Children in immigrant families often don’t have language to identify what we’re experiencing. Is it spankings or beatings, discipline or trauma? Much of what happens behind closed doors is normalized because it has gone on for generations. However, that doesn’t make it alright. Not everything can be included under the umbrella of culture.
When we don’t know what to call something, we also don’t know how it affects us. If it’s just what happens, we tend to minimize how painful it is. But calling it out for what it is gives it the proper attention and weight. To name something means to identify and examine it, to possibly change it or keep it the same. Naming ultimately helps us see how we see ourselves.
An article by Sunil Noronha powerfully describes the harm endured by a child who is beaten under the guise of discipline: Spare the child, stash the rod, it’s time to make your minds broad
Name what you feel. It holds power.
Photo by James Wheeler on Unsplash
