Maintenance Of Cultural Identity Research Articles

Cultural Identity and Racism

This paper delves into the intricate relationship between cultural identity, racism, and the various factors shaping these dynamics, particularly within the context of the United States. Cultural identity is explored as a pivotal aspect of individual and collective existence, profoundly influenced by racial constructs and historical legacies. Racism, deeply embedded in societal structures, is identified as a significant impediment to fostering harmonious cultural relations. This paper emphasizes the critical role played by films, academic works, artworks, and increased cultural diversity in shaping and improving cultural identities. Examining the concept of race, the paper underscores its historical and cultural underpinnings, pointing out its impact on societal divisions and inequalities. Stuart Hall, who promoted Afro-Caribbean cultural identity through cinema, is discussed. Cultural practices, historical events, and film depictions of the Black experience are examined as crucial to cultural identity maintenance and rediscovery. The paper also emphasizes race diversity and Black intellectuals' role in cultural reshaping. Cultural identity is complex, and double consciousness and Black Atlantic diaspora experiences are crucial. Music is especially effective at expressing cultural diaspora and continuity. Jazz and contemporary Black art movements helped shape cultural identity. The paper argues that art, intellectual pursuits, and written history help people feel connected and understand diverse cultures. Despite these positive influences, racism still hinders cultural identity, the paper says. The paper argues that cultural identities must be preserved by avoiding racism and promoting cultural relativity. Lack of cultural integration also erodes cultural identities. The paper concludes by emphasizing cultural identity preservation and recommends a multidisciplinary approach involving media, history, academia, and art for overcoming racism to promote diversity and cultural integration.

"We are very proud and very tempted and determined to make this food"

Food plays a critical role in an individual’s maintenance of cultural identity and social connection. The process of preparing, sharing, and consuming cultural food (i.e., cultural foodways) serves to connect immigrants to their families, communities, and cultures—especially when experiencing a new way of living in an unfamiliar environment. Limited access to cultural food resources can contribute to feelings of isolation or a loss of culture; therefore, continual engagement in cultural food practices is crucial for migrants to maintain their identity and well-being. This study explores the relationship between cultural foodways, identity maintenance, and well-being among immigrant Muslim women. Through semi-structured interviews conducted with two immigrant Muslim women and through personal self-reflection, the intersections between gender, religion, and culture reveal the complexity of immigrant lives in relation to food. Participants describe their experiences navigating cultural food accessibility and identify how cultural food practices, especially the sharing of cultural food, affirm their cultural identity and contribute to their well-being. By engaging in cultural foodways, the participants situate their identities in the present, connect to their cultural histories, and imagine opportunities for the continued transfer of food knowledge.

Consistent and Persistent: Successful Home Language Maintenance among Vietnamese-Australian Families

Informed by Spolsky’s language policy theory, this study explores Vietnamese-Australian families’ experience of successful home language maintenance in three aspects: language practices, language ideologies, and language management. Seven parents from five families whose children achieved high bilingual proficiency scores in the speech and language assessment of the VietSpeech research program were invited to participate in a focus group to discuss successful strategies for home language maintenance. The discussion was undertaken in Vietnamese. Thematic analysis of the bilingual transcription revealed four themes: motivations, challenges, practices, and recommendations for home language maintenance support. The parents’ motivations for home language maintenance included communication with grandparents and relatives, maintenance of cultural identity, parents’ need to speak their home language, and cognitive and emotional benefits. Challenges faced by the families were related to children starting school and growing older, parents’ lack of time and persistence, and insufficient support in terms of formal Vietnamese education, resources, and teacher quality. The families’ strategies for successful language maintenance included speaking Vietnamese all the time as well as teaching Vietnamese directly using textbooks and indirectly through regular activities including book reading, daily interactions, and watching Vietnamese TV. The parents’ recommendations focused on changes in language education policy and advocacy, better resources, and raising awareness of the benefits of home language maintenance. This study provides insights into the successful experience of home language maintenance of Vietnamese-Australian families and can be used by multilingual families, educators, policy makers, speech-language pathologists, and other professionals to support home language maintenance.

