Week 2 - Eugine Hur

Eugine Hur

ASA 2 A03

Week 2

In Hmong Does Not Mean Free: The Miseducation of Hmong Americans, Kaozong Mouavangsou inspects both the external and internal divisions among Hmong students, inflicted by the American education system and stereotypes within the Hmong community. Essentially, Kaozong points out the underrepresentation of the Hmong people in the American education system and its implicit message towards ethnic minorities in the U.S. The absence of Hmong history in American education curriculums implies a sense of exclusion towards Hmong students, creating a domino effect along with localized gender stereotypes within Hmong communities towards a widespread miseducation of Hmong Americans.

Kaozong’s statement (2016) in her conclusion effectively clarifies the concept of the miseducation of ethnic minorities in the U.S.: “The distinction between being awakened and being provided information is significant. Being provided information… is about individual betterment within the context of a western model of success…  By awakening others, I mean referring to making students question the information they are given and to critically think about it. The difference is between hoarding and sharing” (p. 41). The most prominent (and perhaps the sole) cause of marginalization is silence; miseducation can only be eliminated through the breaking of silence. While playing within the rules safety and survival, understanding the game and the player’s position allows the individual to truly succeed.

Questions:

Did the children of the families interviewed exhibit apparent effects on their self identity mentioned in this dissertation, such as subtractive bilingualism?

Do you think the direct correlation between academic success and emasculation particular to hmong culture/communities, or other people of color as well?

If parents are generally supportive of their childrens'academic success, what then is the cause of the internal division between the "masculine" and the academically ambitious "emasculine?" Is this difference more striking and apparent than similar internal stereotypes apparent in other ethnic groups in America?

Can the American education system be explicitly blamed for this internal division among Hmong male youth?

References:

Mouavangsou, K. N. (2016). The Mis-Education of the Hmong in America (Doctoral dissertation,

     University of California, Davis).

[The Miseducation of the Negro Revisited]. (2012, April). Retrieved April 9, 2017, from

     http://panafricanalliance.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Carter-G.-Woodson-quote1.png