Restructuring the face of the American identity

Restructuring the face of the American identity

They held it high, gripping the edges of the flag tightly as
they marched down the streets. For these high school students, the
potential passage of Proposition 187 scared them enough to walk out
of their classes this fall and to use all of their power ­
their voices, their passion and the Mexican flag ­ to protest
the bill.

For them, the red, white and green flag was a sign of cultural
pride, of an identity that sustained the Chicano movement for
decades and helped bring about social change.

But for many spectators watching, the sight of that flag made
them stiffen with anger and fear, solidifying their support for the
measure. Countless Los Angelenos interviewed by the media during
the intense show of anti-187 protests said seeing the Mexican flag
made them decide to vote for the proposition.

It was anti-American, they said. It didn’t belong. It epitomized
the reason 187 had to pass ­ these people had to remember they
were in America now.

* * *

It’s ironic that the flag of another country so perfectly
epitomized the communication chasm about our identity here in this
country. The polar interpretation of this symbol demonstrates how
split our society is when it comes to deciding who is American.

Twenty-five years ago, the main battle was to obtain civil
rights for people of different ethnicities. The struggle now is
much less clear. Emerging in the shifting and sliding social forces
is a nagging, persistent question: Can we tolerate the diverse
cultures and lifestyles that make up our community? Have we
re-evaluated the American identity?

The former American identity, or at least its caricature as a
cohesion of mom, apple pie and white middle-class suburbia, has
cracked amidst the ending of the Cold War, increasing globalism and
drastic social upheavals. Like a mask that grew too tight, our old
identity is ruptured with the fissures of social movements and
increasing diversity.

Small lines and wrinkles of culture clashes and assimilation
have marred the old face of America, giving way to a new selfhood.
We’ve grown, however painfully, yet few are focused on reshaping
our identity.

The question "Who am I?" is even more pressing at UCLA. Students
throughout time have struggled to pinpoint their identities, to
discover themselves, to find their niche. But here and now we face
a debate more complex and tenuous than that of nearly every
previous generation.

The battle is not clear-cut. How can we position ourselves on
issues such as health care, Bosnia, welfare reform, ethnic studies,
affirmative action, when we haven’t been able to position ourselves
in relation to each other?

Mass media and pop critics have labeled us Generation X,
bemoaning our lack of direction and motivation. The work and
dedication of UCLA students alone should be enough to combat that
stereotype, but on the other hand, the label could be
appropriate.

We have yet to decide in which direction to take our collective
identity. An intricate web of cultural history, interethnic
relations and divergent perspectives has bound us to an individual
identity out of a need for selfhood, but we lack the community
connections with each other.

The answers don’t come easily. Many scoff at the "make love, not
war" mantra of the ’60s and mock the naivete of Rodney King’s plea
of "Can’t we all just get along?" Countless UCLA students have
commented on their initial surprise of how difficult it is to
follow that philosophy on a campus representing such diversity of
ethnicities, cultures, religions, sexualities and genders. For
many, freshman life was a wake-up call that no, it’s not that easy
to get along.

Learning who we and others are is the greatest task before us,
and four to five years of passing people on Bruin Walk doesn’t seem
to do the trick. The complex relationships and prejudices don’t
often manifest themselves in the violent explosions of John
Singleton’s recent portrayal of campus tensions in Higher Learning,
in blatant racism or radical extremism.

Such depictions are frustrating for our generation ­ our
challenge is to deal with the more subtle and more pervasive forms
of intolerance, ignorance and miscommunication that prevent us from
moving forward together. Our upheavals most often are not the
violent movements of our social foundation, but rather a gridwork
of cracks and rifts that have marred the face of a former American
identity.

So the plea of "Can’t we all just get along" seems out-dated,
simplistic and naive to a generation faced with grey space to move
in, rather than black and white value systems. Maybe an alternative
question is, "Can’t we all just figure out who we are, and how we
relate to each other?" That’s a more relevant challenge, a vital
groundwork that few have begun to structure.

Campus debates are grounded in our lack of identity. Curricular
reform, political correctness, affirmative action ­ none of
these will be resolved until we begin to examine our concept of who
is an American. College courses inherently begin the thinking
process on an individual level, but it’s not often we can discuss
as a community where we are going.

Tonight we’ll have that chance. At 7 p.m., the Daily Bruin is
hosting a town hall meeting on "The American Identity," bringing
together a diverse group of panelists to prompt a debate about
culture, class, sexual orientation, gender and ethnicity in the
campus environment. This is only a starting point, but we hope
you’ll join your fellow students, staff, faculty and administrators
in a candid dialogue about these issues.

Come to hear each other. Come to share your perspective, to add
to the debate. This is an unique opportunity for all of us to
really listen to one another, and to hopefully identify what new
social foundation we can build together.

Gold, a third-year English student, is Editor in Chief of the
Daily Bruin.