Have you ever felt ashamed of being who you are because others have a problem with it? When it comes to my speaking language in public, I get all embarrassed. I feel like my language should be strictly forbidden. I have felt this way for so many years. I think it all started when I was 5. I was walking down the street with a relative and she started to speak our native tongue. I refused to acknowledge her, I pretended to ignore her, and I tried to silence her. Have you ever been this way?

[LadyShadow]

I am ashamed of my Muslim heritage. So many people hate us for what has happened over the years. I am ashamed to tell people that I live in a Muslim household even though we don't practice the religion. We are very much Americanized. But I never tell people what my parents practice because of all the hatred. I myself don't practice the religion I am just very spiritual, but I believe if I tell people they will stone me or something.

I used to feel very uncomfortable sharing our family/cultural heritage. There are so many negative thoughts, jokes and stereotypes associated with it...and a long history of trying to wipe it out completely. I had two totally different sets of social circles as a result. Now, I just accept it is a part of who I am and our family history. I am proud of many things our people have accomplished and hold it close to my heart - and yet at the same time, out of fear for my safety I keep it on the dl. If that makes sense.

[Maven]

I'm sorry you guys feel like that. If people see certain types of people doing something bad, they often prejudge the whole group, and that's not right.

[spondiferous]

I do not know what my own heritage is, as in what my parents' roots are. I can definitely say, though, that I am deeply ashamed of North American culture and what it represents on a global scale, the oppression it perpetrates.
PlatinumHeart: I am sorry to hear that. But I totally understand what you're saying.

[NWgirl2013]

I dunno, I think every culture has been hated for things a few do. Or for no reason, just because they are different. My ancestors came to the U.S. long before it was the U.S., seeking tolerance & acceptance, but they were hated too. Am I ashamed? No.
But I absolutely agree with Spondiferous. Our national history is more apparent now than ever before, and so much of it is so very shameful.

[gismo]

My 8yr old son is of dual heritage white/indian ,he has told me he would never tell any of his friends at school or other about his heritage because of the bullying he would receive for being half indian,he wants to keep it to him self for now.......
i have to respect that,he is not ashamed tho just trying to get through his school days,
i dont get ppl these days no body seems to accept who you are ,what is wrong with the world.
gismo x

[Phreak]

I'm British, our culture is currently indian/packistani, but now it's moving to be more Polish.

Immigration is great, however unlike in America we don't have a single national identity.

Our politics are terrible too. I wish I'd been born French

[Phreak]

Originally Posted by gismo

My 8yr old son is of dual heritage white/indian ,he has told me he would never tell any of his friends at school or other about his heritage because of the bullying he would receive for being half indian,he wants to keep it to him self for now.......
i have to respect that,he is not ashamed tho just trying to get through his school days,
i dont get ppl these days no body seems to accept who you are ,what is wrong with the world.
gismo x

Knowing Leicester well, it really surpeises me that your son is worried about getting bullied for being half indian. It's the most multiculteral part of Britain, second to perhaps Birmingham

Originally Posted by Phreak

Knowing Leicester well, it really surpeises me that your son is worried about getting bullied for being half indian. It's the most multiculteral part of Britain, second to perhaps Birmingham

there's nothing wrong with being indian.

[chumchum]

I think everyone here is beautiful and amazing in character. I even like myself a little bit. That is what is nice about online friends, we can have no preconceived notions because we cannot see each other. That is fine by me and it makes me comfortable.

[sans]

Being from the US and a mix of many heritages, i have spent alot of my life feeling disconnected from a particular culture and ceremonies. My grandma used to tell me stories that her dad was full blooded native american, and i hung onto that my entire childhood. As i grew older, and dated NA men, i found most of them hate the whites for the atrocities against their people. Same goes for African Americans.
I have been ashamed of my own people, and sorry for being disliked based on these events.
Sans

Originally Posted by sans

Being from the US and a mix of many heritages, i have spent alot of my life feeling disconnected from a particular culture and ceremonies. My grandma used to tell me stories that her dad was full blooded native american, and i hung onto that my entire childhood. As i grew older, and dated NA men, i found most of them hate the whites for the atrocities against their people. Same goes for African Americans.
I have been ashamed of my own people, and sorry for being disliked based on these events.
Sans

Oh really? I mean, yeah, that hatred still lingers, but things have changed since then. Things have changed and hopefully it will change.

[growlithing]

Well, even though I do know where my ancestors are from, I identify as American and I absolutely do get ashamed of America and American culture. I think every American with access to the news and any sort of rational thinking has felt that way.

