From The Peopling of New York City
The Effect of Education on Second-Generation Youth's Identity Formation
Maya, an 18 year old Jain teenager living in Long Island City was brought up to accept all. Throughout her high school education at a strictly Catholic high school, she has met many religions, races, and ethnicities, but has barely any bias at all. How could this be possible after interviews of her parent's generation bash other races, calling them "lazy" and "untrustworthy?" Are youth changing the scheme in multi-ethnic neighborhoods like Jackson Heights?
In My Interview with Maya, a student of a Catholic High School who frequents Jackson Heights, when asked about the Catholic church, about other faiths, she responded saying, "I really don’t mind, I’m pretty accepting of other religions." Brought up in the beliefs of Jain Hinduism, her vegetarian diet sets her apart from most of her classmates, except on Fridays in Lent. Yet, her ambition to go away to college sets her apart from her cultural belief to stay home with your family until marriage. "Yeah, stereotypically, you do stay home until you’re married and you get an arranged marriage, too, so you have no say in life. Now, especially when you come here, you have to learn to let go, you have to be accepting." The option of creating their own ethnic identity has facilitated the identity formation of many South Asian youth. Although their parents were forced into certain stereotypes and norms in India, Americanization has started to chip away at these molds. Young South Asian youth are forming new requirements and making their own ideas, this leading to a change in cultural contact as well.
Cross-Cultural Marriage
However, Maya was not the first in her family to accept and bridge gaps between the South Asian belief to associate, and eventually marry, only other South Asians, usually from the same area. "My uncle, the oldest of my dad side, he actually came to America to study and he didn’t want to but my grandparents were pretty liberal for that age. So he came over, and he brought over everyone else after that. Parents typically want you to get married within the same background and religion, but my uncle actually married a Philippine woman out of love and it wasn’t arranged. That, I felt was very surprising, especially for that era, and because he was the oldest. They were in love, and they still stuck it out so that was really awesome." This wedding bridged the gap for Maya's family and old, bitter feelings about non-South Asians were changed. "When my mom came over after her arranged marriage with my dad, she keeps telling me how my Philippine aunt was always there and for her, because my mom also had no one from India. She still was only by herself and it was [my aunt] that made her feel at home and was there for her like an older sister." This new leaf carried over into Maya and her sister's life. They had an aunt who was different than them ethnically, and a family member to look up to who was not pushed into an arranged marriage. Maya began to form her own ideas about ethnicity and her culture.
Religious Contact in High Schools
Going to a Catholic High School opened doors for many cultural interactions, beginning in the Church. "I just went to the Easter mass willingly just because it was our last official mass and it was actually really cool because, yeah, it’s of a different faith but you learn more about it, like, learn to be more accepting and it’s just how I was raised." Maya accepts her mostly white Catholic peers. Meanwhile, at her Hindu temple, whites are a rare sight, and looked upon with question. "I remember we were at temple many years ago, and there was a Caucasian lady doing the practices with us, and at first I was like, “Oh, what is she doing?”, type of thing and my mom said, “Oh no. She’s Jain too and she’s one of us.” I thought that was pretty cool and wanted to know why she wanted to become Jain and all that stuff and my mom was accepting of it. It’s not “normal”, but my mom accepted it." In the religious arena, cultures seem to brush shoulders, internally judge, but accept, although they do not feel the presence of a non-Indian is normal. This seems to be the feeling of any stand-out in the crowd, and relatively common among all ethnicities. This cannot be pinned down as a possible hatred or bias, just acute curiosity about the person's interest in your religion.
Changing Gender Roles Among Indian Youth
As Maya takes classes describing the woman's rights movement in the United States, Indian men continue to keep their wives home from work. "With my mom growing up, it was like the women were second class. My mom has seven sisters and only one brother, and her, her seven sisters, and her mom had to eat on the kitchen floor, while her brother and my grandfather ate at the dining table, and the dining table was pretty big, so it just goes to show you how women were treated as second class and they were expected to be this “little servant girl” for their husbands. When my mom first came here, it was that case, the man works, the woman stays home and cooks, but now as the American values are creeping in, my mom does go to work, yet she still does the cooking and the cleaning of the house." These American values, brought on my the Indian woman meeting American women, have begun to seep in the Indian culture, beginning with the youth. Contact with females outside her culture have definitely molded Maya's views for herself as a woman. She does not believe in arranged marriage, and although she said jokingly she has not found a boyfriend, she is not specifically looking for an Indian mate. In fact, her sister brought a Hispanic date to the prom, one who had to be checked out by the family and brought to dinner a few times before even being allowed to take her to the prom. The fact that Maya's parents even allowed dating, especially outside Indians, has truly displayed her family's acceptance. Even more, her mom's contact with her Philippine aunt, and Maya's contact with her classmates have opened their eyes to new and open views towards other cultures.
