It’s time for our next installment of GUB like US series. I hope you enjoy our August Family Jahrynncy & Ja’rincy. For more information about GUB like US click here.
Hi my name is Jahrynncy. I’m a single mom to my daughter, Ja’rincy who is 10 months old.
I met the father of my baby in middle school. He was a 7th
grader and I was an 8th grader. I never really spoke to him because of the
language barrier. Years went by and through a social network he contacted me and
we started a relationship.My child’s father is from Indiana but he has
Jamaican roots. I was born in the Mexican state of Hidalgo but I’ve been living
in Indiana for 8 years now.Being a parent is not easy, much less being
single mom. The experience of going through pregnancy alone made me mature a lot
faster than other females of my age. It also got me closer to God and I learned
how to be patient, put priorities in order, and put my trust in Him; not on men.
It made me wiser and I now have a better relationship with my parents,
especially my mother.I do feel my daughter will have more of her Latino
culture since she is mostly surrounded by Hispanic people.I try to
teach her more about African American side. I will be introducing her to soul
food and music. I want her to feel familiarized with that. I wish I could do
more than that but it’s not that easy since I don’t know 100% about the culture.
Her dad’s Family is not in the picture either so it makes it extra hard for me.I’m currently in a relationship with a person that was my best friend
for a long time. We have talked about him teaching her about the
African-American culture. I don’t think I could be able to it that without his
help.Some challenges I’ve been faced with was when I had to pick a name
for her. I wanted a Latin and African-American touch on both names; her first
name and her middle name. I also wanted her to have some touch of Arabic in her
name (my names are Arabic). When I was in the hospital I felt a little bit
pressured to make the decision. I ended up naming her Ja’rincy Yamilette.I’ve faced other minor challenges such as her looks and/or “what people
were going to say” because she looks nothing like me. Before she was born
everybody would tell me that she will look like her dad because that how it
“always happens”. She wasn’t the exception. When she grows up and asks me what
her race is I would tell her she is Black and Mestizo. I want her to know the
difference between race and culture; let her know that Latino is not a race. I
know a lot of people to still make that mistake.When it comes to people
judging or just commenting on her looks I feel I can’t really do much since that
always happens in public places and I’m not the type of person that likes to
give explanations to people. People that come to us and ask me in a gentile way
about her race, are the ones I feel comfortable saying “Yes, she is mixed; Black
and Mexican”I want her to be bilingual. I’m still confused about what
language to speak to her now. My parents keep telling me to speak to her in
Spanish because she will learn English at school. BUT then I don’t want her to
feel incompetent when she goes to school not knowing English like I did when I
came to this country at the age of 12. I need to make sure I choose what’s best
for her.
I think every family is special in their own way. My family is
special because even though we are a small family right now, we are very united.The word Blackxican does not offend me in any way. Although is not an
“official word” it gives a name to this new culture that is growing fast.Advice I could give to other bi-cultural families: Make sure that your
kids are exposed to both of their cultures the same amount. You will know you
did a great job when you see your grown kids proud of being BOTH,
African-American & Mexican.One of my goal is this life is make my
kids proud of me too, y de paso a la gente que me rodea (as well as
those in my surroundings). I did graduate High school and soon with God’s help I
will be either working or back in college.
Special thanks to Jahrynncy. Thank you for sharing your story with us. Your baby girl is precious!
If you are also a Blackxican Family/individual who would like to share your story Contact us at growingupblackxican@gmail.com. We would love to hear from you!
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