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This project explores the cultural identity of a refugee group named Meskhetian Turks, an ethnic group forced to relocate multiple times in their long history. Driven from their original homeland and scattered around Central Asia and Eastern Europe for decades, approximately 15,000 Meskhetian Turks have been granted refugee status by the American government in recent years. The focus of this study is a group of Meskhetian Turkish refugees in the Phoenix metropolitan area. This is a narrative study conducted through twelve open-ended in-depth interviews and researcher's observations within the community. The interview questions revolved around three aspects of Meskhetian cultural identity, which were represented in each research question. These aspects were: how Meskhetian Turks define their own culture; how they define their connection to Turkey and Turks; and how they define Americans, American culture and their place within the American society. The first research question resulted in three themes: history, preservation of culture, and sense of community. The second research question revealed two themes: Meskhetian Turk's ties to Turkey, and the group's relationship with and perception of Turks in the area. The final research question provided two themes: the group's adaptation to United States, and interviewees' observations regarding the American culture. Exploring these themes, and examining the connection between these aspects provided a complex and intertwined web of connections, which explain Meskhetian Turkish cultural identity. Meskhetian Turks' cultural self-definition, relation with the Turkish community, and perceptions of American culture are all inter-connected, which supports and furthers a dialectic approach to cultural studies. The study also contributes to refugee adaptation literature by examining cultural identity influences on the group's adaptation in the United States and offering insight and suggestions for improving the adaptation process.
ContributorsBilge, Hatice Nurhayat (Author) / Broome, Benjamin J. (Thesis advisor) / Martinez, Jacqueline (Committee member) / Margolis, Eric (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
Across the world, nations manage their borders in various ways. Brazil and Uruguay share a non-militarized dry border, which creates a range of unique challenges and assets for that region. Through historical, linguistic, and cultural context as well as ethnography-inspired mixed method research, this paper demonstrates that the border region serves as an area of cultural blending. While elements of national affiliation are still present, at times, semiotic and linguistic elements are neither Brazilian nor Uruguayan, but have taken on their own identity.
ContributorsAraiza, Ulises (Co-author) / Desper, Tate (Co-author) / Escobar, Edward (Thesis director) / O'Connor, Brendan (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / School of Historical, Philosophical and Religious Studies (Contributor) / School of Transborder Studies (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
On December 28th 2012, immigration authorities arrested my father and mother while grocery shopping. As soon as they stepped outside, immigration officers stopped them to be questioned. Jeopardizing my university graduation, I took on the challenge to fight court and petition my parents to not be deported. As a first generation born American, I have the power and the right to petition for the freedom of my parents. I was fortunate to be born in this country as a citizen and take advantage of all the opportunities given to me. Up until today, my family and I have done nothing but participate as good citizens. What I failed to realize is that one day our family would become deportation victims of the broken immigration system. There are currently between 11 to12 million undocumented people living in the United States with no pathway to citizenship. My father and mother were humiliated in jail, separated from the family for three months and suffered from emotional distress. It is imperative for me to share our family experience so others know the reality about illegal immigration. In this paper I aspire to leave the reader with knowledge and understanding about illegal immigration. The main purpose of my thesis is to retell my family's experience and the struggle we are still currently facing. The fate of my family was decided on March 25th 2013, and my family has been forever changed. We learned the valuable lesson that as Latinos in the community, we need to fight for freedom and speak on those that are undocumented and afraid.
ContributorsCalderon, Rudy (Author) / Larson, Elizabeth (Thesis director) / Ovando, Carlos (Committee member) / Sanchez, Marta (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor)
Created2013-05
Description
The attainment of a meaningful existence is a one of the most fundamental human desires. While the pursuit for a meaningful existence is universal, the path to achieving it looks different for all people. An important aspect in achieving a meaningful existence is personal enlightenment that is attained through not only a profound understanding of one's own identity through reflection but also an awareness of the environment that has shaped that identity. The purpose of reflection should not be to attach blame or find excuses for the aspects of one's life that are unfavorable or shameful; rather, it should be to achieve the sense of inner peace that is integral in making informed and rational progress towards realizing aspects of an individual's life that bring meaning and happiness. The purpose of the following two sections is to demonstrate how an understanding of group-specific challenges regarding identity and upbringing may help those that identify with Chinese American or immigrant culture in their pursuit of a meaningful and satisfying existence. The first section provides a profile on some of the common issues facing Asian Americans, particularly how an immigrant approach to parenting can affect the degree of acculturation, mental health, and identity of immigrant children. The second section provides a personal backdrop to some of the themes discussed in the first section through an autoethnographic account from a Chinese American student. The purpose of the autoethnographic account is to demonstrate that leisure activities, such as music, can address issues regarding acculturation and identity that Asian Americans commonly face.
