Not all Asians are made equal in America, and the term “model minority” flattens our massive diaspora. Test scores could vary wildly among Chinese students—whose parents might have had more resources, more education, and a better grasp of English—and, say, Vietnamese or Cambodian students, whose parents were often impoverished refugees. To counter the rich-Asian narrative, Yvonne tells me about the significant population of kids who fall under the poverty line and the fact that a big chunk of her students qualify for Medicaid when she sends them to psychiatrists or therapists. She tells me
...more
