Third Culture Kids, Cultural Appropriation, & Identity

Before the pandemic lockdown, my good friend Kanchan Gautam and I would meet at different San Francisco cafes and parks to discuss our experiences as brown immigrants in the United States. She’s one of my favorite people to speak with, and today Kanchan and I allow you to listen in on a couple of our conversations. We first discuss our experiences as Third Culture Kids, which then evolves into a conversation about cultural appropriation. Next week we’ll discuss the deep roots of colorism in our South Asian and Latin American communities, along with dating while brown in predominantly white spaces.

Kanchan Gautam is a novice birdwatcher, myco-enthusiast, and amateur naturalist. She is proud of her Nepali heritage and she spends time exploring identity and cultural narrative in Oakland, occupied Ohlone territory. 

I had the pleasure of speaking with Kanchan Gautam on July 12th  of 2020. This is the first part of our two-part conversation. Join us next time when we’ll discuss colorism in our South Asian and Latin American communities.

Today’s musical guest is Annah Sidigu, performing her track “The Lynchpin,” which you can find in The Nasiona‘s compilation BIPOC musical album, Volume 1: Petrichor at thenasiona.com.

Annah Sidigu is a songwriter and poet currently residing in the San Francisco Bay area. Her poetry has appeared in The New England Review and is forthcoming in Penumbra. She is the recipient of a Bread Loaf Environmental Writers scholarship and has written reviews of poetry and prose books for Zyzzyva. You can listen to her music on Spotify, Bandcamp, or Soundcloud, and follow her on Facebook or Instagram at Annah Sidigu. Thank you for listening.

 

The Nasiona Podcast amplifies the voices and experiences of the marginalized, undervalued, overlooked, silenced, and forgotten, as well as gives you a glimpse into Othered worlds. We focus on stories that explore the spectrum of human experiences—stories based on facts, truth-seeking, human concerns, real events, and real people, with a personal touch. From liminal lives to the marginalized, and everything in be