ContributorsWen, Charles H (Author) / Mantie, Roger (Thesis director) / Libman, Jeff (Committee member) / Department of Supply Chain Management (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-05
Description
Excavating Self was created between January and April 2023 and is comprised of two series and other additional works. It starts and ends with a set of self portraits that reflect on the experience before and after creating this body of work. The first series, On Sacrifice, draws on experiences from a previous relationship, the feelings surrounding them, and the emotional fallout of the breakup. The second series, Juntos, explores relationships with family, past and current loves, and the way these relationships shape understanding of identity. The remaining pieces focus on topics such as ancestry, gender expression, and sexuality. Other central themes include self discovery, preserving memory, and love in all of its multiple truths. All pieces were created using intaglio printmaking techniques with hand written text.
ContributorsSoza, Bronson (Author) / Hood, Mary (Thesis director) / Cabrera, Margarita (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Public Affairs (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / School of Art (Contributor)
Created2023-05
Description
This paper examines the issue of Russian disinformation in Estonia and how the country has built resilience against this threat. Drawing upon existing literature and a series of interviews conducted with Estonians of a variety of professional backgrounds, this work explores Estonia's whole-of-society approach to resilience and examines its incorporation of national security strategy, inter-institutional cooperation, and media literacy education. Ultimately, this paper argues that Estonia's efforts have been largely successful in enabling the country to strengthen its society against Russian disinformation and offers key takeaways for other countries such as the United States.
ContributorsWalsh, Sofia (Author) / Sivak, Henry (Thesis director) / Brown, Keith (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / Historical, Philosophical & Religious Studies, Sch (Contributor)
Created2023-05
Description
My thesis is a practice in Italian writing and Italian-English translation. During my semester abroad in Italy, I kept a journal of my experiences in Italian as a way to improve my proficiency and explore another facet of my identity. The entries included here range in topic from language acquisition, relationships, the experience of living in a foreign country, and self-exploration. Upon returning to the US, I translated each entry into English to see the different ways each language functions, as well as how my voice as a writer and individual comes through in both.
ContributorsGrasso, Olivia (Author) / Ferrando, Serena (Thesis director) / Dell'Anna, Antonella (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of English (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor)
Created2024-05
Description
The purpose of the study was to learn more about the Albanian-American community in Arizona and questioned Albanian-American participants on the reasons for migrating to Arizona, their feelings towards their identity, how they remain connected with their heritage, and how/if they are ensuring that future generations of Albanian-Americans will maintain their culture. The study carried out a qualitative ethnography. I interviewed 15 Albanian-American participants living in Arizona. The term “Albanian-American” was defined as someone who identifies ethnically as an Albanian but lives in the United States. Participants in this study who identified as ethnically Albanian were either born and raised in or have parents who were born and raised in Albania or Kosovo, meaning they were either first-generation Americans or second-generation Americans. The written work is an oral history of these 15 participant’s personal experiences and stories, which also includes photographs to provide imagery to each participant’s account. The study found that the Albanian-American participants came to the United States for either economic, social, or political reasons. It also noted similar patterns and themes that have been separated into chapters on the Albanian value of hard work, the Albanian value of altruism, and the Albanian-American dual identity. The Conclusion summarizes the various ways in which the Albanian-American community in Arizona is ensuring the preservation of the heritage among younger generations who are becoming more Americanized. I conclude with two main ways that the Albanian-American community in Arizona are preserving their heritage: through Albanian language education initiatives, and cultural preservation initiatives and events hosted by the Albanian-American organizations of Arizona.
