The Multicultural Autobiography

Following are descriptions of what should be included in the Multicultural Autobiography. This assignment will focus on the development of your racial, ethnic, gender, sexual orientation, social class, and religious identities. The narrative is a way of providing your critical analysis, thinking, and personal reflections regarding the aforementioned aspects of your identities. In completing this assignment, please make note of specific incidents and experiences (i.e., early childhood to the present) that may have contributed to this awareness. Identify and differentiate between those aspects of your awareness that came from personal experiences, media, experts, group experiences, or family interactions as you write about your group identities.

In instances where you have no clear history to report, you should discuss and speculate about your lack of awareness. For example, what does it mean not to be consciously aware of race or social class? Is it as significant to your development if you were raised in a homogenous social class, race, religious setting, community, family? You should thoroughly explore the stated (or obvious) and unstated issues, even if you have not thought about these areas before.

The narrative should demonstrate thoughtful reflection and introspection in relation to the overall quality, content, organization/development, and grammar/syntax. You should begin writing this assignment during the first week of class and revise it based on your involvement in the course. It is assumed that the course readings, lectures, and discussions will provide a context for your understanding of the areas that are discussed in this paper. Each area should follow the above specifications and represent thorough, high quality of work.
For this assignment, you are required to address a total of six Identity Categories:
1. Racial Identity
2. Ethnic Identity
3. Gender Identity
4. Sexual Orientation Identity
5. Social Class Identity
6. Religious Identity.