The fuchsia nail polish reminds me of the "Blue Jeans." For children of immigrants who disliked their parents' values, icons of American culture seem to have held quite an attraction from them. Could have been viewed as an "escape," or more simply, "the thing that DOESN'T represent my parents' cultural values."
The trouble that Chitra Divakaruni has with writing the note to her parents suggests that she isn't sure herself why she's running away. I bet that this was common among second generation immigrants who were trying to find a balance between their own values and their parents'. The American society and the old traditional ways of their parents, two very different sets of values, and them being stuck somewhere in the middle.
Another instance of "imported culture" not working well in the United States. Nargis and Sabeena quickly realize that the traditional model of the father as being the "breadwinner" would not serve them well under the conditions they were living with in the United States. The incompatibility of American society with Asian cultures would negatively impact immigrants and their children, severing families, friendships, and hopes for a better life. (Or something like that.)
A common pattern: the child of an Asian immigrant in a predominately white school will be more inclined to befriend a non-white individual.
The opposite of the "perpetual foreigner:" "I hate it when people…think of me as a totally assimilated American because I'm not." Some wish to assimilate, and others wish to remain tied to their ancestry.
Racial differentiation leads to perceived separation on other terms, such as what one eats for breakfast. Self-discrimination? "My ethnicity is different than everyone else's, therefore I must not have much if anything at all in common with them."
The Grey Hat Repository
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Sunday, December 4, 2011
The Far East Comes Near
While Lucy's treatment was unjust, her reaction can hardly be described as "polite." Her reaction to the nun's question effectively solidified the nun's view that Vietnamese people were impolite.
Lucy mentions that she often had nightmares about Vietnam. How do the experiences of other immigrants compare to hers? Many Korean immigrants felt strong ties back to Korea during Japanese occupation and especially Word War II. What effect can this have on assimilation into American culture? Lucy mentions how she often felt like an outsider. Could this be due to the tie she felt back to Vietnam, even if it was negative?
Nguyen's introduction is masterfully done, beginning on the first page with a utopian depiction of his life and relationship with Meo, which he then yanks away sharply right at the beginning of the next page. The intended effect of drawing the reader in allowing him/her to experience in part what he experienced is successful.
I wonder how the curriculum of Nguyen's school changed once the communists took control of South Vietnam. Less children were attending, due to many being barred because of their family's "involvement" with the former government."
The end portrayal of Ly seems fairly romanticized. It rings of the conclusion to teenage novel. A negative consequence of this is that it limits how seriously one can take the essay. It would have been a much more insightful piece of work had Ly written it herself.
What could the long-term plans of the Khmer Rouge have possibly been, killing off all the professionals. Did Pol Pot have any plans whatsoever to establish a stable country? Around the same time, we also saw Mao Zedong's government set to eliminate intellectuals and certain people in positions of power, which as they found out, isn't such a great idea if your goal it to actually run an entire country.
Lucy mentions that she often had nightmares about Vietnam. How do the experiences of other immigrants compare to hers? Many Korean immigrants felt strong ties back to Korea during Japanese occupation and especially Word War II. What effect can this have on assimilation into American culture? Lucy mentions how she often felt like an outsider. Could this be due to the tie she felt back to Vietnam, even if it was negative?
Nguyen's introduction is masterfully done, beginning on the first page with a utopian depiction of his life and relationship with Meo, which he then yanks away sharply right at the beginning of the next page. The intended effect of drawing the reader in allowing him/her to experience in part what he experienced is successful.
I wonder how the curriculum of Nguyen's school changed once the communists took control of South Vietnam. Less children were attending, due to many being barred because of their family's "involvement" with the former government."
The end portrayal of Ly seems fairly romanticized. It rings of the conclusion to teenage novel. A negative consequence of this is that it limits how seriously one can take the essay. It would have been a much more insightful piece of work had Ly written it herself.
What could the long-term plans of the Khmer Rouge have possibly been, killing off all the professionals. Did Pol Pot have any plans whatsoever to establish a stable country? Around the same time, we also saw Mao Zedong's government set to eliminate intellectuals and certain people in positions of power, which as they found out, isn't such a great idea if your goal it to actually run an entire country.
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Strangers From A Different Shore Chapter 13
The 1990s demonstrates what I've pointed out in earlier journals that the root source of racial discrimination has not actually been addressed. It is especially prevalent when people join together under a common issue, such as the Rodney King incident.
