Growing Up Korean-American 🇰🇷🇺🇸

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I N F O R M A T I O N:

Growing up Asian American Tag:
5:05 Which ethnicity are you?
5:08 Which generation are you?
5:24 What is the first experience where you felt that demarcation of being a minority/different?
6:34 Were you always proud of your heritage or was there a time you rejected it?
6:56 What are some stereotypes that you struggle with?
9:27 Can you speak your language?
9:36 How has being Asian American affected your relationship with your parents?
10:21 How do you feel about your heritage now? Do you identify with it?
10:42 What is your favorite thing about being Asian American?

Who I Tag:

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L O O K - O F - T H E - D A Y:

What I’m wearing:

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P R O D U C T I O N:
🎼 MINO & KSY / The Door (produced by Zico)

FTC: I am NOT getting paid to make this video. Some of the links above are affiliate links which means I can earn some commission. You don't have to use my link, but if you do, it would really help my channel!

[joan_kim]

Wow! The comments are so supportive + I am loving your guys’ stories. Thanks for all the love💕

Here are the time stamps in case you guys want shortcuts!
5:05 Which ethnicity are you?
5:08 Which generation are you?
5:24 What is the first experience where you felt that demarcation of being a minority/different?
6:34 Were you always proud of your heritage or was there a time you rejected it?
6:56 What are some stereotypes that you struggle with?
9:27 Can you speak your language?
9:36 How has being Asian American affected your relationship with your parents?
10:21 How do you feel about your heritage now? Do you identify with it?
10:42 What is your favorite thing about being Asian American?

[heyitsfeiii]

You’re a strong individual and I said this already this morning but you are such a good person! k byeee ~~~

[choohah]

I can see that you getting overwhelmed with the emotions as you told the story and all the good and bad memories is coming back to you. Thank god you growing up as a tough and fine lady 😙😍

[lindseyyang]

Im also korean american and it definitely was a struggle growing up here. I remember in elementary school when kids would call out how gross my korean food was and basically how different I looked too. It was also pretty hard to see my mom not being able to communicate with my teachers and friends.

Overtime though, more and more asians moved into my area. Im in high school now, and my high school is now 54% asian (no joke). I have a diverse bunch of friends, and I especially value friends who share the same culture as me and who want to learn more about my culture.

I cant really complain about my early, negative experiences about my ethnicity, because people genuinely just didn't know what Korea was. I think its our responsibility to teach and learn about each others cultures. We need to keep in mind that our differences unite us, and that everyone is more than just a race/ethnicity. :")

Love ya joan ♥♥

[chloeechan]

I'm a Chinese born Canadian and I've lived in Canada my whole life. Both my parents are from Hong Kong but they attended university in the US, and ended up settling in Canada. I'd say my Cantonese is conversational at best, but I feel like because my parents are fluent in English, I was never forced to only speak Cantonese. In a way, I wish they spoke more Cantonese to me growing up just so I could be fluent, but I'm still trying to learn at the age of 20.

I never had an issue being Asian in Canada especially because I live in a part of Toronto where everyone is East and South Asian so I didn't feel like a minority. However, I'm on exchange in Singapore for a year, and I don't speak any Mandarin and I feel so judged when adults talk to me because I look(am) Chinese but I don't speak it and when I tell them I'm from Canada, they're all confused as in I was born in China, and study there. I don't get offended though because I think it's just that they don't know the extent of the amount of CBC and how multicultural Toronto is.

Anyway, there it is... a brief look in my life as an Asian Canadian. Loved hearing your story by the way! Also visiting Korea next week so I'm super excited

[MY]

Omg the part where you said you had to translate and call for your parents is so relatable. There were so many times when I had to say my name was Soonja 😂

[heechul]

I honestly admire asian-american who could still speak their original language fluently. My coworkers (indians, chinese, vietnamese etc) who grew up in the states converses with their parents in their own language. But my cousins who grew up in the states (I’m filipino), doesnt speak our language anymore. Although they understand a little bit, but they cannot speak it. Its just making me sad :(

Btw, i was born and raised in the Philippines. I just moved here in the usa, three years ago 😄

[BabyChi]

This is relatable! I also grew up as one of the few Asians in grade school and going to college was the first time I was surrounded by soooo many Asian-Americans. Definitely felt the pressure to do well in school because I was Asian, but yes I totally agree with the point you made about it motivating you to work harder!

