My three items..

This is a hard topic to blog about, as I think about what 3 items I would bring with me to represent my culture. Imagining the scenario as a refugee with my family, I would have to make the decision-do I bring items that represent the American culture or items that represent my African-American culture? And as I think more about what I would bring to represent my African-American culture, I have a hard time thinking of items that effectively characterize the culture without perpetuating a stereotype or inadvertently misrepresenting the culture.

So, I have decided to bring:

• A copy of the transcript of President Barack Obama’s first inaugaural speech (As this was a defining moment in history and especially African-American history, I would want to bring this with me to show the other country how important this is to me. More so, I would want it to represent my African-American culture, to demonstrate that we are educated and we can and do have power, despite how much the dominant culture tries to take it away or disregard it.)
• The entire DVD collection of The Cosby Show, A Different World and Martin. This counts as one item simply because they are portraying the same concept. I would want to show the host country that we, as a people, are successful, brilliant, talented, educated and passionate. Since these are 3 of my favorite shows that show my demographic in a positive and real way, I would want to expose them to this, rather than the alternative “reality” shows that have arisen in the past few years.
• Fianlly, I would bring my Bible. Even though many feel that the Christian religion was something that was also forced upon us by the dominant culture, we cannot deny that in times of struggle, we as a group, rely on faith and scripture and that religion to get us through tough times. Bringing my Bible would show the host country more about my faith and hopefully open the door to learn more about their faith. It would also help me and my family to get through this difficult time of transition.

If upon arrival, I was told that I could only keep one item, it would be my Bible. I would feel strongly connected to my Bible as it is the same Bible I’ve had since I was a little girl and aside from the verses and the scriptures, there are numerous mementos and trinkets in there to keep me grounded and remind me of special people and times.