Clarissa Blanco Blog #4: American Me

           Have you ever asked someone where they're from? As in their ethnicity? And they smirk and tell you "I'm an American". And you look at them, slightly confused and ask again "No, I mean...where is your family from?" And, yet again they look at you very weirdly and reply, in an even louder/more serious tone "AMERICA!"? There has been one too many times that I've come across an individual, and I am so intrigued by their facial/bodily characteristics or accent, even, that I've asked them where they are from and they lack the pride others have in telling of the country of their ancestry. I've never understood this. If your family is Chilean, why not say from Chile? Or if you're ancestry is from Ireland, why not say Irish? Much too often do people seem embarrassed of where they are from, and I  never understood why.
           Though I was born in America, I have never said I'm "American" or, "Dominican-American" even, and while it is true that I AM American also, I feel that it's pretty obvious that I am also American along with my ethnicity. I'm proud to say that I am Dominican. I feel like this idea is something that Anderson was trying to express in Chapter 4 of Imagined Communities. "The fact that early Mexican nationalists wrote of themselves as nosotros los Americanos ("we, the Americans") and of their country as nuestra America ("our America") ...."(p.62) is particularly a very interesting line to me because it displays much of how nationalists in our country express their nationalism. The Spanish-Americans of the 1600-1800s failed to see that people in other cities/towns such as Buenos Aires, Mexico City, or Bogota were not only also Spanish but also AMERICAN as well. I feel like the concept of imagined communities is becoming much more clear as the chapters unravel, bringing out alot of points that tie into the theme of these communities. The concept that I found most surprising was that people in their own communities don't regard what happens in other communities, that they are/can be connected, as something that pertains or relates to their own. We create bubbles in the spirit of "American-ness" that cause us to be very ignorant to the fact that this is a shared country. For me, what makes one American is living in America. Whether or not you believe in the ideals of its government, like its geographical features, or even like its people, we are all American and share "American-ness". Now, the rights and power we hold comes from having been lucky enough to be considered American. Rather than saying "I'm American, so I vote", we have the ability to say "I can vote BECAUSE I'm American". It's important to remember that who we are is unique to our own characteristics and personalities, and while our country has an influence on our character it does not have an influence on our forma de ser (way of being).
         When Anderson mentions "the writings of Rousseau and Herder that say that "climate and ecology had a constitutive impact on culture and character" (p.60)", it hits me that the creoles had to suffer much more greatly than the metropoles just because of where they were located/born despite their sharing the same ancestry! This is what happens when our nationalistic viewpoints surpass our recognition of humanity. I am American because I live here. I was born in America. But my family is Spanish. We speak Spanish. Oftentimes rice is a main part of our meals at home. We listen and dance to bachata and merengue. And we still have the opportunity to be as successful as our neighbors from Africa America who have the same work ethic. We both still celebrate the 4th of July, and work 9-5's, but we stay true to the qualities that make us who we are as individuals, aside from where we came from or are currently living.