“This Is What's Real”: The Pathology of Black Addiction in the Hood Films of the 1990s

“This Is What's Real”: The Pathology of Black Addiction in the Hood Films of the 1990s

Floristic and structural diversity of agro-forest yards in a cerrado area, North of Legal Amazonia

The (QAs) promote sustainability for millions of people worldwide, however, research in the area and in the northern states of the country are considered deficient or scarce. Therefore, the objective was to study the floristic and phytosociology of (QAs) in an area of Cerrado in the state of Tocantins. The survey was carried out in four (QAs) in the Mariana resettlement, located between the municipalities of Palmas and Porto Nacional, Tocantins. Three plots of 20x30m were installed in each (QAs), making a total of 0.72ha of sample area, being sampled all individuals with breast height circumference 1.30 cm from the ground (CAP) ≥ 10cm. The average height of vegetation in QA1 was 4.79m and the total basal area was 120.17m² /ha, in QA2 the average height was 5.14m with a total basal area of 18.49m² / ha, in QA3 the average height was of 3.66m and total basal area of 27.42m² / ha, in QA4 the average height was 5.54m with a total basal area of 33.98m² / ha. The ten most important species in the backyards together accounted for 44.26% (IVI), with emphasis on: Malpighia glabra, Psidium guajava and Mangifera indica that reached prominent positions in more than one (QAs). The ten most important families together accounted for 67.63%of the total IVI for all QAs, with Arecaceae, Anacardiaceae and Fabaceae standing out with the largest (IVI) for all (QAs) evaluated. The awareness about these QAs may assist in their valuation, in addition to providing scientific information for the maintenance of cultural identity, in addition to contributing to the conservation of local biodiversity.

Africans Who Arrive in the United States before 20 Years of Age Maintain Both Cardiometabolic Health and Cultural Identity: Insight from the Africans in America Study.

The overall consensus is that foreign-born adults who come to America age < 20 y achieve economic success but develop adverse behaviors (smoking and drinking) that lead to worse cardiometabolic health than immigrants who arrive age ≥ 20 y. Whether age of immigration affects the health of African-born Blacks living in America is unknown. Our goals were to examine cultural identity, behavior, and socioeconomic factors and determine if differences exist in the cardiometabolic health of Africans who immigrated to America before and after age 20 y. Of the 482 enrollees (age: 38 ± 1 (mean ± SE), range: 20–65 y) in the Africans in America cohort, 23% (111/482) arrived age < 20 y, and 77% (371/482) arrived age ≥ 20 y. Independent of francophone status or African region of origin, Africans who immigrated age < 20 y had similar or better cardiometabolic health than Africans who immigrated age ≥ 20 y. The majority of Africans who immigrated age < 20 y identified as African, had African-born spouses, exercised, did not adopt adverse health behaviors, and actualized early life migration advantages, such as an American university education. Due to maintenance of cultural identity and actualization of opportunities in America, cardiometabolic health may be protected in Africans who immigrate before age 20. In short, immigrant health research must be cognizant of the diversity within the foreign-born community and age of immigration.

Food, culture, and identity in multicultural societies: Insights from Singapore

The choice of food practices can be influenced by one's identity in many societies, but has mostly been evaluated in light of the maintenance of cultural identity in migrant populations. This study focused on understanding the influence of identity on food practices among individuals in multicultural societies. We conducted 18 focus group discussions (n = 130) among Indian, Chinese and Malay women in Singapore. Focus group transcripts were analysed using Thematic Analysis both inductively and deductively. Deductive analysis was framed within a Social Representations Approach, a social psychological theory that allows a deeper understanding of the contextual aspects of identity. Participants highlighted the central position of food in social events, cultural celebrations, and persistent traditional beliefs about health (such as ‘hot-cold balance’). These beliefs extended to the perception of certain traditional foods possessing medicinal properties. Importantly, the consumption of these traditional foods was accepted as necessary for the maintenance of health by the women. We propose that while cultural food practices are integral to identity preservation and identity continuity for Singaporean women from all three racial groups, this is different to other multicultural societies such as Canada where communities preserve their cultural food practices, in part, due to fear of cultural identity loss. In addition, cross-cultural food practices are readily adopted in participants' daily lives for a number of reasons such as the promotion of health, convenience, and variety. At times, this adoption blurred boundaries between different cultural cuisines. Food practices in multicultural societies like Singapore are thus a reflection of everyday multiculturalism, multicultural social policies, and attitudes towards traditional healthful food practices, and these aspects need to be considered in the development of public health policies and interventions.

