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Stuck in a limbo between two different countries I face an identity crisis. I am Chicana, a Mexican-American living in Chicago. I was born and raised here minutes away from downtown Chicago and miles away from my roots. Both my parents come from a small town in the Mexican state of Guanajuato called Urianagato.
Throughout my life I frequently traveled to Mexico, it was my mother’s wish to travel so often in hopes that my sister and I knew of our heritage and vibrant culture. However on a recent trip to the land my parents call “home” I started to question where I belonged. Coming off the plane, and walking to the customs checkpoint were two signs, one read Extranjeros (Foreigners) and the other Mexicanos (Mexicans). My father made his way to the longer Foreigners line and I asked why we couldn’t go to the other line for Mexican citizens and his response was that we were considered Foreigners despite our ancestry and my parents’ Mexican citizenship.
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My mother was always enthusiastic when she got the chance to return home I however could not share the enthusiasm because I did not comprehend what she meant by home.
I do not call Mexico home because the country my mother is so connected to feels foreign to me. I call the United States home only because it is all I have known for 17 years; however I am trapped in a limbo between two countries. I cannot fully identify myself to either country. I can speak Spanish fluently but there are times when my American accent comes out, and I get referred to as “gringa” (white female in Latin America) by my family, yet in America I am solely called
Mexican. I grew up surrounded by both cultures. I had the best of both worlds. I indulge tacos, tostadas, pizza and hotdogs. I dress up for Halloween then two days later I celebrate Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). I get visited by the Easter bunny and Santa yearly, but I also get a special surprise from the Three Wise Men on January 6th. I watch fireworks and celebrate the United States’ independence on July 4th, but I also scream Viva Mexico! On September 16th for Mexico’s Independence Day. My parents instilled more traditional values growing up different from that of my American friends. I used to ask to sleep over at friends’ homes however my parents did not understand the point of sleepovers. My mom would usually respond “why would you want to sleep in someone else’s bed when you have a perfectly good one at home”. However my Mexican relatives in Mexico found the idea of giving gifts during Christmas unusual as this day served the purpose of celebrating Jesus’ birthday. Being divided between both countries is difficult; it often felt like I had to prove myself to both parties. Depending on the situation there is pressure to prove how American you are or how Mexican you are there is never a gray area where I can be both. When I visited family in Mexico I constantly had to prove my fluency in Spanish since I did not speak it daily at home. Mexican cuisine is loaded with flavors and spiciness; I was not one for salsas so when I would reject them my aunts and uncles would say I was not Mexican enough. To prove I was American I had to prove my patriotism and have perfect English. Although I may not identify myself to a sole country I know I bleed red white and blue as well as red white and green.
Being a Hispanic have impacted all my entire life; I lived 15 years of my life in Mexico I love being there because most part of my family live in Nuevo Laredo, I was cursing my last months of 8th grade and one day my mom told me that she was thinking about send me here to the U.S to start learn English; since I’m a U.S citizen and I didn't know the language of my country, I accepted. The most hard prove was live without having my mom at my side, since I live with my aunt now; when the days passed here in the U.S I started to depressed myself because I missed so much my house and all my family, one day in the middle of the night I call my mom crying and I told her that I really want go back to Mexico, but she didn’t take into account my desire my mom just explained me that it will be the best for my future and with the time I will be thankful with her for don’t let me go back. My mom, and my grandmother are the ones who motivates me to be a better student. Actually I’m in dual enrollment and I have taken AP classes; sometimes is hard for me talk, read or write in another language that the one I was accustomed but, every time I fail I get up and persist until I’m able to do what I want.
Becoming Mexican- American has been such a great book so far! I truly favored how Sanchez focused on factors that contributed to the migration of so many across the border north to the United States during the first many years of the twentieth century. During that time, immigrants experienced groups of people trying to Americanize and Mexicanize them and their people. This is a fascinating topic, and Sanchez pulls it off really well. It makes it better because Sanchez is Mexican-American himself, the son of Mexican immigrants, and his sensitivity to the nuances of the culture are very apparent throughout the book. It is the story of the creation of the Mexican-American culture, specifically in the early 1900's in Los Angeles. In addition, also in Los Angeles, Majority of the immigrants would experience the efforts to Americanize them, which was then proceeded by counter attempts to mechanize the immigrants to maintain their loyalty and to return to Mexico. This back and forth contribution developed a Mexican American identity, which was evident in food, and clothes. For example, it was particularly evident in the
I had a high school friend and her name was Rosita, she was an immigrant from Mexico and lived in the United States. When she was turning fifteen she had two choices from
Whether children of Mexican immigrants adopt pan-ethnic terms (Latino, Hispanic), American identities, or identities rooted in their home country (Mexican) reflects how they view themselves in relation to the ethnic stratification system in the United States (Tovar, Jessica, and Cynthia Feliciano, 2009). Biculturalism may be expressed using a Mexican-American self-label, as opposed to either an American or Mexican label (Rumbaut, 1994). For those who are viewed as non-white in the United States (including most recent immigrants from Mexico and their children), ethnic identity development is an important part of overall adolescent identity formation, and may be especially complicated for those who grow up in the United States, but have parents from another country (Rumbaut,
I roll my r’s with pride and that pride carries me through my journey of being a first generation Mexican-American. I was born and raised in the town of Salinas, also referred to as the “salad bowl”. Beaming in culture, Salinas also possesses a dark side due to gang violence soliciting each young member of my town. Immigrating to the United States, my parents’ initial priority was to find a job rather than an education in order to survive and keep me away from the darker Salinas. To make sure of this, my parents always encouraged me to try my best in school and make it my main focus. At a young age I began to notice disadvantages I had including the lack of resources at school. Realizing we only had 5 books for about 30 students, I felt unmotivated
Growing up in a Mexican-American family can be very fun and crazy. Having two different perspectives on two different cultures almost daily really shapes you to become a certain way as you grow up, which is what happened to me. Ever since I was about three months old I have been taking trips to my parents home town for a month time each time we have gone. Practically growing up in both Mexico and the United States for six years has really helped me understand my cultural background and the different parts of my whole culture, such as the food, heritage, language and culture.