Cultural Contact as a Cause for Youth Assimilation?
Some Indian parents worry about their child assimilating and losing their culture. There are many factors that could contribute to this. In the book, "The Namesake" by Jhumpi Lahiri, these worries come first hand to the mother when even though she prepares home cooked meals, she finds her children wearing jeans and eating pizza. Is assimilation in the future for Indian youth?
Fitting In: I'm American
Assimilation has a huge draw for Indian youth. As in any teenagers life, peer pressure and the longing to fit in is a big determinant in identity formation. Whether a teen identifies as Indian or American or something other depends a lot on how they feel others will perceive them. If there is not a large Indian population in a certain high school, this lack of familiar co-ethnic contact will lead to the youth looking for different ethnic contact, maybe associating with whites, blacks, or hispanics. Some youth may even begin to identify and take on practices of this other ethnicity or race, losing their Indian culture. If a teen feels safe or friendly with another ethnic group, when they go on to own a business or work professionally, they will continue to associate with this group, breaking down the ethnic barriers for hiring in Jackson Heights. Business owners in Jackson Heights now do not know other ethnicities and races beyond what they hear from other shop owners. If these business owners were to first-hand meet and perhaps even have some multi-ethnic friends, they may have different ideas. Today's youth are being exposed more and more to different ethnic identity, allowing them to form their own feelings. Although every person has some sort of bias, the feelings previously felt by parents are less likely to be passed on to mature Indian teenagers who have already created their own views about others' race and ethnicity.
No! I am Indian!
There are many factors that could prevent the assimilation of these youth. One of the biggest is the rise of Indian culture in the mass media. Originally, movies based on or set in India were for producers in Bollywood, however, with the release of Slumdog Millionaire, this all has changed. Indian culture has come to the forefront of American media. Maya stated that the Indian Club she is a president of used a song from this movie in their performance. They received rave reviews from many other school groups. This reward for ethnic individuality could lead the Indian youth to want to continue to boast their culture. Indian youth have also seen their music seeping into other genres. Recently, Jay-Z, a popular rap artist, integrated some Bhangra beats into one of his rap songs, bringing Indian culture onto the radios, onto the television, and into clubs. Other outlets such as clubs or volunteer organizations give the youth a place to meet with co-ethnics and find those with similar problems and experiences. This secure environment would allow them to keep their ethnic Indian identity. When Italians and Irish came to the United States in the first wave of Ellis Island immigration, they were quick to assimilate because being of Irish or Italian ethnic identity prevented them from finding a job or being taken seriously by others already established in the United States. However, in today's America, shopping areas such as Jackson Heights allow Indian Americans to keep their culture, continue to cook, and begin to find work without having to worry so much about assimilating. This freedom could lead to the continuation of Indian ethnic identity for today's youth.
Strong family ties are another factor in youth staying Indian. As much as they may want to become Americanized, home will always be Indian and there will always be a temple to go to or weddings to get dressed up for. Parents will continue to push their youth to stay Indian, although later generations may be more lenient.
A balanced mix: The Indian-American Youth Identity
Many Indian-American youth have gone on to create a multi-ethnic identity. These youth can be both South Asian and American. With their Indian friends, they can discuss family, perform social dances, and gossip about Bollywood. At the same time, they can frequent Dunkin' Donuts, eat pizza, and wear jeans.
Indian-American. Its like, you know, everything I learned from my parents is the Indian aspect, but growing up, I’ve gotten all these American mannerisms and habits, so I’m a blend of both. -An Interview with Jeffin Mathew
This is a very common feeling among Indian-American youth. They can be a blend; they don't have to choose a side. This is very liberating for these youth, and is a great way to allow cross-cultural interaction. These multi-ethnic youth aren't as different as they think.
Conclusions
It seems that culture contact among youth of different identities will lead to more widespread understanding and acceptance in the future of Jackson Heights. When these youth become the parent generation, they will impart these receptive feelings about other cultures to their children. Although the extreme ethnic identity felt by the current parent generation will be severely lessened in the next generation, Indians will not completely assimilate anytime soon. The popularity of their culture and outlets for forming their ethnic identities will stay in place and continue to keep youth interested in being Indian. Home is where the heart is, and continuation of strong family ties will keep Indian youth part of their culture, no matter how many pairs of jeans they buy and how much pizza and fast food they eat.
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