The Aspect of Community Wellbeing - Essay Example

? Community Well-being The aspect of community wellbeing is considered to be a growing in every nation. Every individual who belongsto a particular community strives hard to contribute in some way or the other to their community. With this consideration, the main objective of this paper is not only to comprehend the importance of community wellbeing but also to derive a clear picture of the Chinese community in America. With reference to the discussion made, it can be viewed that the contribution and existence of Chinese for the US is noteworthy. Although the people who belong to the Chinese community were not treated well decades ago however today they represent an integral part of the US society. Additionally, initiatives are also being taken to develop better relation and create scope for the Chinese in America. Introduction The Chinese people living in the United States are considered as the largest Chinese community in the world. In accordance with history of the United States, it has been observed that a majority of the Chinese population had moved to California for earning their livelihood as the worker of gold mines. However, later on the US federal and local government passed a law to keep the immigrants out of the mining area. At that moment of time, the Chinese population moved on to other professions such as opening Chinese restaurants and retail stores (Lai, n.d). This paper aims at focusing on the Chinese community in the United States and studies the various aspects of its well being. The paper also identifies a few of the social signs of the community wellbeing along with providing strategies for promoting well-being of the Chinese community in the US. Signs of Community Well-being In the early years, when the Chinese were migrating to the US, they were not allowed to work in the gold mines of California and also kept away from the legal rights and protections. The only reason for the Chinese migration to the US was to search for better job opportunities and economic opportunities. The US population accounts for 15.5 million people from the Asian countries. Among those Asian American populations, almost 3.54 million people belonged to the Chinese community. A health survey was conducted by the members of Centers for Disease Control for the study of the infant mortality rates. During that study, it was found that infant mortality rate was the lowest in the Chinese community settled in the US. It was found to be approximately 3.4 to 3.2 percent per 1000 live births (MacCorquodale, n.d). According to the Census Bureau of America, it has been found that the poverty rate of the Chinese Americans was 13.2% which is relatively higher than the natives of the country (Bread for the World, 2010). The Chinese community had to go through a lot of problems in the earlier days of their migration. A few years ago one of my cousins had come to America from China in search of a job opportunity. He had appeared for numerous interviews but he failed in most of them. The reason was that there was a discrimination of the local people and the outsider. The interview was entirely based on the performance but the thing was that the local Americans were given higher priority in the selection for the job. These kinds of problems were usually observed in the past few years among the Chinese community. In most of the job sectors, the local white people were given high priority during the selection process. Among the entire Asian Americans, Chinese community accounted for 28% poverty rate (Asian American Federation, 2008). The Chinese had migrated in search of job but the same problem was faced by them in the earlier stage of its migration. Initially, the Chinese communities were engaged in the business of restaurants and retail stores as they were not allowed by the US government to get involved in any kind of high position jobs. In respect of the problems faced by the Chinese community in the earlier days, a few of the strategies such as the sense of community development, social support and respect for the diversity could have been implemented as the subjective measures of the community well being (Murphy, 2010). All the people in the community must be united and struggle for the development of the community. Concerned people must take special initiatives in improving the means of occupation and also the living standards of the Chinese Americans. In this regard, respect for diversity means that due respect must be given to the diverse cultures residing in the US. There must exist a feeling of unity and respect for all the people living in the community which will also promote the wellbeing of the community. Nevertheless, it has also been noticed that with the passage of time the Chinese Americans have made great contribution to the development of the American economy and promoted the growth of their community. Sources of Community Well-Being The contribution of the Chinese in America history is considered to be noteworthy. The existence of the Chinese people in the United States of America can be viewed from the late 80s. It has been stated by many historical scholars that there were many Chinese scholars who served as army personnel during the American Civil War that took place from 1861 and ended in 1865 (The New York Times Company, 1865). However, it is viewed that the Chinese has been a victim of various unethical practices resulting from their different physical appearances, racist attitudes and unfamiliar languages and customs. There has been a significant change in the way Chinese people were treated decades ago. Today, Chinese are considered amongst the most hardworking and educated minorities who reside in the United States of America (USA). Most Chinese today work as white collar professionals in many well-known associations whether they are government or private entities with high salary. Out of 100% of the persons who belong to other communities and reside in America, 51.3% of the total employment rate is occupied by the Chinese. It is also worth mentioning that the Chinese contribute almost 2% of the total physicians in the United States and contribute nearly 10% of the total workforce in the Silicon Valley. Moreover, it is viewed that by 1998, a majority of the high-tech farms in the Silicon Valley had Chinese American CEOs and Yahoo among others was co-founded by a Chinese person named Jerry Yang (Koo, 2002). In terms of income, it is measured that a Chinese American man has a full time median income of US$57,061 and a woman almost earns US$47,224 placing themselves in one of the highest positions among other groups of individuals who reside in USA (U.S. Census Bureau, 2010). Furthermore, it has also been viewed that the government is recruiting many Chinese personnel in a few of the most vital positions in different government echelons. In terms of education, almost 51.8% of the total Chinese people have attained a bachelor degree. Moreover, the government has introduced Chinese language in many academic centers as a policy to spread awareness relating to their culture and religious practice (Koo, 2002). There are certain health initiatives being taken by both the government and private bodies to introduce Chinese assistance in a number of the major hospitals in the USA. Thus, it can be stated there exist numerous sources of wellbeing for the Chinese people in America. Strategies for Community Well-Being A community is considered to be a place in which an individual raises their children, build their career, work to reach their pre-set goals in order to live an easily life. The well-being of a community is essential as it not only motivates the people who are a part of it but also helps in providing a route to walk in. The development of the community requires a number of robust processes. Considering