Savage Barbecue: Affecting Racial Identity

Their slogan “Keep America Pure with Liberty Paints” is compared to the way the whites want America to be pure rather than integrated with anything else. The method of making their paint is an extension of their views regarding the American Society. The dropping of the ten black chemical substances into the bucket filled with a brown substance exemplify how African-American culture was being modified in order to fit into the American Society, while the stirring of it until it becomes purely white, shows how the “black Identity” is lost so that the “white” identity is being

This paper looks to define and explore three books which are a crux to various food histories which in the last decade has become a scholarly journey as food history is becoming increasingly studied as a scholarly endeavor by historians where previously it was not seen in such a scholarly light. The three texts which are going to be examined are: Planet Taco: A Global History of Mexican Food by Jeffery M. Pilcher, The Invention of the Restaurant: Paris and Modern Gastronomic Culture by Rebecca L. Spang, and lastly To Live and Dine in Dixie: The Evolution of Urban Food Culture in the Jim Crow South by Angela Jill Cooley. Each of these books seek to redefine how people see their perspective topics whether it be Mexican identity rooted in cuisine, the evolution of southern food in a racially divided south, or even the concept of the restaurant emerging from a revolutionary culture. These texts bring awareness to various topics which have both social, cultural, and economic stigmas associated with them.

Food is a highly unique commodity, for though it is essential to every single person on earth, there is no other commodity which is acquired and consumed in such diverse ways. It is a multifaceted social instrument, serving to connect people across cultural boundaries while simultaneously drawing lines through society, dividing people across race and class. Though we have discussed the connections between certain alternative food movements and the creation of a ‘white’ identity, I contend that the social mechanisms of food extend beyond the production of ‘whiteness’, and are intricately bound up in the creation and perpetuation of other racial and class identities in Western society. As the ways in which we consume and engage with food

As a teacher, it is important to know and understand the racial and cultural identities of both yourself, and your students. Knowing about your students’ backgrounds is a great way to make the classroom a safe and welcoming environment. Not all educational settings emit a feeling of safety to its students, and that needs to be changed. In this paper, I will discuss how my racial and cultural identity may be the same and may differ from my students, as well as some ways in which the institution of education can be changed to be more racially and culturally inclusive.

In Jessica Harris’s “The Culinary Season of my Childhood” she peels away at the layers of how food and a food based atmosphere affected her life in a positive way. Food to her represented an extension of culture along with gatherings of family which built the basis for her cultural identity throughout her life. Harris shares various anecdotes that exemplify how certain memories regarding food as well as the varied characteristics of her cultures’ cuisine left a lasting imprint on how she began to view food and continued to proceeding forward. she stats “My family, like many others long separated from the south, raised me in ways that continued their eating traditions, so now I can head south and sop biscuits in gravy, suck chewy bits of fat from a pigs foot spattered with hot sauce, and yes’m and no’m with the best of ‘em,.” (Pg. 109 Para). Similarly, since I am Jamaican, food remains something that holds high importance in my life due to how my family prepared, flavored, and built a food-based atmosphere. They extended the same traditions from their country of origin within the new society they were thrusted into. The impact of food and how it has factors to comfort, heal, and bring people together holds high relevance in how my self-identity was shaped regarding food.

Food became comfort during slavery and because they could control cooking, it was one of their few real pleasures and a way to feel free. The history of “soul food” is seen in the traditions that were passed down from generation to generation.

For many people, culture and identity are closely tied to identity-- sometimes so closely that the things they do, eat, or say may not even feel like a conscious decision. However, from an outsider’s point of view, it is easy to note the differences between cultures in many different ways. One of the most tangible examples of this is, of course, food. When speaking to many people from older generations, it is easy to see how much food is entwined in their stories from the past, whether they come from far away or are still living where they were born. Throughout Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man, food is heavily used in many different ways to represent multiple races.

