The ties that bind

I read this essay by novelist Diana Abu-Jaber, who is the daughter of a Jordanian immigrant and has lived between the US and Jordan. It discusses how cultural ties really do bind, and not always in the positive sense of the word. Whether it be people from outside your community who pigeonhole you based on your background, or members of your community who insist that they can only relate to you within the context of your shared culture, sometimes it's hard to get away from an identity that is one-dimensional and doesn't represent the entire person.

http://www.powells.com/blog/?p=2231