The Future of Race

In one of my classes we are discussing the concept of race - is it what we see or what is inside of us - in other words, is it a social construct or biology? Perhaps its both.

I am not sure which side I'm on - I can see it being all about social and cultural identity, but then, I can't deny how there are many physical features that are common for people of a certain race. I consider myself American but can't deny my south asian roots. It's easy for me to relate to that part of my identity because its so close to home - my parents are immigrants, and we visit Pakistan frequently, still speak the language, eat the food, watch the tv.

What will it be like for my daughter? For my grandchildren? For my great-grandchildren? Will the "face" of my family 4 or 5 generations from now be completely different - with no sign of south asian-ness at all? As a child of immigrant parents, I want to make sure my children don't feel "foreign" to this country as I did. I want them to feel American from the very beginning, not when they become adults and realize that there is no difference between them and their white peers. But at the same tie, I value certain traditions from the desi culture, that I already see fading away in my generation, and especially in my daughter's generation.

Is it time to let go of our asian identity and fully embrace our american identity? Can there be a healthy fusion between the two? Already, we have limited wearing desi clothes to weddings and big parties, we only speak Urdu to our grandparents, and so of us even have grandparents who are fluent in English.

Don't get me wrong, I am not one for not assimilating into the culture of one's country. I am so proud of being American and look forward to living the rest of my life here. And I am excited at the prospect of inter-racial marriages and that eventually, it will be impossible to categorize people into distinct races, at least in this country, since everyone will be a little bit of everything.

That's the beauty of America. It exciting to imagine a world with the possibility of the concept of "race" being inapplicable and no longer "useful."