How is this area for East Asian families?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My American born chinese kids do not speak or understand their heritage language. I always wonder if they care much or not about what races or cultural backgrounds the other kids are. To some chinese parents, my kids are too Americanized because my kids do not attend chinese language school like their kids do, and they do not speak or understand Mandarin chinese. My kids do not do academic enrichment, but they do a lot of sports and play a lot of video games. To some non Asian families, my kids are definitely Chinese because of their looks. They get along with most chinese kids because they tend to be more nicer but my kids sometimes find them a bit boring. They lead towards playing with non Asians kids because my kids find them more fun to play with but some kids act like jerk and mean.

To kids who target Asian kids, it makes no difference. Your kids are Asian enough and I think that’s what OP is worried about. I can understand that even though I don’t think OP should be concerned.

[Anonymous]

My kids are Wasians in DC and there are probably more Wasians than Asians in public school here. We go visit grandparents in Asia frequently so they identify more with being from a specific country, than think of it as race. They haven't encountered any problems specifically, though one leaned in to their Asian side more, and the other less.

Not Korean, but we spend a lot of time in Annadale/Centreville: Korean spa, Korean bakeries, Korean restaurants, and Korean supermarkets.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am Asian and went to HS in Bethesda in the 90s. Tough times, honestly. My gym teacher made fun of my name in front of the whole class. My son is half Asian in a DCPS school with a very small Asian population but if you count half Asian kids the % increases by quite a bit. K pop, bubble tea, Pokémon, seaweed snacks - these are part of Gen Alpha's pop culture. It's not just a different geography, it's a different time, and that has really driven the experience I see my son having. Sometimes, I have to do a double take to reflect on the experience I had. It's a different time.

+1 when I was growing up in the 70s out west, I was one of maybe 2 Koreans in my school. My mom packed Korean food for our lunches, and we got made fun of.

Today, my whasian kids and their friends love korean food, and when my DC takes seaweed or kimbab to school, their non Asian friends all want some.

Such a difference to the way I grew up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think even in the Midwest it’s hard to be the only Asian anymore, tbh. Any wealthy, educated suburb will have a sizeable population of Asians. It’s hard to beat SF and the Bay Area of course but it’s not the old times for sure

Agree. I am in a Midwest metro. One of the towns I lived in had Japanese Lamaze classes. I know where three weekend Chinese schools are and a Chinese cultural center for suburbanites.

I live near a suburb where most of the NMSFers are in our county. Predictable demographics. Their parents are often people who immigrated to do grad school in US. So the kids are top-notch in math and test-taking like DCUM loves to stress about. The school district allows kids with a non-English heritage language to test out of the high school language requirement.

[Anonymous]

NoVa has more Asians than Maryland, but there are more Asian families in Fairfax and Loudoun than Arlington. There are lots of Asians in just about every part of Fairfax other than southeastern Fairfax. The largest Korean population in Fairfax is in Chantilly and Centreville. People often mention Annandale because there are a lot of Korean-owned businesses there, but the families running those businesses moved further north and west years ago.

Our kids are part-Asian. I would probably favor Fairfax or Loudoun over Arlington for Asian families planning to send their kids to public school.

[Anonymous]

My kids are South Asian and have been fine here. I think times have changed since I was growing up (in another state) and also this area is diverse. Also it will be different for them being born here than immigrating and probably struggling more to fit in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NoVa has more Asians than Maryland, but there are more Asian families in Fairfax and Loudoun than Arlington. There are lots of Asians in just about every part of Fairfax other than southeastern Fairfax. The largest Korean population in Fairfax is in Chantilly and Centreville. People often mention Annandale because there are a lot of Korean-owned businesses there, but the families running those businesses moved further north and west years ago.

Our kids are part-Asian. I would probably favor Fairfax or Loudoun over Arlington for Asian families planning to send their kids to public school.

