Meredith Taggart,
Portland, OR.
I’m Italian and Scottish and otherwise a European mutt. I’m generally considered “white,” and look ambiguously ethnic. For me, the idea of race is all about a longing for a greater connection to my heritage. I never feel more connected than when making pasta. Learning the language, visiting Italy, making/eating Italian food, listening to Italian music, and watching Italian films are the best ways I have to forge that connection. Based on my disposition, I feel very stereotypically Italian, but I wonder how much of that about myself was adopted, subconsciously, in an effort to be more Italian. My mom often speaks about a time when being Italian in this country was difficult, so it seems to me that we have come very far in just one generation for me to be at a point where not only do I not feel that there is negativity associated with my heritage, but rather a lack of sentiment.