"'This riot happened because of the gap between rich and poor.'" The U.S. is currently experiencing a similar situation, in which middle to lower class citizens have been participating in the "Occupy" protests, focusing specifically on the gap between the rich and the poor. Could it be a hotbed for racial tension? As the issue of "jobs" continues to be on the minds of many, what some would call "racial tensions" have elevated against "undocumented immigrants," of which a majority are Mexican. Could we see a repeat of the racial tension experienced between White and Asian Americans in the early to mid 1900s in the 21st century, only between predominately White Americans and Mexican / Latin American immigrants?
Affirmative Action: empirically, it contributes to attaining the goal of diverse community involvement. However, it does raise some ethical questions, such as denying candidates admission to a university on the account of "overrepresentation." A prominent question: should representation in universities and colleges of ethnic groups mirror that in the community? This is often cited as the justification for affirmative action, as seen at UC Berkley in the 1990s.
It seems that in the rush and panic to find the "silver bullet" to the issue of race and racial representation, the end result of "boxing in" certain ethnicities to a set of standards hastily deemed appropriate has its own serious consequence: the "ceiling" and the "floor" of the box are based on generalizations and do not accommodate the needs and desires of many members of said racial group.
"'This riot happened because of the gap between rich and poor.'" The U.S. is currently experiencing a similar situation, in which middle to lower class citizens have been participating in the "Occupy" protests, focusing specifically on the gap between the rich and the poor. Could it be a hotbed for racial tension? As the issue of "jobs" continues to be on the minds of many, what some would call "racial tensions" have elevated against "undocumented immigrants," of which a majority are Mexican. Could we see a repeat of the racial tension experienced between White and Asian Americans in the early to mid 1900s in the 21st century, only between predominately White Americans and Mexican / Latin American immigrants?
Affirmative Action: empirically, it contributes to attaining the goal of diverse community involvement. However, it does raise some ethical questions, such as denying candidates admission to a university on the account of "overrepresentation." A prominent question: should representation in universities and colleges of ethnic groups mirror that in the community? This is often cited as the justification for affirmative action, as seen at UC Berkley in the 1990s.
It seems that in the rush and panic to find the "silver bullet" to the issue of race and racial representation, the end result of "boxing in" certain ethnicities to a set of standards hastily deemed appropriate has its own serious consequence: the "ceiling" and the "floor" of the box are based on generalizations and do not accommodate the needs and desires of many members of said racial group.
Strangers From A Different Shore Chapter 11
As mentioned, World War II can be viewed as a significant turning point in the battle against racial discrimination. The threat of being compared to the Nazis was enough to get the U.S. to "shape up." The same applies with the Cold War and the threat of communism. I still find this disturbing, as it was done for political, not humanitarian reasons. This demonstrates that the tide had not completely turned in favor of the equal treatment of asiatic immigrants. Or, as Takaki also hints, did the emergence of the Nazi Aryan supremacy ideology help bring awareness to the idea of racial discrimination as unethical?
On the origin of the fear of communism: by reading Takaki's text, one might attribute it to Communist China's intervention in the Korean war.
Why did the second wave of Asian immigrants come when it did? Simply because earlier immigrants cane to the US through labor contracts, so "professional" asians were not in any real demand. Additionally, immigration restriction laws prohibited many of them outright from immigrating.
Possible reasons why the Filipino immigrants had become "invisible," despite the largeness of their immigration: they weren't really the "first," which means that the Chinese and the Japanese will not be forgotten about, as they're the ones that made the "first impression," and the Cold War and World War II had not specifically involved the Philippines nor the Filipino people in any large degree. It seems that "persecuting the Filipinos" was little more than a "fad." It's interesting how the same cannot be said for Asian Indian immigrants, and those from southern Asia.
On the origin of the fear of communism: by reading Takaki's text, one might attribute it to Communist China's intervention in the Korean war.
Why did the second wave of Asian immigrants come when it did? Simply because earlier immigrants cane to the US through labor contracts, so "professional" asians were not in any real demand. Additionally, immigration restriction laws prohibited many of them outright from immigrating.
Possible reasons why the Filipino immigrants had become "invisible," despite the largeness of their immigration: they weren't really the "first," which means that the Chinese and the Japanese will not be forgotten about, as they're the ones that made the "first impression," and the Cold War and World War II had not specifically involved the Philippines nor the Filipino people in any large degree. It seems that "persecuting the Filipinos" was little more than a "fad." It's interesting how the same cannot be said for Asian Indian immigrants, and those from southern Asia.
