I chose American Asian because it is symbolic of the two worlds I live in. Although I was born here in the United States and lived in Texas for years (yes, there are Asians in Texas by the way…except for the Panhandle area. Wait, sorry Dougie Fresh – poor soul), I still am connected to a rich culture that my parents have kept in this “home away from home.”
However, navigating these two worlds was and continues to be a challenge. I was constantly asking myself, “How can I fit in?” In middle school and high school, no matter how hard I tried, I was either an outcast from the Viet kids or from the popular clique. If I tried to fit in with the popular crowd, I was too “white-washed”; and if I tried to hang with my Asian folks, I was considered too “fobby” aka “fresh off the boat.”
Shit, I couldn’t do anything right!
But isn’t this the case for many people of color growing up? Just because of the color of our skin and physical characteristics, we’re forced to identify with a racial category and on the other spectrum, people place us in these narrowly, defined categories. With my fellow Asian Americans, one look our way and BOOM, we’re foreigners – where the hell did we come from? We don’t belong here. But all in all, American Asian captures the experience I had growing up as a second-generation Vietnamese American and the struggles my community, and many others like me, continue to face.
This blog is a meaningful and engaging way to encourage dialogue about Asian American issues. It’s an open, informal space to really discuss any topic but we also encourage you to question and analyze these different issues. Question everything, listen to others, educate yourself.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Have thoughts? Share them. We insist.