I am thrilled to be a facilitator for the Inheritance Project. The work of unpacking inheritance and identity has deeply shaped who I am as an artist and leader. Below is a bit more about me and what drives me to do this work:
I am a Jew-Yo-Rican artist and my mission is to tell nuanced stories about what it means to be alive in this fragile, complex, and stunning world. My mixed identity and inheritance insist that I make work that is nuanced because I know what it feels like to be pushed into a cultural one-dimensional box.
When I was born, I was given a hyphenated last name: Rebecca Berkman - Rivera. I always loved the way the hyphen looked like a little bridge from my Jewish “Berkman” side to the Puerto Rican “Rivera” side. However, in 2nd grade, Ms. Forlano announced to the class that ‘hyphens’ were unnecessary and forced me to pick one. So I became “Rebecca Berkman.” Tax forms and Doctor's offices would drop my little bridge as well - just write both names, no hyphen needed. Then, a talent agent in my twenties nonchalantly told me “We need to change your name. Take out the Berkman and leave the Rivera. Less confusing. More Hissssspanic” And so, just like that, there was no more hyphen - I was: Rebecca Rivera. “Now we can get you in for more Latina roles.” This erasure was being sold to me like a good thing.
The message was clear: become simpler, less complex, more sellable, hide who you are, and let your name be a comfort to others, a familiar box they can put you in. But hiding inside the shadows of a box takes a toll on your soul and what you think is a comfort to others perpetuates their own oppression as well. When the pain of losing myself became greater than the desire to fit in, I turned to meditation.
From that place, a new name, with ancient roots came to me like a piece of wind “Rivka.” Rivka? Rivka is Hebrew for Rebecca, I knew that much but I had never investigated the Jewish origins of my birth name before. I had never even been to Hebrew school, where would I start? Over a cup of black coffee, I googled and discovered that Rivka means “to bind, to link together, to make whole.” And it hits me…To make whole. To make whole. To make whole. My entire life I had felt pressure to choose between my two sides: Jewish and Puerto Rican. El Barrio and Cobble Hill. Latkes and Arroz con Pollo. But suddenly the act of naming myself, which had caused so much pain, became an act of freedom.
No human identity can be crushed inside one box and yet so many of us are bullied, conditioned, and forced into them. I believe the role of the artist is to free us from this harm by inspiring us back into our true, nuanced selves. We do this by owning our complex stories, histories, and existence. I hope to continue sharing my own nuance with the world and facilitating others to do the same.