"Perhaps seeing ourselves as descendants, in blood or in spirit, of historically oppressed peoples is an important step towards aligning ourselves with our brethren in this country."
I have heard people refer to America as a "melting pot," a giant vat of diverse ingredients stirred together into one giant soup. Americans come from all over the world: Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Africa, Asia, the Middle East, etc. People of all different races, cultures, and ethnicities fuse together to form the single American identity that America represents today.
Biss begins her essay by discussing the historic oppression of the Irish. In this discussion, she mentions, "They were thought of, and thought of themselves, as a distinct race." This line brings up the idea that race is a social construct. What defines a race? What is the difference between white and Irish?
Like Biss, I have a diverse ancestry. My mom's ancestors were poor Jews in Lithuania and Russia, bareky finding a way to immigrate to America around 1900. My dad was born in Canada, and his ancestors were in Canada for quite a long time, though if they are traced back far enough, allegiance to Ireland, France, Germany, and Ukraine can be found.
"Perhaps I will tell them that your race is like your name - it is a given, and you must define your own name so that it does not define you," Biss conjectures at the end of her essay. And at least for whites, there is no question that race is a given. In "Relations," Biss addresses this in her anecdote about the census taker with her and her cousin, noting that he marked "white" for Biss without even asking and then took the time to have a discussion with her cousin about what race she felt like she was. I have found this inflexibility in my own experiences too, having been always called white without any doubts even with my extremely diverse heritage.
But why is my heritage so important to me? I am almost sure that it is because my heritage puts a wall up between myself and the oppression that whites before me are known for. Like Biss identifies with her Polish side more than her English side, I always identify more with my Eastern European roots over the Western ones. As Biss says in the quote I opened this post with, it is easier to identify with the oppressed than the oppressors.
You touch briefly on your responses to se of Biss's points, but I think you could go more in depth on all of them. You ask what defines a race - I'd love to hear your response to that, with your diverse and complicated family history.you say that race is a given for whites - what does that actually mean? Is race not a given for others? You ask why your heritage is so important to you and conclude that it is easier to identify with the oppressed than the oppressors. I agree - but why is that the case? And what happens when we try and change it? No one can be the underdog all the time. Maybe it is important that we acknowledge the uncomfortable and disturbing in our identities as well.
ReplyDeleteThe idea you bring up at the end of your post is very interesting, and I think it is a step beyond Biss's claim your pasted at the start. I can relate to a lot of what you wrote in this essay. I too have family from Eastern Europe, and I've always associated myself with them. After reading your essay, I agree that it might have been to distance myself from the slavery and miss-treatment of blacks in this country. Your conclusion makes me question Biss's original claim. To make progress, do we have to own up to our ancestors mistakes, and force ourselves to claim our place as descendants of the oppressors?
ReplyDelete