Personal Experience : My Life Of A Korean-American

Being a Hmong-American in the United States was hard. Growing up in a community that was full of Americans, and being in a private school in my early years, (consisting mostly of Americans and little diversity) was difficult. In that kind of environment, I never saw each person differently. The characteristics that I saw were our skin color, and another distinction that I saw was our religious and cultural backgrounds. I started to lose touch of my own culture and identity as a Hmong-American girl. My family told me that in the stages of my toddler years, I used to be good at speaking my native tongue until I started school.

Like many other African Americans, I am a descendant of slaves and have little to no knowledge of my genealogy, so if I were to go Africa, I would feel foreign despite having African blood. Additionally, although I am American, sentiment towards my race is less than favorable in this country, so I feel like an outsider even with my American citizenship. I find solidarity with other African Americans with whom I share similar upbringings and customs and I think that many Asian Americans feel the same. In many ways the conundrum regarding identity are similar for both African Americans and Asian Americans. We self identify using a term that clumps our diverse groups into one box, but it gives us a sense of solidarity in places where we are constantly

In Asian American studies, identity is “a set of characteristics or a description that distinguishes a person or thing from others” (Ho 125). One would have to truly perceive his or her culture, language, beliefs, customs and values in order to be viewed as a distinct person in terms of identity. However, many Asian Americans are often faced with personal struggles when they are finding their own identity. These included the issues of assimilation, and contradictions of race and identity within their family and school life. They may sometimes feel insecure with their identity as Asian Americans due to their position as racial minorities in the Unites States. As a consequence, some would unconsciously reject their identity when their emotions are severely damaged in confronting with unequal treatment or being labeled with the Asian stereotypes. In his article “Distilling My Korean American Identity,” Patrick S.

America is known internationally as a great “melting pot”. From the very beginning, the entire nation was founded on immigrants. People immigrated to America for a chance to escape the oppressive states of their own lands as well as boundless opportunity. Some of the first immigrants from Korea to the United States came in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Seo Jae-pil or Phillip Jaisohn came to America in 1884. He became a citizen in 1890 and strove to educate fellow Koreans and Americans in democracy and freedom throughout his life. Another immigrant and prominent figure in the Korean immigrant community is Ahn Chang Ho. He came to the United States in 1902 to get a better education and eventually became a political activist during the Japanese occupation of Korea. Another prominent figure in Korean immigration history is Syngman Rhee. Rhee was a Korean immigrant to the U.S. who eventually became the first president of the Republic of Korea. Rhee was educated at George Washington University in 1907 followed by his earning of a master’s degree at Harvard in 1910. These devoted Koreans found opportunity in American and thrived in the educational and political field. Other early Korean immigrants did not end up in the scholarly field, however. Some of the first laborers from Korea immigrated to Hawaii in 1903 on January 13. This day is now recognized as Korean-American Day. These laborers were brought in to aid the preexisting Japanese and Chinese laborers. Immigrants traveled

On January 13, 1903, the first Korean Immigrants set foot in Hawaii. There were eighty six people on that first voyage, and since then there have been over 550,000 Koreans who have made the journey to the United States over the past 100 years. The original immigrants and their descendants now total over 1.6 million. Korean Americans make up one of the most prominent Asian communities in the United States. Many elements of Korean Culture, ranging from Kim Chee to Tae Kwon Do, have made their way into the American Lifestyle. There have been many events that have shaped the Korean American community and there are many current issues that affect Korean Americans.

high noon on the West Coast, and four o'clock in the morning in faraway Korea.

I have a request. You might find it silly, or worse, insulting. It will take about half an hour to complete. First, find a quiet place, then take a pen and paper or a laptop and try to be brutally honest with yourself. When you finish writing, do not share what you’ve written with anyone, not even your spouse. What you’ve written is between you and God. Mull it over. Then destroy it. What am I asking you to write? I am asking you to take an inventory of the deep-seed, hidden prejudices. Try to avoid the common temptation that accompanies self-analytic tests where the test taker intuitively gravitates toward desirable responses rather than being concerned with accurate self-assessment.

America at first sight was a potato farm. Immigrating from korea to America was a huge change. Learning new language, making new friends and adjusting to the new culture are some huge hardships. My first stop happened to be a small isolated and rural town in Idaho - a whole new world for a girl from Seoul to experience. This was only a beginning. I learned that the most important key to reach for the stars is to be brave. (

This article focuses on the healthcare seeking behaviour of Korean immigrants in Toronto. Also it discusses the transnational healthcare activities with their home country Korea, for various reasons like individual characteristics, the barriers of accessing local healthcare system, etc. The new environment has brought multi-dimensional effects to immigrants’ health. Their health is being influenced compositionally and contextually during the process of accessing healthcare system. Immigrants are then putting efforts to maintain and use the transnational ties for their needs in managing their health and well-being, which reveals the current existing barriers on reaching the healthcare system.

South Koreans were one of the last immigrant groups to arrive in the United States in relation to other East Asian immigrants in the twentieth century. At the beginning of the twentieth century, a few thousand South Korean laborers were recruited to work on Hawaiian sugar plantations. However, this immigration was curtailed by the Japanese government, who controlled South Korea at the time (Choe, Kim, et al 2003). More South Korean immigrants started to arrive in significant numbers during the 1950s, with the presence of Americans during the Korean War. This influenced the rise in migration, as military brides, adoptees, and students came back to the United States once the war ended (NAKA 2003).

My experience of moving to the USA included a couple of steps such as preparing, arriving, and adopting. Moving to America was one of the most thrilling and exciting experiences I have ever had in my life. It all started after I graduated from high school. I had always dreamed of going to abroad to study in a better school to be successful in life. My dad was leaving me hints here and there that he was going to send me America for school, but I was sure that it wasn’t going to happen because getting a student visa was tough back then. However, that summer when I saw that letter in my mail from the immigration department of USA for an interview, I was speechless.

As you know, my dream is to become a diplomat, especially, in Asian areas. I am Korean American! This means I am part of Korean but I am also a part of American. Like we discussed if there are no permanent friends or enemies, but permanent interests in international relations, I want to become a person who takes the lead to resolve and changs when there are any conflict of interests between two nations. Being a career diplomat would enable me to take an active role in helping to bring about those changes. In order to keep two nations’ friendship, history teacher’s role is very critical. You as a Korean history teacher, the ways of seeing history should not only be objective but also recognize the distorted

When I was five years old my parents decided to move to the United States from South Korea. My parents wanted my sister Sunny and me to learn English because they knew how important it is today to know the global universal language. When I first arrived in America, I had no problem in communicating with others because I was able to communicate through my parents in Korean instead of speaking for myself to English speakers. But that soon changed when I first entered the discourse community of my kindergarten class. I needed to adapt to the community by learning English in order for me to communicate with my peers and teachers. Syntax learning this new language was difficult for me because the teachers could only teach me and communicate

The article selected is called “Domestic Violence and Risks Factors among Korean Immigrants Women in the United States.” Domestic violence is a social issue that affects individual regardless their nationality and can have terrible consequences often leading to death. Therefore, I chose this article because I believe it is important that society pays more attention to this issue before the number of victims continues to increase. This article is favorable to society because it provides knowledge about a specific population that is highly affected by domestic violence, and it has not been study deeply yet. This article addresses clearly the issue of domestic violence among Korean immigrant women in the United States. The researcher organized

In a sudden strike of lightning, a screaming bundle of brilliance entered this world. So far I think I'm living a fun fruitful life. Up to this time I have moved to Korea, Gone to a Korean School, and moved back to America.