Сучасні авторитарні політичні режими регіону Тропічної Африки та перспективи їх демократизації.

The article analyzes modern authoritarian regimes that have established themselves in the region of Tropical Africa in the post-colonial period, when independent states, as a result of prolonged national liberation struggles, hoped to stabilize political life and raise socio-economic standards. The relevance of the topic of the study is motivated by the fact that the signs of authoritarian state-political system, characteristic of the region, investigated within the article, are common and inherent in most countries of the African continent as a whole, which allows the expansion of analytical material for relevant generalizations. The purpose of the article is to analyze the authoritarian political regimes of the countries of Tropical Africa and to identify social conditions and circumstances conducive to democratic transit. As a result of elaboration of the theme, the types of conflict characterization as the main destabilizing cause of democratic transit in the post-authoritarian states of the region are characterized, which brings additional risks in the choice of an adequate path of political development and maintenance of cultural identity. Discriminatory factors of democratic transit, such as personified and one-party regimes, legitimized ethno-dictatorships, and a propaganda system aimed at asserting that democracy is unfit for the African continent, are revealed. Favorable conditions for region-specific democratization include: the dominance of personalized regimes that hold on to leaders whose elimination accelerates their dismantling; economic crises that motivate the government to receive international assistance, one of the conditions for receiving it is the democratization of the political regime; the role of the Arab Spring as a precedent for political change for the continent and others.

Migration, Aging, and Digital Kinning: The Role of Distant Care Support Networks in Experiences of Aging Well.

High rates of migration contribute to the dispersal of support networks across distance. For older adults reliant on informal care, this creates a high risk of increased social isolation. In this article, we highlight the role of communication technologies in maintaining support networks and identities across distance. Building on transnational family research and on anthropological notions of "kinning," we propose that processes of distant support can be better understood through the new concept of "digital kinning." A qualitative project conducted in Australia (2016-2019) with over 150 older migrants (55+) born in nine countries comprising ethnographic interviews and observations. Analysis comprised the inductive approach of ethnographic qualitative research and theory building from cases, drawn from grounded theory traditions. Select ethnographic cases illustrate the key dimensions and benefits of "digital kinning" for older migrants. Digital kinning practices support the access of older migrants to (i) essential sources of social connection and support, (ii) maintenance of cultural identity, and (iii) protection of social identity, including across distance. Their effectiveness is reliant on access to affordable and reliable digital communication tools. Although essential to the well-being of older migrants, distant support networks and the digital kinning practices that sustain them receive little attention from policy makers and health practitioners. Organizations concerned with the care of older people must improve awareness of distant support networks by supporting practices of "digital kinning," ranging from including distant kin in health care plans to prioritizing digital inclusion initiatives.

Resilience and protective factors among refugee children post-migration to high-income countries: a systematic review

Increasing numbers of children have been forced to flee and seek asylum in high-income countries. Current research indicates that focussing on resilience and protective factors is an important long-term goal for positive mental health and psychological functioning of refugee children. We performed a systematic review of quantitative literature regarding psychological and contextual factors that contribute to resilience in refugee children residing in high-income countries. Our procedure followed guidelines from the Centre for Reviews and Dissemination. We identified a number of protective factors as related to positive outcomes. They are drawn from several ecological domains and include age, self-esteem, maintenance of cultural identity, social support, belonging and safety and innovative social care services. A key overarching point reported by the studies we reviewed was that for refugee settlement specific policies and approaches to be beneficial, they were required to be embedded within a positive socially inclusive society. We also identified several limitations across the reported studies. The factors we identified would assist clinicians to adopt a resilience-focussed approach. However, a continued pre-occupation with psychopathology was evident across the studies, which we argue as holding back the development of resilience-focussed approaches.

