African American

[stingray61]

My ancestry is English Irish and Dutch. Now that I have left my home town, I realize that it was very "Irish" in a lot of ways. There were a lot of people there with Irish ancestry (the county is even named for a county in Ireland)- but I never knew anybody with an irish accept, and we never did anything in our home that strikes me, or was ever stressed as Irish or Irish-American. (I wish we had) I never even heard of the tradition of eating corned beef and cabbage for St. Pattricks day until I was an adult and heard about it from friends. I do notice that since my move here, St. Pattricks day is much less of a holliday than it was back home. (All I ever remember doing was wearning green and pinching those who didn't- but you can't pinch people here! And they don't care if they wear green or not- they barely even know the day has came and went.)

Oh- the old ladies at the family reunion sometimes sing "When Irish Eyes are Smiling"

Anyway, I'm straying from my point. I wish that we had had some 'old world' traditions in our house-hold, but we never did. I could institute them now, but it's not quite the same. I don't even think I'd know were to start. Basically, we were raised "American." There was no stress laid on our roots in other places. Maybe it's that lack, but I both respect and envy those who keep that connection to there heritage strong. I just think that it is really awsom, cool and facinating. But then, I love history and anthropology, so then I guess I would.

I guess I hope that makes sence. I just wanted to share

[I hope this isn't a hijack, Blacksnake- this thread has turned into more of a Cultural Exchange thread]

Thanks for the good insight. I don't know if you have children but if you do they may want to start some Irish traditions. Besides if you start them while the kids are young they may look fondly back on it someday and keep it going. I wonder if transplanted American kids will one day look back on their American heritage with pride. Do Americans even have any good traditions to keep going for centuries?

 

[sweetnpetite]

Thanks for the good insight. I don't know if you have children but if you do they may want to start some Irish traditions. Besides if you start them while the kids are young they may look fondly back on it someday and keep it going. I wonder if transplanted American kids will one day look back on their American heritage with pride. Do Americans even have any good traditions to keep going for centuries?

I think we (americans) do- but there different all over the place America isn't as homogynous as even Americans like to believe.

Do you have any suggestions as far as Irish traditions go? {I prefer simple things over elaborate for the most part}

 

[Black Tulip]

From the top of my head: Valentine, Halloween, Thanksgiving ...

 

[sweetnpetite]

Cloudy, I love you

Sweet, if you want to learn about cultural traditions, and reinstate those in your life, there's not a damn thing wrong with that.

My grandmother was the one that taught me all the old stories, and the unique ways of doing things that were handed down to her, but we never, ever observed any Cherokee traditions in our house when I was growing up. In fact, my mother would get angry when she caught her mom teaching me. To this day, she believes it is a shame, and a blight on the "family name" to be a "half-breed." She still will not admit that she's half Cherokee, although we all know that she is. It's sad, really, to be so brainwashed into thinking that you have a reason to be ashamed of what you are.

We don't observe Cherokee traditions in my home now, not really. I do a lot of solitary things that go back forever and ever, and I try to teach my children the same stories that I was taught.

By all means, dig in to your roots and if something has meaning to you, revive it in your own family.

 

[sweetnpetite]

From the top of my head: Valentine, Halloween, Thanksgiving ...

Probably a lot of things that we don't realize that we do/ or realize that they are American till we get somewere else.

For example- Peanut Butter. (and hence peanut butter cups) greatly appreciated by a foreign exchange student I knew) Not exaclt a 'tradition' but then again- what would childhood be without PB&J without the crusts?

 

[Lovepotion69]

I'm not going to get into the debate about the terms "Afrian American", "Irish American", "Swedish American" etc.

I look different from my fellow Swedes. It hardly ever crossed my mind growing up in a suburb to Gothenburg. At that time the "only" immigrants around here were Far East Asian if you walked down a street. Many Swedes adopted Asian kids. Growing up I always got the questions;

"Where are you from? Are you adopted?"

To me it seemed everyone assumed I was adopted. Always wondered why nobody ever though I was living with my biological parents. Today people ask;

"Where are you from? No, where are you REALLY from? Ok, are your parents from another country?" *sigh*

I was lucky that I never really encountered racism and I never felt I was different from my friends. Ok, occasionally, but not that much. My parents had taught me that I'm Swedish. I grew up in Sweden and that's my culture, therefore I'm Swedish. I don't have very many ties to Thailand apart from my genes and relatives.
It wasn't until when I moved to England that I began to think more about my heritage and culture. Just because now people suddenly not only asked where I was from, but also what my ethnicity was.

Culture is individual. I define myself differently from others. Some people define themselves according to their ethnicity, where they are geographically from or something else. I define myself as Swedish because I grew up with the Swedish culture and majority of the way I view things are "Swedish". Although, being in England did make me see Sweden and myself from an alien's pov.

Regarding BlackSnake's story that people think he's white - I get that too. My African friend told me he kept forgetting I'm not white, he thinks I'm so Swedish. An African American friend used to hear she was "white" because of the way she spoke, her views and the fact she didn't date African American men.