Background of the Chinese Person - Essay Example

The story of my Uncle and my family, like it was revealed by Uncle Lee Background of the Chinese person The history of Lee Chan (my uncle), like that of many other Chinese-Americans, is a sad one, but also one that has empowered our family and his person. The family history of Uncle Lee, in America began with his grandfather, who entered America from his home country in 1904. Like other Chinese living in America then, Lee’s grandfather who was 23 years old found it hard to start a family, because Chinese women were not allowed into the country, and Native Americans were not willing to marry the Chinese. The movement of Chinese women from China to America was limited by the traditional outlook of Chinese customs and also the stringent laws of the US. Apart from the obvious limitations stopping his grandfather from starting a family in America, he was also not willing to marry an American woman, because he believed that the cultural rift between the two would most likely, make it difficult for the marriage to work. The early years of the my great grandfather’s life have been a major force that has shaped Lee’s life and experience, including that the limitations and the exclusion that stopped Chinese-Americans from living comfortably and marrying Native Americans fuelled his ambition to become very successful in America and to marry an American woman. Like other Chinese people, who were bartered by the exclusion of the then American community, my great grand father found comfort and some level of protection in the Chinatown at San Francisco. However, the San Francisco earthquake and subsequent conflagration gave my great grandfather the chance he needed to start a family, after an older Chinese man brought in a “paper daughter”, after claiming that he was a born American (Lim 15). The “paper daughter” became the wife of Lee’s grandfather, and later his father was born and raised in San Francisco. Lee’s father (my grandfather) did not get the opportunity to access quality education, but he gained his grounds as a business man, therefore offered Uncle Lee and my father the opportunity to access quality education. The parents of Lee Chan and his brother (my father), moved to California in 1967, after the passage of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 made it easier for Chinese to secure employment in America. The questions for the interview 1. Where were you born and into what kind of family? 2. Where have you lived since you were born, and what have you been doing for a living? 3. What world-historical event has affected your life in a very notable way? 4. What do you find to miss about being a Chinese, living in America? 5. What areas of your life have you changed, in order to fit in the American society? 6. Have your impressions about the American and the Chinese societies and people changed over the years? 7. What expectations about life, can you trace from your family’s history? 8. How has your history, family and the environment influenced the person you are? Notes about the interview with Lee Chan Time of Interview: 11 May 2014. Duration: 35 minutes Venue: Lee Chan’s home office 1. Where were you born and into what kind of family? I was born in San Francisco, to a nuclear family, as the first of two boys; the other boy is your father. 2. Where have you lived since you were born, and what have you been doing for a living? I lived for a few years in San Francisco with my brother and my parents, and later moved to California, in 1967. 3. What world-historical event has affected your life in a very notable way? I could say the enactment of the immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 (Wu, Sun and Smith 745). 4. What do you miss as a Chinese, while living in America? I miss the rich culture of the Chinese people and society, which is evident from the cooperative spirit of the Chinese and their intrinsically distinctive nature; I learned a lot about it from my Wen. 5. What areas of your life have you changed, in order to fit in the American society? I have been brought up in America, wearing American clothes and I received American education, therefore I had little to change. However, I had to learn a lot about Chinese and Asian foods through my uncle. 6. Have your impressions about American changed over the years? Yes. The stories I received from my grandfather and father are different from my experiences, except in few instances – and that has changed my outlook. 7. What expectations about life, can you trace from your family’s history? The value assigned to education is one area; the pursuit to attain a high status in society is another and the importance of hard work is also inherited. I can also trace my resilience and strength to my family, including my Uncle (Wu, Sun and Smith 746). 8. How has your history, family and the environment influenced the person you are? My Chinese history has influenced my success, because I realised early in life, that success brings class and respect. Interview Questions and interpretation of world history Where have you lived since you were born, and what have you been doing for a living? After living with my parents and brother in San Francisco, we moved to California, in 1967, and that is where I started the work that I still do today. The enactment of the immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 saw the abolishment of the National origins formula, and that allowed a younger brother (Wen) who was a specialist in the hotel and hospitality industry in China come to California. What world-historical event has affected your life in a very notable way? The enactment of the immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 saw the loosening of the conditions required by Chinese immigrants to come to America, and that offered my uncle Wen, the opportunity to come to America, credit to his professionalism in the hotel and hospitality industry in China (Wu, Sun and Smith 745). Coming into force for the Act saw the abolishment of the stringent and often unfair immigration policies of the past decades. The passage of the Act was actively championed by American political figures like President John Kennedy, who saw the civil rights movement as an embarrassment to America. Even after the assassination of President Kennedy, President Johnson accented the bill as a symbolic signal, at the foot of the Statue of Liberty (Hing 95). Despite the fact that Uncle Lee was young at the time, he felt the impacts of the historical passage of the Act in 1968, mainly because it allowed his uncle to come into the country, and his coming ushered in the inflow of more and more Asians into California and America as a whole (Hing 95). After Wen came into California, he found the opportunity of catering to the hotel-related