Author: Vannyka Lim

In “Lessons from the Case of Duy Ngo”, Pil talk about the case of Peter Liang, a cop who shot and killed an unarmed Black man that could get a 100,00o Asian to sign the petition however won’t show the same support when someone of their own like “the case of Duy Ngo” who was shot by an white police who said to mistakenly Duy for an Asian gang member. It said that some Asian said that they are tired of being pushed around. Asian have the right to worry about their life as they would stand in the good of the police.  Asian are being taught to yearn to fully assimilate into American-ness but history shows that we would never be fully white. Pil’s point is that we shouldn’t pick sides, taking the side of the oppressor does not guarantee our protection, no matter one thinks so. He taught that we should rather stick together as a minority and fight against systemic injustice and oppression. Chinese conservatism would show support of the oppressor. Many of the crimes would portray that black people are the threat to Asian business. True there are crimes hate with black people toward Asian however it is wrong to just put the blame on them most of the time like cases where property got destroyed or procession got stolen, they would stand by the law enforcement. There are cases that are unrelated toward black, but most would put the blame on them. This case relates to Pil as they should show support when Asian is involved with black but won’t do the same when it involves white. The goal of this letter is to make people understand that Black is not our enemy and that it is wrong for Asian American to take sides with Law enforcement because taking the side of the oppressor does not guarantee our protection. Instead we should rather stick together as a minority and fight against systemic injustice and oppression. As the black community is someone who also struggles in a society where the system wasn’t made to favor them. I think the letter meets its goal as it teaches us that supporting Law enforcement won’t guarantee our protection and that Black community is not our enemy and that we should show support and it also gives us explanation and name of those black lives lost by the system.

 

 

 

Vannyka Lim – Interviewee’s Artifact Archive

For Framework, I chose PROTECT CAREGIVERS by Ai-jen Poo & NDWA. It discusses how caregivers are not being provided with access to health care, paid time off or job security. They are front liner who “support some of the most at-risk populations, particularly older people, young children and the range of people with compromised immune systems” and they don’t have the same resources as other workers. They provide evidence that caregivers need more care and they should have given more resources and protection. They are at risk.

For stories, I chose TIRED OF BEING ASIAN by Alice Tsui. It talks about how someone who has somewhat or is relations with Asian is being targeted because of the coronavirus. How there were times where “Asian-sounding last names not being picked up for rideshares; racist slurs targeted towards Asian people who coughed on a subway; and people moving away from Asians with a face mask”. Asian are being discriminated against. Tusi also talks about how she is tired of constantly having to stand up to explain. I picked this excerpt because the title stood out to me as being an Asian myself. I experienced this targeted a lots when the virus was just being known. 

For resources, I chose ‘WASH YOUR HANDS’ by Malaka Ghairib and Wanyu Zhang. It is a guide that helps to slow down the coronavirus, first it says to wash our hands after using the bathroom or being in a public place for 20second with soap and water. Second, when you sneeze, do it with your elbows to prevent the germ from getting in your hands or to the air. And third, don’t touch your face as that is the place where germs enter your bodies. It is what struck me first as that is what we’ve been told everyday in our whole life and now there is a virus spreading, it being told all over the news. It is really important for people to follow to help slow down the virus for everyone whether it is your yourself, your family or stranger.

In “The Forgotten Asian Refugees Fed Into The U.S. Prison System” by Kimberly Yam, it discusses how many Cambodians who fled to the United States with hopes of Starting over. Pal Sok’s family, one of the many families who fled their home to escape A khmer rouge, with little support upon arrival in the US, they face many issues, poverty, unstable finance. They grow up poor, face bullying in school and no one to understand them, they begin to drop out of school or push out of school and begin to seek help elsewhere which lead to most of them to join gangs where they feel emotional comfort and solace, they feel they could fit in somewhere. Many of them are involved in crimes and as result in risk of being deported back to Cambodia. Under the Trump administration, South East Asians live their life in fear of being deported due to increased activities of ICE. Many SouthEast Asians are being deported, most are people who have never seen Cambodia or speak the language. Many of them use alcohol and drug to cope with the stress of repatriation, and found to have PTSD, some even resort to committed suicide. Many immigrants hope to start new lives in a new country where they could feel a little more secure with their life. And to find out that they are being told to be deported back to their country where they have not been for many years, people are being separated from their family, it felt dejected where the country who brought in to start new and now they are deporting them back. At least during this hard time, the SE Asian communities are still being supportive of each other when one is needed like Sak who currently with an organizer called Youth Justice Coalition to help others prevent them from going down the same path he did. 

 

According to the reading “model minority myth first started in 1966, where they refer to Asian American whose deem as “smart” or “successful” than others. It comes to be because the United states are in need of more skilled labor so they allowed more immigrantion come to the U.S. This stereotype of Asian Americans as smart and successful, this put more pressure on them as they will alway seen as smart. And this should stop as people will alway expect them to be smart than other minorities. And we are different from each other as we all been brought up differently.

