Blog 2

As is evident from the readings and other materials for this week's unit, the American family has been in a constant state of flux and transition. As the structure of families has shifted and developed, so have the theories which explain these ebbs and flows. Often times I have found myself reflecting on my individual experiences- my role as a sister, daughter, aunt, niece, and cousin- that I have not connected it back to the experiences of the larger groups to which I am connected, whether they be geographical, racial, or otherwise. 

One of the stories that comes to mind most often when discussing identity, race, ethnicity and the perceptions of others regarding these domains is one that my friend, Laura, told me long ago. When she went to college, she was often labeled as a "stereotypical white girl from the suburbs." With her blonde hair, blue eyes, and fair skin, Laura probably looked the part based on most individual's perceptions. When she went to college in Pennsylvania, and even once she entered graduate school in Texas, people constantly found her to be out of place at Hispanic events or spoke Spanish around her, instead of to her. It is probably because Laura defies most people's image of when they think of someone from Latin America or who speaks Spanish; Laura was born and raised for the first ten years of her life in Venezuela. This assumption, at times, has made Laura feel isolated. At times, it has worked to her advantage, as a tool to surprise people and broaden their understanding of identity and culture, if they have the opportunity to get to know her more deeply. 

These stories surprised me, even though I probably should have been cued into this idea much sooner. I have known Laura since high school, where we were in many of the same classes together, including Spanish. I remember on our first day of class, when we were getting to know each other and discussing our backgrounds, our teacher made an interesting comment. "We have such a diverse class today, some people don't sound like they speak Spanish and some people don't look like they speak Spanish." She probably meant that folks like Laura didn't look "Hispanic" and students like me had surnames like "Safstrom" which did not sound Hispanic.

The reason I make the connection with "looking" or "sounding" the part with language, is because the same becomes true regarding families. When you begin to make the assumption that some people do not look like they fit together, diverse families struggle to fit into the mold. I may look like my sister,  but what if I didn't? That does not make her any less of sister.

The idea of blended and diverse families, whether the mix is based on bloodlines, race, religion, gender, geography, language or any other identifying characteristic of an individual becomes the means by which judge families, then the understanding is limited. While sometimes, labeling, categorizing or grouping families helps from a theoretical standpoint to draw conclusions and explain trends, the nuances of every individual must also be respected by acknowledging every individual or family unit will not fit into one standard categorization. For this reason, I think it is the biggest challenge and excitement in studying families, to explore diverse theoretical perspectives to develop a broad, multifaceted understanding of families.

 Laura and I at the beach.

My youngest sister and I.