needs of the increasing number of Chinese and other Asian groups, and that led him to establish the Wen cafe, which served Chinese, Japanese and Indian delicacies. At a young age, Uncle Lee took interest in the hotel business, and that saw him working at Wen’s cafe after school, during weekends and public holidays. At the age of 17, he had no doubts that a career in the hotel industry could offer him a bright future, and that led him to take catering courses in college. After leaving college, he worked for his uncle for six years and then started the Lee-Foods chain of restaurants, which have made him so successful. The success of the business can be predominantly attributed to the massive inflow of Chinese and other Asian groups into California and America as a whole. What do you miss as a Chinese, while living in America? The important aspect about the Chinese society, which the Chinese missed after moving into America, is evident from the formation of Chinatowns in America, including the biggest one at San Francisco. The formation of Chinatowns and the concentration of the Chinese people in these towns, where the culture, art and the social life of the Chinese is predominant – evidenced the fact that they missed the Chinese culture and the group-based social life. On the other hand, America is mainly an individualistic society, where people do not live in groups and identify themselves as members of the larger society (Wu, Sun and Smith 746). However, the situation of the Chinese, as well as their historical roots evidences the importance of group-based societies, where interrelations are central to social life. The fact that the Chinese, still sought to identify themselves with a group based society, tells another fact that the value offered by social life in China was probably not weighty enough to overcome the dissatisfaction of the Chinese people. In the case that the social life in China offered solutions to the pressing problems, it is possible that fewer Chinese would immigrate to America. What areas of your life have you changed, in order to fit in the American society? The importance of changing some aspects of life, in order to fit into the American society and way of life can be used to indicate the differences between the cultures of America and China. This process of change is often referred as acculturation, and the emphasis on changing some aspects about the culture of the Chinese emphasizes that the two societies were differentiated by their cultures. More importantly, that shows that culture plays an important role in social life, and that the understanding of the differences in the cultures can also shed more light on the problems, opportunities and the differences of the two societies. For example, the American society was predominantly intolerant, and that compelled the immigrants moving into America to change their cultures, so as to be accepted and accommodated (Wu, Sun and Smith 746). Have your impressions about Americans changed over the years? The changes in Lee’s outlooks and beliefs about America tell a lot about the history of America. The most notable difference in the American society was related to the cultural intolerance of the past, which has been changed using laws, social inclusion and tolerance, to create a society which is friendlier to immigrants. For example, during the 1880s, the 1882 exclusion Act prohibited Chinese workers from immigrating into America and from getting American citizenship. The unfriendly and culturally intolerant policies led to the development of a violent decade, especially for Chinese-Americans. The social exclusion of the then American society made life difficult for the Chinese living in America, and that forced them to from their own Chinese societies within the larger American society. The Chinese societies that afforded the Chinese, cooperative social relations and protection from the adversity of the American society were called Chinatowns. However, the situation has changed fully, from the adversity of exclusion, to a society where Chinese women, who were excluded by the American society, among other groups, to enjoy the opportunities that are found in America. For example, due to immigrating into America and getting acculturated into the American way of life, the predominantly patriarchal society has reduced, and women – unlike in the past – enjoy freedom and privileges. This shows the fact that, the American society has evolved to accommodate and to foster the development of immigrants. What expectations about life, can you trace from your family’s history? The fact that the Chinese family system was a major driving force behind the success of Lee shows that the Chinese family setup is different from that of the Americans, irrespective of the fact that they have changed in different ways, throughout history. For example, unlike the American family system, which is predominantly determined by culture, it is more supportive of its members; it offers an explanation as to why Chinese-Americans remain more successful than native Americans currently (Wu, Sun and Smith 754). For example, a 2012 study found that Asian-Americans, including Chinese-Americans are the highest-educated, highest earning and the fastest growing foreign group in America. The incomparable success of this group shows that there is a racial explanation for their success, and that can be explained using the social system and the framework of relations in China, among other Asian countries. How has your history, family and the environment influenced the person you are? The role of history in shaping the economic, social and the cultural competence of the Chinese in America tell a lot about the history of the Chinese and the Americans. The lessons learnt from the role played by community history, the environment and the family include that the historical treatment of marginalised groups can offer them the platform, from which the group launches its success and its resilience. For example, the marginalization of the Chinese in America has played a major role in fuelling their resilience and competitiveness. Secondly, the relationship between the environment and the performance of the Chinese in the American society can also be used to evidence the role played by cultural values in the economic sphere of society. Works Cited Hing, Bill. Defining America: Through Immigration Policy. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Temple University Press, 2012. Print. Lim, Shirley Jennifer. A Feeling of Belonging: Asian American Women’s Public Culture, 1930- 1960, New York: New York University Press, 2006. Print. Wu, Yuning, Sun, Ivan, and Smith, Brad. “Race, Immigration, and Policing: Chinese Immigrants Satisfaction with Police.” JQ: Justice Quarterly, 28.5(2011): 745-774. Read More