When I was younger, I knew my family and I were different. I didn’t exactly know what was it was that was different, but I could feel it. As I have gotten older I have gotten to know myself better and thus have also come to realize how I am different.
I grew up in middle-class neighborhood and I was the only Asian in my block. My friends were Caucasian and we got along great. I can honestly say I never felt any type of racism. I was invited to parties, sleep-overs, etc. I had a great childhood. My whole family was as American as we could be, though we were still Asian. I mean that we generally watched the same type of shows, worked in similar industries (my dad was a software engineer and my mom a teacher) and shopped at the same places (Safeway). And yet, we were Buddhists and sometimes visited Chinatown for what my father called, authentic Chinese food.
It was during these visits that my differences were most evident, and what allowed me to empathize with the people in this short documentary. The documentary is short, so their prime focus is on the most negative aspects of the program instituted by the US government. Like Japanese internment camps and the various failures in civil rights, the US government does not always do the right thing. And even when someone points it out, it seems to purposefully fall on deaf ears. This is the reason I think the documentary focuses on the negative aspects, with misplaced blame on the foster parents.
Watch and tell us what you think?
