My Family 's Identity Has Been Formed Through Cultural Background

Balancing my cultures growing up was confusing as a young child; at one grandparents’ house I was Mexican, and the other, Laotian. Today I embrace both which has cuisine benefits during the holidays. Also, being different than my peers has been a constant struggle. Nonetheless I am understanding of others upbringings and am observant and self aware that I should embrace the culture around me without losing sense of who I am culturally and individually. This has been a realisation that has taken years to develop but has transformed me into an accepting and compassionate individual because so many were not for me. Regardless I am proud to be a texan, a southerner and an american. In addition being of a divorced family led to me, the eldest, filing in as the other parent sometimes acting as such in regard to care. I have been a parent to my siblings in my own right and didn't realize this until my younger sister told me so. Between making sure that we were awake for going to school, lunches being packed, homework finished and baths taken, I have a great sense of duty to family as well as initiative. I grew up quickly but wouldn’t change my circumstances even if I could. I have learned how to cope with stress and persevere and that a person should do things not because they are told to but rather because they are needed to be

My cultural identity, as I know is Mexican American because both my parents are born in Mexico and I was born here. I can also be defined as a Chicana because that is another way used to call a Mexican American. My culture can be seen in so many different ways like for example it can be seen in food, music, religion, dance, art, festivals, and even more. Most of these traditions have changed a little bit over time as they were brought to the U.S. What I mean by that is that some of those traditions were brought from Mexico, and had a little change into them because they were combined with some traditions that have already been here in the U.S.

Most people call me Colby, but on the field i'm know as number 40. Soccer has been a part of my life since I was 3, my 12 years of experience have influenced how I act, what I eat and most aspects of my life-like who I hang out with and what I dislike. In the United states especially, sports are a huge part of everyone's cultural identity. With all this in mind I would call my cultural identity a soccer game. It can change in a blink of the eye but is consistent through life.My family is like the other players, education is like the field and my hobbies are like the ball.

What is my cultural identity? Personally, I don’t think I am completely assured on what my cultural identity is, but I can do my best on explaining it. However, I won’t get started on that yet, first I’ll explain the occasion of me learning about my identity. At almost the beginning of the year, it was announced in our English class that we would be doing an essay on our cultural identities. When my teacher announced this I thought to myself, “What in the world is a cultural identity, or even my cultural identity?” In these months, we have gotten to learn the definition of culture, and what it means to us, individually., I believe that culture means a group of people that share the same customs, way of life, and beliefs. Also, over these last couple of months we have been reading texts all about people knowing and understanding their cultural identities, meanwhile I still didn’t understand my own. All I know is that I was born on February 11, 2002, I like movies and music, and my mom is from Chile and my Dad is from Virginia. Now that didn’t feel like enough for me to write on, but then I started thinking about all of the cultural differences that my parents have had raising me as a person, and how those have all combined to make me. In my short 15 years of life, the culture clashes have sometimes affected me on my thoughts and opinions, which I’ll talk about later on. As well as how movies and music have affected my perspectives and opinions.

Inclusion of other cultures is a result of marrying into another culture, children become independent from the family, language barriers between the parents and children, distant from family left behind in old country, etc. Virtually every ethnic group has planted its footprint into the history and daily life of the United States (Times – News, 2008). Due to the geographical proximity of Latin countries, Hispanics have played a vital historical role in the development of this country (Times – News, 2008). The way to ensure that the family retains and remember their culture is to maintain their cultural heritage through the knowledge of one’s cultural history and how the people in that culture dealt with struggles and how they handled difficulties in life to know how their source of strength is sustained. History informs us that societies are the result of collective contributions from the various social and ethnic groups (Times – News, 2008). The United States contains the most diverse combination of cultures in the Americas, due to the contributions made by all the native and foreign cultures embraced within this nation (Times – News,

Charles F. Glassman once said, “In a few seconds, we judge another person and think we know them. When, the person we’ve lived with the longest, we still don’t know very well- ourselves.” Writing about my values has gave me a better understanding of who I am. I now understand the several ways my culture has shaped me to become who I am. My cultural autobiography will allow me to reveal who I truly am by understanding my cultural identity. My cultural identity is the combination of my worldview and values as well as my position in the eight microcultures.