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Strangers From A Different Shore Chapter 10
World War II: A very large turning point in the battle against racial exclusion. In the short-term however, did one race lose while another gained? Most certainly. The Japanese lost while the Filipinos gained; interment camps vs. "brotherhood" forged in war. Because of this, in the short-term, can the events of World War II really be considered an improvement? Not really.
The fact that many Filipino soldiers were refused service while they were dressed in US Army uniform shows that many Americans did not feel near as much of an impact from the attack on Bataan, and thus could not have easily sympathized with the Filipino-American soldiers. This is why they still faced discrimination even while in uniform. I theorize that it is because there was little connection between White Americans and Filipino Americans that the age-old issue of racial rejection was still prevalent in the face of what the Filipino-American soldiers had done for the U.S.
Segregation in the types of service performed by Filipino soldiers. Takaki mentions how they "operated behind enemy lines, engaging in sabotage." Could this have been exploitation on the part of some officers of their eagerness and willingness to serve, getting them to do perhaps more dangerous work? Did their facial simmilarity to the Japanese simply offer up certain advantages in performing covert operations? Is there really any facial similarity?
Korean enthusiasm was of course bittersweet: even with their newfound excitement at the U.S.'s declaration of war against Japan, there were still the instances where they would be confused as Japanese. I can imagine that it probably made some of them very upset. Especially after the 1940 Alien Registration Act.
This chapter is packed full of stuff, and it is so LONG. If I were to continue live reflections much further, it would start looking more like a dissertation. Perhaps to make up for it, I'll write my end-of-term essay on a topic discussed later on in this chapter.
The fact that many Filipino soldiers were refused service while they were dressed in US Army uniform shows that many Americans did not feel near as much of an impact from the attack on Bataan, and thus could not have easily sympathized with the Filipino-American soldiers. This is why they still faced discrimination even while in uniform. I theorize that it is because there was little connection between White Americans and Filipino Americans that the age-old issue of racial rejection was still prevalent in the face of what the Filipino-American soldiers had done for the U.S.
Segregation in the types of service performed by Filipino soldiers. Takaki mentions how they "operated behind enemy lines, engaging in sabotage." Could this have been exploitation on the part of some officers of their eagerness and willingness to serve, getting them to do perhaps more dangerous work? Did their facial simmilarity to the Japanese simply offer up certain advantages in performing covert operations? Is there really any facial similarity?
Korean enthusiasm was of course bittersweet: even with their newfound excitement at the U.S.'s declaration of war against Japan, there were still the instances where they would be confused as Japanese. I can imagine that it probably made some of them very upset. Especially after the 1940 Alien Registration Act.
This chapter is packed full of stuff, and it is so LONG. If I were to continue live reflections much further, it would start looking more like a dissertation. Perhaps to make up for it, I'll write my end-of-term essay on a topic discussed later on in this chapter.
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Asian American X
"…Knowing that running away didn't solve a single thing." Young enough to consider "running away" but old enough to assess long-term consequences of actions? Raises the question: to what extent did the experiences of immigrants accelerate certain aspects of maturation?
I'm not sure oil, water, and alcohol is a good analogy, as water isn't the intersection of oil and alcohol. Unless the point is trying to be made that the "water people" are their own unique grouping, sharing little qualities with their parents and the younger modern white american generation.
Can the first generation immigrants be blamed in part for their children's failure to assimilate as a result of them attempting to impose their values on them which were incompatible with "modern America?"
Did rejection by white Americans effect the tendency of immigrants to make strong efforts to maintain their traditional cultural values?
"They have two kids by the time they're eighteen…." Doesn't that qualify as statutory rape? SERIOUS lack of assimilation.
So what exactly ARE the cascading consequences of ticking a box on an official document indicating your ethnicity as "Asian American?" The system cannot simply record you as "white" because you want to be or see yourself as sharing most qualities with. If ethnicity was determined exclusively by phenotype and not family history, then that can be considered a flaw in the system, and Matthew's concern is only valid if that was actually the case OR if he was denied certain benefits associated with being classified as "white."
I can't tell to what extent Matthew's mother exhibited discriminatory behavior. She rebuked asian men for being sexist but then went on to make a racist joke that Korean housewives are little and submissive, and that they're rude (knocking her over in the market?!?)
Why did he demonstrate Tae Kwon Doe if he didn't like being associated with Asian culture?!?!?!
