United Kingdom

FHS Oral History Project – Jasdeep Aujla

Jasdeep “Jazzy” Aujla was born in Barking, East London, United Kingdom, in 1990. She emigrated to Central Florida at four years old with her father. Economic difficulties prompted Jasdeep’s parents to leave the UK, while relatives already living in Central Florida facilitated their decision and transition to the Sunshine State. As an Indian immigrant, Jasdeep recalled early challenges acclimating to American culture, from language to aesthetics. She emphasized how the aftermath of 9/11 affected racial views regarding brown people, recounting a personal incident that happened to her while returning home from school. She remembered how, as a teenager, she disassociated from her Indian heritage in an attempt to fit into certain American “clichés,” a concept Jasdeep used constantly throughout her oral history. Jasdeep not only highlighted cultural identity crises throughout moments in her personal life but also connected such instances to larger racial, cultural, and social issues that most immigrants or children of immigrants face when living in America. Additionally, given that she spent her entire life in different parts of the state (resided in Central Florida, graduated college in North Florida, attended law school in South Florida), Jasdeep provided insightful and nuanced observations about Florida generally and what the state has represented for Indians and other ethnic groups since she arrived in 1994.

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