Figuring Out Who You are as a Minority in America

BY DIDDY SANTANA

Diddy is an adventure seeking college student with a big love for an iced coffee. She aspires to become a world-traveling journalist while having her own coffee shop. When she is not exploring Denver, she can be found in the heart of Mexico City with her family.

Let’s focus on the first part. “Figuring out who you are”

I strongly believe that our life and who we are is under construction for as long as we live. We are never just one thing. Our identity is made up of hundreds of puzzle pieces. The bigger picture never stops growing. Every single day we continue adding to it because it demonstrates our story. 

Girl. Boy. Daughter. Son. Mom. Dad. Relative. Minority. Friend. Student. Colleague. Athlete. Adventurer. Workaholic. It’s endless. We are never just one identity. 

Now onto the second part. “A minority in America”

I want to start off by saying that every single person of color experiences life differently.

Love. Friendships. School. Family. Societal Interactions. All of it. 

I am a minority, and I am proud. I am so proud to call Mexico City my second home. I am proud to speak Spanish fluently. Of my history. Of my culture. Of my traditions. Being a minority in America will forever be the ability to stock my luggage with goodies from one place and traveling to the other. Feeling content as a green taxi cab zooms past me as I indulge my raspado.  Hearing the tianguis set up outside my window every Saturday morning. Being a minority to me is an endless cycle of new knowledge, culture, and happiness. It wasn’t always that easy. Being a minority doesn’t always mean we have a place where we automatically fit in. We’re obviously not white, therefore we don’t fit in there. Some of us aren’t considered “dark enough.” Some of us are considered “too light.” Some of us have green eyes, while others have dark brown. Others eyes are “too slanted” or “too big.” Some may not speak their native language correctly or not at all. Some are singled out and discriminated against, while others learn to blend or adapt. 

Sometimes it is about seeking acceptance. One of the few desires all humans have in common. It’s natural. It is universal for us to do something merely to feel accepted. We may dye our hair, join a club, play an instrument, quit our job, just to feel accepted by someone. Every footstep we take as a minority in America is taken cautiously. Did I do that right? Is that acceptable? What will they think? We second, triple, quadruple check everything we do. Being a minority means working twice or three times harder than the average American. Why? We’re the minority. Although it may mean more work, it makes us stronger and smarter. We become more efficient and vigilant. 

We are the minority, but we will not be treated less. 

America grows and relies on minorities. 

Latino. African-American. Native Americans. Asian. Middle Eastern.  

We are America, and we will never let ourselves be considered less. 

Some of us may not be blonde or have blue eyes and that doesn’t matter. Some of us may not have been born in North America but were raised here. We consider it home. It doesn't matter what others believe because we are valuable. The color of our skin. Our cultures. Our languages. Our history. Our stories. Every individual story helps build up the future. Being a minority in America does not mean abandoning everything from your native home. It means we get to see life through multiple perspectives. We get to connect with more than just one kind of community. It means our tree has more roots than we imagined. As a child, it means seeing the ways kids' eyes widened as you went and talked in a different language. It is the way you became your family’s translator. The way our food is called “exotic” during holiday parties. It is the way our hearts naturally open to other people. Or the way we would seek people that were just like us in order to feel secure.

Figuring out who you are as a minority in America is an endless story. Each individual adds their own page to the book we call North America. It is okay if your hair is darker or curlier. It is okay to wear a hijab. It is your skin, your face, your body, your hair, your nose, eyes, cheeks, eyebrows that make you beautiful and different. It is okay to speak fluent or broken Spanish, Russian, Chinese, Nigerian, German, Japanese, any language imaginable. It is okay to be a first generation student. It is okay to be a DACA or dreamer because that means you are fighting for your future. It is okay to embrace your culture and to want to learn about your history. It is okay to wear that indigenous hand embroidered blouse to school. It is okay to wear that kimono or dashiki. It is okay because it is an element of you. It is that part of the puzzle that is unbreakable. 

Be proud. Be loud. Embrace and love. Reconnect and explore. Reconcile. 

We are a minority, but we are not less. 

We are admirable and tenacious.

Love the roots that allow you to rise and bloom.