37 Jie Li
This is the story of my mom Jie Li, born in China, but came to the United States upon hearing about job and educational opportunities here. She arrived in 2003, and has been working as a Software Engineer after she graduated. Living in the San Francisco Bay Area, there are a lot of Chinese Americans, and my mom has made a lot of friends at work and community events. She feels that America has created a place for her where she feels welcomed, accepted, and respected. Although there are still hate crimes towards Asians and minimal film representation, discrimination has diminished immensely since the 19th century, when the first Asian immigrants arrived. Society has since changed to embrace the extravagant culture of all Asian American ethnicities, such as holding community events for Lunar New Year. From my mom’s overwhelmingly positive experiences, she feels that she belongs here.
