The Harsh Reality

After reading through the article “Making and Remaking Asian Pacific America: Immigration Policy” by Bill Ong Hing my eyes were opened to the harsh reality of obtaining citizenship. I had read earlier on books regarding Angel Island but the fact that immigration but the thought of receiving a certain threshold of preference in order to acquire citizenship never crossed my mind. Thus, I was able to reflect on my family’s own immigration experience and the hardships they faced through their experiences emigrating from Vietnam to the U.S. after the war. After my father’s side of the family had finally settled down in Southern California, my mother immigrated to the U.S. in order to live with my father. Therefore, there was a noticeable difference between the experience that was faced in regards to my mother and father. The fact that my mother’s immigration to the U.S. was relatively more planned was the complete opposite of my father in regards to the fact that there was already family settled in the U.S. thereby easing her into the country easily as opposed to my father’s settlement within the U.S. Thus, it brought light to the connections that my mother had already held as an advantage during her immigration process.

But it brings the question up the question of what happens to those who don't hold the advantages of family members already settled in the U.S. or academic achievements?

Jennifer Do