“Never forget who you are and never forget where you come from,” said moderator Jenny Chamberlain during the Community Conversations on Race Event about generational gaps within the Latinx Community.
This event is part of a weekly series hosted by the Community Action Partnership of Sonoma County (CAP). This series consists of discussions on different topics on race and is a space that is designed for community gatherings to engage in productive and educational conversations. This conversation, moderated by Jenny Chamberlain, was one of many live conversations regarding race. Each panelist shared how their parents' beliefs altered how they see the world now.
The panelists included: Donna Zapata (works for State Senator Mike McGuire), Ozzy Jimenez (Vice Mayor for the City of Healdsburg), Jazmin Gudiño (works for County Supervisor Chris Coursey), Adriana Arrizon (works in Community/Public Service), and Sylvia Lemus (County employee).
Donna Zapata shared her thoughts saying her dad “was very encouraging” and her “mom was very nurturing and loving, but my dad is the one that guided the way for our family.” She then goes on to explain that even though her father encouraged his daughters to go out in the world and make a name for themselves, she had friends who had parents that wouldn’t let them leave the house. The other panelists shared their moments regarding their role in the family, and how the panelists ventured outside the box to experience new things.
As the conversation went on, I got a better sense of the topic when Arrizon said that her “parents wanted the best for me and for me to do the best for myself… but the expectation was to get married, have children, and be a good housewife.” I think it’s very interesting to see the similarities and differences of parents and their children. As each panelist reflected on their parents' views as well as their own, it was easy to see why some took a completely different path then what their parents suggested.
One thing that I took away from this conversation is that no matter how much you want to stick to family traditions and meet parental expectations, you have to be willing to live your own life as well. It sounds a bit rebellious but as Jimenez stated, being a male “queer LGBTQ person” he felt like a “very isolat[ed] individual growing up” and in “the male component of our male culture, we are a culture that is very binary… it’s very female and male.” Just by being who he is, Jimenez is already breaking social norms and expectations of what a typical male should be in the world.
While the panelists' views may be different than their parents, according to Lemus, she “believes that love transcends all. Love transcends culture and generations and differences when there’s love.” While it may be hard at times to incorporate culture into one’s life, having that love support from family and friends is the greatest thing to hold onto.
To view current or past conversations on race, visit their Facebook Page.