One's social location is a key element to really understand who a person is. Nearly every aspect of one's life is preordained by the choices that one will or will not have, depending upon one's environment and being. I feel that my life is no different, and who I have become is directly related to the environment that I was born into, as well as my predetermined characteristics. My grandparents are from the Midwest, and grew up with the classic close-minded attitudes that are common there. My dad, on the other hand, is very open-minded, and I was raised under the same principles. Because I grew up with these values, I am, in turn, open-minded. However, growing up in an open-minded household is not the only reason that I have become who I am. Many factors, including my ethnicity, gender, and family have contributed and even decided who I have become today.
             Regardless of ethnicity, be it a minority or otherwise, everyone is affected by their genetical and cultural backgrounds. Caucasian-Americans, African-Americans, Asian-Americans, Latin-Americans, and every other ethnicity have their own traits. The types of neighborhoods we live in, the values that our families and friends have, and even the opportunity to find employment are all determined in part by our ethnicity. Growing up as a Caucasian-American in America, I inherited many of the concepts that white families teach their children. Many ethnicities, minorities especially, teach their children a sense of community, a sense of helping one another. White families, in general, do not value this idea as strongly as other ethnicities. For me, the world was described more as a dog-eat-dog world, in that everything is a competition, and the only way to succeed is to do better than the next person. I do not personally think that this is a false concept, but merely a different approach to life than the idea of helping one another reach the same common goal. H...