Have you ever felt ashamed of your own culture?

You're asian, omigosh! that's so cool. Does anybody else here know you are?

many skin colors? what are you talking about?

I'm usually proud to be Scottish, but there has been a couple of times I've felt a slight twang of indifference to it.

I'm half Asian and I admit, I do feel ashamed of that part of my heritage. I think it's because I used to be teased by the kids in school for being half Asian or looking "Chinese" and whatnot. I try not to feel ashamed but I can't repress the agonized shudder that runs through my body whenever I am reminded that I'm not one hundred percent white. There's a part of me that rejects my Asian heritage and instead embraces my white (German/Irish) heritage instead. Perhaps because I was never teased for that? Or perhaps because I have always been fascinated by European (especially British & German) culture & history...
Sometimes I wish I could either darken my skin so that I appear even more racially ambiguous or lighten my skin. Sometimes I think it would be easier to be one hundred percent white but then other times I'm proud to be biracial. I just wish people would stop judging me and accept me for who I am instead of trying to always figure out what I am or where I'm from (America and yet people still always ask ) Because then maybe I would not feel as if I'm so different from everybody else....

Well, there have been times when I didn't like white people very much, partly because I had lived in a couple of cities where a lot of the white people didn't like blacks; and I had some black male friends, and I used to get hassled by a lot of white people for that. > I also had some ruff relationships with white men. I sometimes wished I was Hispanic because I thought the dark hair and eyes were so beautiful.

Are you serious? I have always loved european culture ever since I first experienced self-hate. I did not want to be asian, but white. Though that may never be attained, at least adopting white etiquette made me feel like I belonged.

p.s. It's a shame that stuff like that happens, because, really, all cultures and races are beautiful and have something to offer. Sure, there are knuckleheads in every group, but I see that as more of a people problem now.

I have felt that way. Like sometimes I'm proud of being asian. At other times, when I see that other races have certain advantages that we didn't have, I wish I had been mixed or purely white.

My stepson gets this, to some degree. He's Filipino on his mother's side, Irish on his father's. A lot of the standing out from the crowd and being teased, that's what my husband was trying to protect him from when she was expecting him. She kept suggesting hard-core Asian names, and he kept turning them down. Finally she suggested a name that was mainstream in America, and he said, "Good, we'll go with that." And that's why this young man who looks strongly Asian has both a first and last name that is Irish.

She'll say it's because he dislikes her culture, but that's not it at all. Keep in mind that my husband is 50 years old. In our childhood, all of the Asian kids we knew had names like John and Billy, Jennifer and Lisa, and for that matter, so did the Black kids. We didn't go to school with anybody named Kyung or Soon. If you had a name that stood out from the crowd, you got made fun of, and that's what he didn't want to see happening. Of course, nowadays there are ethnic names all over the place, but my husband didn't know that.

And yes, when I played the DVD of our wedding, a child watching noticed my stepson and, even after she was told that this was my husband's son, she immediately asked if he speaks Chinese. Not even the correct Asian nation. Sigh. It does so happen he speaks Japanese, but only because he went to school and studied it. He is American, was born here, and speaks English. I can make allowances because this was a child, but still....

A lot of people are so ignorant.

I think it all depends where you live in Leicester, unfortunately there are still in the 21st century people and parents who are very racist, and no there is nothing wrong with being indian....there is good and bad in every culture......
gismo x

I think other cultures are wonderful. Many cultures have things about them that aren't wonderful, such as subjugating women, putting children in the sex trade, beating outcasts, etc., but most cultures have art, music, crafts, tapestries, and other creations to share with us. Some things about a culture are just interesting, even if perhaps not something we'd want to do. For example, it might have been on National Geographic's Taboo show, but I'm not sure, but there was a guy who eats light bulb glass, and encourages some children to do it, too. It had to do with his beliefs, I think that this was supposed to protect health or something. Anyway, my point is, it's not something you'd want to do, but it's interesting.

I'm white, but I often envy girls of other races, because other races don't age the same as whites. "Black don't crack," they say. I'm jealous, in that term. I realize I have a lot more benefits as a white person, but that's one think I envy about other races.

I love to learn about European and Australian cultures, especially, but I think all cultures probably have something to teach us.

I did not want to speak my own language because others would give me blank stares, just like when I was at the doctor's office and while we were waiting in the lobby, some guy who was listening to our conversation just looked at us like what is he saying? I want to understand him so badly.

