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3 Asian families and the American dream....true stories |
26 Jan 2014 13:15 #175025
by Chin
The Pew Research Center recently released a comprehensive study profiling Asian-Americans in the United States and found them to be more highly educated and well-paid than any other immigrant group in the country.
Asians are also now coming to the United States in greater numbers than Hispanics and make up about 6% of the population.
The study is overwhelmingly positive - most Asian-Americans have at least a college degree and consider themselves hard-working - but it also showed immense diversity among the group.
There are more than 17 million Asian-Americans, and each has a unique story. Here, three immigrant families in the Atlanta area share a slice of their lives.
The Tripathi family celebrates Kaushal and Neelam's 25th wedding anniversary with a Hawaiian themed party at their home in Fayetteville, Georgia.
High expectations
Kaushal Tripathi settles into a plush leather couch, scanning the two-story lofted ceiling and a grand, free-standing stairway in his living room. Tulips adorn a pair of large vases.
People say they don't care about money, he says, sipping hot chai muted with milk.
"But when they get into real life, money matters."
That's why he and his wife, Neelam, have pushed their two children to excel in school.
Tripathi says he used to sit down with his children after school to discuss what they learned and how they were going to succeed.Sometimes, Sarung, now 21 years old, felt stifled that he couldn't talk about anything else with his parents - save school.
"At home I felt like I couldn't talk about dating, like I couldn't talk about anything that could possibly be hindering me from doing well in school," he says.
"The only things I would talk about with my parents were school and sort of excelling."
But the Tripathis don't think they've pushed their children nearly as hard as some Indian parents. The Pew study found that many Indian-Americans (43%) say parents from their country of origin put too much pressure on their children to do well in school. A plurality (49%) say the amount of pressure is just right.
But the perceived "right" amount of pressure varies across ethnicities. A majority (62%) of Asian-American parents say that American parents do not put enough pressure on their children.
Neelam Tripathi says Indian parents tend to fall at the extreme end of the spectrum. She knows other parents who insist their children become doctors or lawyers.
"If you can't be a doctor then you'd better be a lawyer," she says. "And if you're not a lawyer, well, after that everything is just, kind of, whatever."
Kaushal Tripathi has one goal: his kids must be successful. And that means affluent.
He says a career should be about earning money to pay for hobbies and fun. A history buff can read for leisure, an artist can sketch in his or her free time. These passions are suited for hobbies, he says - not careers.
His wife agrees.
"Kaushal would always tell Sarung, 'There are a lot of things that you might want to do, so choose a career that will bring you enough money so you can do whatever you want later in your life,'" Neelam Tripathi says.
Sarung, a student at Georgia Tech, followed the course to become a doctor because he thought it's what his parents wanted, finishing all the required pre-med classes before admitting to his mother that just walking into a hospital made him nauseous.
She tells the story with a hint of disappointment, but says it's OK because she knows he tried.
The Tripathis' daughter, Anjali, 16, says she feels less pressure than her brother. She wants to be a journalist.
Though she thinks her parents support her, she often gets looks of disapproval from other Indians.
"In the end, as long as I'm happy and I'm able to support myself, I think [my parents] are fine with whatever I choose to do," she says.
Her mother smiles as her daughter talks about her dreams and then picks her words carefully.
"The thing with the Indian parents - it seems like we're just expecting from our kids, but we're listening to our kids, too," she says.
The Pew Research Center recently released a comprehensive study profiling Asian-Americans in the United States and found them to be more highly educated and well-paid than any other immigrant group in the country.
Asians are also now coming to the United States in greater numbers than Hispanics and make up about 6% of the population.
The study is overwhelmingly positive - most Asian-Americans have at least a college degree and consider themselves hard-working - but it also showed immense diversity among the group.
There are more than 17 million Asian-Americans, and each has a unique story. Here, three immigrant families in the Atlanta area share a slice of their lives.
The Tripathi family celebrates Kaushal and Neelam's 25th wedding anniversary with a Hawaiian themed party at their home in Fayetteville, Georgia.
High expectations
Kaushal Tripathi settles into a plush leather couch, scanning the two-story lofted ceiling and a grand, free-standing stairway in his living room. Tulips adorn a pair of large vases.
People say they don't care about money, he says, sipping hot chai muted with milk.
"But when they get into real life, money matters."
That's why he and his wife, Neelam, have pushed their two children to excel in school.
Tripathi says he used to sit down with his children after school to discuss what they learned and how they were going to succeed.Sometimes, Sarung, now 21 years old, felt stifled that he couldn't talk about anything else with his parents - save school.
"At home I felt like I couldn't talk about dating, like I couldn't talk about anything that could possibly be hindering me from doing well in school," he says.
"The only things I would talk about with my parents were school and sort of excelling."
But the Tripathis don't think they've pushed their children nearly as hard as some Indian parents. The Pew study found that many Indian-Americans (43%) say parents from their country of origin put too much pressure on their children to do well in school. A plurality (49%) say the amount of pressure is just right.
But the perceived "right" amount of pressure varies across ethnicities. A majority (62%) of Asian-American parents say that American parents do not put enough pressure on their children.
Neelam Tripathi says Indian parents tend to fall at the extreme end of the spectrum. She knows other parents who insist their children become doctors or lawyers.
"If you can't be a doctor then you'd better be a lawyer," she says. "And if you're not a lawyer, well, after that everything is just, kind of, whatever."
Kaushal Tripathi has one goal: his kids must be successful. And that means affluent.
He says a career should be about earning money to pay for hobbies and fun. A history buff can read for leisure, an artist can sketch in his or her free time. These passions are suited for hobbies, he says - not careers.
His wife agrees.
"Kaushal would always tell Sarung, 'There are a lot of things that you might want to do, so choose a career that will bring you enough money so you can do whatever you want later in your life,'" Neelam Tripathi says.
Sarung, a student at Georgia Tech, followed the course to become a doctor because he thought it's what his parents wanted, finishing all the required pre-med classes before admitting to his mother that just walking into a hospital made him nauseous.
She tells the story with a hint of disappointment, but says it's OK because she knows he tried.
The Tripathis' daughter, Anjali, 16, says she feels less pressure than her brother. She wants to be a journalist.
Though she thinks her parents support her, she often gets looks of disapproval from other Indians.
"In the end, as long as I'm happy and I'm able to support myself, I think [my parents] are fine with whatever I choose to do," she says.
Her mother smiles as her daughter talks about her dreams and then picks her words carefully.
"The thing with the Indian parents - it seems like we're just expecting from our kids, but we're listening to our kids, too," she says.
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27 Jan 2014 10:27 #175144
by ketchim
This poster has established a record for in house quarrels and fighting !
I must say that Trinis are in a world of their own :
Picong, Ole Talk , Mammaguy , Commesse and Bacchanal are the pillars of their character ...
Coup de grace is of course that wutliss Carnival :
This poster has established a record for in house quarrels and fighting !
I must say that Trinis are in a world of their own :
Picong, Ole Talk , Mammaguy , Commesse and Bacchanal are the pillars of their character ...
Coup de grace is of course that wutliss Carnival :
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