Hmong American - Growing Up

Growing up Hmong American in the United States was such a confusing thing. I never felt "American" enough or Hmong enough or "Asian" enough. At one point it was easier to just ignore my Hmong identity because I wanted to be accepted by the other white kids and my family was pretty "Americanized" so it was easy to not think about Hmong stuff. Eventually I started realizing (in like 3rd grade) "Hey some people are treating me different because of how I look". But I was ok with changing who I was because I wanted to be accepted so badly.

No matter how much I changed my looks, my friend group, how I talked...I still didn't feel a sense of belonging anywhere. So I'd say in high school, I was just like...FUCK IT. Imma do me. I found that when I was more connected with my cultural roots, I felt more empowered. I only really fully realized this in college. I began asking my parents, more often, about their stories in Laos and the refugee camps. I started speaking in Hmoob more. The more I knew about the history and culture, I felt a stronger sense of who I was.

Growing up in America as a Hmoob person was not easy, but I wouldn't change it for anything.
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Видео Hmong American - Growing Up канала Mina Yang