Fresh off the Plane

An airplane ride is likely not the place to explore new TV shows, let alone one I have long awaited. A work of art likely to be “Zrucore.” There was only one episode available. But…I was ready. (This story is from when I flew back to the US a couple weeks ago.)

It was finally time to see the famous Fresh off the Boat, featuring a Chinese family who is….far from fresh off the boat (F.O.B.). They are another American family, as I see it. Sporting a Beastie Boys t-shirt, Eddy – a middle schooler – loudly proclaims his love of hip hop, placing him in line with most middle school boys. And within this American family, there is a tension I find rather familiar – to be the perfect son in alignment with the “previous culture”. In his case, to be a Chinese son; in my case, to be a Pakistani son. The struggle to be “other” and American simultaneously. It can feel like a gigantic contradiction.

Beneath the surface, this show ponders: what the heck does it mean to be American?

As a society, we pride ourselves on being a melting pot – that’s supposedly the foundation of the United States. However, (too) many white Americans think that the melting pot is just a lie, having “seen” what immigrants bring. But to a son of immigrant parents like me, the melting pot does exist, just with imperfections and without ever quite becoming a proper fondue. One could argue, the melting pot was not stirred properly. (This metaphor falls apart here because cultural divisions in America are likely due to systemic problems, not cooker’s apathy.)

The Beastie Boys, I will remind you, are (were) white Jewish rappers, playing in a black-influenced style. In a way, a Chinese-American listening to the Beastie Boys is certainly America – American culture is a complex combination of many sources, rendering it different from Europe. Over the past month (or so), I spent time in England, Scotland, Ireland, Northern Ireland, and France – and I saw for myself how different European culture is from American culture, even with the similar origins. We even speak some weird thing we call English but is in reality “American”. But even living in such an odd society, there is a great effort to cast non-white people as “other”. With an immigrant perspective – whether it is mine or Eddy’s – one sees such a situation as painfully ironic, where the country is comprised of so many different things, but where that difference is also wielded to the detriment of all.

This difference between “Americans” and non-“Americans” forces one to bounce between cultures. Eddy’s love of hip hop, for example, is seen as extending outside of his appointed zone as a person of Chinese descent; his peers rebuke him for his interests. As a fellow Beastie Boys fan, I understand how “white” is assumed to be the norm for fans of most popular groups, let alone just the Beastie Boys. This cultural battle is best portrayed through the character of Phillip who is Chinese by birth. The principal asks Eddy to show him around because of that assumed cultural link – by corollary, assumed comfort. However, though Phillip shows some of the favored characteristics of the “perfect Chinese Son”, he turns out to be a self-involved prick. This only contributes to Eddy’s sense of isolation.

As a “brown” person (realizing that “brown” has a few different meanings here, but for me, it means being of Pakistani descent), I can recognize the same things. My features seem “closer” to Europeans because of my fair skin, but even something as simple as my name reveals my status as other. Eddy’s struggles with befriending Phillip are also quite familiar; I have struggled to befriend other Pakistanis, as that supposed cultural connection is not necessarily enough. I find myself wrapped up in Pakistani culture, even while negotiating American culture – this, all in spite of my growing up and being raised here. For Eddy, the Beastie Boys help him negotiate the analogous double-think required to marry the two cultures.

Spanning one’s immigrant culture and the mainstream (American here) culture is quite demanding of one’s energy and time. It requires realizing that maybe this double-think frequently gets in the way of more meaningful interactions. But even in such a frustrating situation, it’s better to stay true to the values that you grew up with and ones that you select for yourself. Even if those values are some combination of the immigrant upbringing and the living in the US.