Blog 4

Kingston’s article, “The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts” reflects the culture inconsistency in America, especially to a first or second generation person like me. Compare to the native-born Americans who learn the world inside this country, I and all immigration groups choose to come to this country base on our recognition of this country through narrative from other people. Spreading to other countries, these narrative always go around the freedom and equality in America, ideally and attractive. However, only when we move to the country and try to fit in the society did we realize that that’s not always the case.

I strongly sympathize that the Hawaiian teacher took the whole class to the auditorium except the Chinese girls at her second grade for they are being too quiet. Through Karl Marx’s social conflict lens, education, as a crucial agent for socialization for individuals, is a process of reinforcing class inequality and racial confrontation. The larger social issues like immigration as a whole, drip into neighborhoods, classrooms and playgrounds, one generation to the next. Intentionally or subconsciously, the idea of race runs into everyone’s mind, not only Americans, but also the immigrants as they will relentlessly think of themselves as the exotic groups, like “my” mom steadfastly believes that people are picking on them therefore sees the free candy as “dignity” that she must get. I believe the concept of race is still very relevant throughout American history and today’s America, typically as President Trump released travel bans lately. Kingston groups “I” as a Chinese girl with Negro girls, yet separating them with “American students” and so to Japanese kids. Admittedly, though anti-discrimination has been the ideal culture of the country, the country is still mixing “Ethnicity” - a group’s national origin, language, and culture or religious practices, with “Race”-- a  group sharing apparent physical traits deemed by society to be socially significant, even in the national census today.

I also think Kingston did a great job describing how does the poor English speaking becomes the biggest obstacles of immigrants’ life. It includes not only using the vocabulary and making sentences fluently, but also the courage to use the language to express someone’s real personality. Just like the way “I” shout the little Chinese girl, “I” speaked out who “I” am, and setted “my” temper free, unlike the girl hiding her personality and her temper deep down. But for the first/second immigrants, that certainly needs time. To speak the language and use the language fluently, “I” accept the fact that “I” am multi-cultured and naturally have the responsibility,  not necessarily to defend my Chinese cultural background, but have to have respect to both of the culture. Not like “my” mom who insists that the Americans often go against her race and hates their lifestyle, “I” don’t set any race above anyone but living in the middle of it.