Minor Feelings

Minor Feelings explores the purgatory state that Asian-Americans are stuck into as immigrants who have an image of non-white and non-black people who don’t speak, disturb, or make any impression at all.

The author always felt as if she had to behave, feel, and speak in a certain way because she was an Asian-American. These unsettling feelings weren’t something that she could put her finger on, yet they were there. Before she realized that there is nothing wrong with her identity, she was in depression.

She categorized her negative emotions and feelings of self-doubt, insecurity, and frustration as minor feelings, and never really considered them essential. When she was in a poor state of mind, she stumbled upon Richard Pryor, a black comedian who rose to fame by emphasizing racial discrepancies.

Finally, someone was saying what she was thinking out loud. However, even Pryor was talking about the differences between black and white people, never the Asians. To her and her community, they were still non-existent. When they did get a place in the spotlight, it was always accompanied by a negative event.

Her childhood was marked by feelings of shame and a constant struggle to fit in. At school, she was bullied. In society, she was feeling excluded, and so was her family. The people she looked up to and expected protection from were as vulnerable as she was. Growing up, childhood left a negative mark on her.

The United States is, at its core, a place for all individuals to live freely and engage in acts that serve their souls in a way that does not harm those around them. The theory sounds simple and it sparks emotion in everyone, but the practice beats us to it.

For Hong, the USA was a place of denial of her identity and origins. She states that even in today’s world, Asians still face racial injustice as if a shadow was casting over their existence.

She recollects one particular memory of a Korean man who shot an American girl, which caused people to protest against all Asian and even publicly harm them. Luckily, she lived in a good neighborhood where she felt safer, but her fellow friends weren’t as lucky then.

Another recollection of hers dates back to 2018, when Lorraine O’Grady, an artist, said that white people wouldn’t be needed in the future anymore, as white supremacy will dominate. Once again, the black and the white community was highlighted, but never the Asian one.

Hong was looking for ways to fit in and discover that sense of belonging during her teen years. She knew English was a weak spot for Asians in general, and that people would mock her even…