Judith D. Dixon
In the United States the general use of the term Hispanic has been going on for more than a decade. People who have an ancestry from Spanish speaking countries fall into that category. Many of these people have various national backgrounds. However they're categorized into one ethnic group, Hispanic. Nothing is taken and put into perspective such as the various racial, class, linguistic, or gender experiences. The term blankets over specific reasons for immigrants coming to the U.S. Some people came because of political exile from their country, for example the Cubans in 1960, who cannot be placed under the same Hispanic umbrella with the refugees from El Salvador.
The U.S. census and other government agencies, along with social scientists and institutions have created more confusion with the term "Hispanic". Nothing is explained or clarified. The media and the general public perpetuate the situation.
There are twenty-three million people who have ties to the Caribbean, Central and South American countries. These people are citizens, residents, refugees and immigrants. This label lessens their ability to identify with their own unique backgrounds. If a person's ancestry is any of the following he/she is of Spanish/Hispanic origin: Mexican, Mexican American, Chicano, Puerto Rican, Dominican, Ecuadoran, Guatemalan, Honduran, Nicaraguan, Peruvian and Salvadoran; are all Spanish speaking countries of the Caribbean, Central or South America or Spain. (Oboler p.3).
Ancestry and/or morphology categorized in what one might call chance or coincidence. Meaning something not subject to human will or effort. We have no control over what we look like or to whom our parents are when we're born.
Social construction of race reduces this notion of chance. Context is the social setting in which races are recognized, constructed and contested; where situations allow people to have experiences that may or may not be positive. In some instances a person can lose focus on who they are trying to fit in with or be a part of within a particular group.
In the construction of racial identity the context of passing can be the most graphic illustration of choice a person can make. Passing means the ability of a person or persons to change race. Thus many encounter psychological changes. They must renounce all family ties, severing all communication and relationships with their community. Ending all of their religious and civic affiliations can be very traumatic. Passing demonstrates the power of racial choice. Choices that are made concerning racial identity comes from within. The context of our racist American society. (Lopez p.14).
Historically racial categories and the meaning of race have been given value by specific social relations who are anchored into our society. In the United States the black / white color line has remained fixed and continues to be enforced. The meaning of race is constantly being challenged in society both collectively and in personal practices. Racial categories are constantly being formed, transformed, reformed, or simply destroyed. Racial formation is the process by which the racial categories are determined by people with political, social and economic power. These people make the rules and set the tone of the importance of how racial meanings are utilized. (Ore p.21).
Identity is shaped by characteristics, family dynamics, historical, social and political
factors. Identity is a process of formation. Who you start out as, will evolve into what you can become. Adolescence plays a key role in developing identity. People interact with us. They reflect back to us who they think we are or should be.
Identity is also a multidimensional concept. There are seven categories of "otherness" in the United States.
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·Race/Ethnicity
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·Gender
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·Socioeconomic Status
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·Sexual Orientation
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· Age
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·Mental/Physical Disability
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· Religion
Activity #1
The students will be given a survey to be completed with their families; containing questions that will give insight to their family values. Student will compile information from surveys and formulate a graph (of teacher's choice: bar, circle or graph) to show the similarities in each student represented in my classroom.
