I refer to myself as the daughter of immigrants, an Asian American, a Sikh, and a Desi person. All of these sublabels define an even larger label: person of color. But while I maintain my identity as a person of color, I also maintain my role as a writer - of fictional prose, screenplay, and poetry. Being a person of color with these identities can be burdening due to our systematic alienation. I write about handling these valuable labels and identities to feel seen and to feel relieved. When I’m done writing, I inevitably feel better.

According to Merriam Webster, an immigrant is “a person who comes to a country to establish permanent residence.” The opposite of an immigrant is a citizen, but after my parents got their citizenship, they were treated the same way. Racially motivated spam calls flooded their phones, and people bashed their English.

Immigrant

People of color

become citizens, but are

Treated the same way

According to many dictionaries, desi translates to “indigenous,” but the Urban Dictionary may have an updated definition: “For Indians/Pakistanis/Bengalis abroad, it has become a term that mainly identifies another fellow Indian/Pakistani/Bengali.” For Desis, this identity means both that they know their identity and that they know they aren’t thought of as American citizens. That identity is why my parents weren’t treated like they were citizens.

Desi

The reason why a

new citizen is treated

the same as before 

According to Cambridge Dictionary, an Asian is “belonging to or relating to Asia and its people.” Everyone shares that definition, of course, but Americans who define “Asian” in this way only seem to include East Asians. I get excited hearing about Hollywood representing the Asian community, believing that I will finally get representation. But on the screen I only see East Asians with the fairest skin in the entire community. The East Asian community is still underrepresented, but if the South Asian community is lucky, the filmmakers represent one fair-skinned Indian actor for every ten East Asian actors. Recognizing this disparity in representation was how I learned about American colorism towards Asians I resemble the most.

Asian

The difference between

being tan and being fair

in terms of privilege

In class, teachers taught the correct pronunciation of Antoinette, Sean, and Emmanuel, but no one ever corrected students when they pronounced Sikh as “seek.” My school’s social studies department was too unaware to know how it’s pronounced— just as unaware as it was to define Sikhism as a mixture of Hinduism and Islam. In the English language, my religion is pronounced “sick,” but to be fully accurate, emphasis must be placed on the “K.”

Sikh

We are not SEEKING

anything. I do not know what

we as a group SEEK.

I have been interested in writing haikus since taking creative writing during my junior year. What I found unique about this writing style was how so few words and only 17 syllables can have such an effect on the reader. So writing haikus on my identity is the perfect way to poignantly express and introduce who I am. Through writing, I strengthen the feeling that everyone should belong in a community where everyone is kind to one another and shares ideals of love and nonviolence. Through writing I can show what the world looks like through my point of view; I can expose people to the beauty of different identities in my writing. I hope that my expression of creative writing will make myself and others feel more represented in our American environment.