Shades of Brown

By Rhea Gajaria, Development Intern

Born in India and raised in America, I grew up with a strong awareness of the cultural differences between these two countries. From a young age, I began noticing subtle, but clear differences between the two nations. In the United States, nobody plays cricket on the streets. In India, there is no concept of “tailgating” at sporting events. Though the United States was a whole new world, I soon found myself falling in love with my new home, tiny differences and all. This said, I did encounter one recurring intercultural issue throughout my years in high school. My peers lacked virtually any awareness of the many distinct Middle Eastern and Southeast Asian cultural identities! I found many students around me grouping these nations together as a geographic no-man’s-land known only for oil and war. These students also often incorrectly assumed that my Pakistani and Sri Lankan friends were Indian, just based on their skin tone. Many of us felt that these peers did not understand, nor care to understand, about our differences. To many of my peers, the Middle East was defined by the fighting in Israel, Iran and Saudi Arabia. This perception could not be farther from the truth. The Middle East is host to a myriad of geographic landscapes, ranging from bustling metropolises to vast deserts, and it is home to some of the most beautiful, rich, and unique cultures in the world.