frogg
Junior Member
The frog
Posts: 161
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Post by frogg on Aug 15, 2006 9:22:11 GMT -5
Environment, Parents, Culture, Education, and Your choice to be what you are will shape what you are. Nobody needs to tell me I can support only one country in Olympics, I support both Dutch and Japanese. If there is a football match between Japan and the Netherlands, I don't care who wins, I just enjoy watching them play. I have no obligation to take side on either country. If any single-blooded people tell me that I have to take side, I just laugh at them and feel sorry for them for not being able to see things EA's way. To me, their kind of thinking is just too narrow and it often is the cause of tension between different cultures. I don't need EA's original culture either. I am what I am and I am strong enough not to feel the need to belong to any particular culture or even question about it. I have lived in 4 different countries so far, and their cultures are all different from each other. I am way too international to limit myself in one particular culture. If anybody want to judge what I am, I always welcome it. I judge them from their judgement toward me. It doesn't really bother or help me.
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Post by jefe on Aug 15, 2006 12:18:44 GMT -5
I will use an Asian who speaks English extremely well as an example, whilst they may be indistinguishable on the telephone, once they are seen in the flesh already people start to make changes to their perceptions, I just interviewed a Canadian Chinese last week and even though she looked sorta Chinese looking, I did not think of her as being Chinese at all because of her behavior, which you notice in seconds. Yes, but 90% of my actual daily interaction with people is with people who know me. None are making snap judgements of me. Well, how about this -- we are not in control, but we can strongly influence it.
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Post by داود on Aug 15, 2006 16:29:36 GMT -5
There's no denying that life probably would be 'easier' if everyone blended in, but it would also be pretty boring. Where would America be without pizza? Kidding. She must appear to be something other than white, yeah? I remember studying a poem in English that was about this african american who did everything he could to be white, distanced himself from all the culture his mother came from, etc. He worked hard and did amazing things, all with the aim to blend in with the white society. When he dies, he is remembered, not just for his contribution to his society, but ironically as a great example of an african american. She is White. I often meet people who try too hard to adapt to majority. I guess they are rewarded in the end for ass licking.
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Lorien
Junior Member
1/2 Chinese, 1/2 Australian (1/4 Irish 1/4 English)
Posts: 117
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Post by Lorien on Aug 16, 2006 6:24:22 GMT -5
If she's white then I'm curious about the context of that statement. Okay, over it! Moving on... Anyway, is there some kind of importance to defining a culture for EAs? As soon as we try to pin it down, we'll find an exception to the rule. And now I'm suddenly wondering why we're accepting their attempt to pigeon-hole us into something THEY can understand. Let's revel in our differences for as long as they exist.
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Post by jewbird on Aug 25, 2006 23:07:17 GMT -5
I see it as not so much about accepting or rejecting people's perception of us. People are going to do that and in the absence of some type of frame of reference or experience to base that on, people are going to base that on weird things until they have a better foundation.
Readdressing the question of Eurasian cultural identity, if we define culture as the values and attitudes that inform how people relate to each other, the salient question is not how Eurasians relate to each other or what pops into ppl's heads when they gaze at their own navels but rather how we relate to people who are not Eurasian as I'm sure most of us do overwhelmingly.
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Post by j3aN62 on Aug 26, 2006 13:54:51 GMT -5
I think that before studying the 'cultural identity', we should wonder if we have an identity at all. Well okay identity or cultural identity, the same issue maybe.
How many participants on EAN do really want to establish the EA minority. Or just stay transparent. Notice that the board creators have already switched to a more general endeavor, like mixed race in general.
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Post by ConceptDesign on Aug 26, 2006 23:49:41 GMT -5
If she's white then I'm curious about the context of that statement. Okay, over it! Moving on... Anyway, is there some kind of importance to defining a culture for EAs? As soon as we try to pin it down, we'll find an exception to the rule. And now I'm suddenly wondering why we're accepting their attempt to pigeon-hole us into something THEY can understand. Let's revel in our differences for as long as they exist. There is a challenge in defining such things. Som EA's on this BB are EA's bred from EA parents. Others like myself are 1st gen EA's from Asian and European parents, then there are other EA's here that have an EA parent and a racially 'pure' parent. Our example as Australians will be different than say a Singaporean, a country that recognises EA's and even has social societies dedicated to us. It is interesting that you made mention in your original post that EAness is becoming increasingly common, at least in Melbourne and Sydney. Compared to when we were young (I'm guessing you're around the 30yo mark).
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Post by jericho on Aug 27, 2006 2:50:56 GMT -5
I just interviewed a Canadian Chinese last week and even though she looked sorta Chinese looking, I did not think of her as being Chinese at all because of her behavior, which you notice in seconds. What about before she opened her mouth? You must have had some picture in your mind prior to that? That's what I'm talking about. Have you asked them? What about when they first met you? Now that they know you their perception has changed I'll bet. What about all the people you don't know? Everyone makes judgements, they may not be concrete but we make them, it's in our nature. Hmm... I dunno about 'strongly'. It varies from person to person in my opinion.
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Lorien
Junior Member
1/2 Chinese, 1/2 Australian (1/4 Irish 1/4 English)
Posts: 117
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Post by Lorien on Aug 27, 2006 9:38:06 GMT -5
There is a challenge in defining such things. Som EA's on this BB are EA's bred from EA parents. Others like myself are 1st gen EA's from Asian and European parents, then there are other EA's here that have an EA parent and a racially 'pure' parent. Our example as Australians will be different than say a Singaporean, a country that recognises EA's and even has social societies dedicated to us. It is interesting that you made mention in your original post that EAness is becoming increasingly common, at least in Melbourne and Sydney. Compared to when we were young (I'm guessing you're around the 30yo mark). Yep, I'm 30. When I was growing up (largely in Miami, with some time spent in Melbourne), I didn't meet anyone in my "peer group" that was mixed, but nowadays, I see more and more young kids who are mixed. In some ways, I'm jealous of them. They don't have to grow up being of two worlds, but not totally accepted by either. Now, that's an exaggeration, of course, but when you're young, you're sensitive to these differences. So the idea of there being enough people similar to me to make up a culture... well, it's amazing. But then, I didn't grow up in SE Asia where this is more common. So you're right. My experiences of being an "EA" will be quite different from an "EA" raised in Singapore. Does this mean that we have different cultures? Or more accurately, does this mean that I'm not a part of that particular culture and would feel as alien in Singapore and Hawai'i as I sometimes do in Melbourne and strongly Asian areas? In fact, I probably have more in common with full-blood Asians who were born and raised in America or Australia than I do with Singaporean EAs... I dunno, but it's an interesting question.
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Post by ConceptDesign on Aug 28, 2006 11:11:59 GMT -5
Your experience would be different to mine. You say you're from the USA. Already there's a difference. As the to SG EAs experience, there are SG EA's here. Although I don't know if there are any of our vintage. Jennifer Brook, what say you?
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Lorien
Junior Member
1/2 Chinese, 1/2 Australian (1/4 Irish 1/4 English)
Posts: 117
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Post by Lorien on Aug 29, 2006 3:18:37 GMT -5
You say you're from the USA. Oops, I think you touched a raw nerve there. I'm not from the USA, but I lived there for 15 years. Yes, I have an American accent, but I was born in Germany (no, I'm not a citizen and I've been a citizen of Australia my entire life. My father's Aussie, my mother's Chinese. I've lived in Melbourne a total of 11 years and counting. So what am I? Where am I from? I freakin' HATE that question! I can joke that I'm from Earth, but most people just think I'm being annoying. Argh.
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