Writing POC 101

Mexican American Characters - @Shawol_In_Shawol_out

Okay, so first of all, hello.

I am an American whose parents are from Mexico. I am a first generation kid, and living here in America, I am exposed to several different cultures. I eat foreign food and I go to school with people who have been raised differently. But there are still people out there who don't really know how we live or what we do and resort to stereotypes in order to write about us in their stories.

Now, I, a first generation American, will tell you a few things about me and others alike.

One/ Language/

Most first generation kids are able to speak their parents native language. However, not all of us have the ability to do so, and some of us have limited knowledge on how to write or say words in said language. We also slip up from time to time and curse in (for me) Spanish. We also say sayings that only make sense in the language our parents speak

Example: Heal Heal tail of a frog(it doesn't make sense, right?)

Two/ How we are brought up/

(1)I've seen kids talk about how parents usually punish them by hitting them and such, and it's true. For some at least.

You see, my mother and father were both raised like that. If they did something wrong, then they would be hit as punishment.

However, don't take it overboard. We aren't hit for every little thing, and they usually stop as you grow older.

(2) Our parents are a bit conservative. Especially with girls. Guys are usually more free, but girls....not really. For me, I was told I couldn't go anywhere without my mother, and that I should be better at things like cleaning and cooking. Annoying, right?

Also, they always say to finish college before I start dating, but then they ask me when I will start dating. Pretty confusing

(3) Being brought up in a Mexican household, I was raised as a Catholic. I was always told that God was watching and was even enrolled in a Catholic school, doing my first communion and getting confirmed. We also have a little alter for religious things. Not all people are like this though. There are some people who don't believe in God or any other religion.

Three/Food/

Being brought up in America, I heard a lot of stereotypes, and one was that we always ate tacos.

Not true.

Usually, we eat some other things that my mom made. It usually consists of an egg or some rice. But we also eat other things like Pozole, tamales, etc. Also, we aren't limited to just that. We also eat Chinese, Japanese, Indian, French, you name it.

Four/Skin color/

WE.ARE.NOT.ALL.TAN.OR.BROWN.

Some are, but some, like me, have pale skin. In Mexico, these people are mainly found in the city, but I feel that people here in America always see us as tan or brown. But we aren't. I can't tell you how many times I was called "White girl" in school. I am not. Please learn your facts

Five/Names/

I can't tell you how many times I was called Maria. Maria.

I am not Maria, I am Fatima.

Names are a tricky thing to guess. You can make it sound so stereotypical if you say my name is Maria, Rosa, or Guadalupe. We have other names. Especially here since our parents choose to give different names. We have Amber, Minerva, Alexis, Miguel, etc. So don't limit your choices to Jesus, Jose, Maria, Pancho, etc.

Well, I guess that's it. Thank you for reading :)