Narrative Essay On Racial Identity

In 1971, William E. Cross, Jr., Ph.D., a Black psychologist and prominent researcher (specializing in Black psychology) developed a framework for assessing how black Americans come to understand what it means to be Black. Dr. Cross introduced his ideologies as the “Nigrescence Model of Racial Identity Development“. He asserts that every black American must undergo a series of identity stages to develop a healthy and balanced understanding of the Black experience and become well-rounded in our global society. This model encompasses five stages of identity development, which Dr. Cross emphasizes, must be performed in order to successfully accomplish this goal.

Prior to beginning my readings on white racial identity, I did not pay much attention to my white race. If someone had asked me to describe my appearance I would have said short blond hair, blue eyes, average stature, etc. One of the last things I would have noted was the color of my skin. Growing up in overwhelmingly white communities, I never thought to use the color of my skin to differentiate myself from others. Over the course of this dialogue I have learned that my white racial identity is one of the most defining aspects of my appearance in this society. There is a certain level of privilege that I am afforded based solely on the color of my skin. According to Peggy McIntosh, “White privilege is like an invisible weightless

I was late for school, and my father had to walk me in to class so that my teacher would know the reason for my tardiness. My dad opened the door to my classroom, and there was a hush of silence. Everyone's eyes were fixed on my father and me. He told the teacher why I was late, gave me a kiss goodbye and left for work. As I sat down at my seat, all of my so-called friends called me names and teased me. The students teased me not because I was late, but because my father was black. They were too young to understand. All of this time, they thought that I was white, because I had fare skin like them, therefore I had to be white. Growing up having a white mother and a black father was tough. To

I always identified myself as Mexican because technically I was mostly Mexican, but I didn’t speak Spanish and was never really accepted by my Spanish speaking peers. I also remember not wanting to be identified as White, I was an American but I didn’t want to be called White. I idolized Martin Luther King Jr. as a young child, and I remember feeling deeply moved and fundamentally changed after seeing the first images of the civil rights movement during Black history month. Then I remember starting to wonder why I always saw the same videos and learned the same lessons each year during February and I began to question things. I remember getting so angry at my own ignorance of the history of racism in this country during my first multi-cultural history class at Cal State Long Beach. I realized how much I wasn’t learning in school and that I never got an authentic version of history from any group other than the dominant White culture. It was an eye opening experience and it had a profound impact on me. I learned to embrace being an American as long as I was willing to commit to continuously questioning and challenging the current power structures in place and work to expose the institutionalized racism that continues to plague our public

To start off, both of my parents are white Americans. My father’s great grandparents came to america from czechoslovakia in the late 1800’s and same for my mothers German great grandparents. Born and raised in primarily white small towns, my parents are your stereotypical middle class white americans. About 10 years into their relationship when my mom first got pregnant with my oldest brother Dalton (23), they bought a 3 story house that was right outside of a suburban neighborhood on the outskirts of Anoka, Mn. The nearest gas station was about a 8 minute drive, and the nearest restaurant was 10. They had 3 boys together, and took in my oldest cousin Chey when she was 10 because my aunt had passed.

When addressing self-identification, some multiracial or biracial individuals do identify as being two or more races. Some identity as just one, or that they feel closer to a certain racial group. About 69% of Multiracial adults with a black background considered themselves as black/African American (experiences, social interactions that align them within the black community). While Multiracial Asian adults, with a white and Asian background, feel more connected to the white community than to the Asian community. Another group of multiracial individuals, are those that are white and native American, and around 22% say they have a lot in common with the in the US that is native America. And 61% say they have a lot more in common with the whites.

In society, race clearly affects one’s life chances. These are the chances of getting opportunities and gaining experience for progression. The social construction of race is based on privileges and availability of resources. Looking at society and the formation of race in a historical context, whites have always held some sort of delusional belief of a “white-skin privilege.” This advantage grants whites an advantage in society whether one desires it or not. This notion is often commonly referred to as reality.

