Race Interview Required Blog
1. What race are you?
I, according to the Census, am white or Caucasian, but; according to my parents and my ancestry.com,I am mostly Irish then Portuguese and lastly European.
2, How do you know? How do you make that decision?
I don’t think you can “make a decision” about what race you are. I’m very much into Japanese culture but I can’t sit here and say “I’m Japanese” because that’s not where my heritage is from. How I know is because of my parents and where I come from, also, I know in more detail because a few years ago I did ancestry.com which gives you actual percentages on what “race” you are.
3. How did you learn what race you are? Can you tell me about some early messages you first received about race in general or your race in particular?
I learned as I stated in the last question from my parents. As a child I went to a private Christian school in the small town of Lodi, California. In my childhood school, there was only 1 nonwhite kid in my grade. We learned how America is the big mixing pot, but really I didn’t see or understand that until probably high school. Even then; I went to Lodi High the “better” public school where the majority of people around me were all white. It wasn’t till I started getting more into my ancestry that I realized how many different races a “white person” could be.
4. How do you decide what other races people are? Examples?
When I was younger I would have straight up just said by their skin tone and how they look. Now that I’ve gotten more into Asian culture I find it really irritating how some black and white Americans just label an Asian looking person Chinese as if there’s no other Asian races. I’ve even seen some people say, “Oh -they must be Japanese”. Because of my own knowledge of Asian languages, I can clearly tell if they’re speaking Korean and vice versa. I’ve become much more sensitive to just flat out calling someone a certain race when they might even be a mix.
5. How do other people decide what race you are? Examples?
I think that’s the easy thing with white people that were all just considered white even though I like to think deeper then that because where your ancestry comes from is a beautiful thing to know and be proud of. One example I will say, that always makes me laugh, is before people see me (I’ve gotten hired for jobs because of people assuming this before they see me) is that my last name is Silva; so lots of people before they see how white (and mainly Irish I am) think I can speak Spanish and when I explain to them I don’t and if anything I’d speak Portuguese because my last name is Portuguese they just don’t understand or know what that is.
What is race? Good question I do agree that the human race would be a nice way to think of it but in the world we live in as we discussed in class then there would be no prejudice or discrimination which has driven our world for years for better or worse but also having the knowledge of our world and how many different types of people are in it is amazing to me, and a great way to show pride in yourself especially how far and vast we can travel to find and meet so many different races and cultures leading to the second question. What does it mean to say race is socially constructed? Without certain races making this decision as we discussed in class Europeans deciding what race is higher then the other but also was when we first started to travel and see how vast and different our planet is as well as all the humans living on it. If we all just would have stayed put and not had contact with others would race be a thing?
The three people I interviewed (in email you said 3 instead of 5 was ok)
person 1
1. I consider myself white, not sure how else I would answer this.
2. I know I’m white due to my heritage and skin tone. My mother’s family is from Russia and my fathers family is from Germany.
3. I learned I was white from my family and was taught in elementary school about race and ethnicity. Also, that this country was a place for all races to come together. So I knew there were other races at a young age but didn’t begin to realize the differences between them socially until I began middle school.
4. I guess other races mainly by skin tone cause it’s the easiest to associate. Until speaking to someone you can’t determine a persons race. Their accent- to their actions could all be determining factors also. Some examples would be, people that are Asian would generally have more of yellowish warm skin tone as opposed to a person that is African that is more of a deep darker skin tone.
5. The general public will all assume I am white due to my skin tone before any words come out of my mouth or any actions are done. As an example for me to walk in a location where there was predominantly African-Americans they would see my skin tone and assume I was white because of my skin. Even if I was born in South Africa. That’s why I believe it is not right to classify by race or ethnicity due to the unknown. Either way we are all on this earth for a reason and there shouldn’t be anything to set us back in regards to equality of man. The past has created false stereotypes that preceded into the future that are very hard to step away from cause everyone has their own view on race.
person 2
1. I am a mixture of several races, including; Portugues, English, French, North Africa (Moorish), Southern Eropean, and a tad Jewish.
2. As an Anthropologist I understand that I share a set of cultural values passed down from family unit to family unit, grand parent to grandchildren, parent to children, immediate relatives to cousins, etc. These values grew larger and more diverse as marriage to those outside the immediate group came about either through choice of coercion. The Moorish invasion of the Iberian peninsula added huge cultural changes. My dad marrying my mom smaller changes, but those that can be identified culturally and genetically.As an Anthropologist the decision is one of definition, not choice. All humans are one race. To further define differences related to culture, Anthropologists from Boas to Dunnell have been defining and redlining what race and culture mean. Sociologist and all of the humanities does the same thing, but through the lens from which they view the world and how different groups fit within that world.
3. I recall early on learning that we were of Portuguese descent, originating in the Azores Is., from my grandmother. We ate Portuguese food; soupish, davigna douse, frietas, etc.
They left the Azores in the early 1920’s after my grandmother was excommunicated from the Catholic Church. The only work they could get on the east coast was picking cranberries. Now I know that this was the kind of work non-English speaking immigrants could get. It was not an easy life when they arrived in Gloucester, MA. When they moved to San Diego, they were looked down on by the local catholic Portuguese, so they started sword fishing as a means to provide. My dad was beaten up many times by the Catholic Portuguese as he attended school. So we got the message that we did not belong to either white America and Catholic Portuguese. My dad and all his siblings married white people, in an attempt to better fit into society.
4. This is probably one of the funner aspects of being an Anthropologist. Where to start? Physical differences in the face and over all body structure give many clues. Hard to see a large brow-ridge and not think the person has Australian aborigine. The pointed chin and nose make me think of England, etc. Language accents are mostly an easy giveaway. In short there are many physical attributes, language differences that give clues as to ones racial origins. Mannerisms like how one holds a fork and knife to eat with. It’s always fun when I am stumped to finally make a guess, or to just ask them what race they are.
5. I have not found too many people in America who are all that interested in race; outside my anthropology friends. In other countries I have found more interest. Likely because the places I have been make it glaringly obvious that I am not from there. For example; in Mexico I have some characteristic that are similar, but the way I dress and walk, and the language are dead giveaways. I spent time in Australia and people there love conversation. Inevitably, due to the lack of a strong accent, where I come from comes up.
person 3
1. I am technically Caucasian.
2. I know, foremost, because it is what I have been told-literally all my life. Thinking about the question of ‘how I made the decision’ makes me realize that it is not something I decided. I actually don’t think that my Race is something that I decide.
3. I learned in grade school. I probably figured out, or became conscious of my race in 3rd grade-i am presently 64 years old-so that makes it a long time ago. At the time- I thought that being Irish was actually my race.
4. I think I automatically notice a person’s color, the color of their eyes-definitely what language they speak-if they have an accent. I then will notice their behaviors-some are cultural.
5. I am assuming-that people see that I am white skinned and have blue eyes, I speak English. So -some may not even know the word ‘Caucasian’ but they know that I am ‘white’.
necikait 