My uncle Dan is Korean and was adopted before he was a year old. His wife Shin was born in Korea and continues to practice many Korean traditions. When I heard about this class, I realized that this would be a valuable opportunity to learn more about their culture. I also learned more about what Asian immigrants have had to face as they settled here in America, leading me to wonder if my aunt and uncle had any of the same experiences. Before taking this class, I did not put much thought into my aunt and uncle's Korean heritage because I have known them for my entire life and I wasn't curious about it. I have always seen them as American, but now I want to learn more about their personal traditions and ties to Korea.
The film Eat a Bowl of Tea had the greatest influence on me during this class because it is similar to what my uncle and aunt went through when they first met. Aunt Shin had previously been married and had two sons when she met my uncle. This is similar to what happened to Ben Loy when he married Mei Oi. Both of them had their own lives, habits and desires for life but they had to learn how to coexist with each other and change something to save their marriage. I haven't heard the full story about what early marriage life was like for uncle Dan and Aunt Shin, but I can guess that it wasn't easy for them since they had both built separate lives and had to learn how to merge them together.
The CRT term that stuck out to me the most was the term "double consciousness," or the idea that people of ethnicity are able to see racial events from their own perspective as well as the perspective of the majority group. This really stands out to me because minority groups, particularly when they are the focus of the media, are often portrayed as being single minded, ignorant of people around them and unwilling to change their views on things that they are bringing to light. This CRT term tries to erase that belief by stating that minorities are portrayed in that negative light by the majority group. The goal of this statement seems to be the removal of prejudice and creating an environment where both parties are willing to listen and adopt one another's ideas and beliefs.
The thing that I will carry from this class will be a change in my own attitude toward people of foreign ethnicity. I admit that I have less patience with Indian drivers and had an arrogant attitude towards Asian exchange students during high school in response to the different way that the students would act and talk. After reading stories about Asian students struggling to feel accepted or even tolerated in classrooms, I feel a deep regret over how I often ignored or was impatient with Asian students back in High School. While I was reading the story of Mrs. Sen being nervous to drive and how difficult it was for her to learn, I found a greater sense of patience and understanding for why some Indian drivers lack confidence on the road.
Another valuable lesson that this class taught me is that I am very blessed in life and should be grateful for the opportunities that have been given to me, and that I should be more considerate of and kinder to the people who have not had as many or as great of opportunities that I have had.
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