The Stigma of Ethnicity in Savannah

Carsen Christy
Nov 4 · 7 min read

Despite being essential to the identity of many people living in the United States today, the term “ethnicity” carries a tone of confusion and disillusionment. The definition of ethnicity is often misconstrued with the general understanding of race; ethnicity pertains to a cultural or ancestral identification to a group of people while race mainly entails a perceived physical or biological distinction between humans. Another misconception of ethnicity entails a sense of exclusiveness to certain racial entities; for example, many caucasian individuals do not believe they are entitled to align with any particular ethnicity. During our primary research, we also noticed that some people were hesitant to identify as African-American, stating they were unsure of their familial African lineage and felt more comfortable to simply classify themselves as black. Savannah, Georgia is a prime illustration of the stigmas surrounding ethnicity as the town is a haven for tourists and residents alike to express their heritage through the day-to-day interactions with other people, food, and the local culture.

Ed, having just recently moved to Savannah less than a year ago, was raised in Costa Rica. In a particularly charming manner, he answered our questions concerning heritage with hesitance. At first, he stated “no, not really” when asked if there was any certain way he connects to his ethnicity or culture, but swiftly changed his mind when he remembered how he relates food to his family in Costa Rica. “Nothing that’s fast food” and “Sugar Girl gets pretty close because of the sweets; Costa Rica has a lot of really sweet cuisine.” The way Ed reconsidered how he approached his expression of ethnicity was interesting; there is no correct method to connect to your identity, but people tend to assume that more significant actions are required to substantiate a true connection to one’s ethnicity. Ed also mentioned carrying an eagle eye pendant for focus because “my parents thought I was in the clouds too much.” Tokens that represent an aspect of one’s ethnicity can be extremely valuable in attaching someone to their family. Ed’s experience gives us additional insight into the many different ethnicities in Savannah, allowing us to truly see what the local culture offers.

Ms. Gem gave us a new outlook on our topic we had not previously considered; she talked extensively on how grateful she was to be employed in a workplace where she could express her ethnicity as Pacific Islander Asian, or more specifically Filipino-Chinese, and speak openly with her customers and coworkers at the Flying Monk Noodle Bar. She explains she was born in the Philippines but is “Filipino-Chinese 50/50;” she believes this gives her extremely valuable insight into the local Filipino culture specifically and is extremely proud of her heritage. Although she once spoke Chinese and does have family in Hong Kong, she mainly identifies with her Filipino side. Her confidence in her Pacific Islander Asian ethnicity was extremely inspiring to us and provided our group incredibly valuable insight into Savannah’s Filipino community especially. One may not expect such a vibrant display of heritage and pride in the local food service industry, but the rich display of belonging was invigorating and obliterated the stigmas surrounding expression of ethnicity.

Bianca, reserved and straightforward, did not hesitate when she told us her ethnicity is Liberian-Dutch. Her mother is from Liberia and her father is from the Netherlands, although she does not see him as often, she explains. She grew up in Savannah but originally is from Chicago and finds it much more difficult to express her ethnicity in Savannah than in Chicago when she visits her family. She tells us her mother helps to connect her to her Liberian heritage through food and clothing, which is a valuable asset to her. Bianca’s assertion that her expression of culture and heritage is more difficult in Savannah is definitely noteworthy; she did not elaborate on why she finds this to be more strenuous, but one could conclude the atmosphere in this region is not conducive to an expression of African heritage. Perhaps the Liberian community in Savannah is much smaller than Chicago, or maybe for another reason. The lack of involvement of certain ethnic groups in Savannah’s local culture absolutely plays into the stigmatization of ethnicity in the region.

Perhaps the most spirited out of those we interviewed, Ryan definitively expressed his ethnicity to be “‘Murican. No A with an apostrophe, please.” He has been in Savannah for one year, four months, thirty-seven days, “and counting,” since he moved from Baltimore. The mention of Baltimore sparked a heated debate amongst his coworkers about the dialect in Maryland and Georgia, specifically “wood-er” versus “waad-a.” His family lineage is mostly Irish, “about 51%,” and he celebrates his ancestry every year by “getting really drunk on St. Patrick’s Day.” Although Ryan was mostly joking about his connection to his ethnicity, Savannah’s St. Patrick’s Day celebration is a massive event that draws thousands of visitors to embrace the Irish culture. Our main takeaway from Ryan’s interview was the stark contrast of tone from the others we questioned; since he had no direct, physical contact with Ireland, he simply identified with the country in which he lives. This is by no means an incorrect manner of association, but it does perpetuate the stigma of a loss of ethnicity once a prolonged relationship with a country of origin is lost.

Nicole has an interesting sentiment concerning ethnicity; she “can’t really say African-American because I don’t really know where all my roots trace back to,” so she identifies as black. She also does mention some Cherokee and Spanish ancestry but does not feel particularly connected to this aspect of her lineage. However, Nicole does give us some extremely interesting information on how she connects to her ethnicity, stating her main methods of expressing her identity as doing her hair in braids, extensions, and afro styles while also “codeswitching.” Codeswitching refers to switching between one linguistic dialect and another depending on the context of the situation. When asked to elaborate on what exactly she meant, she explained: “a lot of black people know I’m not from here just from the way I speak even if I codeswitch.” Nicole is from Prince George’s County, Maryland, where she tells us the black community speaks with an entirely different set of slang words than the black community of Savannah; she gives us examples of “moe” meaning bro and “kill” or “blown” meaning upset. She even notices that the black community in Savannah does not use the entire “n-word” when using the word as slang as a dialectic variation from her home in Maryland. Nicole’s insight into slang and dialect regarding ethnicity allowed us to gain a new perspective into Savannah’s African-American or black community.

Our own perspective on ethnicity changed drastically throughout the duration of the project; the interviews specifically allowed us to reconsider the manner in which Savannah residents view their own identities. For example, we were aware of the stigma surrounding ethnicity for caucasian individuals, but we were exposed to an entirely new perspective on the black community as many people we spoke with explained that they did not feel comfortable identifying as African-American since they did not know of their African roots. Being white myself, I just recently was exposed to the true meaning of ethnicity; a lack of a foreign family member does not define one’s identity as a person without heritage or culture. This examination of ethnicity in our own city permitted us to see not only a new perspective of the character of others but also a new viewpoint of our own identities.

Throughout our interviews, a common trend emerged from distance to connection. There seems to be a directly proportional correlation to people that were raised in the countries in which they align their ethnicity and the connection people experience to their heritage while in Savannah, Georgia. A disconnect seems to emerge when residents are separated from their lineage for prolonged periods; it becomes much harder to identify with any ethnicity when someone has been removed from their country of origin or is unsure of their family history. Ethnicity is a pivotal factor to many people’s character as we found in the interviews; the methods in which citizens bring their heritage from all over the world to share with Savannah’s local community is an important way to spread belongingness to others in those respective groups. Savannah’s rich blend of cultures contributes to the de-stigmatization of ethnicity.

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