Realizing I live in 2 worlds....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The key is to just be confident in yourself. Being your best self is ALL that matters. Don't think too much about this.

Unless you are trying to go about your business and you continuously face subtle discrimination. I am a child of immigrants (from southern europe) - we have a generically "foreign" look and sound -- we could be taken for south american, middle eastern, greek, italian, north african... I grew up in a family business where we dealt with the "public" -- and don't be fooled, there was alot of "you're taking our jobs" and "go back to where you came from" nonsense being spouted from customers. Granted, these customers tended to be uneducated jerk-wads, but still, the sentiment is out there. I also am regularly called on by my parents to conduct certain business dealings because they have found that people with an "accent" are frequently not taken seriously. I sound generically american and don't have to deal with this BS like they do.

Interesting. And unfortunate. My mother, who lives in the Deep South, is German, a non-native English speaker. However, she is multi-lingual, and learned British English and French simultaneously, leading to a very "muddy" accent...mostly British with a tinge of German/French. That doesn't seem to "offend" and get the same kinds of reactions at all, even though she deals with the public all the time. And she probably doesn't look "foreign" by that definition.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:.

Interesting. And unfortunate. My mother, who lives in the Deep South, is German, a non-native English speaker. However, she is multi-lingual, and learned British English and French simultaneously, leading to a very "muddy" accent...mostly British with a tinge of German/French. That doesn't seem to "offend" and get the same kinds of reactions at all, even though she deals with the public all the time. And she probably doesn't look "foreign" by that definition.

If the AND would be a BUT I would understand it better. She probably passes for "local".

[Anonymous]

*sigh*

[Anonymous]

I saw a documentary that talked about potential problems stemming from the alienation of the growing number of non-white descendants of immigrants in light of the fact that whites would not be the majority in the US in the future. It said that this group did not feel connected to mainstream America because they did not feel accepted and included and were often treated as outsiders even though they were born in the US and their families may have lived here for several generations. And at the same time, they did not have any ties to the country where their ancestors were from.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I saw a documentary that talked about potential problems stemming from the alienation of the growing number of non-white descendants of immigrants in light of the fact that whites would not be the majority in the US in the future. It said that this group did not feel connected to mainstream America because they did not feel accepted and included and were often treated as outsiders even though they were born in the US and their families may have lived here for several generations. And at the same time, they did not have any ties to the country where their ancestors were from.

yeap, the melting pot worked for European immigrants whose descendants now claim to be "German-American" or Italian-American" but amny don't even speak the language or have placed foot in their ancestors country. Another story is endured by non-white immigrant who cannot pass for mainstream Amwericans no matter how well they speak the language. Where did you see this documentary? It might be interesting for everyone to see.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I saw a documentary that talked about potential problems stemming from the alienation of the growing number of non-white descendants of immigrants in light of the fact that whites would not be the majority in the US in the future. It said that this group did not feel connected to mainstream America because they did not feel accepted and included and were often treated as outsiders even though they were born in the US and their families may have lived here for several generations. And at the same time, they did not have any ties to the country where their ancestors were from.

As a foreign mom, with a child in a multicultural marriage this really really scares me.

[Anonymous]

PP here, sorry for the typos, I have immigrant fingers because I am not native to computers

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I saw a documentary that talked about potential problems stemming from the alienation of the growing number of non-white descendants of immigrants in light of the fact that whites would not be the majority in the US in the future. It said that this group did not feel connected to mainstream America because they did not feel accepted and included and were often treated as outsiders even though they were born in the US and their families may have lived here for several generations. And at the same time, they did not have any ties to the country where their ancestors were from.

As a foreign mom, with a child in a multicultural marriage this really really scares me.

i don't think you should be scared. i think you should just be aware of the common identity crisis that second generation "hyphenated" americans often go through. for many, the experience is fine. but for some, the identity crisis can create some serious issues... i think it's best to just be aware of this idea, encourage your child to have some pride in their heritage, encourage them and perhaps prepare them for the experience of an immigrant family's child in america, and do not force them to be one way or the other.

[Anonymous]

pp here again. i think immigrant kids in most of this area generally do not have it as bad as immigrant kids in... say... the middle of an all-white town with a history of racism. it does help to have some diversity and understanding of different cultures. while not EVERYONE here does, there is at least exposure to people of different heritage who are recent immigrants.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:pp here again. i think immigrant kids in most of this area generally do not have it as bad as immigrant kids in... say... the middle of an all-white town with a history of racism. it does help to have some diversity and understanding of different cultures. while not EVERYONE here does, there is at least exposure to people of different heritage who are recent immigrants.

once again for heavens sake diversity doesn't mean acceptance and tolerance!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Anonymous]

The Hispanic population will definitely be a force to be reckoned with in the coming years.

[Anonymous]

who are the "hispanics" anyway?

[Anonymous]

I have friends from all over the world. and have lived in many places due to my DH's job (Diplomat). I am just myself. I don't want a friend that only wants the international girl or the southern girl or the diplomat's wife. I just want friends that like me for me. I feel like I have a great group of friends and regardless of where they live or grew up, I think all my friends would click just fine. If you feel UnAmercian, maybe you are acting that way. Do you say offending things to people that live here about this country? I have lived in a few places that I pray I never see again, but when in the company of the people from there, I would never insult them with my opinions. I just tried to find the silver lining. Look into yourself.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have friends from all over the world. and have lived in many places due to my DH's job (Diplomat). I am just myself. I don't want a friend that only wants the international girl or the southern girl or the diplomat's wife. I just want friends that like me for me. I feel like I have a great group of friends and regardless of where they live or grew up, I think all my friends would click just fine. If you feel UnAmercian, maybe you are acting that way. Do you say offending things to people that live here about this country? I have lived in a few places that I pray I never see again, but when in the company of the people from there, I would never insult them with my opinions. I just tried to find the silver lining. Look into yourself.

Exactly. And by reading a large proportion of the posts on this thread, I think this is exactly the problem some of these folks are facing. Their attitudes and their own prejudices are showing quite clearly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have friends from all over the world. and have lived in many places due to my DH's job (Diplomat). I am just myself. I don't want a friend that only wants the international girl or the southern girl or the diplomat's wife. I just want friends that like me for me. I feel like I have a great group of friends and regardless of where they live or grew up, I think all my friends would click just fine. If you feel UnAmercian, maybe you are acting that way. Do you say offending things to people that live here about this country? I have lived in a few places that I pray I never see again, but when in the company of the people from there, I would never insult them with my opinions. I just tried to find the silver lining. Look into yourself.

Exactly. And by reading a large proportion of the posts on this thread, I think this is exactly the problem some of these folks are facing. Their attitudes and their own prejudices are showing quite clearly.

We come to your country, we change the way we dress, the way we talk, the way we behave. We're doing our part but you insist in ignoring it and instead you still focus on our appearance and accent. We can completely give up who we are just to blend in. We can only go so far, I'm sorry. We're just talking about how WE feel by the way YOU treat us. It's just a fact.