Identities

To understand those who take on different identities you have to put yourself in their shoes. While still at an impressionable age, the pressures to fit in or belong to a group are extremely unnerving. Sometimes these pressures force the kids to mimic what they see on TV or believe that the stereotypes of their race are true. While others try to change their ethnicity because they want to be "known". To do this they associate themselves with the types of clothes they're wearing or music they're listening to. Which is described as the "claiming" throughout the reading; one girl claimed that she was fully Mexican because she looked it, even though she was half Mexican and half white. (page 195). While another discussed how the influence of a movie altered the identities of tons of kids.

She said, "When "Boyz N the Hood" came out on video, it was sold out for weeks. All the boys wanted to be black, and all the girls wanted to be Mexican. It's the glamour."( page 197) This is a perfect example of "claiming" because the movie influenced others to declare themselves of a different ethnicity. Other motivations, however, differed greatly from these two experiences.

Growing up in an area with mostly white people as the population, it was easy for kids to want to change their identities because of what they saw on TV. Television has always had a profound impact on the culture, especially with teens and emerging trends. It is not uncommon for young people to be infatuated with a certain fad for a period of time. A good example of this would be advertising Puff Daddy's clothing line, Sean John. The Sean John line is targeted to buyers often in the young urban crowd, ages 16-24. Young people recognize this figure and associate with the rapper lifestyle and want to dress like him. I know television has increased the "ghetto ness" of my area with advertisements like this. The Caucasian crowd would normally be influenced by the "thug life" and want to adopt that identity.

Taking on a whole new identity usually happens because the individual wants to be accepted in a specific group or want to be "known". Dressing, talking or mimicking the actions or language can make an individual feel more at home.

The motivation for behavior like this can stem from where one was raised and have to deal with racism and prejudice. Growing up as Mexican and Italian a person might say they are Italian because of the negative connotations associated with Mexicans. It all depends on the surrounding culture of where a person is