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One institution that shaped who i am is my religion. This is important to me because my mother is jewish and my father was muslim so both of these religions are somewhat present in my life. Although my father is not here anymore my mother still respect his families islamic beliefs and values. whenever i go to my grandmothers house she trys to instill good morals and values in me through religion and my mother does/did the same as i was growing up. with religion you learn to be more patient and understanding of others which is something that will help you in your future endeavors. Religion can have a profound effect on people who truly believe in it but for me i got to see the beauty of two major religions on this planet. this allowed me to be more open minded and sympathetic with others.

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My family has definitely shaped who I am today because they have high expectations for me which has influenced me to become the person I am today.  Because of the fact that my family has such high expectations from me,  I am always on top of my work. I take pride in what I do and have no shame doing it. My family taught me how to be confident growing up. This has impacted me because I'm not afraid to stand up for myself and my beliefs/ what I think is right.

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My family is one of the institutions that shape has made me grow throughout my life. My mom is the one I have learned to be independent; she has always taught me to do things with love and patience, and show respect to the people who respect me, she always tells me who doesn't take risks doesn't learn. She influences the person I am now because she has taught me to be a respectful, kind and empathic person, always be grateful. The opportunities you have it's only in you if you know how take advantage of them, my family told me. I'm sure they will continue to influence my life, but I appreciate every word and advice my family has given me.

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Religion has been the biggest source of my characteristics. I am Muslim which means I practice the religion Islam. Islam is a religion that controls all of our actions from major things like pilgrimage, to minor things like using the bathroom. Literally! Any activity that you might think of that a human being would do in their every day lives, there is a decree or rule about it that we have faith in. It is because of how much the religion expands throughout everything in our lives that makes religion so influencing to my life. There are prayers that we recite before doing certain things like leaving and entering a house, cooking, or starting and ending something etc. Our religion also has it's form of Science and order of how the world works. It changes our point of views of society and our natural universe. So Islam is a religion that informs us about the world, and it gives us commands on how to be better Muslims, and better human beings. So such a religion is obviously a great influence on how I think and act in my life. And it will continue to till the end of my time.

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I feel the institution that shaped me the most would have to be my family (my mom and god parents). I'm proud of the person i've become thanks to my family. I am an only child and was raised by my single mother. My mom has showed me that one can achieve anything without doubting ones self. My god parenst have also raised me along side with my mom. Since my mom was working most time she left me to be taken care of. I've had plenty of babysitters until my godparents became apart of my life and took on more than just babysitting but showered me with love , made me feel like their own kid. They taught me to show people love when they need it the most. They taught me how to be polite , how to speak , whats right and what isnt . They also taught me to forgive ,When i was growing up my mom and i didnt get along very well and i was angry about it for the longest until my god mother told me to understand that my mom has been through a lot and that although i was frustrated i needed to be more understanding. My mom has been through a lot and because of this she doesn't trust anyone and she holds grudges , but because i was taught by my godmother that holding grudges isnt good for one wells being thats how i live. Meanwhile i tell my mom that she should leave the past in the past. My mom is a very hard woman nothing can break her easily. I got some of her charachter traits but i mostly am the way i am because of my godmother. These two woman are the reason why i keep pushing. My mom was left alone in a country in which she knew nothing about and decided to stay even if it meant to struggle with everything ,she kept pushing towards a better future for me and i will always cherish my mother for that. My god mother has been there for me ever since i was 5 she saw me grow up she held me when my mom couldn't, attend to school events when my mom couldn't she did everything my mom couldnt due to if my mom didnt work we would struggle finically. i think that people i was surrounded by and the events that happened in my life shaped the person i am . As well my mom is catholic although we dont often go to church i always pray to god for blessing me with another day .

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My religion has impacted me immensely. My family has been catholic for as long as I can remember and going to church was always a drag to me, but when all I had was time to sit and ponder questions during quarantine, I pondered questions of my faith and who I wanted to be as a person. As children we are all taught right from wrong, good, and bad etc. I was taught the same, but I also had questions, how do I know what is morally good? Am I a good person? My religion has given me the answers that all my life I search for even to this day.  It has also made my morals and values by nature positive as well. I was taught Iam everything and nothing, I am only a vessel for a greater purpose and that all life is beautiful. I was taught to love my neighbor and to spread kindness and the word of God. I will admit as well that I still sin, I am not perfect but through God I will always try to be a better person and pray for forgiveness.

