StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...
Free

Children of the Dust - Article Example

Cite this document
Summary
This group of people came to being during the Vietnam War. Essentially, Amerasians were the offspring of American soldiers, who had been…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER93.6% of users find it useful
Children of the Dust
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "Children of the Dust"

The paper "Children of the Dust by David Lamb" is an exceptional example of an article on social science. Within the article entitled “Children of the Dust,” David Lamb discusses a largely ignored group of people known as Amerasians. This group of people came to be during the Vietnam War. Essentially, Amerasians were the offspring of American soldiers, who had been deployed to Vietnam, and Vietnamese women. Sometimes, these women were prostitutes; however, some of these children were the result of a real relationship.

In particular, Lamb delves into the struggles that Amerasians faced once the war was over, and life returned to normal for both Americans and Vietnamese.  The article describes an extremely hard life for those who were classified as Amerasians. Essentially, these children were completely alone. America would not claim them as citizens and neither would Vietnam. Many children were sent to orphanages or were simply homeless, having to scrounge and beg for survival. They were not able to attend school, so many ended up being completely illiterate.

According to Lamb, these children stuck out like sore thumbs with both Asian and American physical characteristics. People brutalized and bullied them because of their appearance, and this created further isolation. Essentially, the Amerasians were considered to belong to the lowest caste or class in Vietnamese society. After describing the daily lives of the Amerasian children, David Lamb delves into what happened next for many of the children as they grew into adulthood. For instance, the Philippines started to become a safe haven as the Amerasians traveled to the Philippines in order to learn English.

These people were held in a kind of limbo where the United States still wasn’t really allowing this group to become citizens. Some were allowed in, but others ended up in Norway and Australia. In the 1980s, a distinct change began to occur in how the Amerasians were dealt with. According to Lamb, this group became “leverage for settling larger issues between” the United States and Vietnam(Lamb, 2009). Ultimately, their welfare was not being considered or was not deemed to be as important as solving political issues was.

However, things changed for the better in 1987 when Ronald Regan signed a piece of legislation which allowed any remaining Amerasians to be allowed into the United States. Instead of being classified as “refugees,” they would be viewed as immigrants to the United States which would allow them the opportunity to receive American citizenship. Lamb presents a variety of real people within the article who are Amerasians and who have experienced extreme hardship. One example, in particular, is the story of Minh.

Minh was an Amerasian in Vietnam who was abandoned by his mother. He suffered from polio and was essentially homeless. He was brought to the U.S as a result of young high school students in America who signed a petition to get Minh to America for medical treatment. He lived with two Americans who became something like foster parents to him. Lamb discusses the difficulty that Minh faced in adapting to life in America which was something that many other Amerasian immigrants struggled with. Ultimately, according to Lamb, Minh does not appear to hold any anger at either America or Vietnam for how he was treated and how he was forced to live as a child.

The latter part of this article discusses the strength of the Amerasians as well as the traumas they struggle with. This group has higher rates of mental illness and have struggled with the cultural differences that they are expected to assimilate into. This has caused some of the Amerasians to have a desire to return to Vietnam. Additionally, many came to America with few connections and few skills or little education. However, the author also describes the Amerasians as people who have faced significant adversity and continue to move forward, continue to work hard and continue to thrive.

Overall, the author paints a startling and important picture of a group of people who many Americans have likely never even heard of before.

Read More
Tags
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(Children of the Dust Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words, n.d.)
Children of the Dust Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words. https://studentshare.org/english/1759762-summary-of-an-article
(Children of the Dust Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 Words)
Children of the Dust Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 Words. https://studentshare.org/english/1759762-summary-of-an-article.
“Children of the Dust Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 Words”. https://studentshare.org/english/1759762-summary-of-an-article.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF Children of the Dust

The Role of Reality in Children's Literature

This essay discusses the role of reality in children's literature.... The author of this paper says that the reality is one of the main parts of which the children's' stories consist.... hellip; This essay describes the importance of reality's usage in the children's stories.... From this research it is clear that children's literature teaches the value of integrity, honesty.... Fairy tales express the thoughts of children and adults through a symbolism....
6 Pages (1500 words) Essay

Viktor Lowenfeld's developmental Stages of Art

Viktor Lowenfeld pioneered in the identification of the stages of the development of art skills in children.... Viktor Lowenfeld pioneered in the identification of the stages of the development of art skills in children.... children begin to associate with peers and their arts are influenced by the approval and criticism of their group.... Arts produced by children at this point are characterized by more realistic details as if the child is looking on natural scene....
2 Pages (500 words) Essay

Children's Books Should be Censored

Violence in children's literature is not a new event.... children's stories have often been filled with tales of cruelty and brutality that were intended to horrify and frighten.... But in today's world of easy publishing, unchecked distribution, and writers who are willing to ignore their intended audience, the offensive material in books meant for children has become far too pervasive.... hellip; When we see children's literature that refers to sex, such as Melvin Burgess's Doing It, and it contains the line, "Fat girls are grateful for it....
3 Pages (750 words) Essay

Best Place to Bring Up Children

The paper “Best Place to Bring Up children” looks at the place where children are brought up, which plays a vital role in building up the personality of the children.... All the parents want their children to stay isolated from bad influences and they want them to live in good and peaceful environments.... Country areas provide healthy and open environment but they cannot be classified as the best place for bringing up children....
1 Pages (250 words) Assignment

The Hazards of taking childeren out to eat

Parents have a very serious responsibility to ensure that their children receive the right amount of nutrition and protein.... Because children develop physically very quickly, they need to have the right balance of… One of the great challenges of proper parenting is taking children out to eat.... There are many hazards involved in restaurant meals and it is vitally important that parents are aware of these challenges in advance. The problem is that many restaurants which children EATING OUT Few things are more important for children than a healthy diet....
2 Pages (500 words) Essay

Questions and Answers

It is obvious that adults' assumptions about children shape their attitudes and ideas when it comes to children's literature and the types of books written, published and chosen for children.... In other words, ideas about children are relevant within the society: about how and… Culture, religion, race, social systems, gender, class among others play a crucial role in shaping adults' ideologies concerning children's literature....
2 Pages (500 words) Essay

Choose one of these photographs to analyse the context of play ( Early childhood education )

children's surroundings provide a world for enjoyment, discovery, and exploitation.... Playing is what young children spend most of their time doing from morning to evening.... Through play, children discover how the… The context of play in photo 2 is an outdoor play activity.... Play is taking place outside the house whereby two children are trying to arrange long pieces of metal or wood on a handcart.... The materials that these children have to play include; a handcart, tins, pieces of wood, sticks, stones and long pieces of wood or metal....
4 Pages (1000 words) Assignment

Developmental Issues

Grandparents can look after the children of full time employed parents, grandparents have stabilizing effect on emotional lives of children (Objectives Aligned with NAEYC Standards, page 75).... Early childhood teachers must understand the experiences of children through "objective observation" and discussing childrens experiences with them.... ?Early childhood teachers must encourage the family to learn about child… development and know how to interact with their children in a way that allows their development to progress, (Objectives Aligned with NAEYC Standards, page 58). 4....
2 Pages (500 words) Coursework
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us