Vicky Tang, Period 6, 12/23/22

Vicky Tang

Period 6

12/23/22

Modern Mythology 2023

Socio-political Consciousness

    To be very honest, I believe that I live a very privileged life. I have not faced much racism or discrimination any kind. My family is middle class, and we live comfortably. Due to that, I do not think I would be able to truly understand how terrible oppression can be. According to Sheryl Wu Dunn, if the biggest issues of the last two centuries for humanity were slavery and totalitarianism, then the biggest issue for our century is denser equality. As a society we have progressed greatly. We have decided that all humans deserve equal rights, and so slavery is wrong. We have decided that totalitarian regimes create unhappy citizens and so these governments generally do not last. In America, we have seen the rise of the feminist movement to fight for more equality in the 60s to 80s. Today, although not perfect, we are slowly moving towards greater equality. Not just gender inequality but racial discrimination is also a big issue that has continued from the past as well. 

    Out of all of the different types of oppression and inequity that I am aware of, I am the most familiar with gender discrimination and racism. Growing up in a Chinese family, it is not hard to see that male children are valued over female children. Many parents of the younger generations generally do not believe in gender discrimination. My parents have always tried their best to shield me from this, but because many people of the older generations still believe in this to an extent, and the fact that my parents grew up under such an environment where girls were not as valued as boys, I still feel a bit uncomfortable about this topic. Even if society generally preaches that girls and boys are equal, there are subtle differences in their treatment that can go unnoticed. For me, I have been raised by a family with values that I have never questioned. Things such as “Oh my, you have a lot of girls” subtly hinting that having so many is a terrible thing and small actions such as giving boys slightly better treatment, maybe serving a little bit more meat on their plate, are commonplace. It does sadden me when the people who often say and do these things are women. They have been treated similarly to how they treat their own daughters but do not seem to try to change so that their daughters do not need to experience this same type of discrimination. 

    However, despite the imbalance in the treatment of both girls and boys there is hope. Many parents of my parent’s generation and younger had more opportunities for education, and it’s become clear that women are just as important as men as both groups can benefit society. This is very evident in how many younger Chinese women have been able to pursue more and better education that can help their families and local communities. There is a saying that says that “two brains are better than one” and in this case, more opportunities for the other half of the population can lead to much greater growth and prosperity. Trying to remove bad values is not easy. I am ashamed to say that sometimes I unconsciously judge people for what they do, even though I believe in equality for both men and women. Without effort, there is no change. 

    America has a growing population of non-Caucasian people. When different groups of people collide, discrimination for being different is not uncommon. I am very fortunate to have never experienced extreme racism, only some name calling. In the last couple of years, movements pushing for better treatment for both African Americans and Asian Americans have occurred. I have never seen the Chinese American community unite so vocally over an issue before. The pandemic has caused a surge of hate crimes against Asian Americans which resulted in the “Stop Asian Hate” movement. Since the Asian American community has never been overly vocal about their opinions and are seen as a model minority, they do not face as much discrimination in my opinion. I lived in the south for quite a while and although they are stereotypically known for being racist, I have never experienced more racism there compared to any other place in America. The same can be said for where I live now. However, the Asian hate crimes due to the fact that the virus had originated from China is terrifying. Asian Americans have at worst, died from these crimes, and oftentimes they were doing their normal everyday routines, meaning that what happened to them could happen to any Asian American. Many people I know have become too scared to use public transportation. It is a good thing that Asian Americans are speaking out against discrimination. Groups that are not vocal can be pushed around more easily. 

    Something that I have also noticed is that when describing ourselves, Americans do not start by saying that they are American but rather their ethnic identity first. In British English, one would say for example, that they are British Chinese and not Chinese British. Here in America, we say Chinese American. Is my identity as an ethnic Chinese more important than the fact that I am American? Asian Americans are not some of the newest immigrant groups to arrive in America. Chinese immigrants have been in America for much earlier than many other European immigrants, yet we see those European immigrants as American when they have assimilated while Chinese Americans who may have been here for generations are not. This concept of a perpetual foreigner no matter how hard you try is sad. Sometimes people tell me that I am too Asian, as if I am also not American enough. I have lived here for all of my life and when I speak, it is clear that I am American, until people see my appearance and find it surprising. 

    All of these various experiences have affected how I see other people and myself. Being discriminated against for my race has made me want to appear and feel more “American.” I have felt both the need to prove to the world and to myself that I am American enough, that I am much more than just “Asian American”. Oddly enough, although I am strongly against discrimination being so terrible, at one point, I was very critical at how some Asian Americans were “too Asian”. I think this most likely resulted from my fear of being discriminated against for being not American enough and so I projected it onto others. With everything that has happened in the past couple of years, I have definitely changed my views, since then. No matter the type of oppression, as long as you have faced it before, you should not try to contribute to it but fight back.