Interview with Quan Gerville-Reache
Files
Loading...
Interviewers
Lucy Koops, Maille Lyon
Description
Interview with Quan Gerville-Reache recorded on March 27, 2023 at Forest Hills Northern High School in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Ms. Gerville-Reache is interviewed by Forest Hills Northern High School students Lucy Koops and Maille Lyon as a part of WMU’s Telling Our Stories: A Video Collection Celebrating AAPI Heritage. During the interview Ms. Gerville-Reache discusses the following topics:
- Immigrating from Vietnam in 1978 as Chinese asylum seekers;
- The process of escaping Vietnam and staying in a refugee camp in Malaysia;
- Getting to visit the town that she was born in and meeting relatives for the first time;
- Difficulties in the early days in the U.S. as poor, non-english speaking immigrants;
- Reasons why her parents chose to immigrate;
- The sacrifices that her parents made for their children's success and education;
- Misconceptions about immigrants;
- Belief in the American Dream;
- Maintaining close relationships with her extended family;
- How freedom and opportunity increase with each generation;
- Comparing American and Chinese cultures;
- Experiencing racism and discrimination;
- The shock of how large and diverse the U.S. is;
- The process of choosing Grand Rapids as a place to settle;
- Becoming a Christian through her family’s sponsors when they came to the U.S.;
- How her parents’ progressive mindset helped her achieve her academic and professional goals;
- Advice to immigrants;
- How her family has lost aspects of their Chinese culture over time;
- How her children are building bridges with her family by learning Mandarin and French;
- The opportunities that arise upon learning a new language; and
- The joy of uncovering one’s history.
Date of Interview
3-27-2023
Location of Interview
Grand Rapids, MI
Series
Telling Our Stories
Keywords
Asian American and Pacific Islander, Immigration, Immigrants, China, Vietnam, Michigan
Disciplines
Asian American Studies | Asian History | Language and Literacy Education | Oral History | Secondary Education
Language
ENG
Document Type
Interview
Recommended Citation
Gerville-Reache, Quan, "Interview with Quan Gerville-Reache" (2023). Telling Our Stories: A Video Collection Celebrating AAPI Heritage. 10.
https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/our-stories-aapi/10
Length of video
0:26:54
Length of video log
--
Rights Statement
