Vietnamese immigrants face simple everyday issues that may not cross one’s mind. My father, Phat Nguyen and mother, Xuan Nguyen, has endured the struggles of living in a completely foreign country, while not even knowing the language upon arrival. He had to leave his home country, culture, and family due to the Vietnam War. He “left pretty much everything except the clothes on our back and some Vietnamese money that is worthless in America.”(Nguyen 4). Additionally, he “didn’t even have a chance to grab any pictures” (Nguyen 4). He “[was] suddenly told [they] had to evacuate as soon as possible, but [they] had a few days to find what [they] wanted to bring and gather the family up” (Nguyen 4). Resulting from the Vietnam War, whole …show more content…
Accordingly, the cost of transportation is directly linked to one’s income, impacting poorer families such as my father’s, who just came to America. This limits their ability to explore, run errands, and meet new people. Not having the ability to travel is a huge inconvenience because it is a constraint on their personal growth.
Phat did not eat an abundance of meats and fatty foods in Vietnam, however he ate vegetables and chicken. When he came to America the main foods that were cheap and available were fatty foods, beef, and starches. “Our bodies aren’t use to the amount of meat, fat, and sugar we consume here, because back in Vietnam we bike everywhere and walk so we work all of the lean foods we eat, [however] when we come here, It’s all unhealthy and we drive everywhere so most of us” are unable to burn off the unhealthy foods we consumed resulting in us have diabetes (Nguyen 4). Equally important “[they] didn’t have lots milk back in Vietnam so [they] never drank it but here, everyone drinks it and [they] try to but our bodies aren’t use to it so [they] are mostly lactose intolerant”(Nguyen 4). In Vietnam they had several dietary differences that caused numerous very inconvenient problems such as: diabetes, lactose intolerance, and high cholesterol. Currently,“…with those living in
This disquisition demonstrates how the Vietnamese suffered at the hands of the North Vietnamese communists; in addition, it will establish that the Australian social structures had the ability to dehumanise Vietnamese immigrants during the years of 1973-1980. Cat along with her family are the focal point of this essay. The main source of reference is: We Are Here, written by Cat Thao Nguyen, first published 2015. The author reveals her family’s life including the consequences they suffered, not only in Vietnam, but also in
The Pimas used to eat these types of foods. However, in the late nineteenth century everything changed. In the article “Obesity and Diabetes” by Lorraine H. Marchland, Marchland discusses the work of Dr. Eric Ravussin. Ravussin has been studying the Pimas for almost two decades. According to Ravussin, American farmers diverted the water supply of the Pimas, and they could no longer grow their crops (Marchland 1). It was a terrible time for the Pimas. They suffered from starvation and poverty. They were malnourished and instead of their healthy diet, they began to eat U.S. government rations that consisted of high quantities of sugar, lard and white flour (Marchland 1). The rough times subsided for the Pimas during the WWII era, and they were able to rebuild their waterways. They were able to farm again and famine was no longer an issue, but western diet became part of their lifestyle. “The Pimas went from eating a diet high in starch and fiber with only 15% fat, to eating a diet that consisted of 40% fat”(Marchland 2). This change in diet is the reason that the majority of Pimas are overweight. A direct link between obesity and diabetes has been found, and this seems to be the number one problem for the Pimas (DeMouy 1).
This can be a humiliating experience for many parents, which is worsened by their lack of knowledge about the English language. Along the process, most Vietnamese parents must deal with the unfamiliarity of U.S. culture, values, and rules in the working environment and the potential for discrimination.".This section of the article is discussing how Vietnamese immigration parents can be overly stress , and add to the authoritarian parenting method. This kind of behavior from parents can have a negative affecting on children. In fact, it only discourage children from striving for success knowing that there will be no rewards but only criticism. This is reflected Lac's experiences throughout his memoir.
Through interviewing my roommate Linda Wang, I have gotten the opportunity of hearing a first-hand account of what it is like being a young immigrant living in the United States. At the age of eight, Linda, along with her father, mother, and aunt, emigrated to America. Linda’s family currently resides in Bayside, Queens and she is a student-athlete on the St. John’s women’s golf team. Linda was kind enough to share her immigration story with me so that I may use it as a manifestation of what life as an immigrant, and the immigration process itself, entails.