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Many institutions can shape someone and the one and most influential institution that shaped me was my family. Not only are they the most influential institution in shaping who I am, they are the most important thing I have. Without my family, I would genuinely be nowhere. My parents have taught me so much it would be impossible to list everything. They taught me to always be a good person and have faith. Another value they have taught me is to always strive and do the best you can in whatever you do. They have also shown me that It is important to be grateful for what you have and that value will stick with me forever. They gave me life and taught me important values to live my life in a healthy way and to the fullest. Since I am an older brother, having a little sister has taught me I have to be a good role model and take care of her. The most important value my family has taught me is that family comes first and I will be forever grateful for all my family has done for me.

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My family is one of the institutions that shape the individual that I am today. My mother to be specific. As a kid, my mother taught me how to be respectful to others, to mind my business, not envy other people because of what they have, not to take stuff from strangers, and how to be empathetic to others. Looking back I feel like if my mother didn't teach me these things I wouldn't be the calm and positive person I am today. My mother has always been there for me since the day I was born, She's very supportive and always makes sure to come to check up on me mentally and physically. I will always appreciate my mother because as a single mother, she always fought for me, and gave her son all she could afford. Coming all the way from the Dominican Republic To New York, she made hard decisions so her kids could have a better future. This is why my mom has had a big impact/influence on my life and I would never take her for granted.

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An institution I'd say has shaped me as a person would be my family. I come from a Dominican family with a mother and grandmother who came from there. Due to them being from the country itself it is a very different experience from growing up here. The United States is more diverse and can be more accepting of things that wouldn't be there. One big thing is relationships and gender roles. Growing up as a woman in my household I have always been expected to be a certain way due to it, I was expected to learn to clean, cook, have children, and not ask for any help as a young girl. It was very unfair to a girl in her younger years; I had to do everything on my own from a young age. growing up I wanted to be perfect in my family eyes, the daughter who did what she was told, never getting in trouble and so on. Due to living onto what I thought they wanted from me I never took time to learn anything about myself. Being a Hispanic woman there are so many stereotypes you are expected to have and live up to. I even lost touch with my culture trying to be the perfect daughter. By sophomore year I decided to learn more about myself and also retouching with my culture a bit more. Now I speak more Spanish, learned things about myself and what I enjoy. Around the same time, I started to learn more things about myself, my mom did as well. The things expected of me started to become less in the stereotypical way, but things are still rooted in the way she was grown up on other aspects. It's extremely hard to break patterns that you were forced into; but I plan to break them, just because I do things differently does not make me any less Dominican or any less loved. I hope I can show that to my family as well.

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The institution that shaped who I am is my family. Ever since I was a kid, I have been taught to respect others, most importantly, elders. This has made me a person who finds it difficult to say no to others and is shy around others, especially elders in my family. But it has also made me more open-minded, non-judgmental, and mindful of others. My family also carries a different perspective, one that is from another country, and that has shaped the family dynamics and how we are as people. This culture has shaped my morals and what I am expected to be and do as a woman. But my mother has also taught me that it is alright to not follow these expectations and has broken the cycle of my family and their culture, which could be toxic towards women at times. My family is the institution that has shaped me into who I am now and will continue to be.

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There are many institutions that surrounds us and are key factors on the person that we are today, however the most important institution for me and for many is my family. Family is the first institution I was ever part of, my family is responsible for who I am today because as I grew up I learned about life from them, I learnt weather things were bad or good, how to be responsible for what I do and what to believe in. Aside from these things they have also taught me one of the most important things that anyone should utilize VLUES, every family has different values but they are all important because these values not only shape who we are and becoming but also helps us fit in better into society and be someone who's respectful to others ect. Family is responsible for teaching us many fundamental beliefs and values however I don't agree with every single one of them, an example of this could be how "men aren't as organized as women" I do not agree with this because me and my little brother like to have our things neat and organized but my sisters tend to be more messy than mines. My family has also encouraged me to study and go to college I do not fully agree with this but I see where they are coming from, they want to make sure I have a bright and secure future ahead by going to college but I don't necessarily fully believe in this because there are many other things outside college that secure a bright future ahead for me. Family has also impacted the way I eat because when I was little they always made sure I ate a lot of vegetables fruits, proteins and made sure I ate mostly homemade food and not processed foods and I am very thankful for all of this because it has helped me maintain my body strong and healthy and it has also helped me so much now that I go to the gym because I'm used to eating no-processed foods that I can easily enjoy homemade meals that are healthy and contribute to my diet. To summarize Family is a key institution that shapes us all from the very beginning of our life and influences every single aspect of our selves and who we are today.

