Vietnamese-Americans

Vietnamese first came to the United States as refugees in the 1970s, after the Vietnam War. The Vietnamese Americans, written by a former Vietnamese refugee, is the only in-depth resource especially for students and general readers with a solid introduction to Vietnam, the history of Vietnamese immigration, and a forthright analysis of Vietnamese Americans' struggles to forge a better future. As their adjustment process is chronicled from the perspectives of the family and ethnic community, the label of the model minority is debunked to reveal both minor economic successes and serious problems such as high school dropouts and gang activity. With the increasing emphasis in the curriculum on Asians and the debates on new immigration, The Vietnamese Americans provides an essential component to understanding the evolving ethnic mosaic in this country.

In recent years the popular media have described Vietnamese Americans as the quintessential American immigrant success story, attributing their accomplishments to the values they learn in the traditional, stable, hierarchical confines of their family. Questioning the accuracy of such family portrayals, Nazli Kibria draws on in-depth interviews and participant observation with Vietnamese immigrants in Philadelphia to show how they construct their family lives in response to the social and economic challenges posed by migration and resettlement. To a surprising extent, the "traditional" family unit rarely exists, and its hierarchical organization has been greatly altered.

Although interest in mother/daughter relationships has led to a plethora of books on the subject, these books all consider situations found in the mainstream white population. In this book, relationships between mothers and daughters from 13 ethnic groups, including Asian, Black, Latino, and Native American, are explored. The voices of 17 highly successful mothers, in different stages of their life, and their 19 daughters are heard. The reader will learn of their values, intergenerational relationships, and the mother's influence as a role model. The research that confirms their personal stories and validates their life stories is discussed. The book provides valuable insight into the issues facing minority women in the United States.