Welcome to my blog.
First things first.
What this blog is NOT:
- a sociopolitical crusade
- a news/media watchdog site
- an academic treatise
Really, this blog is a little more personal.
It's about me deconstructing my identity, and those around me, to better understand myself in terms of ethnicity...to understand how I fit into this demographic called: Asian American.
Why now? Well, other than the fact that this is for a class final... :)
Lately, my Chinese- and Asian-American identity has been more on my mind. Partly it's because I recently moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where there are not as many Asians as in my hometown in California's San Francisco bay area. Partly, it's because as a growing global power, China is in the news all the time now, from the 2008 Olympics, to embarrassing product recalls, to the New York Times' series "choking on Growth". And partly because I recently became close friends with a Caucasian guy (or he likes to say, "white," because he thinks I'm being too politically correct) who started asking me about my cultural differences.
I'm not particularly political, but I think it would be interesting to explore this part of my identity for more self-awareness and understanding of others.
I've always felt like I'm in between categories—not Chinese enough, not American enough. Too conservative for California, not Catholic enough for my community. Not feminine enough, and yet not a tomboy. Now of course, after a bit of growing up, I realize I'm not alone and that many twenty-somethings, especially minorities, are on a similar quest for identity.
I'd like to grow more comfortable, open, and robust in my identity; I'd like to discuss these issues and bond with others over these differences and similarities.
Thus, point of this blog is twofold: for me to express myself, and to generate discussion with others on issues of multiculturalism and identity.
But—before I take myself too seriously—it's also to have fun! I hope to not only make a few deeeeeep comments, but also to sometimes introduce a favorite new Asian song or dish, or just some interesting factoid.
So please, friends, coworkers, strangers—feel free to post comments: agreements, critiques, even recommendations for your favorite new Asian place to eat! :)
1 comment:
Hey, thanks for linking me here! Interesting topic, to be sure -- though I might be a little out of my depth in terms of offering insightful responses...
"Too politically correct", huh? I have to agree -- I haven't heard "Caucasian" (or "African-American") used in years. Weirdly, though, I still hear "asian", which is pretty much the equivalent of those other two terms, all the time. Is that how asians refer to themselves? "Asians"? Because I sure don't sit around around thinking of myself as a "Caucasian".
On the other hand, I guess there's no good casual term to "drop down" to. I feel okay saying "white people" and "black people" ... but ... well, yeah, making "asian" into the obvious color word comes out sounding awfully racist.
(By the way, can I tell you, as an editing student, just how odd the words "Caucasian" and "guy" look next to each other? It's the ultimate in uptight merged with the ultimate in slang ... trippy.)
Hmm -- see, you've got me thinking already. Nice job. Okay, off to read the rest of your posts!
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