Respect goes out to the parents who came here with nothing, worked for everything, gave us everything and asked for nothing. RESPONSE
Respect goes out to the parents who came here with nothing, worked for everything, gave us everything and asked for nothing.
This is a problematic-ass statement.
In case you didn’t know:
The idea that meritocracy (The supposed American Dream) has been within reach, and the underlying assumption that the ideal parents in question are in fact, real is an idea that has been used against the efforts of any marginalized group in our society. Don’t eat the garbage people.
My response:Who came here with nothing?
in the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries, there were immigrants who came here with “nothing” perhaps….
but if they were non-white, then they couldn’t become citizens, and they were restricted access to furthering their livelihood.
The narrative of people who came with “nothing” usually conjures up images of the western european immigrants who indeed came with “something” that was extremely valuable. Their whiteness.
Who worked for everything?pre 1970’s the cost of a UC education in Berkley was a FEW HUNDRED DOLLARS. That’s incredibly low, even adjusting for inflation. Our predecessors in some ways, didn’t have to work as hard as us and our parents do today. There was a time when our work went a lot farther; it was reasonable to get a career on an assembly line and make a good-ass living.
Who asked for nothing?
Let’s not be ridiculous.
They asked for worker protections such as:
the ability to unionize and collectively bargain in the 1800’s
minumum wage, unemployment benefits, and Social Security in the 30’s
Low interest housing loans in the 30’s and 40’s
better conditions and wages for farmworkers in the 60’s
^keep in mind that most of this hinged on citizenship, which hinged on whiteness.
so, unless your parents are undocumented, have no standards of living, and mute, then shut the fuck up. The underlying assumptions that this kind of statement make about MY PARENTS/GRANDPARENTS are offensive, to say the least.
However, if someone can find a person who fits the description, then I’d be happy to hear you out.
Instead of being individualistic, we should never forget that NOBODY gets anything done alone. Give thanks to those leaders, teachers, mentors, activists, sociologists and so on, who helped our parents along the way and hope that the myth of meritocracy hasn’t spread to the point where we won’t receive or welcome any helping hands in this generation.
Respect goes out to the parents who came here with nothing, worked for everything, gave us everything and asked for nothing.
I think this statement is fine. After reading this response, it seems that our initial interpretation of this statement differs significantly, of course based on our own personal biases. When I read this, I immediately thought of my mom and every other immigrant I know, most of which are not white. So for the sake of my own response, I’ll limit it to people who immigrated post 1970s, as I don’t know anyone who came here in the 18th, 19th or early 20th centuries (of course not to discredit the various struggles marginalized groups, non-white or wrong-whites, had historically faced).
I believe in the American dream. To say that it doesn’t exist is insulting to every single immigrant that has risked their life and prosperity to come to this country. In fact, I know it exists because my mom lived it. She came here with less than a thousand dollars, a 7 year old and no idea what living in a ghetto ass part of LA would entail. In 25 years, she’s married, had another kid, is the vice president of a company and lives in a safer, suburban neighborhood. But that’s just my own personal experience, I’m sure there’s more stories out there.
Who came here with nothing?
The idea of “people who came here with nothing,” to me at least, does not reflect western European immigrants, but people of color. And like I said, I’m going to restrict my response to the generation that came before me, as I’m sure that this tumblr post wasn’t written by someone who was born before 1985. Many of the immigrant stories I know did indeed come with almost no money in their pocket. A thousand dollars, even adjusting for inflation, is certainly not very much to start a new life. Many immigrants I know have left their family, their cultural comfort and more in their home country.
Who worked for everything?
…And they did just that. People who immigrate to another country are at a disadvantage being less familiar with the legal system, difficulty with legal status, linguistic barriers, etc. Because of this, immigrants are extremely hard working and creative. Their lack of “privilege” drives into them an incredible work ethic that deserves to be recognized, and as argued by many people in favor of immigration reform, their hard work has built and continues to run this country.
Who gave us everything?
Maybe I’m speaking from my privilege, but I know that the only reason I have this privilege is because of my parents. A year after I was born, my parents decided to move from that ghetto-ass apartment to Orange County. They have supported my education all my life. They pay for all my university tuition and there’s never a fucking day I forget it. To me, that IS everything. Through their hard work, I have the opportunity to get an education and start my own career and support myself. Because of their hard work, I have enjoyed financial security for almost all of my life, and I’m so grateful. Better than that, they’ve given me a work ethic, which is invaluable. So, yes, I check my privilege and I know that it was through my immigrant mother and working-class father’s hard work that I am where I am today.
Who asked for nothing?
When I read this statement, I assumed since it was talking about parents, this phrase was in reference to asking nothing from their children. Of course, I think one thing a lot of immigrant parents ask for is citizenship, and even then I think that’s more of a human right for somebody who has been in a country for years, participated in culture and contributed to the economy. But that’s just my opinion.
Now this is the part I struggle with.
“so, unless your parents are undocumented, have no standards of living, and mute, then shut the fuck up.”
…So unless someone’s parents are undocumented, meaning that they haven’t changed their legal status or gotten a green card, they’re not allowed to recognize and celebrate the struggles of their family?
…Unless they don’t conform to an ambiguous definition of what “standards of living” is they’re told to shut the fuck up when it comes to discussing something that they might have experienced on a personal level?
Instead of others demanding recognition for helping immigrants (which, ironically, is something I know white people love to argue) I say commend the immigrants for taking a risk, for leaving behind everything they love, for choosing to maneuver the difficult and often times unfair immigration system and face racism and discrimination in hopes of creating a better future for themselves and their children. Appreciate their hard work instead of minimizing their struggles. To do all this and overcome the obstacles they face or to persevere through every hurdle that is thrown at them to me, that’s what a true American is, and I’d stand behind those values any day.
