Guest blog post from Sarith Khan, Impact Leader with the Community Defense Program at Vietlead and Kenny Mai, Vietlead staff member.
My name is Sarith Khan. I am an Impact Leader with the Community Defense Program at VietLead, working to achieve immigrant justice for our Southeast Asian community. I would like to share with everyone my experience as an immigrant community member in Philadelphia, and why I am so passionate for the work that I do.
As an immigrant, I constantly embrace my community’s cultural values, which always fill me with immense pride and joy. I ensure that everyone respects our elders, who serve as tenets to our culture and provide guidance to our youth. We feel our elders’ grips as they hold our hands, transmitting their stories and wisdom while serving as guidance to those who yearn to connect with their roots. I encourage newer generations to connect with our origins while bearing new fruit from these connections. I dream that we, the newer generations, will become the bridge to others’ hearts through love and through embracing our identities.
Immigrant Heritage Month promotes unity among all immigrant communities, prompting us to remember our origins through food, cultural celebrations, and stories. Different communities join in solidarity, which builds the trust to inquire about others. We ask Haitians about black beans, Cambodians about Samlor Machu, and Ethiopians about injera. People celebrate the places and objects that form who they are. Immigrant Heritage Month encourages us to learn about new cultures and ideas, helping extinguish the harmful stereotypes that can often characterize immigrant groups.
I am extremely proud of the impact immigrants have in our city. Have you ever had a bag of clams from Ben City market or a bowl of pho from Washington Avenue? Have you eaten at an authentic Italian restaurant on South Street or had the B Lahong of the Phuan Lao and Cambodian people at FDR Park? Have you attended a Cambodian wedding in South Philadelphia? Wherever you are in Philadelphia, the influence of immigrants is far and wide.
Despite the joys of being an immigrant, it is undeniable that there are immense struggles. As someone whose family has been impacted by deportation, I strive to find the way we can rectify our government’s inhumanity and stop deportation and other injustices. As Southeast Asian refugees, we often are the collateral damage of war. Deportation does nothing but separate our families, who are already often impacted by mental health issues, health crises, substance abuse, interpersonal violence, environmental inequality, and lack of resources.
As communities of color, we all have a history of resilience and struggle. We have woven into the fabric of American society our different traumas, strengths, and viewpoints. We are stronger through embracing our shared connections and histories, as I’ve learned that immigrants often share a common struggle. By embracing our heritage through Immigrant Heritage Month, we can build a more vibrant society for all, through love and open arms.