Cannibalism, before the witch craze, was associated with heresy (Roper, 2004, p. 72). As this era's events unfolded, so too did this era's fantasies. Cannibalism, like witchcraft, was used as a horrible venue for abstract cultural fears. Roper, writing on the Thirty Years War, states that "...rumours of cannibalism...expressed the terrifying disorientation and collapse of German society," (2004, p. 72).

In The Culinary Seasons of my Childhood, Jessica B. Harris- the author- attempts to help readers understand the relationship between food and identity. Harris gave a detailed, but relevant, description of how how food portrayed different cultures in her life and how it taught her many lessons about her family history and who she is; she also described how food brings people together as one and creates a connection that nothing else can. The author helps readers initially understand her ideas by showing examples of how food, even in the same culture, can reflect different social classes.“ Even though chitterlings might be on the menu, they could equally likely be accompanied by a mason jar of corn liquor or a crystal goblet of champagne”( Harris

Moreover, Ferris talks about how throughout the history of the south, the politics of power and place, have lead to the establishment of a cuisine that includes both privilege and deprivation. Thus, continuously impacting the food patterns of the modern day south. Ferris states, “In food lies the harsh dynamics of racism, sexism, class struggle, and ecological exploitation that have long defined the south; yet there, too, resides family, a strong connection to place, conviviality, creativity, and flavor” (Edible South, 1) . This is exemplified all throughout the text by many accounts of antebellum cuisine influenced by that of African and Native Americans.

Growing up in Texas, I was constantly exposed to barbecue. From the cooking methods of smoking, grilling, or braising. To the bodies gathered around a table full of food catching up. When most people think of barbecues, you think of a red checkered table cloth, a couple pounds of meat, and potato salad. However, historically barbecues played a significant role in Southern politics and culture, evolving as the political climate changed.

In America, making barbecue is a culinary art. Cooking Barbecue produces more than simply grilling a steak or a burger; it is associated with a fun and festive spirit. As it is written in the case, “It’s about playing with fire under an open sky, wielding a mean spatula in one hand, a cool drink in the others.” More than that, barbecue gives a great flavor to the food, and it implied being outdoors while hanging out with friends and family. Also, because the concepts itself makes the dinner very informal it procure a change of pace. Although the numbers of Barbecue events has been increasing, it is still a seasonal

This paper will discuss the multifaceted relationships among food, and culture. I will be looking at the relationships people have with food, and explore how this relationship reveals information about them. Their food choices of individuals and groups, can reveal their ideals, likes and dislikes. Food choices tell the stories of where people have travelled and who they have met along the way.

     Survival cannibalism is one type of cannibalism that clearly without a doubt has occurred and is well documented. "Simply put, survival cannibalism occurs when people are trapped without food in some way -- in a boat adrift on the ocean, on a mountain by snowfall -- and resort to eating other members of the group" (qtd. in The myths and perturbing realities of cannibalism p.1). The most notable case of survival cannibalism is the case of the Donner party of 1846. A group of 90 immigrants led by George Donner was caught in a blinding snowstorm high in the Sierra Nevada range of California in October 1846. Survivors, who made their way out early in 1847, had been forced to resort to eating the flesh of their comrades in order to survive. The survivors openly admitted to the media

“If we don’t fully understand our individual and collective roles in maintaining a system of white superiority, our relationships with people of color remains superficial, our ability to work in diverse workplaces is greatly diminished, and we fail to create a just world in which everyone has an equitable opportunity to contribute and thrive” (Kendall, 2013, p. 1). This paper discusses who I am as a cultural person and how I have come to be this way. The first section of this paper discusses my cultural background and my cultural identity. I address the factors that make up my cultural identity and the challenges that I have faced because of my cultural identity. The next section discusses my White racial identity development and the events in my life that have led me to become the person I am today in relation to my racial identity. The final section of this paper outlines the implications my own racial and cultural identity will have on my career as a clinical mental health counselor.