People often like to change their “ethnicity”, to fit right into a social group. “Many people have considerable latitude in choosing their ethnic affiliations” (Olson 343). It’s very true people will change their ethnic affiliation when it comes to using it at the right moment. If you are categorized and fit into the majority you face less social stigma. You in some sense have it easy because you aren’t questioned about who you are. In “My Summer at an Indian Call Center” people are told to forget about their culture. Something they’ve grown up with and become something they truly can’t be. All for a dirt cheap job that will get them nowhere in life except to pay bills at home.
Many people think that because their grandparents or even older ancestors are from a certain group of people they become one too. Olson talks about how this “has become more like a professional or religious affiliation, a connection over which a person has some measure of control” (343). I think what people are doing is wrong, why change your ethnicity to something you certainly are far away from being just to get certain recognition. I have this friend who likes to use Instagram and post pictures of herself with the hashtags “#10%German #40%Latina #40%White #10%Italain”. I think its dumb, and I always call her out on it. Why not just use Mexican-American? Will using
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They are trained to talk American, eat American food, and act American. These people are told to leave their Indian culture behind. Something that has been with them ever since they were born. These people change their “ethnicity” to become someone they aren’t, just so they can earn a living. They do it because of their family, these call-center agents will send their money back home. These poor people have to give up their culture in order to earn money, some people do it in order to feel special or be given special
American and Indian culture are different in similar in many ways. In the video “30 Days: Outsourcing” we got to follow a man Chris Jobin, into India and see firsthand just what living in India is like. Upon arrival he starts to notice somethings are very different than what he is accustom to, but there are also some that are very similar. One of the very first things he sees when he arrives is all these new business buildings next to little shacks that people live in. Then when he gets to the house he is staying at, the family meets him at the door and does some ritual on him. After his initial first day, he notices that the main job in India, is the lowest job in America.
Everyone is raised within a culture with a set of customs and morals handed down by those generations before them. Most individual’s view and experience identity in different ways. During history, different ethnic groups have struggled with finding their place within society. In the mid-nineteen hundreds, African Americans faced a great deal of political and social discrimination based on the tone of their skin. After the Civil Rights Movement, many African Americans no longer wanted to be identified by their African American lifestyle, so they began to practice African culture by taking on African hairdos, African-influenced clothing, and adopting African names. By turning away from their roots, many African Americans embraced a
Growing up, I felt as if I had two identities, one as a Christian amongst many non-Christian Indians and the other as an Indian among many white people. Fitting into either group
4 years, passed exams to become a certified LVN. She now works at a hospital in California as a LVN, but her education and qualifications does not stop her co-workers or the visitors from making anti-immigrant comments. Harvel Gill has had similar experiences working as a truck driver. Most of the discrimination he has faced is in his workplace where people at his worksite would have commented about how immigrants were taking over the trucking business and taking from “Americans”. In California, many truck drivers are Punjabi Americans. Often times white Americans seem to not see Indian Americans as Americans. They define the term American as someone is white or at the very least born in America.
Our society is a melange of different cultures. Each culture contributes to cultural diversity without losing its separate identity. Living in this society, we identify ourselves as a member of one group with the same culture or more than one group, and we have the desire to be accepted by other members and enjoy whatever benefits membership brings with it. Manuel Munoz, the author of “Leave Your Name at the Border”, recounted an experience about hearing his last name mispronounced and explored the Anglicization of Latina names in American culture. In “My Summer at an Indian Call Center”, Andrew Marantz narrated his experiences about working at a call center in Delhi and the insight he received from others about his own culture. Does Mexican Americans’ identity have to be lost in the process of assimilation? Do the customer service representatives in Delhi have to erase any trace of their Indian identity? When we join, or are assimilated into a group, we are changed regardless of retaining an original cultural identity or being part of the dominant culture. The level of change we are able to achieve is based on our willingness to compromise between blending in and standing out.
A person has always been able to choose to what extent their cultural experiences affect their perspective. Amy Tan’s, “Two Kinds,” Bharati Mukherjee’s, “Two Ways to Belong in America,” and Robert Lake’s, “An Indian Father’s Plea,” all show how the main characters have chosen to let their experiences have an effect on their cultural identity. A person’s cultural experiences shape perception based on their own identifications and they may chose to assimilate to different cultures.
