Over the years I noticed some strange things about people's preconceptions. One is similar to Joi's of how back home, if you were from the next town over, which sometimes was less than a kilometer, things would be radically different, where as the states, well you usually have to travel quite far... and it doesn't help that the country I am from could probably fit in the Bay. Malta has always been split in a Northern vs Southern way and it has lead to odd conflicts, but since the island is so small, one thing can be agreed upon, travelers without money are not welcome. It always came across as the Maltese disliked foreigners unless they had open checkbooks! There were other issues at hand, but since I was too young and not there long enough, it was hard to see.
Now in California, I would like to believe I didn't live a sheltered life, but in reality, there was a massive bubble that I lived in. The town of Los Gatos, is really privileged and is predominatly white. Fortunately my parents are into community service and found other ways to expose me to the world, so I feel like I was relatively well rounded. However, I won't lie, it was a little strange when I left private religious schools, for a public college, I was a little blown away when I realized that not everyone was catholic. However, I quickly realized that was part of my upbringing, but I also remebered how my parents have always said not to prejudge anyone based on appearance or lifestyle.
That lesson has made life easier, however it isn't always an easy thing to practice. Since we are bombarded with stereotypes on a daily basis, one slip into an us vs them way of thought and that would be disastrous. I think since it is impossible to escape, the most important thing is acknowledge that, and then push passed it in order to function/do your job right.
Adam's perspective about growing up in two cultures is interesting, especially in that he felt it was a negative experience as a teenager. When he told me about growing up there, I thought it was really awesome. As I have only lived in the Bay Area (except for college) I was a little jealous. I have visited, but never lived abroad. Even within the US, I didn't have a chance to develop a Mid-Westerner's work ethic or a New Yorker's sense of urgency, or a Chicago accent.
ReplyDeleteAdam mentions having a California accent. For most of my life I thought I didn't have an accent. Most people on TV have a similar lack of accent, even newscasters in New York don't sound like typical New Yorkers. Then I was swimming in the Mediterranean and someone asked in French if I spoke English. He was a Kiwi and a few sentences into our conversation said, "You're from California." When I said that I was he said, "I could tell from your accent. I have a friend from California and he talks like you." I was very surprised and amused.