Coming to Know Who We Are : How Culture Effects Identity
By Lydia King & Cassandra Santana
In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, our ministry team has come together to highlight the work being done in the Latino community that encourages pride and growth. Be sure to join us on our YouTube channel Adventures in 1Love this Friday when we share children’s books by some phenomenal authors and illustrators.
During my time exploring the HHM display that I highlight in the episode, I came across “Of Women and Salt” written by Gabriela Garcia. This book instantly spoke to my soul as it spans across generations and speaks to how we attempt to find identity through our families.
In “Of Women and Salt” Gabrielle Garcia does an excellent job showing how the silence of our ancestor’s generations has created a broken development in the generations that followed. She writes about a character of my generation inquiring about her family’s experiences: “As a child, Jeanette used to ask her about Cuba. Her father had a whole repertoire about winding colonial streets, about the most beautiful beaches in the entire world… He talked about his parents, his siblings, his whole past. He drew mythology so enchanting, Jeanette hadn’t understood why her mother never said a word and would almost snap if she asked about her past. Jeanette had never even spoken to her maternal grandmother in Cuba. And even as a child, Jeanette understood that another narrative she couldn’t access had shaped her life. She didn’t have the vocabulary to say, I want to know who I am, so I need to know who you’ve been.”
What struck me in reading this piece was the lack of identity. A curse that has plagued many of us of Hispanic heritage and it caused me to question, what is it we are celebrating this month? Is it the food, the music, the beauty? Or is it the resilience, the love for one another, and the gift of hospitality that makes people genuinely feel cared for? The following depicts what some of our experiences look like growing up and being proud to be Latinos -- essentially it’s complicated…
Growing up I never questioned my Hispanic roots or thought that I didn’t fit into my own culture. I am Puerto Rican and was raised by proud Boricua parents who showed me how to dance Salsa and who were active in the Latino community. Our culture was a part of my everyday life. That changed when I started school and was required to only speak English.
Although I listened to Spanish music and knew enough of the language to defend myself I didn’t quite fit in with the other kids who were completely fluent. I was what they called a gringa or white girl because I wasn’t Hispanic “enough” for them. I remember some of them telling me how can you call yourself Puerto Rican if you don’t like x y or z.
In an effort to be accepted I tried making friends with the white girls in school but to them, I was too Hispanic. This was my first experience with racism. I can remember trying so hard to fit in only to be told I don’t. Years of trying to figure out where I belonged and how I should act left me feeling isolated and alone.
This all changed when I gave my life to the Lord and began to learn my identity in Christ. An identity that wasn’t attached to just one culture or one group of stereotypes. Since He knew me in my mother’s womb, He knew I would need healing in this area. And as He has healed my identity I’ve been used to help other’s find theirs.
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you [and approved of you as My chosen instrument],
And before you were born I consecrated you [to Myself as My own];
I have appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”Jeremiah 1:5 Amplified Bible
Earlier this year I was speaking with some friends about our experiences growing up Latina and I was able to come to a surprising conclusion - the isolation we all were forced into by shame kept each of us in a place of self-hate. We all had rejected pieces of ourselves because of the treatment we’d experienced. An accent was too thick, a passionate personality too strong. Each piece that made us Latina, that made us unique, is what added to our brokenness.
Coming to Christ confirmed my identity as a Daughter, but I didn’t completely understand how to make peace with my race and identity in the real world. This conversation helped reveal that I wasn’t alone. For the first time, I felt seen and heard when it came to my racial identity and it allowed me to make peace with who I am and my cultural inheritance.
There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
Galatians 3:28
So while we want to celebrate the beauty of Hispanic Heritage, it is imperative that we are drawn back to our soul truth. We are children of God -- that is what our identity must be anchored in. Our cultures add beauty, depth, and intrigue to the global community we now live in, but our identity in Christ is what gives us the confidence to walk through life without apology.
Bio
Lydia has been walking with Jesus, as her Savior, for 14 years. Lydia and Greg are high school sweethearts that reconnected after their high school reunion and have been married for almost 14 years. Despite previous divorces they have committed their lives to learning to do marriage, family and life with others God’s way. In their blended family they have three his, and 2 hers. Their 5 children are aged 17 to 22. She and her husband serve as Directors of 1Love Ministries, and Lydia is the host of the ministry show on YouTube ”Adventures in 1Love”. She also is a partner in an event planning company and loves to help people create affordable events that will provide beautiful memories for families and friends for years to come. She enjoys time with family, reading, writing, music, traveling, and all the adventures that walking with the Lord brings.
Bio
Cassandra is a wife and mom to three boys. When she isn't managing her household she working on some kind of craft project or pursuing her dream of writing a novel.
She serves as the Worship Leader at her church in Orlando, Florida, and loves leading congregations into the presence of God. Her love of writing also extends into songwriting. You can follow her on Instagram @mamanejo.