In My American Girls the girls were shaped in different ways because of the different communities they were part of. All the girls during their childhood lived in the same neighborhood of Sunset Park. Specifically, they lived in a Hispanic neighborhood of Sunset Park. However, not all of the girls were part of the Dominican community that was formed by Dominican immigrants. For example, Monica went to private school and therefore went to school with wealthier people who were not Dominican or Hispanic. Many of the people she was exposed to in school were Caucasian. She became more of an outsider to the Dominican Community because she hung out with non-Dominicans and had a way of life that was to the way of life the private school people had. The eighth grade girl on the other hand was very part of the Dominican community. She played outside with Dominicans and identified very strongly with being a Dominican. She did not go to the private school like Monica did.
The three daughters were all very different and had different experiences as American-Dominicans. For example, Monica was a very Americanized Dominican. She assimilated into the culture of the Americans at her school and seemed slightly offended when people did not recognize her as being Dominican. Her family in the Dominican Republic would tell her that she was Dominican and not American, and she did not like that. Monica also in a way fit into the American dream that is most discussed. Her mom was very poor when she came here and was not educated, but Monica was able to work hard and get a prestigious education, which opened up opportunities to her, in terms of jobs and life style. For example, right after she graduated college she was able to move to a wealthier part of Manhattan and get a job. The middle child had some similar qualities to Monica. She said that she did not want to turn out like some other kids she knew, who also probably came from immigrant families, and she wanted to work hard and be successful in America. She even took initiative by looking for a job for herself, but was fired very quickly. What she wanted to be in America and what was happening to her did not agree. The youngest daughter did not seem to care about being successful in America and also did not identify much with being an American. Considering her carefree lifestyle, her future in America was probably not much of a concern to her.
One part of the documentary that stuck out to me was the part where Monica talked with the other Dominican actress about the Dominican Republic. They were saying that the places their families came from in the Dominican Republic were very different in terms of their cultures. This made me think about the term “Hispanic”, which groups people in Latin America together. Based on the conversation, even saying Dominican is generalizing where someone is from. No matter what someone refers to another person as, a generalization may be made.
