Kim, Mohanty

This summer I worked at a camp in New Hampshire where about 3/4 of the staff were international. Granted, most of the staff were white and spoke english but they still were asked the question of where are you from and when are you going home, as Mohanty writes of experiencing. Mohanty was experiencing this strange since of not belonging in America because people were judging her because the color of her skin and making assumptions that she in fact was going to return "home" and was not a permanent resident. Even though my coworkers could have passed as Americans until they spoke, it was still a strange moment to experience the uncomfortableness of hearing a person be asked what they are or where do they come from. Mohanty writes,  "There is no confusion here, no melting pot ideology or narratives of assimilation: one's status as an "alien" is primary. Being legal requires identity papers" (Mohanty 129). Some people don't want that sense of all inclusive American dream, only if you look the part are you allowed to be an image for America.

The section that also was interesting to me was when Mohanty was writing about going home and having her green card, it once being a symbol of status but now a symbol of seclusion. She experienced seclusion often in America and now was having to go through it at home. This ran together for me, to the Kim work. The Korean children became apart of American culture were orphaned in their home country and then when brought to America are thrust into a society that is not their own.

I know that in class we have talked about claiming cultures but with this quote by Mohanty, I would like to discuss how this is true or not true, if some believe so. She writes, "I believe one of the greatest challenges we (feminist) face is this task of recognizing and undoing the ways in which we colonize and objectify our different histories and cultures, thus colluding with hegemonic processes of domination and rule" (125).