Is hybridity real? What is more powerful in the upbringing of a person: nature or nurture?

This world is full of thousands of hybrids in every form you can think of. The formal definitions of the word ‘hybrid’ is: “the offspring of two animals or plants of different breeds, varieties,species, or genera, especially as produced through human manipulation for specific genetic characteristics” and “a person or group of persons produced by the interaction or cross breeding of two unlike cultures, traditions, etc.” (dictionary.com, 2016). So how could hybridity not be real? It could be argued the mixing of races, cultures, societies, and characteristics has existed since humanity came to be. I would like to think I am a sufficient example of a hybrid.

First of all, my ethnic mix is Indian and Filipino. My mother is from the Philippines and my father is from India. My mom is bilingual, in that she speaks her native language, Tagalog. Whereas my dad does not speak nor understand Hindi. He told me when he moved to America, he was forced to forget Hindi and focus solely on English because of how badly he and his brother were being bullied at school. So basically, I lost a pretty large part of that Indian half of me because it was never spoken in the house. For example, my sister and I call my mom’s dad ‘Lolo’ which is Tagalog for grandpa. I know there is a word for ‘grandma’ in Hindi but we do not call my dad’s mom that, we call her grandma. I do have to say that I connect more and am more involved with my Filipino side because I just spend more time with that culture. I hate to admit that although I am half Filipino and half Indian, I identify more with my Filipino side.

While coming from those two backgrounds, my family is also what I would consider “white washed”which means, "A derogatory term used to describe a minority who has assimilated with western society," (urban dictionary.com, 2008). We are not the typical Asian American family where Tagalog is spoken in the house or where curry is eaten at least once a week. My mom was lucky enough to attend UC Berkeley to gain a great education and I feel like that factor has a lot to do with how our household functions and how my sister and I were brought up. I once told my mother that I thought that our family was white washed and she got offended. She disagreed and said that she did not think that we were and asked, “What’s wrong with trying to live the American dream?” which, ironically, may have been the most white washed thing she ever said. I completely understood what she meant and that was by trying to make a good living and being successful.

My family lives in Hayward, California which is located in the Bay Area. Hayward is a suburban area and has a very prominent population of Latinos and African Americans. Living in the city that I grew up in meant that I spent every day going to school with mostly Latinos and black people. Especially in high school, most of my friends were Latino and I took Spanish so the culture definitely seemed second nature for me. When I moved here to Irvine, there was such a culture shock for me. I had never been surrounded by so many Asians and white people but honestly I am really am getting used to it.

In summer 2015, I traveled to Nicaragua with an educational program that I was a part of and I was completely immersed in their culture. I learned so much about their education system, government, economy, environment and society. Their culture will always be a part of me because it taught me what it really meant to be a global citizen. I always knew I wanted to travel and learn about cultures. That program just strengthened my urge to be a part of more cultures and become more of a hybrid.

With that said, I believe that one’s environment is most forceful in the upbringing of a person. The way someone is nurtured and their experiences ultimately shape who they are.

Works Cited:

Image: https://calisil89.wordpress.com/2014/09/21/mimicry-and-hybridity/

1) "hybrid". Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 28 Nov. 2016. <Dictionary.com http://www.dictionary.com/browse/hybrid>.

2) "whitewashed". Urban dictionary.com. 16 Aug 2008 <http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=whitewashed>