Researchers have reported an evolution or change in progress in the Cajun identity, though their intuitions have not been confirmed empirically. The traditional membership borders of what a community consists of no longer apply in the case of Cajun. In order to understand these questions of identity and belonging, and to scientifically control the interpretation of the linguistic behavior of Cajun speakers, a general survey has been conducted on the linguistic attitudes and cultural identity of a sample of 929 individuals stratified by age and sex from four communities. Our results show that Cajun identity rests fundamentally in the linguistic ability of the speakers, regardless of the age group one is in: the more one has access to the Cajun language, the more one self-identifies as Cajun. In general, respondents claim that the necessary criteria to be considered Cajun are just those criteria that they themselves satisfy.We will demonstrate that there appear to be several`paths' to take insofar as the Cajun community identity in Louisiana is concerned. However, this segmentation obviously has not been established or maintained without creating considerable tension between members of the cultural Cajun community.
Creole identity in Louisiana acquired diverse meanings
for several ethnic groups during the French and Spanish
regimes, before and after the purchase of the Louisiana
Territory, and through the last part of the 20th century.
In spite of a strong shift toward “Black” identity
by many African Americans in the state, those who are fluent
Creole French speakers now seem to be the repository of
Louisiana Creole identity. This article presents a diachronic
study of the different meanings applied to Creole identity
which resulted from dramatic social, political, and economic
changes. It also delimits and defines the actual attributes
of Creole identity within two representative African American
communities. Because of the historical and political conditions
underlying Creole identity, African Americans who still
identify as Creoles insist on linguistic attributes, rather
than on the criterion of race, as essential characteristics
of their ethnic identity.
The described interdisciplinary course helped a mixed population of in-service secondary English and biology teacher-participants increase their genetics content knowledge and awareness of Ethical, Legal, and Social Implications (ELSI) that arose from discoveries and practices associated with the Human Genome Project. This was accomplished by applying a critical literacy approach that allows people develop cognitive skills such that they are able to “read the world” (Wink, 2004). The approach is one that permits readers to go beyond the literal text to examine what is present as well as what is missing as it relates to issues of equity and fairness. Becoming critically literate enabled these teacher-participants to challenge the subtle attitudes, values, and beliefs conveyed by a range of written and oral texts. The teacher-participants in this course improved their critical literacy skills by actively reading, critically writing about, and using evidence to support their conclusions about issues arising from advances in human genetics. A biologist, a linguist, and an educator collaboratively designed and taught the course. The personalized focus on the integration of thoughtful reading and writing in this class enhanced the teacher-participants' (n = 16) professional and intellectual development and will potentially improve learning in their biology and English classrooms in the future.
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