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

Growing up I believed that being Hispanic meant being a particular shade of brown that had to be just right. I had no concept of colorism during my childhood and adolescents and had a meager understanding of racism and how it looked like to be discriminated against. Furthermore, less of understanding was diluted even further by my struggle with accepting my romantic and sexual orientation. The nuance of those identities and my many others left me exploring those intersections within myself than exploring the greater picture of social discourse. This all ignoring my lack access to information only found in higher education. Once I had access to this information and meet others that were like me and different than me, I starting learning that what it means to be Hispanic is vastly different than what I thought.

Michael Omi and Howard Winant’s arguments from “Racial Formations” are about how race is socially constructed and is shown in Caucasia by Danzy Senna. Michael Omi and Howard Winant believe that race is socially constructed in society; therefore, the meaning of race varies within different cultures and societies. According to Omi and Winant, influences such as, media, school, politics, history, family and economy create society’s structure of race. In Caucasia, media, family and school are forces that create race by stating how one should conform to social norms for different racial groups.

However, I have not always been confident in my own skin, being as my appearance clearly shows I am hispanic. My tan skin, slight accent, dark hair and eyes, shows my hispanic being on my outside. Last year, in my eleventh grade year is when I was the least confident in myself. I have always brushed off the gardener and maid jokes, but this experience impacted me. Last year when I was walking in the hall, a random boy I did not know handed me a folded up sheet of paper. When I opened it, it had the bolded, upcased letters spelling out “Trump.” At the time I took it hard. I did not know what it meant. Was it some silly prank? Was the boy telling me I was gonna get deported? My parents and I are here legally, but it still shook my character and confidence in myself and culture. For a week I felt down, there was even a family gathering that weekend, and I told myself that I did not want to go, so I sat in my room the whole time. But then I realized that this is who I am. I am cuban. I am proud of who I am and no one should be able to take that away from me. My hispanic background is not something I can hide, so I have learned to not only accept it, but to embrace it. Even though this experience made me less confident in myself then, it made me learn to love my culture so much more now. I feel as if my

Identifying the type of racial identity that one person is can be difficult for some people. I became aware of my racial identity when I was still in elementary school. When I was younger my hometown in a racial aspect was generally people of white descendants, but we had neighboring towns that had

In this world today racism is live and up close in your face type of stuff that is not fun are funny at all. Let’s look at Louisiana, Minnesota, Texas, South Carolina and Oklahoma the shooting that have claimed the 9 lives in South Carolina around about a year ago the shooting in baton rouge and saint Paul less then 24 hours. Around about a week latter are less then a week the shooting in Dallas racial Tension has been up in an up roar for same years. Just look at here in Oklahoma their was same racism that has happened towards this person in the past year and came close again this past Friday when I had went out for lunch with a friend my mom and niece. I am bigger and better then what these people are think about and if these one trick

In class we have discussed how the black identity is expanding and changing with the times. We discuss the family dynamic in the black community, along with dealing with political discourse, racism, and popular cultural. An important question I face is how does living in this society today affect ourselves, and our black identity? With the circus that is now our new government what steps do the black community have to take in order to rise above this new wave of oppression looming over our communities and how can we learn and advance based off the history that came before and how can we rise to a higher form of self and strengthen each other.

Four years can seem like a tedious journey. Life, as some will say, will give you lemons for you to make lemonade. I dare say I am all for the sweet opportunities, yet I await the sour fragment of life with zeal. Through thorough research, Northwestern captivated my attention in every aspect. Difficult to pinpoint what exact feature drew me to Northwestern, one key attribute is the diversity. As a student who desires to become a flourishing leader in the business world, making connections are an utmost importance. A diverse student body will heighten my social skills, allowing me to acquire the myriad intellects, passions, and talents from the multicultural environment. The diversity of the school will drive my creativity and let me encounter