Andrew Lam, a Vietnamese-American author and journalist, is renowned for his insightful reflections on the immigrant experience. Born in Vietnam and raised in California after fleeing the country with his family, Lam's journey greatly inspires his work, which is usually about his hardships growing up as a refugee. As a journalist, he has covered a wide array of topics, like politics and culture, for large publications such as The New York Times and National Public Radio. The purpose of Lam's letter is to give support and wisdom to the young refugees, helping them overcome the challenges they face. Through his strong, supportive tone and heartfelt words, Lam seeks to empower the refugee, offering guidance on how to navigate their ordeal with hope and resilience. As stated before, Lam is familiar with being a refugee, and he uses his life experience to support and inspire the …show more content…
He emphasizes the profound significance of resilience, gently reminding the refugee that their past traumas need not define their future trajectory. Moreover, Lam underscores the immeasurable value of embracing one's cultural identity and heritage, portraying them not as shackles but as wellsprings of resilience and inner strength. Additionally, he extols the transformative potency of education and self-belief, advocating fervently for their utilization as catalysts for personal growth and empowerment. Lam's appraisal of the advice he dispenses is unequivocally affirmative. He commends the refugee's steadfast courage and unwavering tenacity, recognizing the profound depth of wisdom and empathy woven into his words. Lam aligns wholeheartedly with the imperative necessity of embracing one's heritage and aspirations, acknowledging their unparalleled ability to illuminate the darkest of paths amidst
I thought it would be an interesting idea to enlighten and inform people about the Lao Iu Mein and our process of immigrating to the U.S. as well as the challenges we have to overcome. I interviewed my parents, Lao Iu Mein refugees who immigrated to the United States from Thailand. Through this interview, I had a chance to hear for the first time the story of my parents' struggles and experiences as they journeyed to a place where they became "aliens" and how that place is now the place they call "home."
Refugees share similar experiences and emotions when they move to a new country. The book Inside Out and Back Again splits these feelings into two categories, “inside out” and “back again”. Refugees from around the world experience these feelings. For instance, it is easy for a refugee to feel “inside out” when learning a new language, or they can feel “back again” when they find a familiar object that reminds them of their past. Many refugees mainly struggle with learning a new language, but to make them feel more comfortable, they can find satisfaction in items from their home land.
Rothe, Eugenio M. "A Psychotherapy Model For Treating Refugee Children Caught In The Midst Of Catastrophic Situations." Journal Of The American Academy Of Psychoanalysis & Dynamic Psychiatry 36.4 (2008): 625-642. Academic Search Premier. Web. 2 May 2014.
14 million refugees, men, women, and children, are forced to flee their homes, towns, and families. The refugees are scared to stay but have to leave (Gervet). Refugees have to face losing a loved one, losing a little thing like a doll hurts them greatly. Like many refugees, Ha, the main character in the book “Inside out & Back again” by Thanhha Lai, has to face the similar losses as other refugees. Many refugees, like Ha, face the feeling of turning “Inside out” when they mourn the losses of their loved ones and their precious belongings, then they are able to turn “back again” with acceptance and support from their communities and friends.
A refugee is a person who is being persecuted for their race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion; refugees are everywhere around us and we don’t even know it. Salva, in A Long Walk to Water, was a refugee, and still is. He, along with many others, was a victim of the War in Sudan. He was fearful for his life so he had to flee his home and wound up in America, fulfilling his purpose by giving back to all of the people in Sudan, where he once was victimized. Like Salva, all refugees go through different stages when moving to another place, most common is having a hard time accepting losses and overcoming homesickness, but with help from many different people and things, they can get past this.
The title “Inside Out and Back Again”relates to the universal refugee experience of fleeing and finding home for both Ha and the many refugees around the world who had their lives turned “inside out” as they fled, but then came “back again” as they found a new
The article “Refugee Children in Canada: Searching for Identity” states, “successful adaption can bring with it the opportunity for growth” (Colak and Fantino 589). Refugee children have a better chance of adapting to their new surroundings more quicker than adult refugees can. The authors also wrote that “settlement support services, schools, health and social services, and the community at large play a crucial role in assisting and supporting children to adjust” (Fantino and Colak 589). In Hà’s case, her family is her backbone. They support each other and keep each other uplifted. In the poem “1976: Year of the Dragon”, Lai writes, “This year I hope I truly learn to fly-kick, not to kick anyone as much as to fly” (Lai 259-260). This really shows us how much Hà has changed. In Vietnam, she was a bit rude and selfish. Now, however, she’s less violent and has really grown up a lot; she sees the world differently now. Refugees go through many ups and downs, but there will always be
The life of a refugee is not just a life of trials and ordeals, but also has rewards for those who pushed through the pain.
