Culture and Socialization

    This week I want to talk about some difficulties that mixed people like myself have. My background is Mexican and American (specifically German) and growing up mixed almost feels as if picking sides in a sense. Referring specifically to the iceberg analogy in our textbook, (Sensoy and DiAngelo pp.37) you can see that there are parts in the "underside" of the iceberg that are "unspoken" and "unconscious" which acts as muscle memory for some. However, I have run across instances where these rules contradict each other across cultures. An instance of this occurring was when I went to meet my mom's side of the family in Nashville Tennessee and went out for dinner. Afterwards my mom had to explain to me that she was taught growing up that talking across the table was considered rude and said that I needed to be more conscious of my elders around me. While growing up we rarely met with my mom's side of the family (Mexican) and spent more time with my dad's side (German) and with all the holiday dinners I attended, I had never been scolded for talking to someone else at another end of the table. I have always wanted to embrace my mom's side because I never got the chance when I was younger with the lack of influences in my life. From here many questions arise, is it too late to acquire those unspoken rules from my Mexican side, and in those rare instances where both sides of the family mix, how do I navigate and respect both sides without ruining the experience by feeling like I am stepping on eggshells? I believe Mr. Lopez, who wrote an article about his troubles being mixed, put it best by saying, "Imagine being in this position and asking yourself, which race is "primary" in your life? It is like asking a child which of their parents they love more." At the end of the day it is rough to try to embrace both cultures, especially when they contradict each other, and try to respect each side because I have been raised "white" my entire life and have decided that my white culture is "normal" in comparison to my mom's side. This begs the question, how do I pass on my Mexican side to my future kids and help them navigate between the multiple cultures they represent?  

 

“Culuture and Socialization.” Is Everyone Really Equal?: An Introduction to Key Concepts in Social Justice Education, by Özlem Sensoy and Robin J. DiAngelo, Teachers College Press, 2017, pp. 37–37.

 

Lopez, T. (2021, April 23). 'I am latino, I am also white': Why a Latino of mixed ancestry struggles each time he fills out a form. LAist. Retrieved January 17, 2022, from https://laist.com/news/race-in-la-latino-white-multiracial-multiethnic-mixed-ancestry-thomas-lopez-masc

 

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