[eiems]

I really enjoyed this video Joan. It made me feel closer to you in some kind of way? Cause you do Joanday yes, but you don't really talk much about your personal life so this was a really nice way to get to know you better ♥️

[miriamnavarro]

I love how you are so open about this, I myself am Mexican American and i know how you feel when you mentioned the way people preserve you in Korea for speaking English or being from America. The mindset is very similar to the one in Mexico I’ve actually had people be amazed that I speak Spanish and others criticize it for not being too elevated. it’s nice to know that other people have had similar experiences as I have, thank you for sharing.

[marinachavez]

Joan thank you for sharing your story! I a, Guatemalan American. My parents moved to Texas for a better future like many others! My dad's family became jealous because my father was here and cut ties with him. I learned Spanish as a young girl and even had to go to bilingual classes here. I remember visiting Guatemala for the first time and having people and my mother's family critique my sisters and I for his speaking like Guatemalan's. They expected us to be at a certain level and thought we were also rich. I was lucky enough to grow with a lot of Hispanic friends/community but hated when other looked down on my family. I'm just glad that i have grown to learn to accept both of my cultures and embrace who I am!

[choohah]

Waiting for Abe's
*growing up with Marvel* 😍😂😂

[taz]

I’m south Asian and I identify with your struggles so much but also feel really proud that I’m trilingual it’s definitely a bonus..really nice to see you being so proud of your roots ❤️❤️

[catherine]

This video is so relatable. I think everyone who has immigrant parents can relate, especially translating for our parents. I totally agree it did make me closer to my mom. My siblings also tell me that im like their second mom since i push them to do better

[elaaab]

I so admire you Joan, like you never neglect your roots. you still speak your original language fluently. :)

[Elizabeth-uwzl]

Great story! I'm glad that you embrace your culture! I grew up Mexican American and I know people who don't embrace the Mexican culture and it saddens me, so I'm happy that you embrace your own! You have done great things, and you are much loved!! Thank you for sharing Korea with us! Love you Joan! ❤️🌺

[jii_]

Being Asian anywhere not in Asia is really difficult, honestly. But, rather than feeling like you're the underdog it's actually what made me embrace being asian more. It knda made me feel more special inspite of some racist comments, I just shrug it of tbh. You're such an inspiration Joan!

[followMichelleto]

Taiwanese American, can totally relate with ESL classes, the only Asian in school, the feeling of an outsider of being in either in America or Taiwan, got mad at my parents when I had to translate for them when I was younger. It wasn’t easy, still isn’t but like what you said, the older I get I do appreciate where I am from and how I was raised. Thanks for sharing!

[pricklypickle]

The comment section is so precious. I love reading all these interesting experiences about people who are mixed blood and had to grow up in various places.

[imaheartthief]

I really admire that you have always been proud of your heritage, because for me, I was born and raised in the US and I don't think I was ever proud to be Japanese in America. I never really had to take ESL classes and like you, I had no friends of the same ethnicity, and no one's first thoughts when they saw me were, "Oh she's Asian" because we grew up together. As you can imagine when I moved to Japan when I was 14, it was super hard embracing the culture there, especially because I didn't really feel home. After entering a Japanese high school, everyone thought of me as American and that was hard too, because that wasn't the only thing about me. The transition was definitely a struggle, so I went through a serious identity crisis and also depersonalization disorder, because who everyone saw me as was so different from who I really felt and I had no one that understood this. Now, I have a lot of friends that understand me, whether they went through the same thing or not, and I am really proud of who I am. I am currently back in the US for 7 months, and I do feel at home but for the first time, I really feel proud to be both Japanese and American!