From on the reading and film, the criteria for citizenship appear to be “white”. Only if you are “white” then you are allowed to be a citizen and belong to the U.S. and that is why Ozawa sought to use skin color as his argument against the court stated that his skin are white however it rule out base on scientific diversion of race, because Ozawa is Japanese and Japanese is not caucasian therefore not white. And three month later, Thind who is an Asian-Indian and authority stated that Asian-indian is caucasian however they are not white based on “common knowledge of unscientific men”. Therefore, only those who are considered as white are able to be citizens. In the reading, “European immigrants group regardless of national origin had the right of naturalization” because European is more white than other skin color therefore has a right for citizenship. 

The social definition of citizenship is the right to share in social norms and heritage. To be able to learn and understand America and its history. In my opinion, The people who are considered to be a part of America are those who are in need of opportunities to succeed and do well in life. America is a country of freedom and I feel that if you are trying your very best to do well and succeed, you are a part of America. To belong here is to go along with social norms and function within America’s society. To learn and understand America’s heritage. The definition of a citizen should be based on how hard you work and should not be defined based on a person’s race.

 

Based on the reading and film, some of the arguments that are made to exclude Chinese migrants from the U.S or from participation in American life are; they were seen as “coolie labor, immoral, diseased heathens, and unassimilable aliens”. Americans view Chinese immigration as those who are inferior to them and see them as second class citizens. They were also denied the right to go to school. In 1860, Moulder’s beliefs became law. When the Legislature decreed that “Negroes, Mongolians and Indians shall not be allowed into public schools” and authorized local officials to penalize any school that allowed “inferior races” to mix with whites. There was also discrimination against Chinese woman, they were seen as “uncivilized, unclean, lustful and sensual” the exclusionists were not concerned with the experiences and needs of poor Chinese girls and women who had been sold or tricked into prostitution instead they were seen as “Chinese prostitutes with danger to the life of white”. They were also ghettoized to a camp without much choice. In Kamiya, “How early SF kept Chinese children out of the schoolhouse” it stated that “The Chinese community argued that it was grossly unfair that they had to pay taxes and were denied the right to send their children to public schools” and so many Chinese began to protest for their rights. This situation is also happening right before our eyes within our world today. During the Pandemic, where our President used a racist term “Chinese virus” or “kung flu” to describe the deadly coronavirus pandemic. Reading this material  gives me many feelings and I have learned many things about our history where Chinese were taken into an island called “Angel island” where they were being  interrogated before they were allowed inside the U.S and this took months, and during their stay there, they had no way of expressing their feelings so they wrote poems, I find that fascinating,  but at the same time dejected.

 

Hello, everything is going well in this class. I feel relax in this class and it nice to see everyone sharing ideas and having discussion unlike my other class. I am learning more about Asian history each class. Overall, I am enjoying this class. There is nothing in my mind that I would like to change. I don’t know any song fit for this class. Thank you Professor Soniya.

 

Some of the common explanations I heard for why people migrate to the United states are somewhat similar as people migrant because there were better opportunities for them here, or there are better education for their family and they could have a better life or future for their family. These reasons are also what my family and many of the people who I know think when they migrate to the United states. Plus when people hear of the United States, they think it is a land of opportunities and also freedom, these cause people to move from their country to the US.

These reasons fall back to the theory of Yang of Push factor and Pull factor. The theories are not 100% true however they are some of the explanations of why people migrate. There is alway a reason why people migrate, it might be because they need a better place, resource, education or they want to escape from religion or their family and community. 

Things I like to add to Yang theory are some people migrate because of not being accepted for what they are, aka The LGBT community. Back in my country or some other part of Asian, I know that being lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender are highly disapproved of. It is also hard for them to live once they get out or find out since some would get kick out of their home or workplace so people want to move because there are more freedom in other place then where they are now.

 

1. From reading Lee “The making of Asian American” and the film, I learn that Europeans thought of Asian as Polar Opposite to their own as they heard of Asian riches of goods, land and culture which the Europeans do not have. Many set out to search for Asian. What surprised me was how Asian get half the pay compared to Spanish even if Asian are more skilled and also Filipino were known as “Indians” back in the day. What I already know is how Asian left their country to settle elsewhere for different reasons. What motivated Asian come to America is because of Dominion, the control of other countries whose conquer Asian has made their Asian to flee to American to escape from it. Group of people are from China, Philippines, and others. They land in Mexico, Peru.
2. The stories today about immigration are not the same as before as today they have given freedom and they do not stand out as much. I believe their reason to migrate is the same and also different. People migrate because they want to have a better life, education and freedom.