It’s obvious that I’m different, but in here everyone’s a coat of difference, so then we’re all kind of the same. America has so many different types of people and it’s not the same as anywhere else in the world. So there’s so much opportunity to do literally anything.
My American dream is finding a way to take what I love, which is music, and making a life out of it. I wouldn’t be able to do that anywhere else in the world. America’s just a huge part of a lot of people’s lives. It’s like that even if you’ve never been here. So my view of America was very much based on movies and music and pop culture.
For example, the TV show Victorious where they go to an arts high school. I only dreamed of that sort of stuff as a kid. Being able to see that opportunity is why we have this America. It’s not necessarily the real truth about America. It’s more like a glorified image of this land where like it’s there’s some much more opportunity for us to be ourselves. It’s literally globalization that sells the American dream.
A is…
- 19 Years-Old
- Male, Cisgender
- South Asian
- Agnostic
- Wealthy
- Heterosexual
Author’s Note:
Meet A, an international first-year student studying in a public communications program at a New York university. A is a male identifying 19-year-old student from East Asia with roots all around South Asia. He shares how Western media influenced his interpretation of America, the American Dream, and what it means to be an American.