Ghosts of White People Past: Witnessing White Flight from an Asian Ethnoburb

https://psmag.com/ghosts-of-white-people-past-witnessing-white-flight-from-an-asian-ethnoburb-b550ba986cdb#.6s9y5dupa

by david_xia • 10 years ago

16 3 10 years ago

jimmywanger2• 10 years ago

I've witnessed this first hand.

A lot of people complain that Asian parents push for curriculum choices that don't create "well rounded people".

It's a load of crap, IMO. Asian parents push their kids so hard because they've actually experienced true poverty and want, and came to America to give their children a better life. They sure as heck will push their children as hard as they're capable of to make sure their children will never experience that level of want in their lives.

kazinator• 10 years ago

Pushing kids in academics doesn't create "well-rounded people" regardless of the reason for that pushing; you're not refuting the point.

Secondly, not all East Asians who come to America are poor. Those who are not poor and not from poor countries at all (South Korea, Japan, and affluent areas of China and other countries) also push their kids to succeed in school. Some Asian parents are loaded with money and simply want their kids to be educated in an English-speaking environment. Why? So with their excellent, native-like English, the kids can go to any damn university in the world, work anywhere easily and also work globally in business.

This is a plain old clash of values. Good old Anti-intellectual America versus education-valuing foreigners.

The same thing would happen if a bunch of white Europeans took over a community; the flight just wouldn't be recognizable from a distance by color.

"My kid is reasonably good at math but can't compete with these European kids; I'm moving across the freeway. They have a great athletic program there; he can get a traditional all-American football scholarship."

jimmywanger2• 10 years ago

Rather, "well-rounded people" is an ill defined term that can be twisted to justify almost any educational choice.

Why is being a well-rounded person a good thing? We live in an age of specialization.

Ghosts of White People Past: Witnessing White Flight from an Asian Ethnoburb

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