In this week’s reading, we discovered more about the Amerasian experience especially of those of Vietnamese descent after the Vietnam War in 1975. Professor Valverdes talked extensively on this topic in class as well as the reading, which she wrote. The reading begins with the history of Amerasian people, how after the Vietnam War ended, there was a plethora of children from Vietnamese mothers and American fathers. Many of these children were abandoned, ostracized in their nations, and treated with racist, unjust treatment. Many children often felt unaccepted in both their heritages, both their nations, and felt overwhelmed by the two differing cultures and societies that they were apart of--but never fully accepted into. Many of these Amerasian children suffered from the hardships of life in Vietnam, while also suffering cultural differences in the United States afterwards faced with ignorant white Americans who often called them names, made racist laws against them, and failed to help them be included.
A quote from Valverdes that stood out was, “The Vietnamese subjected Amerasians to racial abuse on a daily basis in the form of name-calling: con lai (half-breed), my lai (American mix), or my den (Black American). ‘I hear them calling me 'my lai' as I pass home from school every day, but I ignore it, keeping in mind that once home, I will be safe,’" commented an Amerasian woman. This woman was not only subjected to racist name-calling from her own country natives, but felt that she could not tell anyone about her pain and lived in pain alone, not even telling her own mother.
It was upsetting to me to see that only a few decades ago there existed such racism, but this is our current reality and many mixed people still face discrimination today in different forms. I hope America continues to grow in a more accepting, and more educated manner and treat mixed race people with respect. My question is, how are mixed race people treated today compared to two decades ago? Mixed people are seen as popular now but in terms of their discrimination level, where do they stand compared to two decades ago?
This photo is an Amerasian child with a Vietnamese mother, and an American father.
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