Since before I was born, my Hispanic heritage played a huge role in who I am and what I have achieved. My great-grandfather immigrated to this country with the desire to provide his family with a better future than his own. My grandpa grew up in Texas on the boarder of Mexico and traveled to Blue Island, Illinois as migrant crop worker. This desire passed down by my grandparents and my great-grandparents has played a tremendous role in propelling me to where I am today. Each generation sought to make the the lives of their children better than their own. My grandma received the opportunity to live in the country of opportunity from her father, and my grandpa paid for my mom to get an education. My mother pushed me to do my best in school and
I was born in Mexico and raised in beautiful San Diego since the age of four. Coming to the United States at a very young age I had to face many challenges that have shaped me to the person that I am today. I consider myself a Chicana woman who has overcome the obstacles to get were I am know. Being raised in a Mexcian household has thought me to embrace my culture and its roots. The Spanish and native blood that is with in me remind me of many Americans today. The reason I consider my self Chicana is because of the similar background that I shared with many Americans today. Living in the U.S. I have learned to adapt and embraced the American culture so much so that it came a point of life were I struggled to find my own identity. Taking
In the essay "It’s Hard Enough Being Me," Anna Lisa Raya relates her experiences as a multicultural American at Columbia University in New York and the confusion she felt about her identity. She grew up in L.A. and mostly identified with her Mexican background, but occasionally with her Puerto Rican background as well. Upon arriving to New York however, she discovered that to everyone else, she was considered "Latina." She points out that a typical "Latina" must salsa dance, know Mexican history, and most importantly, speak Spanish. Raya argues that she doesn’t know any of these things, so how could this label apply to her? She’s caught between being a "sell-out" to her heritage, and at the same time a "spic" to Americans. She adds that trying to cope with college life and the confusion of searching for an identity is a burden. Anna Raya closes her essay by presenting a piece of advice she was given on how to deal with her identity. She was told that she should try to satisfy herself and not worry about other people’s opinions. Anna Lisa Raya’s essay is an informative account of life for a multicultural American as well as an important insight into how people of multicultural backgrounds handle the labels that are placed upon them, and the confusion it leads to in the attempt to find an identity. Searching for an identity in a society that seeks to place a label on each individual is a difficult task, especially for people of multicultural ancestry.
I am an chinese and mexican american. You might think those are the best mixes of race you can get but you are truly wrong? Growing up in a small farm town in the outskirts of San Diego I truly wish I was white like the rest of the kids at my school. For the hardships I have faced with race discrimination I am truly ashamed of being the color and human genetics I have.
Latinos who were raised in the United States of America have a dual identity. They were influenced by both their parents' ancestry and culture in addition to the American culture in which they live. Growing up in between two very different cultures creates a great problem, because they cannot identify completely with either culture and are also caught between the Spanish and English languages. Further more they struggle to connect with their roots. The duality in Latino identity and their search for their own personal identity is strongly represented in their writing. The following is a quote that expresses this idea in the words of Lucha Corpi, a Latina writer: "We Chicanos are like the abandoned children of divorced cultures. We are forever longing to be loved by an absent neglectful parent - Mexico - and also to be truly accepted by the other parent - the United States. We want bicultural harmony. We need it to survive. We struggle to achieve it. That struggle keeps us alive" ( Griwold ).
I was so close to my Mexican culture that when I was actually exposed to the American culture it was like I was from a foreign place. When I started to get used to the American culture and started becoming an “American” I was sent to Mexico to a Mexican rodeo camp. There I was with people that had the complete different ideals than what I was just getting used to. I went through the exact same thing that I had went through in America. I was found in this big mix-up.
I was raised in an encouraging household where both of my parents greatly valued education. Although they were high school graduates, neither could afford to attend college; a combination of family and financial woes ultimately halted their path. As a result, my parents frequently reminded me that getting a good education meant better opportunities for my future. To my parents, that seemed to be the overarching goal: a better life for me than the one they had. My parents wanted me to excel and supported me financially and emotionally of which the former was something their parents were not able to provide. Their desire to facilitate a change in my destiny is one of many essential events that contributed to my world view.
Growing up in a Mexican household where education isn’t a priority or important has been one of my major obstacles that I’ve had to overcome. Although my family’s culture believes that education isn’t necessary their experiences and lifestyles have influence and motivate my choices for my future. I come from a home where I have no role model or someone influential. I have no one to ask for advice for college or anything involve in school. In most homes, older siblings help their younger siblings with their homework or projects but in my house no one was able to provide me with any help. I grew up to be independent and to do anything school related on my own. My parents are both immigrants who didn’t get to finish elementary
Originally, I was born in San Antonio, Texas to my parents Tammy and Richard Hernandez on August 25, 1998. My family moved to Pearsall once I was about 1 year old so that we could live closer to family and that my parents could work without having to leave me alone with a babysitter, instead leaving me with my grandparents. Living at my grandparents’ house was just like any traditional Hispanic household, except we mainly spoke English only learning a few words in Spanish. By traditional Hispanic household I mean lots of people in a relatively small house, the kitchen being the heart of the home, and the elders in the house being the most revered and respected. Having been raised in Pearsall, Texas in the late 90s has allowed me to live a small town life while still experiencing city life, having been born in and still living close to San Antonio, establish a close relationship with my extended family, and getting to experience public school in a close community.