Cultural Identity Essay

What is cultural identity? I haven't heard about this concept till my tenth grade English Language Arts class. I thought about this question throughout the months. Then I asked myself what represents my cultural identity? It took awhile for me to figure it out, but it came to me, SPORTS!

Dalandra Goodwin 11/3/17 Embedded Assessment 1:1 What is cultural identity? Cultural Identity is the way of life you live everyday. They way you dress, the food you eat, religion, ethnicity, language, clothing, etc.

I remember sitting in the car when I asked my mom to change the “estación de radio” from 96.1 to Kiss FM and in that moment she snapped. She frustratingly asked in Spanish, “¿por qué no te gusta oír música en español? ¿ Por qué no eres como tus hermanas?” That’s when it finally stood out to me that I am not like the rest of my family.

Cultural identity is the sense of identification with or belonging to a particular group established in diverse cultural categories, including nationality, ethnicity, race, gender, and religion. Many individuals experience confusion about cultural identity when leaving their home country or visiting after not being surrounded by culture for a long time. In the video, "losing sight of your cultural identity.” Author, Ph.D. Kasia Suarez explains her struggle with cultural identity after coming to America, and how she embraces her own culture.

The American Identity is more than just being a citizen in America. What makes the American Identity is the diversity that exists in America. America is a melting pot, which consists of many ethnic groups, religions, and ideas. It isn’t the appearance that makes you American, it is your mind and the way one acts make one American. I am a kid who is part Korean, French, and Chinese.

My cultural identity can be identified by my age, the food I eat, and the music I listen to. My favorite foods define who I am because, Louisiana has very different types food. Crawfish, Gumbo, Alligator, and Boudin are examples of some of the foods i like. A lot of people, like me, put Tony Chachere’s on their food. Just something as simple as liking spicy foods can make your culture different.

The background of my cultural identity I am an African American female but that isn’t all there is to know me for. I am an African American girl who is very interactive with my religion and also my culture. Cultural identity can be hard to explain because some people don’t know what’s really in their culture and they fail to see , and understand it. I know what my cultural identity is because of my ethiopian flag, the baked macaroni, and the movie the lion king.

The world is filled with people, and like snowflakes, each person is not the same as another. Each person identifies with different aspects of their lives to create their own personal identities. I personally identify with my Italian side of my family to help form who I am today. I have found myself connecting with this side more so than the other parts of my identity. It affects how I live my life by becoming the center to the culture surrounding me.

Everyone has their own unique cultural identity. Individuality is the genetic code for differences and individuality, and it allows people to perceive certain aspects of the world through a different lens. Everyone has different tastes in music, different behavioral attributes, and different facial features that set others apart. To a great extent, one’s culture informs the way they view others and the world.

Most of my family is bicultural as well, so we are public and proud to share both of our ethnicities within our bloodline. Who is one of the many ways we show our heritage. My grandma will cook juicy carne asada tacos while my mom grills her homemade, classic burgers. Representing several cultures like this gives us options so we can choose what we want and show it off proudly. Cultural identity can provide confidence for people as shown in Hayden Herra’s, “ Biography of Frida Kahlo “, Kristen Lee’s, “ Multiculturalism Explained in one word: HAPA “, and my own life experiences.

So, in looking at my cultural identity, I am examining both my own labels and what they mean to me and layering on top of that cultural influencers that operate within my life and how the interplay between these layers works. In looking at all of the groups I listed as being important parts of my cultural identity, I think the one aspect of internalized or deep culture seen as an undertone throughout all of them is the theme of independence. I was raised to believe that as long as what I was doing was not hurting anyone else, it was okay. I was also taught early on that I am the only one who can make me happy, and that has to happen before I will be able to help others.

My Identity Defined My Identity is a collaboration of the other people who have had an impact on me, as well as the experiences I have undergone and endured so far in my life.. My heritage and ethnicity influences me to an extent, but it does not necessarily define me. I consider my identity to be how I see myself and what strengths I posses. I have produced the identity I hold, and outside forces have only positively influence me and helped to better myself as a person.

While identity focuses on uniqueness such as how an individual is different from and similar to others, diversity focuses on the range of the difference and uniqueness such as race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, age, physical abilities, religious beliefs, political beliefs, among others. Diversity should be seen as source of strength. However, it can also be a source of violence, oftentimes by those who fear or dislike difference. In the best light diversity is foundation for peacebuilding – since it enables us to draw strength and be respectful of difference. Identity and diversity are linked.

I chose this career path because I love working with people and positively impacting them. At college I will be earning a degree while learning how to adapt to life changes and bettering myself. After I earn my degree, my second goal is to raise a big happy family. By being financially stable with my own college degree, I will be

Cultural identity plays a very vital role in cross cultural communication, people from a particular culture communicate with partners and employees from many different cultures and in this situation every individual strives to keep their cultural and individual identity. According to Gardiner and Kosmitzki, identity is defined as “a person 's self-definition as a separate and distinct individual, including behaviours, beliefs, and attitudes” (Gardiner & Kosmitzki, 2008, p. 154). Also, Ting-Toomey defines identity as a "reflective self-conception or self-image that we each derive from our family, gender, cultural, ethnic, and individual socialization process"( Ting-Toomey, 2005). Both definitions bring out the generalisation of cultural identity