An Example of ‘Othering’ In Contemporary Culture to Explain How This Process Is Involved In the Creation or Maintenance of Cultural Identity

This study examines the definition of other, the process of othering, and how othering is represented in Amy Tan’s novel, The Hundred Secret Senses by analyzing two chapters of the novel, Young Girl’s Wish and Hello Good-bye. In the two chapters, Chinese negative cultural identities and positive American cultural identities are constructed through presenting the local environment, and different behavioral patterns of Chinese and American. The main contribution of the study is expanding the scope of “othering” by providing the concept of “self-othering” and illustrating how “self-othering” is embodied in Contemporary Culture.

YOUTHS AND THE MAINTENANCE OF THE PORTUGUESE IDENTITY IN MELAKA

ABSTRACT The Portuguese identity plays an important role not only towards the Portuguese community but also to Malaysia. If the Portuguese community does not preserve their identity, they may lose their identity throughout time. It will be a loss for Malaysia as well because Malaysia is regarded as a country uniquely rich with its ethnic diversity. This Portuguese community is the only community in the world where they speak a localized Portuguese language, furthermore, their customs and cultures are influenced by the locals through assimilation. Thus, this paper aimed to examine the roles of language, customs and traditions in the maintenance of cultural identity among the Portuguese community in Melaka, Malaysia based on the Portuguese youths’ perspectives. In this article, we analyze the role of the youths in the maintenance of the Portuguese identity - a topic not widely explored. Data were collected from seven (7) open ended interview questions based on Berry’s acculturation model (2005). Eight (8) Portuguese youths were interviewed face-to- face in Melaka Portuguese settlement from May to June 2017. The results showed that the respondents emphasized that the maintenance of Portuguese identity should focus on the cultural perspectives such as the Portuguese traditional customs and festival celebration. However, unlike other ethnic groups in Malaysia, the element of language, i.e. Kristang language was deemed as unimportant in the youths’ opinion on Portuguese identity. Keywords: Portuguese, Cultural Identity, Youths, Maintaining Identity, Portuguese Community

Traditional knowledge and use of wild mushrooms by Mixtecs or Ñuu savi, the people of the rain, from Southeastern Mexico.

BackgroundMexico is an important global reservoir of biological and cultural richness and traditional knowledge of wild mushrooms. However, there is a high risk of loss of this knowledge due to the erosion of traditional human cultures which is related with the rapid acculturation linked to high migration of rural populations to cities and the U.S.A., and the loss of natural ecosystems. The Mixtec people, the third largest native group in Mexico only after the Nahua and the Maya, maintain ancient traditions in the use and knowledge of wild mushrooms. Paradoxically, there are few studies of the Mixtec ethnomycology. This study shows our ethnomycological research, mainly focused on knowledge and use of wild mushrooms in communities of the Mixteca Alta, in southeastern Mexico. We hypothesized that among the studied communities those with a combination of higher vegetation cover of natural pine and oak forests, lower soil erosion and higher economic margination had a greater richness and knowledge of wild mushrooms. Our study therefore aimed to record traditional knowledge, use, nomenclature and classification of wild mushrooms in four Mixtec communities and to analyze how these aspects vary according to environmental and cultural conditions among the studied communities.MethodsIn order to analyze the cultural significance of wild mushrooms for the Mixtec people, 116 non-structured and semi-structured interviews were performed from 2009 to 2014. Information about the identified species, particularly the regional nomenclature and classification, their edibility, toxicity and ludic uses, the habitat of useful mushrooms, traditional recipes and criteria to differentiate between toxic and edible species, and mechanisms of knowledge transmission were studied. The research had the important particularity that the first author is Mixtec, native of the study area. A comparative qualitative analysis between the richness of fungal species used locally and the official information of the natural vegetation cover, soil erosion and economic marginalization in each of the studied communities was conducted.ResultsA total of 106 species of mushrooms were identified growing in pine and oak forest, deciduous tropical forest and grassland; among the identified mushrooms we recorded 26 species locally consumed, 18 considered toxic, 6 having ludic uses and the remaining 56 species not being used in the studied areas but some of them having potential as food (56 species) or medicine (28 species). We recorded that 80, 22 and 4 species are ectomycorrhizal, saprotrophic and parasites, respectively. Our study shows that a complex and accurate knowledge related with the use, nomenclature, classification, ecology, gastronomy of wild mushrooms has been developed by Mixtecs; and that there is a relation between natural vegetation cover, lower soil erosion and higher economic marginalization and richness, knowledge and use of mushrooms in the studied communites.ConclusionOur study showed that conservation and adaptation of ancestral mycological knowledge survives mainly through oral transmition, maintenance of cultural identity, forest protection, preservation native language and also paradoxically through the current socieconomical marginality among the Mixtec people. We also found that those studied communities with a combination of higher vegetation cover of natural pine and oak forests, lower soil erosion and higher economic marginalization showed a greater richness and knowledge of wild mushrooms. Use and sustainable management of wild mushrooms can be an alternative for local integrated development, but local knowledge and traditional worldview should be included into the regional programs of Mixtec biocultural conservation.

