IrishBrother
Bubblin' in Dublin
Okey, maybe I'm making too much of a big deal of this but I'd really appreciate an outsiders opinion.
Myself and my wife are both originally from West Africa. We now live in a predominantly and historically white country.
We recently moved to a smaller "city" from the capital city with our seven month old daughter. I say city - the population of the "city" and surrounding area is 100k. Pretty multicultural, but outside of the main hub it's whiter than casper the ghost snorting coke and eating mayonnaise sandwiches.
We live about five miles from the city. Pretty rural, but a beautiful house, a bit of land, we've been promised a school place in a really decent school close by and clean country air. I can work from anywhere and my wife was able to get a transfer. Same wage - cheaper area and she has income from a property she invested in. A good place to bring up a kid. We are looking pretty good at the moment.
But.....
In Dublin, where we previously lived, there were plenty of African shops, barbers, hairdressers, salons, businesses. We never referred to them as "ethnic shops/barbers/hairdressers/salons/businesses".
Now my wife is. I need to find a good "ethnic" store so I can get some xxxxx. I need to find a good "ethnic" hairdressers. I need to find a new "ethnic" salon.
Tonight she said our daughter had a really cute "ethnic" nose.
WTF. Every fúcker on this planet is some sort of ethnicity. Just because we are different than the majority of other people in this country, does not mean that we should other ourselves. We are African. Not "ethnic". We have a name, a history, a rich culture and ancestry. We may not be white, but we are not simply "ethnic". Whatever the fukk that means.
A-F-R-I-C-A-N.
I want our daughter to grow up and become a proud Irish woman. But to also appreciate and respect the fact that she's also African too. I want to ensure we bring her home at least once a year. I do not want her African culture and heritage relegated to mere "ethnic" status. I want her to be proud of both. Which I think is possible if we strike a good balance. Not by shovelling it down her throat, but by cooking traditional meals, telling her stories about our home culture, watching Nollywood together as a family, visiting every year and celebrating our cultural traditions.
Am I freaking out over nothing here? I got a bit pissed off over her continuous use of this damn word and hit the bar for a few drinks with mostly native Irish friends. Cant really talk to them about it. I've tried explaining to my wife why it annoys me, but she just doesn't get it. It's not just the damn word. It's that it others us as a people and holds white people up as the norm. I think that could cause problems for our daughter growing up.
Myself and my wife are both originally from West Africa. We now live in a predominantly and historically white country.
We recently moved to a smaller "city" from the capital city with our seven month old daughter. I say city - the population of the "city" and surrounding area is 100k. Pretty multicultural, but outside of the main hub it's whiter than casper the ghost snorting coke and eating mayonnaise sandwiches.
We live about five miles from the city. Pretty rural, but a beautiful house, a bit of land, we've been promised a school place in a really decent school close by and clean country air. I can work from anywhere and my wife was able to get a transfer. Same wage - cheaper area and she has income from a property she invested in. A good place to bring up a kid. We are looking pretty good at the moment.
But.....
In Dublin, where we previously lived, there were plenty of African shops, barbers, hairdressers, salons, businesses. We never referred to them as "ethnic shops/barbers/hairdressers/salons/businesses".
Now my wife is. I need to find a good "ethnic" store so I can get some xxxxx. I need to find a good "ethnic" hairdressers. I need to find a new "ethnic" salon.
Tonight she said our daughter had a really cute "ethnic" nose.
WTF. Every fúcker on this planet is some sort of ethnicity. Just because we are different than the majority of other people in this country, does not mean that we should other ourselves. We are African. Not "ethnic". We have a name, a history, a rich culture and ancestry. We may not be white, but we are not simply "ethnic". Whatever the fukk that means.
A-F-R-I-C-A-N.
I want our daughter to grow up and become a proud Irish woman. But to also appreciate and respect the fact that she's also African too. I want to ensure we bring her home at least once a year. I do not want her African culture and heritage relegated to mere "ethnic" status. I want her to be proud of both. Which I think is possible if we strike a good balance. Not by shovelling it down her throat, but by cooking traditional meals, telling her stories about our home culture, watching Nollywood together as a family, visiting every year and celebrating our cultural traditions.
Am I freaking out over nothing here? I got a bit pissed off over her continuous use of this damn word and hit the bar for a few drinks with mostly native Irish friends. Cant really talk to them about it. I've tried explaining to my wife why it annoys me, but she just doesn't get it. It's not just the damn word. It's that it others us as a people and holds white people up as the norm. I think that could cause problems for our daughter growing up.
Invite them over for ethnic Nigerian food. Your wife is right, which shouldn't come as a surprise since she's a beautiful African woman but just FYI