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My parents is something that has impacted my way of thinking and looking at things for the rest of my life. They have shaped me into someone where anything I do is never good enough and they will always expect more from me. I believe that it is more of a hispanic characteristic where talking down to your children and make them feel like they can't confide in their own parents is unfortunately common. However, I was able to shape myself by being a sort of co-parent to my three younger siblings. From a young age I was given many obligations in regards to overseeing my siblings very often. It shaped me into creating my own beliefs such as I will do my best to continue to be a significant figure for my siblings because they are like my children. And if I were to ever have children, to always make them feel like their voice is heard because to me family should come first.

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An institution that shaped me into who I am today would be my Religion. Religion has had such a huge impact on my life. My Religion has molded me into being the person I am today. It has taught me a lot of valuable lessons in my life. My religion has influenced me in many different ways. Since I was younger, religion was always a priority in my life. My religion has taught me to always have faith and to never give up even when times get tough, always pray. My religion has been part of my life since I was at a young age. As a Hindu, my religion has taught me that as a young woman, I must have respect for myself as well as for others around me. Every since I was younger, Sunday was always church (Mandir) day. That day would be the day we go and pray. We would listen to the different scriptures and readings, that has been a part of my life and it's something I can't get rid of.

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Many institutions shaped the person that I am today, but the most important one would be my family. They have been there since my birth and have had a more lasting impact on me than any other. They have taught me to be respectful, to be friendly, to be nice, to have empathy, and to be careful. They have taught me to be aware of my surroundings, to always know who's in the room with me, to never be alone at night, to be in crowded spaces, and to not show fear. I have taken every one of these lessons and accepted them as law, but one of their teachings has refused to stick. They have taught me family dynamics, and how the men work and the women cook and clean. Sure they have taught me that I should pursue a career and that they will support me in any decision I make, but in the end that all goes along with marriage, having a family of my own, and my role in that path. I have challenged that belief and unknowingly they have taught me to fight for what I believe in, choose to not back down from my beliefs, and speak up when they are challenged in turn. To not let others dictate how I want to live my life and to not let roles define who I am.

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My family took a big part in shaping who I am today. The way I act, the way I think and the way I interact with others is because of them. I was always told treat others how you want to be treated, I was taught to be open minded to everything and I was always told to use my manners. I think these are my top 3 take aways from growing up. I definitely feel that I shaped them as well. I think I do the same thing for them that they do for me. I keep them on their toes about being open to new things and norms.

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A consider institution that shaped me is Religion. Religion shaped me out because its always has been apart of me. Being a Muslim women  my Religion has its core values, respected norms that I always had to fallow.    As well as ever Muslim women I was always given expectations. That includes wearing appropriate attire( long sleeve dress, hijab, or anything that covers up your body. Growing up I was told that if I ever disregarded the Islamic rules, it will bring shame to the Islamic religion. My religion is apart from any religion because of different beliefs. Even though its hard for me to fallow the rules my religion shapes me out as a person and human being.

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My family are the people who shaped me to become a better person. My family are the people who helped me grow and teach me to always respected others especially my teachers, they showed me to do better and for that I always love and care for my family. But also in my community like the bronx there are things that I'm used to like my deli that I go to and the commute like the train I always go to go to school and the people around me, they are also people/ things that has helped me become the person I am and how I will become in the future. Without them then they don't shape me like how I am today.

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I believe my family shaped who I am especially my mom. I say this because growing up my mom always showed me and my brothers that we can do anything we put our minds to. Anytime I said "I can't" she would tell me to take "can't" out of my vocabulary. Instead of giving up too fast to actually try. Ever since I have always tried over and over again before asking for any help from anyone, whether it was teachers, family members, or even friends. This allowed me to be independent and not rely on anyone when I needed help because I knew deep down inside I could do it on my own if I put in enough effort. Also in today's class, a lot of people talked about women doing most chores in their household. I'm the only girl in my family besides my mom and I do most of the cleaning around the house whenever my mom doesn't. My brothers just make the house a mess and leave me to pick it up afterward. This ties back to macro-level analysis because it shows a trend between different groups when it relates to gender norms.

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In one paragraph, you will consider which institutions shaped who you are. More specifically, you'll choose one institution and examine its influence on you--and question whether you have any role in shaping that institution in turn. For example, how might religion shape your morals, beliefs, sexuality, or approach to relationships and dating?

You are not limited to religion--you can focus on schools, media, or any other institution you're interested in.

And remember, you only need to focus on one institution in your response! For example, if you select religion as an institution and want to explore its impact on shaping your value system, then just focus on religion! You can connect religion to other institutions if you want, but you don't have to!

Some examples of institutions you can consider in terms of how they shaped you as an individual and how you as an individual shape them are:

the family

media

religion

government

capitalism

racism

gender

sexual orientation