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Running Head: Family Ethnicity Paper

Karlie Muxlow
A Study of a Familys Ethnicity
SW 3110

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Family Ethnicity Paper
Introduction
For this paper I interviewed a man named Kunwar Kapoor, who emigrated
first to Canada and then America from India when he was twenty-seven. He traveled
to Canada from India to further expand his education. He ended up marrying and
finishing his education in Canada and then both him and his wife moved to America
for occupational reasons. Throughout Mr. Kapoors journey from India to America, he
never lost his faith in Hinduism and that faith helped pull him through. Although he
and his wife had multiple difficulties, they overcame them and are stronger than
ever now. I was honored to interview him and hope you enjoy the knowledge I
gathered from him as much as I did.

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Family Ethnicity Paper
How the Family or Group May Be Viewed in the Light of its Collective
History
The Kapoor family is primarily viewed as a strong unit that stuck together
during difficult times and learned how to mix or blend two different cultures
together. Mr. Kapoor moved from India to Canada in September of 1974. He ended
up meeting his future wife in 1977 while continuing his education in Canada and
they got married only seven months later. They stuck with each other through
difficult times with their families and financial situations. They also learned how to
blend their cultures together in order to find a happy medium. With only knowing
each other a short time before getting married came some difficult discussions and
decisions in their marriage. Mr. and Mrs. Kapoor knew of the cultural and religious
differences they had but didnt really know how different they were until they were
married. Mr. Kapoor was raised in the Hindu religion and Mrs. Kapoor was raised
catholic. Mr. Kapoor told me that the Hindu culture is very open and the religion
itself is very logical. He said that there are numerous versions and concepts of God
in Hinduism which helped them relate their religions. After some difficult
conversations they both decided to be open and willing to let the other have the
freedom to practice their religion in their own way and not fringe on each other. This
helped them blend both cultures into their daily lives.
What are the Sources of Cohesion, Identity and Strength, Stress,
Discord and Strife that are Evident as the Result of the Groups Reality?
Over the years the Kapoor family has kept cohesion by being open with each
other and not giving up during difficult times. The source of this cohesion comes
from the love they have for one another. They knew no matter what they faced they

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could get through because they had each other. Mrs. Kapoor mentioned that their
open communication really helped keep them close as a couple.
They identify with both Indian and Canadian cultures. The Hindu culture is
very open and blending is a natural phenomenon in Hinduism. They were willing to
accept the differences they had or their relationship wouldnt have worked. They
found strength in their family and the love they had in each other. Mrs. Kapoor said
that when life got difficult from family issues to money problems, they would lean
on each other and that love they have would bring them through the difficult
situations.
Mr. Kapoor faced a large amount of stress when trying to obtain a visa and
passport to get from India to Canada. He first had to get a passport from the Indian
government and then had to apply for a visa with the Canadian Embassy in New
Delhi, India. The process for both his passport and visa was difficult and very long.
Arranging the money for travel expenses was also a source of stress because it was
a large amount of money at one time. His family was supportive of his decision to
expand his education overseas so they were extremely helpful with paying. Stress
was also faced from the couple when they chose to move from Canada to America.
Job opportunities were limited in his field of education (Ph.D. in Mathematics). He
ended up going back to school for a Masters in computer science because they were
in great demand in America at the time. They moved to America for better job
opportunities for him.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Kapoor experienced both discord and strife during the
period of unacceptance of their families of their relationship. Both of their parents
were very skeptical of the idea of marrying a foreigner. Mrs. Kapoor finally had the