Not myself, but once my daughter came home from school where she had been studying about the Jewish holocaust, the African slave trade, the Japanese detainment camps during World War II, the segregation laws, etc., and said, "Mom, I'm ashamed to be white."

I told her she didn't have anything to be ashamed of, because she didn't do any of those things. Then further research of our family tree revealed that we are descended from a murdered Native American chief on one side, and a prominent abolitionist on the other. Nobody in our lineage has ever owned a slave or participated in an act of genocide, and in fact our ancestors were fighting those crimes. So we don't need to feel shame at all.

[Phreak]

Originally Posted by heyitsme7

there's nothing wrong with being indian.

My point was that Leicester (the place that was in question) is more non white than white, hence the surprise at the bullying for being half indian. Perhaps I'm mistaken, but having walked around the city centre on multiple occasions it feels more indian than anything else.

There is clearly nothing wrong with being any race

Originally Posted by Lovebird

Not myself, but once my daughter came home from school where she had been studying about the Jewish holocaust, the African slave trade, the Japanese detainment camps during World War II, the segregation laws, etc., and said, "Mom, I'm ashamed to be white."

I told her she didn't have anything to be ashamed of, because she didn't do any of those things. Then further research of our family tree revealed that we are descended from a murdered Native American chief on one side, and a prominent abolitionist on the other. Nobody in our lineage has ever owned a slave or participated in an act of genocide, and in fact our ancestors were fighting those crimes. So we don't need to feel shame at all.

Even though we have never had that kind of blood on our hands, I still feel that way because of the way that i have been treated. I feel like because of all the things that our "predecessors" did, we as their descendants have to suffer from those crimes though we maintain our innocence. But then it's not really true. It's just in my mind, I guess.

when the world doesn't seem to care, that's when these irrational thoughts come in.

It seems like the world envies our people in some sense. Though I am american descent of that race, people still regard us as though we are trash. I'm sick of the way people talk to me sometimes. They base it all on ethnicity.

Why can't they just let me be who I am and quit lumping me into the same category?

I'm not even sure I have a culture. White... approximately 1/8 Native American blood. Is white trash a culture? No, I'm not ashamed.
I have nothing to be ashamed of in that respect. Neither do you.

Originally Posted by George H.

I'm not even sure I have a culture. White... approximately 1/8 Native American blood. Is white trash a culture? No, I'm not ashamed.
I have nothing to be ashamed of in that respect. Neither do you.

Well I'm not white so yeah. Sometimes I wish I was white, with all the blond hair and blue eyes. Gosh, i wish i had those features.

All those years I've been fancying myself of being white and I had contemplated getting surgery where my whole genetic makeup could be transformed. Well, I don't think such a procedure exists, but I wanted so desperately. I often had images like a blurry white muscular white guy with blond hair strolling down the street, and every time I saw a white woman on television, I would admire her beautiful eyes. Whenever I saw a white girl, she would catch my eyes.

[sans]

This thread has been very helpful to me. I see that we need to work harder to teach our children to love themselves for the beauty they are. I am seeing how shame has played such a role in the core of my being, and working to change that for my kids.
Sans

[Evening]

I definitely am, I am Australian, and with a lot of what's been showing in the media lately we come across as a bunch of racist bigots who've are behind in accepting other cultures and races. And you know what? I feel that image is somewhat justified. I am as accepting of race/religion/sexuality as you can get, but the amount of people I I know who couldn't be further from the opposite makes me sick. Even in my own family. I think there are 2 images of Australians, one being the outgoing, Aussie image, and the other being what I've stated above. I worry what other people may think of me as an Australian if I went overseas.

[Pierro]

Every one gets stick over their culture at some point. It's just the way it is. I'm Irish and proud but there was a time when you couldn't get a job because you were Irish. Theres good and bad in every society. It just takes a handfull of people to make life hell for everybody else.

[herethennow]

hrm, i'm happy and proud to be asian! asians are really an interesting mix.. and we're made up of many many races and i don't really judge people by skin colour.. but i guess every race has their own mix of bad too. it's up for us to decide which one suits us best.

in my country there are people who call my race "lazy sloths" because we (in general) don't make it to the university, and statistics show that many drop out before high school and all that... but that's just statistics. hey, i made it to the university! so did my siblings!

but i think where you live factors in the most, because though racism exists in the country i live in, it's not that prominent. ultimately that is one of the factors that would make someone ashamed of it.