With the social climate constantly changing, people's views of certain types of people are bound to change, but some people's idea of a group of people just don't change. It's hard to accept it, but as of right now, racial stereotypes are still a huge factor in life. I'm here to tell you, don't let the stereotypes define who you are.
Growing up as an Asian-American, in a predominantly white community, I was always succumbed to being thrown into a pool of stereotypes people have towards Asians. Most of the time, it meant no harm, but sometimes it did. It sounds so silly when you really think about it; people expected me to have good grades, they expected me to play piano, and they expected me to speak another language at home.
Often times, I didn't even realize people had these stereotypical expectations of me at the time. At first, I thought they expected me to get an A on the math test because I was me, I was smart. However, they expected me to excel at math, excel at science because I was Asian. I was complimented at first, proud that people expected me to be smart, but it became a pain when people were disappointed when I got anything less than a 97.
It honestly sounds so ridiculous to me to be pressured by grades and what grades other people expected me to get, but it was all so real. People didn't realize it, but being shocked when I didn't get a perfect score hurt me more than not getting an A did. Pressure and expectations towered over me in school and I was stuck in between doing well to uphold people's expectations or doing well for myself.
There was also the stereotype of an Asian girl being meek, girly, and petite. Growing up, I loved sports and I loved playing video games with my cousins. Basketball was my passion and sometimes my extended family would scoff at me for being bigger and muscular than my cousins rather than being skinny and petite. I would play video games with my boy cousins and my extended family would ask me why I was playing video games because I should be doing more girl things. Honestly, what even is "girl things"? I became self-conscious because of my body and because of my hobbies. I was weak to other people's words and at times I was lost in what people expected me to be and what I wanted to be. I let other people and their ideas define me when in reality, the only person who can define me is me.
I don't know what happened, but one summer, everything just clicked for me. Screw everyone's expectations and their silly dreams of who I should be. I rebuilt my self-confidence and I became so proud of who I was. I'm still rebuilding my self-confidence day by day because sometimes you can't help being offended by other's words. However, you can help how you bounce back. Some people may think I'm cocky because I love who I am and they can think whatever they like, but I love me because I have come so far.
So, you will get hurt, you will succumb to pressure, and you will want to change yourself for others. But just remember, you are your own person. Someone's definition of you is not the final meaning. We are constantly growing as people, whether it be physically or mentally. Inevitably, people's stereotypes will constantly be thrown at you so just take the hit and get back up. Love yourself, love your hobbies, love your own weird quirks. Because in the end, you are your own maker; don't let anyone else take credit.
