My project looks at an aspect of generational tension in Asian-American households, specifically conversations on race and racism. Today the COVID-19 pandemic and surrounding political controversies are bringing many different racial injustices to the forefront. With access to the news 24/7, and with families largely confined to their homes during various forms of quarantine, conversations between generations about values, personal experiences, and political events are almost unavoidable. But at the same time, they are not always successful. This project will explore different opinions and experiences across generations around questions of racial and cultural difference, prejduce, struggle, opportunity, and the pros and cons of integration. These conversations will explore how different generations view the strengths and weaknesses of U.S. society, whether or not they aspire to integration or are dedicated to preserving a sense of cultural difference, and what they see as important values. In interviewing second-generation Asian American students, I aim to find out how the generations communicate in this time of crisis and whether families come to greater understandings of each other’s points of view or instead learn to suppress disagreement and avoid topics of difficulty.

Video Presentation