Agree. There are many Asians in Fairfax but not in Arlington. Recommend OP find something in Fairfax.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am Asian and went to HS in Bethesda in the 90s. Tough times, honestly. My gym teacher made fun of my name in front of the whole class. My son is half Asian in a DCPS school with a very small Asian population but if you count half Asian kids the % increases by quite a bit. K pop, bubble tea, Pokémon, seaweed snacks - these are part of Gen Alpha's pop culture. It's not just a different geography, it's a different time, and that has really driven the experience I see my son having. Sometimes, I have to do a double take to reflect on the experience I had. It's a different time.

+1 when I was growing up in the 70s out west, I was one of maybe 2 Koreans in my school. My mom packed Korean food for our lunches, and we got made fun of.

Today, my whasian kids and their friends love korean food, and when my DC takes seaweed or kimbab to school, their non Asian friends all want some.

Such a difference to the way I grew up.

My DC goes to a parish school in a white town in a white state and one of the requests for teachers' favorite snacks was seaweed. Meanwhile I got made fun of for eating vegetable fried rice as a kid instead of a baloney sandwich.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think your family will find other Korean families easily, OP, and will make friends with people from all origins.

While on DCUM there are racist comments and dog whistles about Asians, test scores, robotic personalities and whatnot, and I have met a few people who make assumptions about my kids being good at math and music... my kids have never been bullied for looking Asian. They have made friends with kids of different ethnic origins, from all the continents except Antarctica

Please don't worry about it. Welcome to the DC area.

If anyone, ironically, the group tending to make anti-Asian comments, racist jokes, repeat racist dog-whistles or commit micro-aggressions against Asian people in this area, tend to be African-Americans in the DMV.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think your family will find other Korean families easily, OP, and will make friends with people from all origins.

While on DCUM there are racist comments and dog whistles about Asians, test scores, robotic personalities and whatnot, and I have met a few people who make assumptions about my kids being good at math and music... my kids have never been bullied for looking Asian. They have made friends with kids of different ethnic origins, from all the continents except Antarctica

Please don't worry about it. Welcome to the DC area.

If anyone, ironically, the group tending to make anti-Asian comments, racist jokes, repeat racist dog-whistles or commit micro-aggressions against Asian people in this area, tend to be African-Americans in the DMV.

What is ironic about this? Traditional asian bigotry towards African Americans is well known.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think your family will find other Korean families easily, OP, and will make friends with people from all origins.

While on DCUM there are racist comments and dog whistles about Asians, test scores, robotic personalities and whatnot, and I have met a few people who make assumptions about my kids being good at math and music... my kids have never been bullied for looking Asian. They have made friends with kids of different ethnic origins, from all the continents except Antarctica

Please don't worry about it. Welcome to the DC area.

If anyone, ironically, the group tending to make anti-Asian comments, racist jokes, repeat racist dog-whistles or commit micro-aggressions against Asian people in this area, tend to be African-Americans in the DMV.

Happy Black History month to you too! We tend to heavily patronize Asian-owned businesses so you are able to post up in wealthy communities talking about the discrimination you are a victim of (you’re welcome!).
-black parent who raises highly culturally competent and educated children in the DMV

[Anonymous]

https://dcist.com/story/12/04/05/after-day-of-pressure-barry-sort-of/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:https://dcist.com/story/12/04/05/after-day-of-pressure-barry-sort-of/

Anyone remember the D.C.-specific cocktail created to memorialize that?

[Anonymous]

It was all the media’s fault!

https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/mike-debonis/post/marion-barry-blames-media-for-asian-uproar/2012/04/26/gIQASKzjjT_blog.html?hpid=z4

[Anonymous]

For the fools are trying to stir up this Black vs Asian hate, but stop trying to divide us. I'm the first PP and we went to a Title 1, majority African-american school in the District and there was no anti-asian racism there. Our culture was celebrated, as were many others. My child was younger then so I was super involved and volunteered at the school everyday. It was amazing.