Concerns and benefits of park-adjacent communities in Northern Ghana: the case of Mole National Park

ABSTRACTProtected areas are increasingly becoming islands of habitat surrounded by seas of cultivation and development. Communities experience both costs and benefits associated with nearby PAs, and perception of these influence support for PAs and subsequent conservation related behaviors. This paper explores the concerns and benefits of 10 adjacent communities surrounding Mole National Park in Ghana using key informants, focus groups and household surveys.Overall, most people have a positive attitude towards the park. Yet, in many communities respondents also have negative attitudes. Crop depredation, loss of farmlands, and lack of access to NTFPs are the top three concerns. Increased conservation awareness, provision of ecosystem services and maintenance of cultural identity are the top three benefits. This study examined a number of factors thought to influence attitudes to PAs, and found that the strongest predictor of a community’s attitude towards the park is whether it is involved in a community resource management area (CREMA). Other factors such as distance from the PA, involvement in tourism, culture, and demographics (age and gender) were also significant but of less importance. Knowledge of these influential factors can assist management to create more favourable perceptions of protected areas.

Women’s Roles and Participation in Rituals in the Maintenance of Cultural Identity: A Study of the Malaysian Iyers

AbstractThis paper examines the roles and rituals practiced by Malaysian Iyer women. The Iyers are a small community of Tamil Brahmins who live and work mainly in the Klang Valley. As an Indian diasporic community, who moved to Malaysia from the early 1900s, they have been slowly shifting from Tamil to English and Malay. They are upwardly mobile and place great emphasis on education but at the same time, value their traditions and culture. Data was derived from interactions between women and men from the Malaysian Iyer community together with personal observations made during visits to their homes, weddings and prayer sessions. This data was studied to obtain insights into cultural elements that ruled their discourse. The findings show that for this diasporic community that was slowly losing its language, ethnic identity can still be found in their cultural practices. Women were seen as keepers of tradition and customs that are important to the community. They followed certain cultural and traditional practices in their homes: practiced vegetarianism while cooking and serving food in their homes, followed taboos regarding food preparation, maintained patriarchal practices especially in religious practices and lived in extended families which usually included paternal grandparents. Malaysian Iyer women are seen to continue with the traditional roles given to women of the community.

Community, commitment and the ten ‘Commandments’: Singing in the Coro Furlan, Melbourne, Australia

Membership of community music groups by older people can enhance quality of life, provide a sense fulfilment and create a space through which cultural identity may be shared. This case study explores community and cultural engagement by members of the Coro Furlan, an Italian male community choir in Melbourne, Australia. Members were interviewed and data analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA). Three broad themes were identified: sense of community, maintenance of cultural identity and sustaining well-being through shared music making. The choir members perform music from Italy and elsewhere and consider themselves to be custodians of Friulan choral music. Singing in this choir has offered members an opportunity to value, learn and share music in formal and informal settings. This article identifies how music engagement can facilitate successful ageing through commitment to community, singing and following the ten ‘Commandments’ of the Coro Furlan.

