. Living in extended family situations, or being influenced by extended family is much more common in Mexican culture than in other cultures. The core values of Mexican culture are said to be "familismo, personalismo, and respeto. Familismo involves placing the family ahead of individual interests, living near extended family, making collective decisions that involve one or more members of the family, and feeling responsible for and obligated to the family...Personalismo involves the building and valuing of interpersonal relationships...Respeto refers to the high regard for family and community members, especially for authority figures and the elderly" (Neff, Brabeck, Kearney 2006).

The Hispanic culture has different values, beliefs, and traditions. Family is highly value. Family is a close-knit group and the most important social group to gather in any events or special days. The Hispanic “family unit” includes not only parents and children but also grandparents and extended family. Individuals within the family have moral responsibilities to help other members of the family experiencing financial problems, unemployment, health conditions and any other life issues. They show the importance placed upon relationship within their family extending a hand in good times and bad. Respeto y dignidad (respect and dignity) are other important values of the Hispanic culture. Children’s are taught to avoid confrontations with parents and older persons, and to be obedient and respectful. The Hispanics believe that the father is head of the family and the mother is to take care of home. Naming children after grandparents and parents is fairly common. A well-known tradition is the celebration of a fifteen year old girl called Quincenera. Hispanics culture and traditions are based around celebrating and spending time with love ones.

My cultural interview was with a coworker, 28 years of age and of Hispanic descent. While conducting the interview I learned a lot about the Hispanic culture. Many Hispanics like to be called Latino (a). Some do not like to be referred to as Mexican when they are from other countries other than Mexico. Hispanics also use slang within their culture just like African Americans. Within the culture the male is the dominant figure in the household. All the decisions that affect the family go through the father. If there is no father in the house, the oldest son fulfills that role. The older son may drop out of school so that they may assist the mother at the house in the absence of the father. Many Hispanics

Individuality was not stressed but rather the importance of the extended family. I believe that African Americans suffering through the hardships of slavery strengthened the idea of kinship even further. The unity of the African culture became strong due to a series of trials and tribulations.

It was always odd talking about my culture because we as Hispanics are very family oriented. As a kid, I hardly spent time with my friends outside of school. My cousins were my friends. For Lahiri, it was difficult to get along with her friends as well. She states, “In addition to my distinguishing name and looks, I did not attend Sunday school, did not know how to ice-skate, and disappeared to India for months at a time. Many if these friends proudly called themselves Irish- American or Italian- American” (Lahiri 98). I can relate to Lahiri because I understand where she’s coming from. I would visit el Salvador nearly every summer, and none of my friends would even know. Since my parents could barely communicate with my friends, it was hard to spend much

| Family ties among Hispanics are very strong, and this is what I mostly admire about their race. Hispanic families often come together for different occasions (birthdays, holidays, baptisms, etc.) and they teach their children the importance of good manners, and respect for their elders. A good quality to have today.

Family dynamics across all races are complex. For the state of the black family is made even more complicated by a history rooted in slavery. Fractured families were born out of a system where husbands were taken away, jailed or killed, leaving the family weakened with a mother and/or grandmother at the helm. While these historical facts may be true; that the black family is weak, can be argued. Yet, the family for many in the black community and other communities of color extend to include a large number of kin. On the other hand, it can also be argued that since families were ripped apart during the slave trade it created an opportunity for setting up networks of support and family units to include members who may not be blood related. You often hear black people refer to an elder as “aunt” or “uncle” these networks were put in place as protective factors in the event that parents were sold there was an assurance that someone would care for the children. To an extent this behavior continues to this day as we see many fathers sentenced to long jail terms for petty crimes or killed. The family structure makeup may be a blood relative and it may also be kin of another kind. LaShawnDa Pittman discusses how these factors shape the African-American family and how slavery impacted the role of the mother and father within the family system. During slavery there wasn’t any possibility of childhood. Children were socialized to begin work at the age of

Despite its inception some 400 odd years ago, slavery continues to impact families of African descent. Al though forcibly taken to American shores with shack les and chains draped around them like garments, Africans retained some sense of family both mentally and spiritually. The familial bond which was present those 400 years ago still exists today. It is the tradi tional African family structure that is the baseline for the past, present and future black American family. It is therefore imperative that we examine this tradi tional structure.

While reading The Family Crucible, the authors made it feel like I was watching a life-time television series. There were several high points and low points during the family therapy session that left me unsure of how the show would end. This book takes you on a journey using family counseling to help a family heal and communicate better with one another. I thought it was interesting how this systematic therapy took place in a time where therapy was looked at as taboo. Many times in that era family therapy was not an option. The main focus was on the family member with the issue and not on the parents or other family members. In the book the authors used different theories and approaches during the counseling sessions which were quite interesting. This process after time enabled the family to look at the journey they were on in order to understand how the family, as a whole, should function.

The Family Crucible is a story about the Brice family who is recommended by Claudia’s psychiatrist to go to family therapy due to the fact that she has not been making any progress in individual psychotherapy. The Brice family comes in to meet with Dr. Carl Whitaker and Dr. Augustus Napier, who co-facilitate family therapy throughout the entirety of the book.

This paper will discuss the differences between families from the 1960’s and the families of today. There are many differences between the different times. I have focused on the parentage portion of the families. I explained what the ideal family is and how it is different today. I’ve also included ways that will help these families of today become stronger as a family.

The Church hosts a multitude of activities to promote interconnectivity in the community. Aside from Sunday sermons, the church also holds weekly Wednesday bible study groups, church hoedowns, and a monthly potluck breakfast for the church's most

Black family systems are African in nature and American in nurture. “Africanity” is being in tune with an African worldview, therefore the role that Africanity plays in black families determines the unique form black families take. Africanity is at the root of black families. The operation of the black family is directly linked to African culture through an African attitude, kinship networks, and childbearing.

1. CLOSE FAMILY TIES – family is the most important unit of society. Source of strength.