dian skins, and had paint on their faces, but after reading Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, my views changed. Indians culture is the total opposite of my view before this class. Indians live on reservations, have half the resources we have, speak a different language and try to keep it in their culture, and more. In this class, I watched this video called thirty-days living on the Navajo Indian reservation and a man was saying how the government wouldn’t give them the resources they need. For example, the reservation only gets less than half the water we use each week, That reminds me of chapter 13, “It’s all political,” because it’s a reference of how the reservation doesn’t get the help it needs. Another part in the video is
The trend of immigration brings out the issue of cultural identity. The controversy concerning tradition and cultural expectation is becoming increasingly fierce. Is it necessary to change one’s own cultural identity in order to fit the working environment and blend into the new society? How do people’s intrinsic cultural identities affect their new lives? Should the way of preserving cultural tradition be altered? How individuals’ cultural expectation influence their attitudes of redefining traditions? Will redefining tradition result in the loss of the value of the original culture? Andrew Marantz in his article, “My Summer at an Indian Call Center,” recounts his experience taking culture training that he was required to attend in order to work at one of the many call centers in India, discussing the reasons and the consequences of altering one’s own cultural identity. Meanwhile, Julia Alvarez uses the example of Quinceanera, a female coming-of-age tradition known among Hispanic communities, talks about the issue of redefining original tradition and cultural identity. In her article, “Selections from Once Upon a Quinceanera”, she touches on various aspects of Quinceanera, pointing out its pros and cons, extending the meaning of preserving cultures and redefining traditions. Changing cultural habits for certain purposes and redefining cultural traditions bring about the dilemma of cultural identifying. Although cultural assimilation is emerging in the trend of immigrants,
Colin Powell once said, “A dream doesn’t become a reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination and hard work.” Sherman Alexie, author or The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, a story about an Indian teenager who does the unthinkable of switching from the school on his reservation to the white school a while away to better his education and future, would agree with this quote, because in my opinion it captures the essence of the hardships and continued determination the main character, Arnold, faces. In this book, Alexie portrays the idea that to better your life and future, you need to take leaps, regardless of obstacles.
Having a normal skin type is perhaps what every person desires. Smooth, typically unblemished and characterized with the perfect balance of oil, a normal skin appears plump, firm with very few wrinkles, if there is any. Skin tone and complexion appears even and any redness is often unnoticeable.
There is no ethnic attachment to being an American. Anyone can be an American, so long as they pledge allegiance to this country. Americans seek personal liberty, and worship as they please. One of the best known aspects of being an American is being able to embrace their religion, their beliefs and history as they choose, without the fear of judgement. In the short story “America and I,” by Anzia Yezierska, says “Once I thought that in America everybody works for love. Nobody has to worry for a living…”(Yezierska 20) Yezierska was an immigrant and a newcomer to America. She explains her experiences as an immigrant coming to America to start a new life. It took her a while to consider herself as a true American, but still reveled in her success. Many immigrants feel ostracized for the color of their skin but still learn to navigate their lives through hostility, and try their best become a
A scream resonated down the hallway. My 6 year old mind was overwhelmed- a man wanted to put some instrument in my throat and ears, a woman wanted to give me shots, my mother looked worried behind that stern loving face and I’m supposed to be a brave girl?! I could not even fake a stomach upset for these well-child hospital visits!
Indian-Americans are people who either originated themselves or descend from an ancestor who was born in India. The dynamics in a home where parents are native Indians and the children are first generation born Indian-Americans are quite different from other hyphenated American cultures. The languages used within the homes as well as the rituals to show levels of respect are critical things implemented within a family unit of this stature. The spoken and unspoken rules of communication shape the first generation Indian-Americans and how they interact with others in their generation.
This video, proclaimed by New York Times reporter Thomas Friedman, analyzes contracting out American jobs to India. Thomas starts his analysis in the middle of south India: Bangalore, which is known to be a technologically-advanced city. He stops at a call center, talking with Anney Unnikrishnan, who is the manager, about the importance of these jobs to the young Indian population. Thomas stops by an enrollment convention where they attend to go against one another for the best jobs Bangalore offers. In the video, there is an accent neutralization class, which is the place where Indians are taught how to alter their accents to sound more American. He then determines if these jobs are creating an outcome that is "little less Indian" and how the economic expansion due to outsourcing is making a gap between the old and young generation. Two young people named, Sophia and Cynthia, speak on how their age group is altering the Indian community. The girls’ parents speak on the subject as well, which includes differences and family closeness. Next, Thomas visits an
also provided movie tickets, throwing parties, arranging birthday and anniversary parties, get to gather, cultural programs , trips to the disc and even doling out coupons for pub crawlers, planned and spur-of-the-moment handled by ‘fun teams’ in charge of everything from pizza parties, outings and picnics to more focused events all to keep their flock tied to the company. The companies actually formed the musical groups along with all the instruments, cricket competitions and Christmas and Thanksgiving celebrations. 70% of the workforce feels very happy about this entertainment. These shows and programmes make the people feel very relaxed and stress free.