"While I may have to extent naively admired their relative openness…." But they weren't any more open than other people. Open to different things, yes, but closed to other, "normal" things. Can that be admired?
I'm not sure oil, water, and alcohol is a good analogy, as water isn't the intersection of oil and alcohol. Unless the point is trying to be made that the "water people" are their own unique grouping, sharing little qualities with their parents and the younger modern white american generation.
Can the first generation immigrants be blamed in part for their children's failure to assimilate as a result of them attempting to impose their values on them which were incompatible with "modern America?"
Did rejection by white Americans effect the tendency of immigrants to make strong efforts to maintain their traditional cultural values?
"They have two kids by the time they're eighteen…." Doesn't that qualify as statutory rape? SERIOUS lack of assimilation.
So what exactly ARE the cascading consequences of ticking a box on an official document indicating your ethnicity as "Asian American?" The system cannot simply record you as "white" because you want to be or see yourself as sharing most qualities with. If ethnicity was determined exclusively by phenotype and not family history, then that can be considered a flaw in the system, and Matthew's concern is only valid if that was actually the case OR if he was denied certain benefits associated with being classified as "white."
I can't tell to what extent Matthew's mother exhibited discriminatory behavior. She rebuked asian men for being sexist but then went on to make a racist joke that Korean housewives are little and submissive, and that they're rude (knocking her over in the market?!?)
Why did he demonstrate Tae Kwon Doe if he didn't like being associated with Asian culture?!?!?!
"While I may have to extent naively admired their relative openness…." But they weren't any more open than other people. Open to different things, yes, but closed to other, "normal" things. Can that be admired?
Sunday, November 27, 2011
From East to America Excerpts
"I think it's white people that make them like that." I'm not entirely sure what's meant by this line, nor what justification for holding this belief exists. Was their a pattern of Asian-American drug dealers? Both Asian Americans and African Americans faced similar hardships during the mid-late 1900s.
Dong mentioned that if he could ever afford a pair of blue jeans, he would never wear them, and instead just look at them. Once he got his own store though, he ays that he "just [wears] jeans and a T-shirt to work." This indicates that his perception of America has drastically altered since seeing the American soldiers in Korea and actually migrating to the United States to live.
The root drive outlined by Sean Suh for being in a gang (drive for attention, respect, etc.) can be traced back to tribal and even prehistoric times, when the functional community consisted of a group leader with males duking it out for the top spot. Sean Suh's description of a gang is also very relatable to this because of the availability of females. While not necessarily the main force, it can still be considered a significant one, with the more popular gang members having "priority access" to the females.
The Occupy movement found probably take a few cues from the Korean peace march.
It'd be nice to have gotten a second perspective on the Korean peace march. I would have loved to have compared and contrasted the two perspectives and what factors influenced each one.
Paul Kim makes some interesting generalizations about Korean families. Based on what we've read in Strangers From A Different Shore, I think that Kim was trying to be realistic, as many of his descriptions do make a certain degree of logical sense for many Korean families. However, I can't help but feel that his perspective is at least moderately skewed from reality simply because he is a police officer. As a police officer, he sees and experiences Korean culture differently than the merchants and shopkeepers.
Dong mentioned that if he could ever afford a pair of blue jeans, he would never wear them, and instead just look at them. Once he got his own store though, he ays that he "just [wears] jeans and a T-shirt to work." This indicates that his perception of America has drastically altered since seeing the American soldiers in Korea and actually migrating to the United States to live.
The root drive outlined by Sean Suh for being in a gang (drive for attention, respect, etc.) can be traced back to tribal and even prehistoric times, when the functional community consisted of a group leader with males duking it out for the top spot. Sean Suh's description of a gang is also very relatable to this because of the availability of females. While not necessarily the main force, it can still be considered a significant one, with the more popular gang members having "priority access" to the females.
The Occupy movement found probably take a few cues from the Korean peace march.
It'd be nice to have gotten a second perspective on the Korean peace march. I would have loved to have compared and contrasted the two perspectives and what factors influenced each one.
Paul Kim makes some interesting generalizations about Korean families. Based on what we've read in Strangers From A Different Shore, I think that Kim was trying to be realistic, as many of his descriptions do make a certain degree of logical sense for many Korean families. However, I can't help but feel that his perspective is at least moderately skewed from reality simply because he is a police officer. As a police officer, he sees and experiences Korean culture differently than the merchants and shopkeepers.
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