Undergraduate / UC Transfer Prompt #1 Sociology & Asian American Studies [6]

What is your intended major? Discuss how your interest in the subject developed and describe any experience you have had in the field-such as volunteer work, internships, employment, participation in student organizations and activities-and what have gained from your involvement.

I have developed a natural curiosity for the structure, development, and functioning of Asian American human societies. Studying sociology has helped shape me into the conscious person that I am today; in combination with Asian American Studies, together they have guided me to understand my heritage, family, and my identity.

Growing up I couldn't understand my parent's un-American like behavior. It bothered me that my parents have been here since the mid 80s and couldn't properly communicate with a stranger. It bothered me that as an eight year old, I was my parent's translator. It bothered me that they were receiving unemployment checks. It bothered me that they couldn't work jobs like American parents I saw on television. They were embarrassing, just the way they were and every way possible. I disconnected myself to avoid humiliation. Instead, I was more comfortable trying to connect to the American side of my upbringing. I had this vision to achieve the American dream; I needed to be wealthy, healthy, college educated, and live in a suburban home with a white picket fence surrounding it. I was born and raised in the high first generation immigrant Latino populated Fruitvale district in Oakland, Ca. Many of us shared similar family background stories. This made it easy to connect because we were in search of becoming more American together. We were exposed to more American norms all around us; its availability through social media induced our mediocre minds. Adapting to the American culture was simple and more widely available. Being American was easier than being Iu-Mien. My English and American knowledge was up to par, so I continued to go forward even if that meant leaving my stagnant parents behind.

In the summer of my junior year in High school, I got accepted into a program that would change my lifestyle and how I perceived my family. Southeast Asian Student Coalition Summer Institute at UC Berkeley changed my life. The topic- sensitive workshops about the transition from Laos to America, post dramatic stress, rape, murders, and violence that the innocent victims underwent opened my ears. The tears and stories that the gender balanced thirty four mentees and sixteen mentors shared opened my heart. Understanding that my parents, immediate uncles, aunts, and grandparents were first hand victims opened my eyes and soul. My parent's and I were not that different after all, we struggled with the parallel issue of an identity torn between two cultures. SASC helped fill up the hole in my heart with answers that I was long deprived of. Throughout those five days, I gained a sense of security that I never had before- a community of Southeast Asians that understood me. In five days, I understood why I lived the way I lived and why my parents were the way they are. I couldn't be angry at my parents anymore. Now, I only had the greatest appreciation for them from then on. Because of SASC SI, I've gotten to be exposed to a culture that I choose to disregard, a culture that was crucial to my own identity. "Know hystory, Know self" has never been a more prevalent quote.

SASC SI used a sociological approach to help me understand how much I have taken my parents' for granted. The social forces derived from the Vietnam War caused this but I've spent my whole life blaming my parents. I held onto a misconception, of not trying to understand that they had no control over their lives. I refuse to make this mistake twice. As a result, I want to continue to find a better understanding of Asian American societies. Sociology has challenged my perceptions and has left me with stimulating satisfaction. I am interested in expanding my skill of understanding through a more complex sociological standpoint.