Forget what we're told when it comes to assimilating
America is supposedly a melting pot or a mixed salad. Whatever
you would like to call it, this country is an assortment of different cultures and
it is what makes it so great. But white people are always stereotyped as “true
Americans” while Taiwanese-Americans, Korean-Americans, Chinese-Americans,
Japanese-Americans, Indian-Americans, etc. are all labeled “Asian”, despite the
fact that they are all natural born citizens of the United States.
African-Americans are labeled as blacks and Mexican-Americans, Brazilian-Americans,
etc. are all Latinos. A question that is nearly always asked is, “why is it
that the word 'American' automatically gives off the connotation of white
people?” It is as if white people are the only ones who have the privilege to
be solely called “American”. Society has ingrained into our minds that an “All-American
girl” is a blonde haired, blue eyed girl. Hopefully one day when the word “All-American
girl” is said, people will think of a diverse group of young ladies who live in
the United States and we can “Forget what we’re told, before we grow too old”
(Snow Patrol) and create a new imagine in our minds. 
As a first generation Taiwanese-American girl, of course I
have faced difficulties in assimilating myself into society. In elementary
school, my mom would occasionally pack me sushi, hi-chew, or Hello Panda
cookies. Earning weird glances from my peers, eating Asian foods meant I was
not “assimilated” into the American culture so I quickly stopped. Years later,
I’m in high school and like many teenage girls, I often times wear Uggs and
North Face jackets and own an iPhone. The majority of my friends are white and I
participate in “white people activities”. Doing so, I’m all of a sudden a “basic white girl”. Just when I thought I was “assimilated” I am now labeled as a “white
girl”. So I ask myself questions wondering if the silver lining even exists. Sometimes I
just want to be me without being called out for doing something that “only Asians
do” or “only white people do”.
Assimilation today seems to be required by all
immigrants or else they face receiving judgment from others in society.
The picture of the text is really funny and makes so much sense to your blog post. I basically agree with everything you posted in your blog.
ReplyDeleteYES KATHIE SLAAAY. Apparently the whites not only took the land but also nationality. These white people have nothing on hi-chew. I'll eat those until my stomach aches. It's sad that you, just as many other non-whites, had to give up their culture at an early age in order to fit in. I HOMed so hard to that first picture because that's actually accurate, and with that basic white girl article I almost woke up my parents at #4. This was a good one, Kathie.
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