ContributorsJames, Tatum Lenore (Author) / Brown, Keith (Thesis director) / Sivak, Henry (Committee member) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2020-05
Description
Identity has an important role in each individual. It determines what a person will do for the rest of her life and also how she is perceived by others. It is the person's qualities, beliefs, personality and expressions that define the person or the group the person belongs to. When identity is regarded as something psychological — something that is related to an individual’s self-image and self-esteem — it can affect a person negatively or positively, depending on how that person sees herself. Despite that, identity development occurs throughout different stages of one’s life, adolescence is the stage where individuals begin to analyze their identity because they are more self-conscious of the changes that are happening in their lives. Therefore, adolescents are more vulnerable when it comes to the struggle with different aspects of identity. For example, they grapple with decisions like choosing a career path, political beliefs, relationships or their ethnicity label. There’s confusion causing the inability to commit to one path because of the forces that surround and influence a person's decisions. Anyone can struggle with finding their identity, but it’s young people who are torn between two or more cultures who often find themselves more confused because they believe they have to make a choice of either assimilating to one culture or the other. Diana Calderón, a local Phoenix artist, shared the story of her journey to find her identity as a Latina woman through art. She argues that her method, a form of art known as “interdisciplinary,” can be used as a tool to help others like herself explore their identity.
Interdisciplinary art allows artists to design their careers without restrictions because it lets them merge different types of art such as painting, sketching, crafting and anything else that may represent art to them. Interdisciplinary artists invent new media, with their own techniques. In doing so, they allow others the freedom to create and interpret their creations without feeling pressured to follow conventions and guidelines, eventually providing a space to explore talents.
Calderón, who was born in Mexico and later moved, felt she was caught between embracing the culture of the United States and perpetuating her family's identity, which mixes the ideas of being Latino and American at the same time. Factors such as traditions, values, language and social experiences are what constructed Calderón’s identity; these are the same factors that make all of our identities. But as Calderón started expressing her identity through artwork, she was able to represent her true self as a Latina woman without feeling that she had to disregard either of the cultures she grew up with.
This thesis will explore the way that Latino artists like Diana Calderón use interdisciplinary art as a tool to help others – especially Latinos in between two or more cultures – discover their identity, even as they are being pressured by societal factors that impose what an individual should do or be.
Keywords: identity, interdisciplinary art, Hispanic/Latino, Diana Calderón
Website:
https://medium.com/@ekarina796/hispanic-latino-mexican-american-exploring-identity-and-labels-through-art-b420af0e2df8
Interdisciplinary art allows artists to design their careers without restrictions because it lets them merge different types of art such as painting, sketching, crafting and anything else that may represent art to them. Interdisciplinary artists invent new media, with their own techniques. In doing so, they allow others the freedom to create and interpret their creations without feeling pressured to follow conventions and guidelines, eventually providing a space to explore talents.
Calderón, who was born in Mexico and later moved, felt she was caught between embracing the culture of the United States and perpetuating her family's identity, which mixes the ideas of being Latino and American at the same time. Factors such as traditions, values, language and social experiences are what constructed Calderón’s identity; these are the same factors that make all of our identities. But as Calderón started expressing her identity through artwork, she was able to represent her true self as a Latina woman without feeling that she had to disregard either of the cultures she grew up with.
This thesis will explore the way that Latino artists like Diana Calderón use interdisciplinary art as a tool to help others – especially Latinos in between two or more cultures – discover their identity, even as they are being pressured by societal factors that impose what an individual should do or be.
Keywords: identity, interdisciplinary art, Hispanic/Latino, Diana Calderón
Website:
https://medium.com/@ekarina796/hispanic-latino-mexican-american-exploring-identity-and-labels-through-art-b420af0e2df8
ContributorsEspinoza, Karina (Author) / Fernandez, Valeria (Thesis director) / Ruiz, Vanessa (Committee member) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism & Mass Comm (Contributor, Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2020-05
Description
Considered by colonists as an extension of France, Algeria was subjected to more than 125 years of French control. The Algerian people were thus heavily influenced by the French language and were required to abandon their native language in many aspects of their life such as government and education. This thesis aims to highlight the linguistic power relations established by the French in Colonial Algeria. Language usage and policies leading up to the Algerian War for Independence are critical to understanding the successor government. Analyzing three sections of language in Colonial Algeria- radio, language of instruction, and literature- I find that the language of instruction in education is the most influential in determining and formulating identities and power relations. Ultimately, this thesis concludes that language, power, and identity overlap and influence each other in several ways, producing a complex post-colonial society
ContributorsGriffin, Hanna (Author) / Joslin, Isaac (Thesis director) / Sivak, Henry (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor)
Created2022-05