Erin Post #1

An important part of my Latinx culture are the shared values of family and community. Because of that I don’t have specific moments but a collection of special moments that involve being with my family. Looking back, I used to be so confident with who I was. I wa an American girl from Anaheim, California. I had homework, I did well in school, I played soccer. It was nice and simple. In coming to Andover, I now have a lot more labels to call myself. I am now Mexican-American, an underrepresented minority, cisgender, female, straight, a prefect, a mentor, a role model?, a support system, a feminist, a standard bearer, hopeful, leader, happy, sad, tired, confused, stressed. I am basically everything at this point. I think because of these special moments I had with my family throughout my childhood provided me with an overwhelming sense of security. I was confident with who I was and the fact that nothing would really change. As I grew older, that changed because I grew more aware of the power of labels, perceptions, stereotypes, and societal expectations. I believe this relates to the DN@ndover experience because our results will be a physical representation of labels we could use to identify ourselves. Although people do make perceptions/ assumptions before getting to know you, the way you present/identify yourself does have an impact on your treatment and what’s expected of you/from you.