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Speak Your Mind About Issues Concerning Life In A Modern Multicultural Society. Submit your "voice" to us by filling out the questionnaire and we'll consider your answers for publication in Urban Mozaik Magazine. Here's what some of our readers have to say... The voice of: Adrienne Age: 24 Occupation: Marketing Birthplace: Michigan Residence: Arizona Mother’s birthplace: West Virginia Maternal grandfather: Montana Maternal grandmother: West Virginia Father’s birthplace: Michigan Paternal grandfather: Unknown Paternal grandmother: Georgia Do you feel that new immigrants to North America should assimilate into the mainstream? I answer this question with a resounding "NO"! My husband is a Kenyan national, and he has resided in this country for nearly six years now. He has almost entirely assimilated into the American culture. One would never guess that only six short years ago, my husband spoke choppy and barely comprehensible English, with a very thick accent. He has acquired the mainstream dresscode and hip-hoppish attitude present in many of America's twenty-something youths. He is more knowledgeable and well versed in hip hop music, culture and history than most Americans. One can barely detect the faint and almost non-existant trace of his native accent. He has perfect command of the english language, including the most current and up-to-date American slang and phrases. There are times when I actually forget he is an immigrant! On the rare occasions I happen to hear him speaking his native Swahili or Creole language while conversing with a family member long distance on the phone, I actually become amazed! All of a sudden, my very Americanized husband has a thick accent again. He is speaking a language that is so foreign to me! Surprisingly, I am disappointed and long for the days when I first met him, and I could detect his obvious accent and he spoke Swahili and Creole on a regular basis. I long for the days he was a foreigner in a foreign land. Now he is Americanized and there is no longer a trace of whom he was prior to him setting foot on American soil. It is truly unfortunate my husband felt coerced by xenophobic Americans into forgoing his true identity in order to adapt the American way of life. Would your parents object to your dating or marrying a person who was a different race than you? Strangely enough, yes. My European American mother (before I married my husband) was adamant that I marry an established "white man". She justified her reasoning because "white men" (according to her) are responsible, educated, wealthy and are known to treat women with respect. Whereas, "Black men, Middle-eastern men and Hispanic men" are lazy, violent, irresponsible, poor and over-sexed! My dear mother practically threw a fit when she discovered I eloped with my Kenyan husband, who happens to be born of a very racially mixed heritage comprising of (oh my gosh!) Islamic heritage. My African American father has a penchant for "white women", however, I suspect he would be disappointed (but not surprised) if I had married a "white man". What do you think of affirmative action and racial quotas in the workplace? Ibelieve that affirmative action and racial quotas were a necessary implementation into America's workforce during the 60's and 70's. It ushered in opportunities for minorities that many bright and talented individuals may not have beem able to experience due to racism and stereotyping. I am not yet convinced that affirmative action has outstayed its welcome. Racism is still alive and thriving in the so called "land of the free". Have you ever been discriminated against because of your race or the color of your skin? Tell us about it? Of course. Too many incidents and situations to even go into. Just take my word for it! Well, I have experienced intense bitterness from black women who felt I was attempting to dissassociate myself from the black community. I have been referred to (or my close friends who are also of mixed-race heritage) by black women as the usual slanderous and ignorant terms for persons of the lighter melanin persuasion. for example, "high yella", "brighty", "red-bone", and my all time favorite, "hifalutin mixed (insert invective here). I have invariabley been subjected to these choice phrases by irrate and (if i may be honest) envious black women who feel I have been privilleged with something they lack...good hair and a creamy, butterscotch complexion. Other than the above mentioned scenarios, I have usually been complimented on my racial heritage by many individuals. Of course, I have also had the nefarious "N" word thrown my way on one occasion by an irrate "white person" furious I cut them off on the expressway, but mostly I have received positive results regarding my skin color and racial heritage. Has anything, relating to race, happened lately that really bothered you? Yes. I recently moved to the west coast (from the midwest) and I am bit unerved by the small-minded, "I never think outside of the box" mentality that exist in my area. After only a month on the new job, a slightly inebriated "white" co-worker during happy-hour (perhaps not quite sure of what I was comprised of ethnically) complained to me that she was so relived to move from Georgia...because all the "black men" were constantly hitting on her. I asked her what the problem was with black men hitting on her as opposed to white men, and she wrinkled up her face as if she had just swallowed a bottle of castor oil and said "well you know how they are...I just can't stand them. And anyway, my family wouldn't like it if I dated a black guy" well, I decided it was time for me to break the news to her that I was a multiracial women who sprung from a white mother and a black father. I explained to her that considering during the late 70's my very interracial parents were consistantly subjected to degrading and subhuman racists attitudes but preservered in their marriage despite being spit on, threatend, and being deinied their basic rights due soley to their marriage, I thought she (my co-worker) was a poor excuse for a 30ish women in the new millenium to use that sorry-ass, clichéd excuse, "my family wouldn't like it". I very matter of factly explained to her to take repsonsibility for her own actions, and just admit she wasn't attracted to black men (or just admit she didn't have the bravdo to not care what others thought) rather than blaming it on her poor parents. Well, she had to pick her mouth up off the floor when I told her that! She couldn't look me in the face for the rest of the night. What is the most unusual thing you've ever eaten? And where were you when you ate it? I ate an eel at