the aspect of community wellbeing relating to the Chinese people who reside in America, the first step that can be done is formation of a Community Wellbeing Action Group. The next step is conduction of meeting to set priorities as a part of planning and consultation process. Setting objectives such as achieving optimal health for the community, recognizing and celebrating the Chinese cultural festivals and religious practices to foster a socially inclusive community can be determined as key approaches. Moreover, leaders can be sent to the upper government bodies demanding certain rights and policies that would not only benefits the community but would also help in developing the economic and social aspect of the country at large. Additionally, the community should also support any activities that are done for the wellbeing of the society as a whole (Wellington Shire Council, 2013). The contribution for my community i.e. Chinese is very limited in comparison with what my people have done to promote our religious practices and for the well-being of my people. As a responsible person, my duty had been to establish a community group in my residing area, where all the vital aspects such as proper health and education are taken care of. Funds are collected from all the people who belong to the community and are reserved to be utilized in time of need by any people irrespective of their community. Furthermore, I also seek suggestions from individuals about what can be done for the betterment of the people who belong to the community. Conclusion The study of the community well being of the Chinese American people shows that they had to go through a lot of struggle at the earlier days of their migration. They had low employment rate in comparison with the local Americans. On the other side, it has also been found that the Chinese Americans had made a great contribution to the American economy and well-being. A majority of the Chinese American population is considered as educated and well-settled group people in the country. From the study, the importance of the community wellbeing can be analyzed as they promote the development of the career along with facilitating to meet the set goals of their life. The community well-being not only helps in benefiting the community but also enables to develop the country’s economy. Appendix: Group Process Reflection Process Reflection This project was prepared with the assistance of the opinion derived from the group of five people. The most interesting fact that surprised all of us was that when Chinese had first migrated into US, they were discarded from all the legal rights and were also prohibited from the government jobs such as gold mines related works. The most disappointing thing was that Chinese were discriminated in terms of employment opportunities. All the priorities were given to the local white people. Nonetheless, the pleasing thing is that despite all these discriminations, the Chinese have been a huge contributor to the American economy. A majority of the Chinese population is well-settled and educated in the US. Content Reflection While working in the group, it was quite a good experience. All the members in the group belonged to the same community. In that matter, our opinion regarding the subject was similar and it helped a lot in the preparation of the project. The struggle of the Chinese people in the early days is a known subject to us and we all support the concept of community well-being. The strongest point of the project is the promotion of community well-being through the implementation of social support and respect for the diverse culture. These strategies will promote an organized society. The most satisfactory result is the learning that the Chinese community is a major contributor to the American economy and has the highest rate of education and employment. Interpretation/Analysis With reference to the above stated discussion, it can be viewed that though the Chinese were not treated properly by the Americans in the initial period of their residency however the scenario seems to have completely changed in the present day context. It has been viewed that today Chinese enjoy a very respectable position in the society and are treated as an integral part of major organizations in the nation. Considering the performance of the group, every individual worked hard to collect relevant data and also coordinated with each other to provide a relevant project. Relating to the aspect of group dynamics, all the members were very cooperative and played a vital role in completing the project in time. Action With regard to the overall performance of the group members, I have understood that every individual team member plays a vital role in a project work. In terms of the aspect of takeaway, I believe that a key takeaway has been the leaning that the way in which proper coordination amid all the team members can help in successful completion of a project within a definite time. However, there was some communication problem amid a few of the group members which resulted in wastage of a considerable portion of our time. Regarding this aspect, I would like to create an online database of my next project. This would not only help the entire members to keep a track of our progress but would also facilitate to be communicated if there is a communication break. A few of the principles that can be drawn from the project are coordination, collaboration and team effort. Personal Evaluation Regarding my performance in this project, I have given my best to make this project a reliable one. I have not only conducted extensive studies but have provided analyzed data by reading different online journals and webpages that helped me in portraying the current scenario of our community in America. I have concentrated more on collecting data and have also written the project since I was made the group leader with a unanimous decision of all the members. I would like to rate my personal effort 8 out of 10 since similar contributions were done by my group members as well accepting the fact that I have just given a bit more effort in making the project a successful one. References Asian American Federation. (2008). Working but poor: Asian American poverty in New York City. Introduction, 1-54. Bread for the World. (2010). Poverty and social indicators among Asian-Americans. Retrieved from http://www.bread.org/what-we-do/resources/fact-sheets/asian-american-facts.pdf Koo, G. (2002). Chinese American Contributions to Silicon Valley. High Tech Coolies, 1-7. Lai, H. M. (N.d). China and the Chinese American community: The political dimension. Retrieved from http://himmarklai.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/01-China-and-the-Chinese-American-Community-Political-Dimension.pdf MacCorquodale, D. W. (N.d). Black-white infant mortality differentials in the United States. Retrieved from http://c.ymcdn.com/sites/www.acpm.org/resource/resmgr/perpectives-files/Perspectives_InfantMortality.pdf Murphy, B. (2010). Community well-being: an overview of the concept. Nuclear Waste Management Organization, 1-42. The New York Times Company. (1865). Important proclamations, the belligerent rights of the rebels at an end. all nations warned against harboring their privateers. If they do their ships will be excluded from our ports. Restoration of law in the state of Virginia. The machinery of government to be put in motion there. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/1865/05/10/news/important-proclamations-belligerent-rights-rebels-end-all-nations-warned-against.html U.S. Census Bureau. (2010). American community survey 1-year estimates. Retrieved from http://factfinder2.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_10_1YR_S0201&prodType=table Wellington Shire Council. (2013). Community Wellbeing. Strategy, 1-22. Read More