Valerie Chen, Period 8, 2/14/22

Valerie Chen 

8th period 

02/14/2022

Modern Mythology 2022

What are your thoughts and feelings about issues of inequity, oppression, and/or power?

Coming from the background of a Chinese immigrant household, I’ve seen and experienced many instances of inequity. Being called names in school and getting made fun of for awkward pronunciations was nothing new. I was often associated with “ching-chong” and fried rice throughout my childhood because of my ethnicity. The thought of reporting my situation to an administrator never appealed to me because it was seen as “tattle-telling” and “making a big deal out of nothing”. I was scared of being excluded from my peers even more and decided to keep the mocking and rude jokes to myself. In my head, I didn’t think the administrators would do much other than tell the kids to stop which they would just ignore. A few years later, although there is a big percentage of the population trying to promote equity among different ethnicities and cultures, the issue continues. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the issue exploded with hate crimes and Anti-Asian backlashes. My family and I had to live in constant fear of getting cursed at and attacked in public for the false accusation of Asians starting the pandemic. There were few government actions taken to defend us against all the violence. The media’s daily report of new cases of Asian hate crime intensified the situation. Every time my parents went out to shop for groceries I was in fear of them returning with injuries or sickness because of the pandemic and Asian hate. I felt trapped inside my house as it was seen as the only safe place keeping my family and I against the public’s hatred and profanity. Overall, I felt that there are more actions said than actions taken. Despite how hard people try to deny it, the root problem of equity still exists in society, and there are still hidden social stereotypes and stigmas waiting for a moment to explode. I feel like there should be more actions taken by authority figures, not just the media and the people who don't have direct influence over political decisions.

 

How do you reflect critically on your own beliefs, assumptions, values, and experiences, and how these can influence your perception of self and others?

My reflection of my beliefs, assumptions, values, and experiences came from my family. They taught me to never be ashamed of who I am or where I came from. Instead, I should be proud to share my beautiful culture with others who have never heard of or experienced it before. In middle school, I began bringing in traditional Chinese food like dumplings and peanut noodles for lunch. I started sharing my lunch with my close friends to help them get a better understanding of my culture and that we are not just about fried rice and lo mein. In high school, I joined the Asian American Culture club which deepened my understanding of my own culture and taught me the value of spreading my culture with others. I also learned to embrace other cultures and beliefs as every culture deserves its respect.