How does someone reclaim their cultural heritage in a multicultural place? To answer this, Let’s take a look into the life of one Gen Z Latinx, Athena Torres, who lives in West Covina.
Athena Torres, a third year anthropology student, comes from a blended family because she has two identities that are white and Mexican. Her mother has German origins, while her father has Mexican roots. This led her to grow up with a blended identity.
“Due to the fact that my dad was a third-generation Mexican-American, we didn’t practice very many traditions,” said Torres.
A big tradition that she followed was creating an altar for her family on Día de Los Muertos. She and her siblings continue to uphold that tradition now since her father has passed away.
“I grew up with the common belief that death isn’t linear, but rather circular, and the tradition of building an altar solidifies this idea,” said Torres. ”In Mexico, there isn’t really a death date, as in, even though someone has left the Earth, they still continue to live on in our memories and practices.”
In Mexican culture, this tradition is very important. Torres added this tradition “keeps us down-to-earth and aware of where we came from.”
Torres says her life is uneventful. And yet, she is exposed to a variety of cultural identities every single day. The Public Policy Institute of California did a report on how California has the highest racial diversity of any state in the country.
Torres mentioned that she is grateful for having a family that allows her to talk to people from different cultures. She has friends who say their families ridicule them when they talk to people from different cultures.
West Covina has many Mexican restaurants that people eat at. Torres agrees that it is a great thing to experience people eating food from her culture. There is a boundary where other people might try and claim the food as if they had made it on their own.
“There’s so many taco trucks in West Covina,” Torres said. “And you can find people from all walks of life enjoying the cuisine, which shows how much they appreciate our culture.”
Athena has struggled with her identity because she never lived with her dad. Most of her time was spent living with her mom. But, her dad did teach her how to make shrimp cocktails and ceviche, as well as tortillas and pozole, “while my mom taught me how to make shepherd’s pie and casseroles.”
When it comes to languages, Athena’s grandfather did speak Spanish. But her grandfather refused to teach Spanish to his son, Athena’s father.
“So that he could be seen as “normal” and wouldn’t be ridiculed. Therefore, I also don’t speak Spanish,” Torres said. “Despite this, I think it’s important to recognize where I come from.”
An article from Axios reported that around 20% of Gen Z Latinx are most comfortable speaking Spanglish the majority of the time.
Athena’s friend, Jolie Hernandez, is another Gen Z Latinx. Both of her parents are Mexican. Her mother was born in Mexico but immigrated to America when she was a child. She grew up with an identity of being Mexican-American, though often felt caught between the two cultures.
“I think a lot of Latinos in the United States experience a similar level of not being able to identify with their cultural identity,” said Hernandez. “In Mexico, we’re too American to fit in, but in America, we’re too Mexican to fit in. I think we have a long way to go.”
At the end of the day, living in California is a melting pot for both Torres and Hernandez. Cultural identities are being embraced throughout their days.
“Like most of my generation, I think that a lot of our traditions are kind of lost,” said Hernandez. “I don’t practice any traditions, but I was baptized catholic and went to catechism and had my first communion, though only because I was following in my parents footsteps.”
With people venturing out to try different foods from different cultures, Hernandez thinks that people forget to appreciate family restaurants.
“But I think that a lot of white Americans try to say that places like Taco Bell are real Mexican food, but they never go to family owned businesses to eat traditional food, and I think it especially hurts the Gen Z Latinos because we are the main supporters for these businesses,” said Hernandez.