Detroit's Greek Town. What is your favorite "ethnic" food? Chicken tika masala and gulup jamin for desert! Where do you live and where have you traveled where the culture was the most different from your own? I spent 24 years in the very diverse and racially intergrated suburbs in Michigan. I was constantly exposed to Middle-eastern, Jewish, African, Greek,and Hispanic culture. I currently reside in Arizona, and the only ethnicities I seem to come across are whites and Hispanics. There doesn't seem to exist the ethnic variety (which I truly enjoyed) that thrives in Michigan. I would say that South Beach, Miami is a culture unto itself. Very different from what I was exposed to as a child, but pleasently so. Do you feel that you are in touch with your culture of origin? That's difficult for me to explain. I am currently still trying to "find myself", although, I must admit that I am about 100% more confortable in my skin than I was, say five years ago during my first years of college. I have learned not to define myself by race, but rather by who I am as an individual. I no longer feel a need to "fit in" culturally with both sides of my hertiage simply to appease individuals who demand that I must "choose a side". I feel I was blessed to be raised by parents who instilled exceptional values in me. My parents raised me without defining me. Race. education, knowledge, self worth and self actualization were much more relevant issues to my parents raher than a preoccupation with what racial term I was to designate to myself. I feel as if I have taken large portions of my heritage from both my parents, and have created a unique and lucrative foundation for myself. Have you ever traveled back to the homeland(s) of your ancestors? Why not, if you haven't? I plan to travel to Kenya during the latter part of this year. I also anticipate visiting Medjugorje, Yugoslavia as well. What percentage of your friends are able to speak a language other than English? I have an extremely diverse set of friends. My best friend is from Columbia, so she obviously speaks Spanish, my husband speaks 3 languages, and all his friends (whom are also my friends!) speak at least two languages each. My father-in-law speaks 13 languages, including Arabic, Punjab, and Swahili! My maternal grandfather and all of his brothers and sisters speak Serbo-Croatian. and so forth. I would hazard to guess about 60% of my friends/relatives in my life speak a language other than English. In brief, describe your idea of a perfect world. Ihaven't decided yet. its between being stranded on a desert island with a handsome and virile man who seduces me with his intellect and words of wisdom (while massaging my back and feet on a never-ending and continous basis without complaining that his hands are tired), or being able to eat all the tirimisu desert (my current obsession) I can without gaining a single pound! Do you or did you ever wish that you were of another race? If so, why? No. I love every single fusion of culture and ethnicity God choose to create me from. Are you physically attracted to people of a different race? If so, why do you think you are? Yes, of course I'm physically attracted to people of different races! I especially have an infinity for exotic, multiracial men comprised of many different ethnicities. For example, I once had a wonderful - shall I say, encounter - with a beautiful and sexy Canadian who was part Greek, Portuguese and Guyanese. He possessed great bravado, charm and mystique, all award winning combinations in my book. Hmmmmmmm, I wonder what ever happened to him... I also have had a strong inclination towards foreign men for the majority of my life. I don't seek out non-American men, fate just seems to throw them in my path, thank God. I attribute this attraction to my own ethnic background. I seek out men who are similar to me. Racially mixed. I feel they are more apt to be open-minded and more knowledgeable than those who are generally comprised of a single ethnicity or racial group. Multiracial men just have that "umph" I'm looking for! The voice of: Richard Harriprasad Age: 25 Occupation: Network Administrator Birthplace: New York City Residence: Queens, NY Would your parents object to your dating or marrying a person who was a different race than you? Being a very open-minded person I've dated anyone who I liked and was attracted to. My parents however have always objected to me dating women who are not Indian. They say that we should always stick to our own kind and marry within the Hindu culture. What do you think of affirmative action and racial quotas in the workplace? This is a very complicated area because while we are trying to create a diversified workplace, we also are hiring people "just because". This is unfair to the more qualified poeple, while at the same time it's creating a melting pot of knowledge from all areas of the globe. Which I personally think is worth the sacrifice. What do you think of signs on businesses that don't have any English on them? I think thats fine if its located in a non-English speaking country, but it seems unfair to have a business in a country and respect the language spoken there. Have you ever been discriminated against because of your race or the color of your skin? Tell us about it. All the time. Even though NYC is a melting pot, it was rough growing up and being Indian in most areas. I was born in the Bronx where I had to fight every day in school. Then when I moved out to Queens I had to fight even more. Now that I'm older I just don't bother with people and their ignorances. What is the most unusual thing you've ever eaten? And where were you when you ate it? I had Iguana at a friends BBQ last summmer.... It was yummy. Do you or did you ever wish that you were of another race? If so, why? Nah never wished. I love only one race... that's the "Human Race" Send us your answers! Submit your "voice" to us by filling out the questionnaire and we'll consider your answers for publication in Urban Mozaik Magazine.
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 Illustration by Myron Macklin Many who know Myron Macklin know him as an artist’s artist. He had a natural progression from Saturday morning cartoons to comic books to the insightful world a illustration. He left his home town of Rocky Mount, N.C. to study graphic design and illustration at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He says his most valuable lesson that he took home from college was ‘learning how to learn’. Myron is working on a book which he terms as an amalgam of interests he hopes to get published one day. More of his work can be found at www.dragonklan.com/macklin. |
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