Past and Present Struggles of Asian Americans

One theme that I found to be very interesting is the struggles that Asian Americans have faced in the past and the present. I never knew about the struggles that have been happening in places like China and Laos. I never realized how many families come from poverty and violence. I have only learned very little about historical events such as Vietnam. I am only now becoming more aware about the human rights problem in China. I am so used to seeing places like Tokyo, Japan in movies and television. Everything seems so clean and the city is lit up with bright lights and amazing buildings at night. Before this course, I thought that most Asians live this kind of life. I never knew that these events had even occurred and I was amazed at some of the things Asians have had to go through over the years.

Another theme that was repeated quite a bit was when people try to guess another person’s personality. I remember many Asian interviewees wished that people would just ask what nationality they are as opposed to trying to guess. I can relate to this because I do not really look just one nationality. I do not believe people do this to try and be rude. Sometimes, people may not realize that what they are doing is offensive. Everyone has been guilty of this at some point in their lifetime. It was just good to be reminded that it is much nicer to ask a person their ethnicity as opposed to trying to guess.

The last theme was how different and similar many of the interviewees’ lifestyles were. Some tried to really retain and practice their parents’ culture. Others sort of went their own way and tried to live their own lifestyle. It was also interesting how different the social classes were that they originally came f...

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...ave been through how appreciative they can be for something that is not that nice. Many people have nothing when they come to America and it is refreshing to see people appreciate the few things they do own. This statement reminds me how fortunate I am to have the things I own.

“The Hmong came to America without a homeland. Even in the very beginning, we knew that we were looking for a home. Other people, in moments of sadness and despair, can look to a place in the world where they might belong.” (Pg. 273) This is probably the statement that best summarizes the book. It is sad to hear how the Hmong people were not wanted and were being killed. The Hmong people had nowhere to go except further into the mountains to avoid any harm. It is good to see that this family is having some success. However, it must be hard to not have a true place to call home.