ABC is the first group. American born Chinese, exist exclusively in America and are usually the children of immigrants. To my surprise, there is a graphic novel about this topic.
Desi, a relatively new term, is an exclusive term for the population of South Asia. This term is different in the fact that it mostly apply to first generation immigrants. The age can vary but the people do not want to deviate from their cultural heritage.
So let's understand the significance behind these two groups. ABC was most likely created by second generation immigrants to diverge from the stereotypical Asian. Almost all ABCs I know play at least one instrument, take as many AP classes as they can, are involved with the school, study, and play tennis. Another group of ABCs are equally smart, but instead of being physically active, they are cooped up in their rooms playing League of Legends. An interesting fact to note is that in China, if you are good at video games, you can drop out of school at an early age and become a full-time gamer. Obviously, you would have to win, but the cash prizes that are offered are very lucrative. The Dota 2 tournament for 2014 gave the winners a five million dollar cash prize. In China, these gamers are held high and respected as celebrities.
Desis, are created by South Asians. "Desh" is a Sanskrit term meaning "one from our own country" and in the past couple of years or so, it has been popularized by Bollywood.
In my opinion, the Desi mindset can be very different at times. A quality of Desis is that they are very religious. The Red Revolution in China caused an absence of religion and this absence can be seen through present-day. Desis practically are born into religion. With almost every decision one makes, one must consider "God" in the equation. How will "God" see the solution. Will "God" forgive you if there are mistakes made? Because religion was embedded within the Desi, they push these beliefs down on their children, who are the 2nd generation. Living in America, morals are decayed and sexuality is explored, but Desis condemn this completely. The South Asian countries have thrived of off an arranged marriages, status and success. If one is married to a good family, one will become highly successful in their lives. What defines high status? A very lucrative job that can support the family, which is why Desis look to become doctors, engineers or lawyers. I kid you not, every Indian I have spoken to, who came from India, are here to obtain an engineering degree.
The bright side to this is the mindsets of younger Desis. When it comes to marriage, they want to marry the person they love, rather than having the family decide for them.Going back to religion for a bit, Desis are expected to be virgins when they marry. "God" is always watching so rather than humiliating yourself in this life, "God" will punish and humiliate you more in the afterlife. For an arranged marriage, the wedding itself, can last over a week, but there are many ceremonies involved, one of which is a turmeric ceremony. In this the bride and groom are at different locations (men and women are separated; men with the groom and women with the bride) and the family take turns applying the turmeric paste. The turmeric paste signifies virginity and only happens once in a person's life, so the idea of virginity is very scared, but ideas become loose overtime, and now many people are embracing sexuality, however, it is taboo and can be severely punished if caught. A relatable story to this is something that one of my friends experiences every now and then. He has lots of friends back home and he cannot send his girl friends any presents to their dorms because the mail at the dorms are extensively checked, so if it is shown that a male college student has sent a female student a present, everybody will be notified. To avoid this from happening, the present is purchased and mailed under my name. Nobody is notified, and it can prevent a lot of drama.
When looking back at these groups, these emerged as a result to emerge with the current society while holding on to cultural beliefs. The significance of these groups are vital in analyzing the impact of modernization and the affects it has on morality.