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support of her sister, brother-in-law, and her aunt which helped finally win her
parents over to her decision to marry Mr. Kapoor. Mr. Kapoors family on the other
hand took more of an effort to win over. His family was skeptical of him marrying
someone who wasnt from India, but more importantly, someone who wasnt Hindu.
His mother ended up coming to live with them for a year and during that time finally
accepted their marriage. She went back to India and convinced his father and other
family members that the decision was ok and since then both families have grown
on each other.
How Are Roles Assigned In Relation To Gender and Age?
Mr. Kapoor told me that while he was growing up in India, the role
assignments based on gender and age were not much different from that in
America. He did tell me though about how ancient Hinduism had very specific role
assignments. In ancient Hinduism, a mans life had four stages: Brahmacharya,
Grihastha, Vanprastha, and Sannyasa. The brahmacharya is the celibate student
stage which lasts until the age twenty-five. During this period a male leaves home
to stay with a guru and get spiritual and practical knowledge to prepare him for
future responsibilities. The Grihastha is the married family man which begins with
marriage and lasts until around the age of fifty. This is a time when the man starts
providing for his family. The vanaprastha is considered the hermit retreat. This stage
begins when a man turns fifty and his duty to provide for his family ends. In this
stage a man retires from his family and goes to live in a forest to spend his time
praying. He is allowed to bring his wife along but is supposed to have little contact
with his family. The Sannyasa stage is called the wandering recluse. This is when a
man totally devotes himself to God.

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Women also had stages in ancient Hinduism. These stages are as follows: a
child protected by her father, as a married woman protected by her husband, and
as a widow protected by her eldest son. In ancient India, girls did not receive a
formal education because they were to preserve social and cultural values learned
at home. Hinduism forbids premarital sex and girls were married at a very young
age by their family. A womans role was to run the home not to earn income. If her
husband died or when he entered vanaprastha, the woman would be looked after by
her eldest living son. Elder women were greatly respected during this time.
How Does the Group Function in Relation to Other Systems?
The Kapoor family functions normally in regards to other systems. Mr. Kapoor
has a Ph.D. in Mathematics and a Masters in Computer Science so he functions very
well in the educational systems. He is a minority concerning his religious beliefs in
Hinduism. He functions well in the occupational systems which is probably because
of his educational experience. He also functions well in our judicial system; he has
even served on the United States jury.
How Does the Family Function as a Transmitter of Cultural Values?
The family is very open with their cultural values. They had some difficulties
when they first started out, as discussed earlier, but managed to make it through.
They decided not to influence one religion over the other or mix them, but rather
enabled their children to make their own choices. They made their children aware of
both cultures and the differences between them and let them decide what they
wanted to believe or follow. Mr. Kapoor did pass on a few aspects of his culture that
he felt were important, however. He highly values respect for elders, fulfilling
promises made to others at all costs, and taking your responsibilities seriously.

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These values he transmitted to his children to help make them well rounded
individuals of society.
How Does This Group Compare With Information Contained of People of
Similar Identity?
When looking into information about Immigrants from India to America I
found that as a whole, Immigrants from India are better educated, are more likely to
have strong English language skills and arrive on employment-based visas, and are
less likely to live in poverty. This compares to Mr. Kapoors situation because
although he started his journey to Canada for education, he ended up in America
because of employment. He also is extremely educated and lives far from poverty. I
found that Indian Immigrants also are concentrated in the working ages than
immigrants overall, and Indian-born men outnumber Indian-born women. In 2011,
India was the second most common country of origin for international students at
U.S. institutions of higher learning, behind China (Migration Policy Institute).
Implications for Social Work
The micro level of social work is working more on an individual basis with a
client. In Mr. Kapoors case, a social worker could be needed if he had gotten
extremely home sick or depression of leaving his home in India and traveling to a
place where he knew no one. A social worker could also have helped ease the
transition on the families of the marriage they didnt accept at first. On the other
hand, macro level social work deals more with connecting to organizations. You
need to be able to speech English to adequately go to school and work in the United
States for the most part, so helping if there was a language barrier would help on
both micro and macro levels. Getting Mr. Kapoor into a support group for Indian

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immigrants could also be helpful to him during that time period. Lastly, if there were
any instances of discrimination in either the educational or work place a social
worker would be needed to end that discrimination.

References
Indian Immigrants in the United States. (2013, August 21). Retrieved November 5, 2014.