A new frontier for mi familia

doi:10.1126/science.abi5545

GSTDTAP > 气候变化

DOI	10.1126/science.abi5545
	A new frontier for mi familia
	Raven Delfina Otero-Symphony
	2021-04-23
发表期刊	Science
出版年	2021
英文摘要	With sleek black hair, finely arched eyebrows, and deep brown eyes that sparkle, my feisty, 5-foot-tall Abuelita (grandmother) is my last link to my ancestors, who spoke a unique dialect of New Mexican Spanish. As the last generation of a disappearing New Mexican lineage, whose güerita (light-skinned) appearance belies my heritage, I feel a responsibility to carry on the stories and traditions of my family; yet I feel ill-equipped to do them justice. Every life decision I make carries the weight of the unspoken question: How do I move forward and remember who I am when my family roots are being erased? Immersed in the aromas of her home-made tortillas and red or green chile, Abuelita teaches me her native language in our effort to preserve my identity. Never a homeowner, Abuelita lives in a run-down studio apartment in the center of “the warzone,” an impoverished area of Albuquerque adjacent to the heavily militarized Kirtland Air Force Base. “ No te preocupes, mi hijta ,” she tells me, motioning to the SWAT vehicles that are a regular sight. “The more police, the safer the place!” Local research proves this to be untrue. My childhood was filled with upheaval, and although school was always my refuge, I struggled to find where I belonged. My search came to an end with El Puente Research Fellowship, the Maximizing Access to Research Careers (MARC) scholars program, and the 2020 Society for Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS) conference. In these communities, I found diverse scientific research that could answer that ever-present question. I believe that solving the multifaceted issues facing my hometown, from mass incarceration to severe substance addiction, lies within biomedical health research. I hope one day to use scientific evidence to influence policy in these areas, giving families like mine a better chance of stability and allowing their stories to continue unbroken. Science is my pursuit of a new frontier for my family: one of identity, belonging, and community. My Abuelita is a free spirit whose unflinching resistance to discrimination is often misunderstood as truculence. As I pursue science to move myself and my family history forward together, it is my hope that I will someday come close to her humble survivorship and the resilience of the frontier generations that came before me.
领域	气候变化 ; 资源环境
URL	查看原文
引用统计
文献类型	期刊论文
条目标识符	http://119.78.100.173/C666/handle/2XK7JSWQ/324061
专题	气候变化资源环境科学
推荐引用方式 GB/T 7714	Raven Delfina Otero-Symphony. A new frontier for mi familia[J]. Science,2021.
APA	Raven Delfina Otero-Symphony.(2021).A new frontier for mi familia.Science.
MLA	Raven Delfina Otero-Symphony."A new frontier for mi familia".Science (2021).