“It wasn't until much later when I realized the significance of keeping my heritage and culture very close to me”

Story #2

Justin, 20, first-generation Chinese American 

Interviewed by Yiran Yu

“My dad and mom both moved here in the 90s for grad school. They grew up in China, went to college and worked in China for a while, and then came here to study. And then after that, I've just lived here ever since. I was born here in California.” 

Justin’s parents moved to the United States for more economic opportunities. “I remember my dad telling me that, at the time, he kind of felt like he was hitting a dead end there.” 

“He went to a school in Minnesota, just because he knew a professor there. That was the only reason he chose to go there, as there was financial aid for him too.” 

Growing up as a Chinese American, Justin recalled his struggles with cultural identity. “When I was younger, I thought a lot about assimilating and why I was, you know, treated differently [because] my family was different compared to other families,” Justin said. “There's just always an internal struggle of how Chinese I can be, or how American I wanted to be...It wasn't until much later when I realized the significance of keeping my heritage and culture very close to me.” 

Justin mentioned that the migration stories of his parents, to some extent, shaped his dreams and aspirations. As the emphasis on economic stability roots deeply within his lineage, Justin decided to study finance in college and turn filmmaking, his childhood dream, into a lifelong hobby. “I didn't really understand why they were like shutting down my dreams. But now, I find other creative outlets to pursue those dreams.” 

With a minor in journalism, Justin is passionate about Asian representation in media. “In the previous generation, there was always this conversation of assimilating with American culture rather than bringing in new parts of your culture to American culture, especially in the Asian American community,” said Justin, illuminating the need to rescind racial stereotypes. 

“I think it's best to embrace your culture, be proud of your skin color, of who you are. It's kind of cheesy, but I think that's the best advice I can give.” 

Justin also hopes to see changes in how people talk about immigration. “It's so unfortunate that the immigrant story, especially in the last few years, has been shaped as something to demonize rather than a universal experience,” Justin said. “Because everyone in the US comes from a family of immigrants, except for Native Americans. Everyone came here from overseas, at some point, right?” 

The migration narratives are diverse, said Justin. “When people think of immigrants. They usually probably think about the border. It's so much more than that. I think once people see that so much of America is founded on the backs of immigrants, it becomes a lot more relatable.”