Personal Narrative: Diversity Of Cultural Populations

I was thirteen when I moved to the United States. July 7, 2007 was the day my brothers and I packed up our belongings and left Haiti. It was a very exciting day because I got the chance to be on an extremely large white and blue airplane for the first time, and most importantly, reunite with my parents, whom I did not know because my father left Haiti when I was three years old, and my mother left a several years later. As a teenager, I had the mindset of living in a fairytale land. I did not think about the possible challenges I might encounter after leaving my homeland. The idea of adjusting to a new culture, learning a new language, and socializing with others that do not have the same tongue as me never ever crossed my mind. Little did

When I think about my cultural identity I find myself resorting to the word “normal”. I grew up in a town where everyone looked the same, everyone worshiped the same God, and everyone was in the same economic class. It’s interesting to really break down my individual cultural pieces to find that actually there are so many differences that I was simply too naïve to see. The culture that one grows up can be so different from one household the next, that there really isn’t a “normal” culture out there.

What is culture? Culture is the idea of what is wrong or right, the concept of what is acceptable within our society. Culture serves us as a guide, taking us to the "right way" and helping us to make sense of things that surrounds us. There are many different cultures around the world. A lot of them are similar in specific ways and others are just completely different, this difference explains why we think that people from different backgrounds are "weird".

I was born and raised in the small but growing city of Perris, CA. This isn’t the best city out there but it tends to grow on you, and you begin to truly love it for what it is. The people, however, not so much. The community can vary from which part of the city you’re in. That’s because there’s diversity here in Perris. I’m a product of this diversity, being half Mexican and half African American. My parents fell in love after high school and later on began a family. I am the youngest of five. I have two older brothers, an older sister, and an older cousin who lives with us. The order is boy, girl, boy, boy, girl with my cousin being included in there too. We all live in the same house with my parents and are quite close with each other. They all seem to have raised me growing up due to the fact that my parents were busy trying to provide for us. This was a challenge by itself, resulting in lots of house moving and my father being unemployed for six years after losing his job. I never complained about moving because I knew that my parents were doing their absolute best and were working with all that they had and then some. This unquestionably made me adaptable to new environments and gave me a

In rural North America, in present day Billing, Montana, over 600 years ago, there once live a tribe that was fierce as a bear and yet stayed together like a pack of wolves and trickery as a fox. Altogether, it builds an ultimate warrior of pure ferociousness and blunt force. Other tribes tended to more soft than the tribe I was in . While most tribes were farmers and gathers, our tribe was mainly hunters, we raided other tribes of their goods.

It all began on July 5, 2015, when my family and I traveled back from Fort Davis, Texas, to our home in Gardendale, Texas, after visiting our family for a Fourth of July celebration. As we entered into Odessa, we noticed vehicles stranded on the interstate that impeded our progress. Irritably, we were forced to stop in the middle of the road. Instantly, the music paused. In frustration, I started switching the stations; nevertheless, all remained silent. After several minutes of scanning dead air, finally the radio connected to the station, 93.3 FM. An emergency broadcast announcer alerted the entire Permian Basin area that a group of oil drillers, near the Meteorite Crater, struck a barrel, buried twenty-two feet under the ground.

Of course the norm for me is that of any citizen living in zone three.

My “outside” cultural influences I have: America is one of the most ethnically diverse countries in the world culturally. We have German-Americans speaking German, Filipino-Americans speaking Tagalog, Irish-Americans speaking Irish, Scandinavian-Americans speaking Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, etc., Welsh-Americans speaking Welsh, Japanese-Americans speaking Japanese, Iraqi-Americans speaking Arabian, Mexican-Americans speaking Spanish, and all Americans united in the common goal to create the best possible nation in accordance with our Constitution.

They called me an apple. Since I was supposedly red on the outside, but white on the inside, I was automatically a walking bullseye. Being one of the many oppressed Aboriginals, I understand their need to hurt someone else in an effort to release some of their internal pain. I understand why so many give up or turn into raging alcoholics in an effort to numb their pain. Coming from a reservation, my greatest challenge was proving to everyone that all the stereotypes about my people were fallacious. However, the need for a government and an education system that won’t keep on failing us repeatedly is imperative. The only way that I can make my voice heard is to break these stereotypes and to reach a higher education; hence my application for

Throughout my high school year, majority of my time was spent competing on the track team. I was immersed in diversity when I went to practices and meets. Just the sport itself is a metaphor of diversity. Ranging from the high jump, javelin, and one mile run, there is an event for everyone. I was able to distinguish myself in the sport, choosing my own events and becoming the best I can be.

Growing up as a child, I wore my dark black hair back in tight braids, baggy jeans, my tanned skin in white tank tops, and sneakers; not to express culture appropriation, but because it was all that I had. My surrounding environment was full of diverse races, and seeing color was a part of my daily routine. As I grew up and began to change throughout life, my environment did as well. I moved from the city streets to a suburban area, and as time wore on I noticed a distinct lack of color amongst my peers. Instead of me looking at the world the same day by day, it was as if the entire world was looking at me.

Diversity: the state of being diverse; variety. We all come from different backgrounds; there’s heritage, there’s race, there’s different political views, sexuality and many more countable things that make us diverse. Not one human is the same. Not in thought. Not in experiences. I come from a latin culture, I was born in Rio Grande, Zacatecas and raised in Nieves, Zacatecas. The culture is so rich and the festivities seem like endless parties; there’s always a reason to celebrate. When I moved to the Dallas, Texas, for a more financially stable life it was two different worlds. It was something to get used to. People automatically labeled me as “dumb” a “criminal” the next “drop out” just because of skin tone.

When I was much younger my Uncle Jim came out as gay. This opened my mind to a whole new world of diversity and has helped to make me the excepting person I am today. Although I am no longer a Girl Scout, starting at a young age instilled some of the great qualities of leadership and sense of self that still remain. It is slightly ironic that soccer happens to resinate as a big teaching point in my life because I only played for a small amount of time before taking up volleyball as a fall sport. However, when I started I was in 6th grade which is pretty crazy with the level of competition in sports now a days. I remember this time with great fondness and look to it for inspiration whenever I feel like I can't do something. This past summer

I was only five years old when I first moved to to the small town of Latham (back when it was still small). As I grew up, the community grew with me, and we both embraced more and more cultures, lifestyles, and religions, evolving to have a special affinity for diversity.

Who am I? I come from a very big, loud, joyful and loving southern family from the town of Marietta, Georgia. We are proud African Americans who embraces every piece of black beauty from our hair down to the different shades of our skin. From a very early age I was taught self -love and that it is okay to be different because God did not make us to blend in but to stand out. I was taught to never judge a book by it 's cover so I don’t. Never have I ever disliked or disassociated with someone based on their sexual preference, race or religion. I will never do that because to me, that’s discrimination. I wouldn’t want someone to feel less then what they are because of a preference I