My race & me: Reflecting of my racial identity
By Beautiful Cloud
EDI 600 Psychological Foundation of Education
School of Education
Long Island University, C. W. Post
February 25, 2009
It’s always difficult being a minority and knowing that any and all actions made by you will be a reflection of your race. And although I have lived with this my entire life, as an adult, I feel this pressure has greatly multiplied. The pressure is felt, not in the sense I must try to become another race or that I must set an extraordinary example for my race, but that I must remember that I am a representation of myself. As myself I must remind people of different races that I am a cultural product of America, just like they are, and at the same time I must preserve my culture and my heritage.
Today’s cross-over exercise was an excellent activity that allowed me to self-reflect. It really made me think once more about who I am, how I became the person I am today, and how I affect others around me.
By answering the questions, point after point, I was able to remember, more vividly, who I was. I was reminded how the forefathers of our race came to this foreign country and struggled to create an identity for us. And this current identity we have, regardless of it being, positive or negative, should not be taken for granted. I realized that if I wanted to correctly portray my race, I must first learn more about my culture and carefully, without bias, teach others around me.
But the most important fact that I was reaffirmed with today was that as much as my race and culture is important so are the race and cultures of other people. In order to gain appreciation we must first appreciate. By appreciating, we must take the initial steps to learn more about each other and their cultures. Only then will we fully understand ourselves.
Long Island University, C. W. Post
February 25, 2009
It’s always difficult being a minority and knowing that any and all actions made by you will be a reflection of your race. And although I have lived with this my entire life, as an adult, I feel this pressure has greatly multiplied. The pressure is felt, not in the sense I must try to become another race or that I must set an extraordinary example for my race, but that I must remember that I am a representation of myself. As myself I must remind people of different races that I am a cultural product of America, just like they are, and at the same time I must preserve my culture and my heritage.
Today’s cross-over exercise was an excellent activity that allowed me to self-reflect. It really made me think once more about who I am, how I became the person I am today, and how I affect others around me.
By answering the questions, point after point, I was able to remember, more vividly, who I was. I was reminded how the forefathers of our race came to this foreign country and struggled to create an identity for us. And this current identity we have, regardless of it being, positive or negative, should not be taken for granted. I realized that if I wanted to correctly portray my race, I must first learn more about my culture and carefully, without bias, teach others around me.
But the most important fact that I was reaffirmed with today was that as much as my race and culture is important so are the race and cultures of other people. In order to gain appreciation we must first appreciate. By appreciating, we must take the initial steps to learn more about each other and their cultures. Only then will we fully understand ourselves.
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