According to the 1951 Refugee Convention, refugee is a term applied to anyone who is outside his/her own country and cannot return due to the fear of being persecuted on the basis of race, religion, nationality, membership of a group or political opinion. Many “refugees” that the media and the general public refer to today are known as internally displaced persons, which are people forced to flee their homes to avoid things such as armed conflict, generalized violations of human rights or natural and non-natural disasters. These two groups are distinctly different but fall ...
Before I was five, I thought I was Chinese. However, I wondered why I couldn’t understand the Chinese patrons of Chinatown restaurants. Upon learning my true ethnicity, I pulled out a mammoth atlas we had under the bed. My father pointed to an “S”-shaped country bordering the ocean, below China. It was then that I learned my parents were refugees from Vietnam. “Boat people,” my mother, still struggling to grasp English back then, would hear kids whispering when she walked through the halls of her high school. Like many refugees, although my parents and their families weren’t wealthy when they came to America, they were willing to work hard, and like many Vietnamese parents, mine would tell me, “We want you to be success.”
These issues also include poverty and limited or no access to education, training, mental health and health care resources. Refugees also face persecution and are unable to return to their home in their native country (Villalba, 2009). Mental health counselors need to understand the impact of trauma on their refugee clientele, as they may include physical torture and mental abuse in nature. According to Sue and Sue (2013) counselors will need to address the most salient concerns of refugees, which include safety and loss. The possibility of being, or having been, mentally abused and physically tortured has an impact on their ability to stay in the hosting country. Counselors will be dealing with post-traumatic stress from their client. Equally important is for the counselor to assist the refugee in understanding issues of confidentiality. For Muslim immigrants and refugees, counselors should consider national policies during the counseling process. For example, the two Sudanese sisters’ were able to resolve their religious practice of wearing the hijab and securing employment in a beneficial way. As an advocate for the sisters and other Muslim refugees, it would be helpful to provide them access to resources that educate them in antidiscrimination policies that can protect them against hate crimes and legal resources that can help them seek asylum. In essence, culturally competent practices for counselors working with immigrants and refugees begin with understanding their worldviews, as well the national and international legal issues that confront their
Those who do not fear persecution are not considered in this definition, for instance, people escaping from natural disasters, because they do not have a fear of persecution. In addition, even though the individuals do face persecution, they are not considered as refugees if they are not ‘on the basis of’ of one of the protected grounds. Even those who face persecution on the basis of a protected ground, they cannot be declared as refugees because they are not outside their country of citizenship. The most controversial notion is that those who have been driven from their homes but who have not crossed international borders, so-called ‘Internally Displaced Persons’ (IDPs), are not in the definition of refugee, even though they have all the characteristics of a refugee except that they have not crossed an international border. The UNHCR has played their part in helping such persons in the last thirty or so years, but has still not considered them as refugees which makes them hard to have full benefits of what refugees should get. Hence, Lister aims to portray that these restrictions have a rational
The social problem we have chosen to address is the mental health status of refugees. Refugees are exposed to a significant amount of trauma due to fear, war, persecution, torture, and relocating. The mental health illnesses that can affect refugees due to exposure to traumas include post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, and anxiety. Research indicated that refugees relocating from war-torn countries are particularly vulnerable to mental health concerns because many have experienced early traumas and face further post-traumas after relocation (Cummings, et al., 2011). However, despite the prevalence of mental health issues concerning refugees, mental health needs often go unrecognized and untreated.
Finding trust and cultural understanding is crucial in securing safe haven; the human category of refugee is inundated with hydrophobic metaphors and imagined “racial markers” delimitating the story of the refugee into numbers and race categories (271).
This process helped transform their perceptions of refugees by confronting them with the experiences they faced as they dealt with the realities faced by refugees and asylum seekers. The journey faced by the six participants support similar ideas about ‘The Perks of being a Wallflower’. Both texts examine how the ramifications of an individuals discoveries change the way they perceive themselves and their world. Discovery in this case has the power to transform an individual by confronting them with either a new or renewed ideas, understandings and perceptions of themselves and their