Personal Narrative: My Background As A Vietnamese-American College Student

As a proud second generation Vietnamese American, I proudly associate myself with my Catholic Vietnamese community. Like all members in my group, we are indoctrinated with the typical immigrant values of perseverance, freedom, and respect for others and our cultural identity. The church that binds us together, Our Lady of Lavang, is the center where most of the Catholic Vietnamese Community gathers all over West Michigan. Since the 1st grade, I went through the Church's school program every Sunday to learn about Christian moral values, Vietnamese traditions, and language. These lessons has heavily influenced my outlook on life, enabling me to use faith to build confidence with myself, maintain integrity, and to love and respect every individual.

The topic that decided to write about is something that has special ties to me. I am Cambodian/American. I chose this topic because it would give a better insight on the history of Cambodia and what relationship it has with the United States. I was curious as to how it was possible for so many Cambodians to make it overseas into the U.S. and was able to get a green card or sponsors. I really wanted to know, what was the role America had when helping Cambodia during the past?

As a first generation, Mexican-American student who is proud of being involved in both Greek life and the Theatre community on campus, I believe that I have a very unique position as a member of the Cornell community. As a first generation, Mexican American student I know the struggles that come with navigating the college process and all the obstacles that come with it. I can empathize with others who might be facing the same struggles and I enjoy being as helpful as possible, so that others can avoid some of the road blocks that I faced during the college search process. As a member of the Greek community, I understand the importance of philanthropy and building a network with other diverse minds. Through this community I have come to value

I’m Vietnamese, but I cannot speak the language. Both of my grandparents are immigrants who came to Vietnam after the war. My dad was born in Vietnam and my mother was born in Louisiana. All of them speaks fluent Vietnamese, but only my mother speaks English. Growing up, it became harder and harder for me to communicate with my family in a sense that they did not know what I was saying and vice versa. Granted, I went to a Vietnamese school when I was younger but later dropped out once my family became busy with life.

Studying in a foreign country is an interesting experience of an individual lifetime. One tends to learn a number of things relating to ways of life in a foreign land. Social, political and economic values and aspects are usually different from one region to another. Therefore, through studying abroad one is able to learn different issues about another society such as gender and sexuality issues, social class and race/ethnicity issues. Having come from a developing country studying in the U.S.A has been a great experience personally. This paper will attempt to provide a reflection of my personal experience on studying in the U.S by comparing the history of Angola and the U.S.

An unknown author once said, "Families are like fudge—mostly sweet with a few nuts. My family is the most important aspect to my life. No matter how much they sometimes pester or annoy me I still love them. I do not think people can live through life without the support of family. My family mostly supports me throughout all my actions, and they make me laugh. I do not really think I resemble either my mom or dad. They both had very difficult lives growing up, and I do not think I will ever experience that. Before there was me, there were my parents whose struggle against communism led them to the United States to find the life they deserved.

I was born and raised in Texas where everything is Texas sized and everyone says y'all. I am an Asian American whose parents both came from Vietnam at a young age. I was soon to be molded and developed by them and my community to where I became culturally diverse. I was moved along schools which helped me build character. I also have developed into a very athletic and intelligent person due to all my friends and family helping me to reach this state.

My family on the same car with my uncle, the other on the same car with Steven. The traffic congestion is common in Chicago. But, that was really bustling for newcomers. On the road, there was many dead animals like: deer, skunk, and raccoon. We got home at 7:00pm. This time in Vietnam, the sun had already set, but not here. “It will set at 9:00 pm” my uncle said. My first impression about that house was that is a big and smell good inside. The first Vietnamese American is Kim Nguyen, she cooked many Asian foods for us as chicken soup, chicken salad squeeze, Vietnamese salad… because she knows we could not eat American food on the first day. I was guided downstairs because I couldn’t eat or do something right now. A sleep will probably

The conference panel I attended was for Dr. Thuy Vo Dang, regarding Vietnamese American identity and the role of archives in shaping epistemology. The speaker mentioned several points regarding how the archive allowed for members of Vietnamese descent to offer their narrative, and essentially give perspective to a community that had inherently omitted and censored itself. It is interesting to have found out that at one point in time, the Vietnamese identity was primarily focused on the Vietnam War, and the Vietnamese were primarily associated with labels such as victims or enemies. From the presentation I learned that the Vietnamese American community identity changed as they adopted a new mentality that stems from them being refugee. The media back then and even today in regards to the Vietnam war had generalized and simplifying the act of being a refugee and being displaced into the US. Vietnamese refugees were characterized as being indebted to the US, and grateful. In addition, the action of becoming a refugee and escaping to the United States were commonly described by various sources to have done so in desperate, cramped, and out of their control. This description appears to have

As people, we tend to be products of our culture. This is very much the case for me. I have been shaped and molded by the outside influences that surround me. I have recently noticed that my American cultural views are very different from other cultures and that perhaps my view may not be the best. In fact, there may not be a best culture or view in life.

I’ve heard this question countless times, and I used to dismiss it easily with lighthearted laughter. As I matured, however, I found it increasingly difficult to procure an appropriate reply. This inquiry was intended as an offhanded curiosity, but -- to me -- it meant so much more. For years, I debated the correct response to this question; for a while, I was unsure of my ethnicity.

A sudden winter breeze blew at my neck, I turned my head around and screamed at the back trunk, “Oh my god, where are all the suitcases!?” My parents jumped out of the car and everyone else squeezed in the back seat. I could never believe that people actually commit a crime at a worship place. The scene took place at the Vietnamese Buddhist Center in Sugar Land, Texas. It was our first stop of the visit. The car windows were shattered, leaving broken, sharp crystals all over the places. My parents called 911 and moved all the kids inside the temple. The adults were upset while the kids cried for their lost valuables. My family had nothing left except the clothes on us. After waiting for the police report, my father had to drive to the car rental

Countless people come to America for a better life; this was also the case for my parents. After the Vietnam War, the ruined landscape left them with a choice: either stay in the destroyed country, or start a new life elsewhere. Coming to America was their only option. Imagine traveling on open water in a small boat crammed with as many refugees as possible. There was a cloud of worry constantly looming over their heads when fending off pirates who robbed and raped the Vietnamese refugees. The conditions were nearly impossible to imagine. At the age of 17, I am filling out college applications; when my parents were teenagers, they fled their home country with nothing allowing me to have this opportunity.

As a daughter of two Vietnam refugees, I endured many difficulties growing up in an impoverished community. Many of my classmates like myself depended on the free lunch program offered to low-income families and its advantages to pursue higher education. Because we resided in an impoverished community, my peers were unmotivated to succeed academically, educators did not believe in offering college prep classes, and counselors discouraged students from taking community college classes over the summer break. Once, I asked my counselor if she would place an order for an AP Chinese exam, but discouraged me from doing so because my school did not offer a prep class (despite my 10 years of Mandarin Chinese schooling on the weekends). I felt my potential

Besides bringing a paper, pencil, and myself to class. I would say, that I bring my Vietnamese cultural traditions and background. Growing up I learn a lot about my culture and tradition. I can see the differences and similarities to American culture today and, I can apply that to Cultural Geography. I’ve been to Vietnam too so, I can see resemblance, uniqueness, and opinions of both American and Vietnamese people.