Writer: Jeremy Gutierrez
Graphic Designer: Deeksha Reddy
What's expected of me is different than the stories you might've heard before. I’m a second-generation Mexican-American, and I've lived in California my entire life. My grandparents gave up a lot to move here. My grandmother was a nurse in Mexico, and she's also the only person in my family to graduate college so far.
Even though my mother and her sister were raised speaking Spanish, my brothers and I never were. I've always felt disconnected from the land of my ancestors. We never got that stereotypical "Latino in America" life. My parents aren't Catholic, my mother doesn't chase us around with a sandal in hand.
I live in one of the many Latino majority suburbs in L.A. county (with a pretty large Asian population as well) but I've always had trouble fitting in. I could never relate to my Latino friends, so I emulated the behavior of my Asian friends instead. I ate the Asian candies they did, drank the same drinks, used chopsticks, listened to the same K-pop groups they did. But instead, I found myself being questioned by my family. "He's so Asian." "He's not even Mexican." They were supposed to be jokes, but it didn't feel like they were.
It never helped that I'm practically the academic hopes and dreams of my parents. I always bore the brunt of their pressures. My brothers definitely never felt the same. It was always assumed that I would go to college, get a good job, and make it rich.
I've been on the honor roll my entire life and maintained a 4.0 GPA (or close) that entire time as well. Everything I've done my life so far has been to give me the best chance at college. I only started to do things I actually enjoy in 7th grade. My brothers always had that freedom. So, what's expected of you?