Tag / family
-
The Economic Importance Of Family
My dad often recounts his childhood in Mexico fondly, but as one of uncomfortable congestion; with two parents and nine siblings, his household required much that my grandparents could barely afford. Flash forward to my family in the United States, and he still finds himself uncomfortable, but not because of a crowded house; rather, because…
-
(Con)Tested Identity
Before I even got to the main portion of the SAT, a question stressed me out. “What is your race/ethnicity?” jumped out at me, taunting me with the simplistic responses underneath. Filling out “white” would feel like denying my heritage, claiming that my dad’s side of the family was irrelevant to who I am, but…
-
Where We Come From, Where We Go
The young man leaned his head against the window of the train taking him away. He let out a relaxed sigh, and smiled faintly. The demeanor was not to be expected of someone leaving a place that was good to him, never to return. His next city, Chicago, will be the tenth since he left…
-
The Cultural Politics Of Mental Health In A Black Family
I have yet to share this part of my life’s story on such a public forum. I ask that you accept that this is my story to share, and bear with me as I continue coming to terms with it. My mother was the kind of woman that very seldom pulled any punches—she had the…
-
What We Keep And What We Leave Behind
As I sat against the rigid wall of my dorm the other night and read “Peron: A New Cultural History” for a Latin American history course, I read the phrase “Las penas son de nosotros, las vaquitas son ajenas.” “The sorrows our ours, the little cows are stranger’s.” The Peronist regime of Argentina was a…
-
Immigration And The Overton Window
The Trump administration’s zero-tolerance immigration policy implemented in April saw the separation of over 2,300 children from their parents. Under the policy, all adults that were caught crossing into the United States were to be criminally prosecuted and sent to a federal jail. Unable to remain with their parents in jail, migrant children were detained.…