Interesting.... I'd like to say I've never felt that way. Blonde, blue eyes and I guess one would say, California in appearance. My first reaction and response is no - until a few years ago.

I've lived my entire life thinking and believing I was of Irish and German decent until I discovered "the family secret." When I was in my mid 30's I discovered the man I thought was my father was not! In addition to being completely shocked... there was more.

Apparently my birth father was taken by someone from a hospital and raised with a family believing he was their child and was not. Many years later he began the search of his birth parents and discovered his mother was from England and his father from the US.... Mother white and father African American.

Here is where I'm going with this - two things! Number 1, none of us REALLY know what the truth is.... you may not even be what you think you are and Number 2, if you have family history EMBRACE IT as there are many of us that would give ANYTHING to have history and heritage. Good luck on your journey embracing who you are. Blessings to you.

How can you trace your ancestry all the way back if you don't have records of them here in america?

No.... we are all different.... which makes life so unique

I'm not ashamed of anything when it comes to this, like I have no reason.

If I be ashamed, It means I care about appearances and what others say but I don't.

People should be different. I really like those who aren't ashamed of their culture and be very proud of it, that makes their culture looks special.

Unlike those who would hide who they are to satisy others and follow them.
Well, if we all did this then there wouldn't be a meaning to this word.

There's only one thing I'm truely ashamed of, the ignorance of my society. Well, that's something I really should hide.

This is a wonderful thread.

I am American and a mix of many races...I am a mutt, though predominantly German, Irish, and French-Canadian. Most of my life I have wondered who my ancestors were, and how I would go about finding who they are. It sounds like a costly thing to do and I question how someone can go about finding it. I've never gotten more than a great-great-great relative, though my biggest revelation is that I am related to Mark Twain on my father's side. That is something to be proud of, but I am also curious as to the rest of my ancestors. Who were they?

As to being ashamed of my race, yes, I am ashamed to be American. Americans are stereotyped as fat slobs, greedy, ignorant of the rest of the world, racist and sexist, a history of oppression. It's not true for everyone though.

I wish I was fully american sometimes. Though I do not fit in the stereotypes, I still think being american is the best thing that one can ever be. I love the principles that had been set forth three hundred plus years ago.

Honestly, I am horrified about the way the human race treats each other. People are starving and without decent medical care or education and there's people who think its better to be one nationality rather than another. People are treated as unequal yet we all bleed the same colour blood. No one race, colour, religion is above another. They are just different.
Accept people are different and the world will be a much better place.

The same thing where I live.

My family is, from what I know (which isn't much), full-blooded Romanian. I feel like Romanian culture kinda sucks on a couple of levels like increased expectations to follow through what your family wants you to do and high levels of corrupt politicians leftover from the Communism era. When I was growing up, my family would go to Romanian parties and all my parents' friends were Romanian, and one of the men that went to the parties liked teasing me for being the stupid American because I was born in America. So many of my relatives thought poorly of Americans and made fun of Americans and made fun of me. The same guy that was teasing me of being a stupid American was preaching to the rest of the kids at the party how great Romania was in WWII and showed statistics on how many people they killed and how many battles they won and generally showing off the 'might' of Romania. The older generation of Romanians are generally spiteful and don't enjoy it when people challenge their views, though there are always many exceptions. The government definitely sucks, though. I always hear complaints whenever I go visit about the current president.

I wouldn't say I'm ashamed to be Romanian, but I'm definitely not proud.

no you shouldn't feel ashamed of being romanian. I tell people not to be ashamed, yet I'm ashamed of my own culture as to watch the television and listen to the language.

Despite your reasons for feeling shame about your culture, there are plenty of Asian heroes and badasses for you to feel proud of.

Lucy Liu:

She kicks some serious butt in all of her films while maintaining graceful poise. She is both a badass and a goddess. This clip sums up Lucy Liu in her most famous role in Kill Bill. Warning, this scene contains a beheading and blood and gore:

Michelle Kwan is an American figure skater with an asian ethnicity. She is a two-time Olympic medalist, a five-time world medalist, and a nine time US medalist.


Vera Wang is a world famous fashion designer.


Bruce Lee, world famous martial arts master and actor:


George Takei, famous for his role as Sulu in Star Trek and as a gay rights activist:


Yo-Yo Ma, famous classical musician:


I posted these pictures because all of these people have contributed to the world in their own ways and should make any asian proud to be of asian descent. Personally, Lucy Liu is my idol, she is so graceful and strong.