Vietnamese did not magically appear in the United States, the Vietnam War sparked the immigration of Vietnamese to America. Vietnamese did not virtually exist in the United States until 1975 when the war forced Vietnamese to evacuate (Povell). The war began after Vietminh defeated France and split into North and South Vietnam (O’Connel). In 1956 communist Ho Chi Minh ruled the North Vietnam, and Bao Dai ruled the South, who the United States supported and backed up (O’Connel). The Vietnam War consisted of the North and South Vietnam, fighting against eachother in order to stay two separate countries. The North tried to overtake the South, and the United States sent in troops to
My father is a hardworking man; he’s fifty-one and he works about forty hours or more as a welder. He came to America, like many other Vietnamese immigrants, for a better
The possibility of economic mobility is a widely shared belief in the United States. A central part of the American Dream is the belief that with hard work anything can be achieved. In The Working Poor: Invisible in America, Shipler states, “The American Myth still supposes that any individual from the humblest origins can climb to wellbeing… The myth has its value. It sets a demanding standard, both for the nation and for every resident. But the American Myth also provides a means of laying blame” (Shipler 5). In addition, evidence suggests this deeply held belief is not accurate. Over time, fewer Americans control more and more of the nation’s resources and wealth, and as the gap between the rich and poor has increased, economic mobility
An immigrant's culture and beliefs take a shift, sometimes going extinct, or they evolve to include elements from both countries; where they grew up, and where they’ll grow old. Transculturation is key in order to fit into a new society, those who do it well have a smoother time transitioning. For example the Hmong and Mexicans both had to flee their country, but the Mexicans found it easier to transition to the American culture than the Hmongs.The Hmongs never thought they would leave their home in Laos, they were happy and thriving on their lands. Unfortunately war struck and the Hmong agreed to help the US fight back, due to their involvement in the war, they were seen as traders, therefore they were persecuted by the Vietnamese. Due to this the Hmong people suffered in
In 1975, the ‘Fall of the Saigon’ marked the end of the Vietnam War, which prompted the first of two main waves of Vietnamese emigration towards the US. The first wave included Vietnamese who had helped the US in the war and “feared reprisals by the Communist party.” (Povell)
Unfortunately, Vietnamese Americans make up only a small percent of the total American Population today. There are many stereotypes associated with the Vietnamese, but the truth is, we really know very little about their culture. After the Viet Nam War, many Vietnamese citizens immigrated to the United States to escape political Prosecution and poverty. Faced with a variety of obstacles and
Have you even have a pain which you want to escape from or cover?In Tan Le’s Ted Talk, she says “My mother suffered from nightmares all about the boat.” A lot of people have some spiritual pains which they don’t want to remember or heal, so they try to escape from those pain. In Birds of Paradise Lost, written by Andrew Lam, it shows how Vietnamese immigrants escape from their pain in humor, denial, and suicide after or during the Vietnamese War.
This week's reading, Jonathan Lee's “Vietnamese in America” (pages 128 to 138) in History of Asian Americans: Exploring Diverse Roots, explores the resettlement process of Vietnamese refugees in the United States. What interested me most was the intergenerational conflict between 1-generation Vietnamese Americans and 1.5- and second-generation Vietnamese Americans. The “rescue psychology,” the guilt for losing the Vietnam War which fueled humanitarian efforts to help displaced refugees, mitigated the resettlement of first wave refugees. The US government allocated generous aid and instituted programs and policies in order to assist first wave refugees with their resettlement and integration into American society (Lee 128). Furthermore, most
“I had always hoped that this land might become a safe and agreeable asylum to the virtuous and persecuted part of mankind to whatever nation they might belong” this quote is by George Washington, but A Country is for all is another quote by Jorge Ramos. Everyone of any culture should be aloud in every country they want. There shouldn't be a law that doesn't let people out of a country to find a great new start for them. In this essay we will be talking about immigrants in the late days, border crossing, and families being separated.
“Dietary patterns of Americans differ widely, but most Americans eat a diet that could best be described as in need of improvement”. Compared to other countries, the American diet is very different. I have first hand experienced how much different Americans eat from other countries. For a brief, but very beneficial and productive time, I lived in Barcelona, Spain with my host family. Over in Spain, they eat much more fresh, organic food. There was a lot more seafood in the average diet. The meal configuration over there is also different than ours. Lunch is the largest meal eaten every day; different than America, where dinner is the largest.
The subject of my interview is a 68 year elderly Vietnamese man named Minh “Bi” Ngo. Mr. Ngo has white long hair, a medium long white beard and a distinctive mole on the bottom of his left eye and a thick Vietnamese accent. He was born and raised in Vietnam on April 3rd, 1947. He is also a widow who is currently living with his daughter in Westminster, Orange County. Originally, Mr. Ngo was from the city of Buon Ma Thuot in the province of Dak Lak, Vietnam. He then immigrated to Falls Church, Virginia where he began his new life in the United States. At the time of the interview, Mr. Ngo looked very exhausted yet grateful at the same time. I had the opportunity to meet Mr. Ngo through his daughter, who is a friend of my cousin. I conducted the interview on the afternoon of September 24th, which lasted for two hours. During the interview Mr. Ngo shared with me his experiences during the Vietnam war, his times in the Vietnamese Reeducation camps, his immigration to the United States, and his involvement in the Vietnamese community today. As the interview continues on, I began to comprehend a little bit more on the way it was back then and how the common folks