Our plants, our land: bridging aboriginal generations through cross-cultural plant workshops

Changes in subsistence practices have negatively affected the social and economic structure of aboriginal communities across the Arctic. This has resulted in fewer opportunities for the transmission of traditional knowledge (TK). This article provides two case studies of how researchers can assist northern communities in TK transmission and provide a venue for science and TK to meet, thereby fostering a positive relationship between scientists and aboriginal communities. Cross-cultural workshops engaging youth, Elders and researchers were held in Old Crow (Yukon, western Canada) and in Nain (Nunatsiavut, eastern Canada) on the traditional uses and naming of plants. Hands-on activities on the land garnered interest in TK and science among aboriginal youth. Elders and researchers worked together to place importance on TK, fostering pride and helping to strengthen ties for the maintenance of cultural identity. For example, learning the local names of plants, their uses, and how to properly create herbarium specimens of plants engaged youth in the scientific process while illustrating the importance of TK shared by their Elders. Here we show how maintaining an interactive dialogue with communities helps researchers keep their work relevant and meaningful for communities and catalyzes continued interest in the transfer of knowledge.

Meanings of food, eating and health among African Nova Scotians: ‘certain things aren't meant for Black folk'

Objective. Most research on food, ethnicity and health in Canada is focused on the dietary acculturation of first of second generation migrants. ‘Failure’ to adopt nutritional guidelines for healthy eating is generally understood as lack of education or persistence of cultural barriers. In this study we explore the meanings of food, health, and well-being embedded in the food practices of African Nova Scotians, a population with a 400-year history in Canada. Design Design. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 2 or 3 members of each of 13 families who identified as African Nova Scotian. Interviews asked about eating patterns; the influence of food preferences, health concerns, cost, and culture; perceptions of healthy eating and good eating; how food decisions were made; and changes over time. In addition, research assistants observed a ‘typical’ grocery shopping trip and one family meal. Results Results. Participants readily identified what they perceived to be distinctively ‘Black ways of eating.’ Beyond mainstream nutrition discourses about reduction of chronic disease risk, participants identified three ways of thinking about food, health, and well-being: physical well-being, emphasizing stamina, energy and strength; family and community well-being; and cultural or racial well-being, emphasizing cultural identity maintenance, but also resistance to racism. Conclusion Conclusion. While culturally traditional eating patterns are often understood as costly in terms of health, it is equally important to understand that adopting healthy eating has costs in terms of family, community, and cultural identity. Dietary change unavoidably entails cultural loss, thus resisting healthy eating guidelines may signify resistance to racism or cultural dominance. Several suggestions are offered regarding how community strengths and beliefs, as well as cultural meanings of food and health, might inform effective healthy eating interventions.

The Approaches to Democracy and Human Rights: A Note

This article endeavors to deal with the theoretical framework of the approach of Southeast Asian states to democracy and human rights and to trace the contemporary developmental trajectory of liberal democracy and democracy in Southeast Asian states. It suggests that what is required is the eventual convergence of the positive values of liberal democracy (respect for rule of law and the protection of human rights) and positive Southeast Asian values (respect for authority, strong families, and reverence for education, hard work, frugality, and team work). That is, the positive values of liberal democracy are required for the assurance of human rights protection, and positive Southeast Asian values are required for the maintenance of cultural identity. Nonetheless, this article articulates that democracy does not necessarily lead to the assurance of human rights.

Dedes in Dersim: Narratives of Violence and Persecution

AbstractThe article is the result of an empirical research project that integrates historical, sociological and socio-psychological perspectives. The study is focused on the institution of religious leaders—dedes, the experts of oral tradition in Dersim, Eastern Anatolia. It attempts to trace back political obliteration strategies applied to these main agents of memory, by investigating their meaning and role for the maintenance of cultural identity. It analyses autobiographical memories of violence and persecution in narratives of dedes, especially in regard to their coping patterns and perceptions of history.