Integration Of Asian Culture

4 Pages 947 Words

The integration of Asian culture into American society has, by and large, been highly successful. Through diligence and perseverance Asian Americans have lived up to the title of “model minority”. The Asian community has earned a great deal of respect in regards to their high educational drive, significant economic achievement, and a strong sense of nuclear family. However, in a broad sense, the Asian American community, even with such a reputation, lacks a cohesive force to bring each ethnicity together. With all our motivation and progress, there still remains tantamount the need for a voice; the desperate cry for unity in our community. There is a saying among the youth: “Asians need to stick together”. But, more often than not, there remains the shadow of ethnocentrism separating our vast cultures, breaking down any efforts to organize a formidable force in American society. This is a serious problem that affects Asians worldwide and needs to be addressed immediately starting with the youth. It is in these young people that seeds of unity and cultural bonding can be planted to create the leaders of tomorrow. The day will come when future leaders will carry the community into a new era, but a foundation must be laid out before the building is erected. We begin with a single brick: awareness.
It is quite ironic that though Asian Americans tend to have strong bonds between immediate family members and much loyalty towards their individual cultures, there seems to be an air of arrogance and feelings of superiority against other Asian cultures. Perhaps the very same ambitious, competitive nature that many Asian Americans share serves to create this hostility, perpetuating inter-cultural prejudice. Many young Asian Americans know first-hand that their immigrant parents may tend to be very stubborn and reluctant to release themselves from these self-defeating beliefs. It is that same doggedness that was essential for...