January 31, 2008

Hyphenating

Posted by Neha Inamdar at 12:11AM

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In this day and age, wearing your race and religion on your sleeve has become the current fashion. We identify ourselves as Indian American, Muslim American, Sikh American, African American, Mexican American, and even Hindu American. It's easy to feel left out if you don't have some sort of religious and/or racial tag, because everyone's got one!

A lot of this comes from the ideology of multiculturalism. Remember Multicultural Week in elementary, high school, and college, where we celebrate "diversity"? We're brought up on a diet that America is a "mixed salad:" each of us has a distinct flavor, color, and classification; those of us who are "ethnic" are ingredients that spice things up in this enormous American salad.

Often, this multiculturalism encourages us to publicly display ethnic culture and identity. You know what I'm talking about if you've ever been around a cultural club booth on a college campus. We're taught by well-meaning teachers, friends, and the media that differences exist, and those of us who are not white and Christian can put on a show for everyone else so that they can learn about these differences. But these "differences" are usually superficial, innocuous, and easy to consume: food, dress, and music. Rarely do we actually learn about the politics, history, and social dynamics of a non-US geographical location.

The other source comes from forces beyond us. Consider what happens when there's a major national news event and a nonwhite and non-Christian culprit's race and/or religion is highlighted: The group is singled out, stereotyped, and thrust onto center stage in our media and politics. For instance, Muslim Americans had to make it known that they did not condone 9/11, even though many did not identify as Muslim Americans prior to being actually tagged as such. Korean Americans had to stress that the Virginia Tech shooting appalled them. These events create a modern day piazza where a supposedly homogenous group is branded, scrutinized and tried in full view of the public. Is it any wonder that we feel forced in one way or another to either assert a label and/or defiantly redefine and wear it loud and proud?

I wonder how much of a service are we doing to others and ourselves when we define ourselves in this manner. Is it really accurate to say that we are supposedly that different from one another?

On the one hand, it's not a bad thing to identify as a hyphenated person. After all, some of us have grown up speaking a non-English language, have been exposed to different socio-cultural codes, and have traversed borders and oceans to visit family. However, promoting an exclusively ethnic personal identity skirts dangerously close to drawing lines in the sand that may shut out potential friendships and solidarities between folks that share universal values.

I don't have an easy answer for this dilemma except to say that a balance between identity and inclusion should be found. Yes, some of us come from non-US socio-cultural backgrounds, and no one should feel like they have to deny or dismiss this aspect. But it shouldn't shut us off from others who aren't the same as us at first glance.

As a UCLA student told a Daily Bruin reporter: "We can all learn from each other because we really are not all that different."