Welcome to the Bay Area!
Only whites and Asians accepted.
Although this is not completely true, this stereotype has weaved its way into society and many people have come to identify with it.
Chloe Kelly, a junior who moved to San Carlos from Florida in 2015, said, “Before I moved here, I saw the Bay as a technology hub that was exclusive to wealthy people that were Asian or white. Everyone kind of saw the Bay Area as just San Francisco, full of young, privileged people that paid rent with tech money.”
Many have formed a similar idea of the average person from the Bay Area due to their experiences living here.
“A lot of people here are Asian or white, or some mix including those races, and we are really perceived as a community that values technology. I guess the average Bay Area person would be someone who is of those races that likes technology,” said Mikayla Fong, a senior.
Whether it stems from far away places or from the heart of the Bay, the reputation of the Bay Area is that it is predominantly white and Asian, wealthy, and technology oriented.
Despite the falsity of many other stereotypes, these expectations hold true, to a certain extent.
According to the Bay Area Census, the overall Bay Area population is 42 percent white and 24 percent Asian, Pacific Islander, or Hawaiian. Meanwhile, the Carlmont population is 44 percent white and 18 percent Asian, Pacific Islander, or Hawaiian, according to the California Department of Education.
Furthering the legitimacy of these stereotypes is the fact that the assumptions being made highlight physical and mental constructs that many young adults in the Bay Area identify with.
“I think I fit the majority of the stereotype because I’m white and I definitely feel pressured to go into a technology-related career. My parents want me to do something computer related because you can earn a lot of money that way,” said Ana Bazgan, a junior.
In a study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology by Michael Inzlicht, a professor of psychology at the University of Toronto, the stress of stereotype confirmation is proven to have negative consequences on those being typecasted by the expectations.
“Studies have shown that people perform poorly in situations where they feel they are being stereotyped,” said Inzlicht, according to U.S. News.
Many experience this effect as they see parts of themselves reflected in the physical stereotypes but disagree with what those stereotypes imply about their personality.
Edward Vendrow, a junior, said, “I definitely fit in with the Bay Area programmer stereotype and I’m white, so that’s two features that I identify with. But I think the programmer stereotype comes with the idea that I’m super nerdy and socially awkward, which I think, or hope, I don’t actually fit into.”
Although many find that they can fit the physical definitions of what someone from the Bay Area is expected to be, they also see many ways in which they differ from the stereotypical expectations.
“I’d say the main difference between who I am and who the stereotypes describe is my personality. A stereotype can describe actions or trends, but it can’t really define who a person is. For example, I fit into the surface-level ideas of a white person who is into technology but that’s just a boring description of me that leaves out what makes me who I am,” said Bazgan.
Others see themselves as outcasts because they do not identify with the stereotypes at all.
“I definitely don’t fit the usual Bay Area stereotype because I’m African American. That creates a whole different set of things that are expected of me, and they are mostly negative,” said Amanda Morrow, a junior. “I don’t fit those expectations either because I’m not ‘ghetto’ like people assume I am.
Bay Area cliches, like many other stereotypes about race, are often seen as exaggerations rather than truths.
Angie Vinarskaya, a junior, said, “The stereotypes that I hear are mostly things that stem from the prejudice and racism of the past. Modern stereotypes like those of the Bay Area are just exaggerations of what other people see through the media.”
Despite the truths that back parts of these stereotypes, other aspects of the groups that are being generalized provide a contrast from what they are expected to be and create individual human beings out of people that are deemed to be the same.
“The stereotypes do cover a good amount of people, but I don’t think that they include the majority because that’s impossible. Even those that fit the expectations aren’t 100 percent defined by those characteristics, and I’m sure that there’s plenty of people in each group that don’t fit what is being stereotyped at all,” said Bazgan. “Stereotypes are just generalizations, not definitions.”
The Highlander, May 2017
Only whites and Asians accepted.
Although this is not completely true, this stereotype has weaved its way into society and many people have come to identify with it.
Chloe Kelly, a junior who moved to San Carlos from Florida in 2015, said, “Before I moved here, I saw the Bay as a technology hub that was exclusive to wealthy people that were Asian or white. Everyone kind of saw the Bay Area as just San Francisco, full of young, privileged people that paid rent with tech money.”
Many have formed a similar idea of the average person from the Bay Area due to their experiences living here.
“A lot of people here are Asian or white, or some mix including those races, and we are really perceived as a community that values technology. I guess the average Bay Area person would be someone who is of those races that likes technology,” said Mikayla Fong, a senior.
Whether it stems from far away places or from the heart of the Bay, the reputation of the Bay Area is that it is predominantly white and Asian, wealthy, and technology oriented.
Despite the falsity of many other stereotypes, these expectations hold true, to a certain extent.
According to the Bay Area Census, the overall Bay Area population is 42 percent white and 24 percent Asian, Pacific Islander, or Hawaiian. Meanwhile, the Carlmont population is 44 percent white and 18 percent Asian, Pacific Islander, or Hawaiian, according to the California Department of Education.
Furthering the legitimacy of these stereotypes is the fact that the assumptions being made highlight physical and mental constructs that many young adults in the Bay Area identify with.
“I think I fit the majority of the stereotype because I’m white and I definitely feel pressured to go into a technology-related career. My parents want me to do something computer related because you can earn a lot of money that way,” said Ana Bazgan, a junior.
In a study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology by Michael Inzlicht, a professor of psychology at the University of Toronto, the stress of stereotype confirmation is proven to have negative consequences on those being typecasted by the expectations.
“Studies have shown that people perform poorly in situations where they feel they are being stereotyped,” said Inzlicht, according to U.S. News.
Many experience this effect as they see parts of themselves reflected in the physical stereotypes but disagree with what those stereotypes imply about their personality.
Edward Vendrow, a junior, said, “I definitely fit in with the Bay Area programmer stereotype and I’m white, so that’s two features that I identify with. But I think the programmer stereotype comes with the idea that I’m super nerdy and socially awkward, which I think, or hope, I don’t actually fit into.”
Although many find that they can fit the physical definitions of what someone from the Bay Area is expected to be, they also see many ways in which they differ from the stereotypical expectations.
“I’d say the main difference between who I am and who the stereotypes describe is my personality. A stereotype can describe actions or trends, but it can’t really define who a person is. For example, I fit into the surface-level ideas of a white person who is into technology but that’s just a boring description of me that leaves out what makes me who I am,” said Bazgan.
Others see themselves as outcasts because they do not identify with the stereotypes at all.
“I definitely don’t fit the usual Bay Area stereotype because I’m African American. That creates a whole different set of things that are expected of me, and they are mostly negative,” said Amanda Morrow, a junior. “I don’t fit those expectations either because I’m not ‘ghetto’ like people assume I am.
Bay Area cliches, like many other stereotypes about race, are often seen as exaggerations rather than truths.
Angie Vinarskaya, a junior, said, “The stereotypes that I hear are mostly things that stem from the prejudice and racism of the past. Modern stereotypes like those of the Bay Area are just exaggerations of what other people see through the media.”
Despite the truths that back parts of these stereotypes, other aspects of the groups that are being generalized provide a contrast from what they are expected to be and create individual human beings out of people that are deemed to be the same.
“The stereotypes do cover a good amount of people, but I don’t think that they include the majority because that’s impossible. Even those that fit the expectations aren’t 100 percent defined by those characteristics, and I’m sure that there’s plenty of people in each group that don’t fit what is being stereotyped at all,” said Bazgan. “Stereotypes are just generalizations, not definitions.”
The Highlander, May 2017