Transnationalism and Identity Outline

I. Introduction
a. “It is not the consciousness of men that determines their being, but, on the
contrary, their social being that determines their consciousness.” Karl Marx
b. Central Americans have faced oppression in the US which caused their culture to
adapt in order to survive in America, analyzing how and why this happened on
top of analyzing the cultural exchange between central America and the US is the
key to understanding what the role Central Americans identity in the US has
played and how it still is related to Central America
c. To understand Central Americans identity and how it relates to transnationalism,
we need to look at a few things. How does transnationalism impact central
americans in the US, how is the central american identity constantly shifting due
to transnationalism, how do cultural identities in central America translate into the
US
II. Body
a. How does transnationalism impact central americans in the US? - How does the
flow of culture and goods between central america and the US impact central
americans culture in the US.
i. Evidence “Often, Central-American students can be made to feel invisible
if their identities are not recognized which could affect their feelings of
belonging in school.” Alla en Guatemala pg. 73
Central Americans can often feel isolated due to their cultural identity not
being recognized leaving them to be confused on what and who they are.

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ii. Evidence “The population of Guatemalans and Salvadorans quadrupled

during this time in Los Angeles, which has the largest Central- American
population in the United States. But Mexican immigrants and their
descendants continue to be the dominant Latino/a group in California and
are still the largest Latino/a population in Southern California where the
labels 'Latino' and 'Hispanic' have long been identified with Mexicans and
Mexican- Americans (Hamilton & Chinchilla). Thus, as Central
Americans arrived, the larger Mexican- American population subsumed
them. The 1.5-generation Central-American children, who immigrated to
the U.S. as adolescents, and second-generation Central-American children,
who were born in the U.S., began to adopt the labels 'Latino' or 'Hispanic'
rather than identify with their parents’ home countries (Hamilton &
Chinchilla).” Visibly Hidden Language Culture and Identity of Central
Americans in Los Angeles pg. 69
Central Americans were absorbed by the larger Hispanic/Latino identity
which is dominated by Mexicans leaving central Americans to feel like
they’re losing their specific cultural identity and it being replaced with
Latino/Hispanic.
 iii. The rigid and outdated categorizations of cultural identities and races in
the US leave Central Americans confused in how they should identify
themselves in the US.
b. How is the central american identity constantly shifting due to transnationalism?
i. Evidence “More important, between 2005 and 2009, 108,154 Guatemalans
were deported from the United States, some who had arrived as minors or
having U.S.-born children or spouses (Bonillo 2009). As a result, Maya
immigrants are forced to blend in with the Latino community in order to
avoid attracting attention and being identified as immigrants by local
authorities.” Expressions of Maya Identity and Culture in Los Angeles pg.
45
The Guatemalan Maya were forced to adapt their culture and cultural
identity to fit mainstream US culture as a survival tactic in order to avoid
discrimination.

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ii. Evidence “Lipski (1994) maintains that across Latin America and Spain,
there are 'no pan-Hispanic norms which unerringly select preferred
variants, nor is there any one country or region universally acknowledged
as the repository of the linguistic standard...' (p. 136). Thus, as language
contact occurs between varieties of Spanish, and between those varieties
and English in Los Angeles, the differences become increasingly less
noticeable over time, according to Parodi (2003) and Silva-Corvalán
(1994). This means that Central American Spanish shifts to become more
like the dominant regional variety of Spanish in Los Angeles
(Mexican/Chicano Spanish).” Visibly Hidden Language Culture and
Identity of Central Americans in Los Angeles pg. 20
Central American Spanish is being assimilated into the dominant variety
of Mexican/Chicano Spanish causing Central Americans in Los Angeles
to lose their natural variation of spanish.

iii. Due to discrimination and assimilation, this has caused central americans
to shift their identities in order to navigate the US with less cultural
friction between mainstream US culture and Central Americans culture.

c. How do cultural identities in central America translate into the US? -How do
cultural identities and social constructs from central america pan out in the US.
i. Evidence “Here, Amalia’s father reiterated that they are from Guatemala
City and are not indigenous. Furthermore, he viewed the Mayans as a dif-
ferent 'race' whereas Amalia viewed them as a 'different culture.' It is
important to note that Amalia’s understanding of race and culture is
different from her father’s because she has been raised and schooled in the
United States where the system of racial categories often constructs race
as being African American or white.” Alla en Guatemala pg.73
Concepts such as ladino and Maya are not valid races in the US, this
 causes a confusion in how Guatemalans identify themselves and how they
translate their cultural identity into one that the US recognizes.

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ii. Evidence “'These aren't toys,' she said, snatching the nails off my fin-gers.
'Yeah, I know. I was just messing around.' 'Well, it's not funny. And your
tíos won't think so either.' 'I know,' I said again. I did.” High-Risk
Homosexual pg. 92????
Rigid gender roles in Central America are seen as outdated in the US, this
causes a cultural divide between Americans and Central Americans where
these cultural concepts such as machismo aren't able to be translated into
US culture.

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iii. Certain cultural constructs do not translate to US culture, this leaves
central Americans with confusion and frustration as this means central
Americans do not have a proper way to identify themselves and instead
they are sometimes forced to settle for the identity they are given.
III. Conclusion
a. Central Americans are forced to fit the rigid categorization for race and cultural
identity in the US leaving them confused and feeling invisible. Due to this,
Central Americans are forced to shift their cultural identity if certain cultural
constructs are not translatable into US culture.
b. Central Americans have been forced to assimilate and shift their cultural identity
due to discrimination, this creates a void as some cultural constructs are not
translatable into US culture leaving Central Americans confused and feeling
invisible due to their cultural identity not being seen.
c. As Marx stated, Man does not create his identity, Society creates man’s identity.
Identities are subject to change depending on society’s material conditions.
d. The material conditions of Central Americans in the US have forced them to shift
their identity in order to survive. These shifts of identity create ripple effects that
lead to a gap in how central americans want to identify themselves compared to
how they do identify themselves.