Identity

My ISTORIA Series

Today I created an id.me account. It utilized facial recognition to verify my identity, after I uploaded the driver's license. I began thinking about identity. What is it composed of? The British had their ideas in the past with their colonies. My family visited Cyprus when I was 16 years old. We had saved and saved for years for the trip, stopping in Athens first to visit friends, then onto the island of Cyprus. I was 16 years old, and had an understanding of the culture of my extended family. We had conversations about identity. Who was I? I had grown up in the US, and did they ever resent that. It seemed that everything they heard was over glorified about our culture, and they wanted it. From our Doritos, to Ben & Jerry's to credit, tv shows, rock n roll and movies.

When Great Britain colonized Cyprus, they intentionally took action to destroy the identity of my family. How could you do this for generations to come? My paternal grandfather's name was George Bifanis. The British mandated that my father (his son) take a last name from his father's first name. The last name Georghiou was born. For some reason, my dad wanted to be different, so he included the 'h.' Normally it is spelled Georghiou.

I happily grew up with the last name of Georghiou, not realizing where it came from. As I got to know my relatives on my father's side of the family, I realized my cousins all had different last names. If someone wanted to track where we were from, they could not connect us with anyone from a last name. With Artificial Intelligence, and databases, this is no longer an issue. Back in the 30's-50's it was a tactic deployed to separate families.

That begs the question, who are we, where do we come from, & what identifies us? The id.me account scanned my face and verified me. Prior to the pandemic shut down of 2020, I received Global Entry status. I got this because it was a perk with my American Express card. I met with an agent at the airport when I was entering the US from a trip to Portugal in 2019. She asked me questions, scanned my passport, took a photo and fingerprinted me. The photo was true to form, as I had just arrived from an international flight. Who looks their best for a photo? I learned a while back not to wear makeup, as it smears throughout the flight. In 2016, I arrived in the Chicago airport with mascara all over my face and I encountered the airline desk asking for amenities as our connecting flight was delayed. They did not bat an eye to give me a meal voucher. I looked rough.

In February of 2020, I celebrated a milestone birthday in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. As I returned to the US, I entered the special space for Global Entry bypassing the long lines. Usually, when entering the US I would scan my passport on a machine, be given a receipt after my picture was taken, and hand this to the border agent. With the new process, I simply stood in front of a camera. It took my photo and printed the receipt. No need to scan the passport. I handed the border agent the receipt with my photo and passport and went on my way. People looked at me funny when I remarked it knew who I was. Maybe they were tired. Maybe they thought I was naive. We are in a new world. We can be identified walking around with cameras in public, our neighborhoods, businesses, etc. For me, identity has taken another meaning. It no longer matters what my last name is. I am identified, connected & known in a greater way than I ever thought I would be.