It is important to get to know people that are different than you. Penn State has a diverse population with people from all over the globe. At home, my friends and I come from the same background and are predominantly white. My town is also mainly white but does have a few diverse groups within it. I was given this assignment to interview someone I have never met and is from a different racial group and background than me. One of my friends introduced me to Garrett. I got in touch with him and asked him if he felt comfortable to do an interview on his background. He gladly said yes. I am happy that I met Garrett and was able to interview him because I learned a lot about Argentinian culture and his experience at PSU.

Today I interviewed Garrett Hassinger, a Sophomore here at Penn State. Garrett and I come from different backgrounds. Garrett is 19 and Argentinian. Both of his parents were born there and then they moved to the United States. He has two siblings back at home also. Garrett chose Penn State because he loved the atmosphere and the large campus. He said they had a lot of majors to offer. He also said that when he was a freshman his major was undecided. Currently, he is looking into being in the business school.

Garrett has many hobbies. These include soccer, hiking and swimming. He played a lot of soccer throughout his childhood. His interests include nature and he loves going to the beach. Garrett says that many of his friends are similar to him. They all like to watch soccer and play soccer together. Garrett says his friends are mostly Mexican and White.

During the holiday time Garrett and his family have many traditions. They celebrate Christmas, however on a more religious level. He described it as “it’s not about the gifts its more about the religious aspect of the holiday.” He also celebrates an Argentinian holiday called St. Matins Day. St. Martins Day is celebrated November 11 of each year. He describes it as the feast day of Saint Martin of Tours. This is when autumn wheat seeding was completed and the yearly slaughter of cattle produced “Martinmas Beef”. Garrett says on this Holiday they drink a special drink.

We then began to talk about his customs and living here at PSU as a person of color. When Garrett speaks fluent Spanish out loud in front of people he says people are always stunned and say “No way!” and make him translate what he had previously just said back to English. Garrett loves to follow Argentinian soccer. He says his family and him always gather around the TV to watch their favorite team and cheer them on. Garrett and his family also do Argentinian dances. He says the most popular dance in Argentina is the famous Tango. It is a strong staple in their country.

I then asked Garrett if he has been called out for any different stereotypes. He says that his parents are the ones who get the “Are you poor since you are from South America” stereotype. Garrett has been asked if his family left South America due to its violence which he said is untrue. Garrett also said that many of his friends assume he is good at soccer because he is Argentinian. He also said that people ask him if he likes Argentinian food better or American food. He says he likes American food better.

I moved on to asking Garrett what type of media he consumes. He told me we consume the same type of media such as Instagram and Snapchat. However, something different he does is that he listens to the pope. I am Jewish on the other hand and I am not that religious compared to him. He will listen to Argentinian news when something big happens. He likes to be up to date on his country.

When I asked Garrett his plans for the future he hopes to be a successful business man and have a stable job. He also is looking forward to this coming school year. He likes to attend Penn State football games, THON and is a part of various clubs.

Comparing Garrett and I, we are similar and different in many ways. We both are interested in the same things such as going to the beach. Garrett says he enjoys hiking which I agree on too. Garrett and his family are more religious than mine are. He goes to church a lot and celebrates Christmas. I however, am Jewish and my family is not as religious. Garrett likes to play soccer and watch soccer. I am not a fan of soccer nor do I like to watch it.

Garrett is very much still in his Argentinian culture since he keeps up with their news and watches their sports on television. He even said he listens to the pope sometimes. I am a typical White American and I do keep with the current news in society. I enjoy reading magazines and for COMM class I even enjoy reading the newspaper. Both Garrett and I use typical teenage social media such as Snapchat and Instagram. Garrett said that both of his parents were born in Argentina. Both of my parents were born in the United States, New Jersey and Florida.

Overall, I had a really fun experience getting to interview someone I had not previously known. It opened up my horizons on a new culture I did not know much about. In high school I took Spanish class all four years but I did not get a good look into Argentinian culture. Garrett taught me a lot during a short amount of time and I even told him a little bit about my culture. Participating in the Interview of Color was an eye-opening experience and I am glad I had this assignment. Now whenever I see Garrett I have a friendly face on campus and a new person I enjoyed getting to know.