What makes my cultural identity different from others? No one has the exact same culture as somebody. What culture means to me is, the way a person is raised or things around them that makes them the way they are. It is a part of a person’s self-conception and self perception. My cultural identity is a unique one based on the influences of Religion, Education, and Sports.

Culture is a way of life of a group of people, the behaviors, beliefs, values, and symbols that they accept, generally without thinking about them, and that are passed along by communication and imitation from one generation to the next. Culture can be seen in our food, religion, family structure, and more. I was born and raised in Las Vegas, NV. My parents were born in Mexico. Well my whole family were born in Mexico. We are just any hispanic family. My cultural identity is pretty much the basic hispanic culture. We do everything that involves having fun and being with family.

For me, cultural identity is simply the things an individual does. But what really creates the foundation of one's culture is broken up into three parts: interests, family and beliefs. Personally, my cultural identity contains a ton of Latino and just a pinch of American. I am Mexican -American.

After countless tries by my ancestors to establish a life in the United States it seemed destiny had a place for me. Come to think of it, may it wasn’t destiny calling my family to cross the border, rather our native land was calling us home. Still how colonized have I become to accept my new identity. In the novel, Cruz comments that Esperanza changed her son’s name from Robert to Bobby. (Loc. 215) “Call him Bobby. In America, he’s Bobby, Esperanza said” (Cruz). My parents didn’t assimilate that quickly. My full name is Socorro Martinez, and I’m the youngest of eight children. My father came to this country during the Bracer Act Program, after it was terminated in 1964 he worked in construction. My mother followed six years later with three children, after losing her daughter to an illness. I was named after my mother but was given the nick name Suki. Growing up no one called by my first name. I built an identity based on my nick name, and slowly my cultural identity was diminishing.

¨Pereme-what? That is the weirdest and longest last name i've ever heard of! Where do people get last names like that?¨ My answer? Well, my grandfather is from Siberia, but my family just consider ourselves Russian. Actually not long ago my dad had told me about a city in Russia called Peremyshl, my great great grandparents, as I was told, are from there, Peremyshl is in the Kaluga Oblast near Moscow. And because of my ethnic background, I go to my church's youth, our youth really likes to go and hang out at the park or go someplace else and play volleyball.

Do you ever get that preconceived look from others? When they judged you by your facial expression or your race. Do people constantly question what you think you are because you share aspects of different cultures but they do not notice their own? When people look at me they see a stereotypical black girl they assume you know all of the latest dances and slang. When you talk people automatically assume that you do not know the basics of grammar but they soon find out that you do just in time for them to tell you that you talk like a white person. My cultural identity is not one of a strictly African American nature. My individual culture is an assortment of features that stem from my friends and family. The organized lifestyle, religion, values and traditions, I’ve gotten from my mother along with the music, clothes and pastime activities I share with my friends all come together as the

As a Vietnamese, I am very proud of the values and the ethics that still remains from thousands of years ago, by the way of life of the ancient; the upbringing, and the respect that we may not have now. “Cultural identity” is what I am talking about. Every single person has a different perspective on cultural identity. Culture plays a huge role in shaping individual personality or identity. It also refers to the traditions, people around you, and religion, etc. Our background is what sets us apart from everyone else because we came from a different culture. That is why culture created; it makes you feel belonging to something. Culture determines the person we are today and in future.

I grew up with a very diverse cultural background. My father is an immigrant from India and my mother’s parents are both immigrants from Italy. This mix of societies has taught me to be open to different customs from around the world. Since then, I have always been fascinated with other cultures and how they are all connected while still maintaining fundamental differences. Because of this, I would love to have the opportunity to immerse myself in a foreign culture by studying abroad with MIT.

Cultural identity is defined as the sense or feeling of belonging to a group. I connect my cultural identity to my immediate family. My immediate family consists of my parents, two younger sisters, and myself. Each one of us has significant values that have been instilled in one another. I believe that they play a large role in making me who I am today. Coming from a large, Sicilian family, the importance of love, loyalty, and support has always been prominent.