Do you feel like there is a constand need for people to support stereotypes of their own race?!?

Question

I guess I'll provide a generalized example of my own race. Being an Asian, sometimes I am really annoyed by certain Asians trying to "act smart" or are actually smart and think that they are better than regular joes and people who don't go to school. They even expect me to be that way, and when I'm not the "stereotypical geeky asian" they expect me to be it feels like I'm left out. Sometimes, they just proclaim that they are good in academics and want a prestegious job, like in the medical field, when actually they don't even care about school that much and are just doing it to fit in. Is it just me, or do you also sometimes feel that people within your race wants to support stereotypes of your own race ? Are you bothered by it?

Answer 1

I know EXACTLY where you're coming from being a black woman in America who speaks proper English, listens to rock, classical, j-pop, and even a little country (but hates rap music), watches anime and reads manga, takes education seriously, and (here's the kicker) married a white guy.

Ever since grade school I've had people telling me that I "talk white" just because I pronounce words the way they were taught to me. I've been made fun of for making straight-A's and I've been accused of being "stuck up" just because I was taking honors classes. I guess I will never be "black enough" in that sense.

When I look at some black people I think they're trying to hard to be "black enough." They'll go out of their way to mispronounce a word or add an extra word just so they can sound stupid and I wonder, what's it all for? Why do you have to be stupid? Don't you realize that the KKK members and the racists are using you to justify their hatred towards us? I don't understand why they feel like just because people say we're stupid, they have to be stupid. I just don't understand why it's cool to be stupid in some black communities. I guess it all depends on how you were raised.

Very good question.

Answer 2

VERY good question. I am African American, and I get stereotyped all the time. People expect me to act rough, and speak poor English. I am working on my masters now in classical music. I speak the best English, yet people of my own race expects me to speak poorly and "de-value" education. Granted, I do not have good written grammar, however, I certainly have good speech. In short, I understand where you are coming from.

Answer 3

Being multinational it's more a matter of nationality than race .. In my case a stereotype is that French are stubborn: It's true :=)

Answer 4

you bring up an interesting topic. being mostly black, (75%) and growing up in both black and white cultural settings,ive always felt compelled to be the best of both worlds in a way. i have always been selfconscious about not appearing to be like the black/ mixed folk that seem to deny/ disavow their heritage, and have until recently lived as an otherwise very black person, changing only so that it would be easier to adjust to the proffesional world after college. as far as black stereotypes are concerned, id say that honestly i meet most if not all of them and have felt the need to live up to them almost out of insecurity at having lived in an all white society for a time. i am very athletic, tall, quite muscular/ strong, strong fighter (versataille when it comes to athletics) i am one of the best dancers ive seen out of the people ive met in person. i sing, rap, play the drums/ djembe and hand drums. i have very few reservations about spittin game to any attractive females i see out there, id say i live up to the black size stereotype, i have bad credit listen to rap r &b, hip hop, and soul.etc

Answer 5

You know, you gotta learn to find it funny. For example, "I dont get this equations, I'll ask my friend Sarah, shes Asian" And Sarah does get 95% and higher on her maths tests. Oh, and "Dont expect a big present from Marie, she's a Jew!" I'm a Jew too... At my school, its not like we support it, we make fun of it. Its all a big joke to us, and making things a joke eases it up. Try it...
Go sit with the Asians at lunch and ask them for some help with your homework, and ask your Jew friend how to save up some money for tickets to that concert. See?

Answer 6

I've seen this. But I thought it was because Asians actually wanted to follow those fields, not because they felt compelled.

Answer 7

"stereotypical geeky asian"

I've never thought people of Asian decent are that way !


" Is it just me" ?

sounds like it ....

Answer 8

IF SO, I DONT ACKNOWLEDGE IT, I DONT HAVE ROOM IN MY LIFE FOR JUDGMENTS ON HOW I SHOULD BE IR WHAT SOMEONE EXPECTS ME TO BE... I DO WHAT I THINK IS RIGHT AND THE ONLY PERSON I WORRY ABOUT JUDGING ME IS MY MAKER!

Answer 9

no and no.