After Boston, A Look At The Dark Side Of Teen Immigration
MARTHA IRVINE MAY 6, 2013, 10:40 AM
CHICAGO (AP) Anna Tabakh didnt know a word of English. At age 5, a stranger in a strange land, she was en route with her parents from the Soviet Union to a new home in Kansas City, Mo. But she understood the intent when security guards at a New York City airport suspiciously eyed her stuffed animal, a rather rotund plush toy pig.
They thought we were smuggling diamonds in my stuffed animal friend, Tabakh, now 27, says, recalling how her mom, pleading in broken English, persuaded the guards not to tear apart the toy to search its contents.
Tabakh still has the pig in her New York apartment, to remind me how far Ive come since those first days. The beginning was traumatic, she says, but the transition to American life was relatively smooth a result that some social scientists would say was partly due to her age.
There is, in fact, a term researchers use to describe young people who, like Tabakh, were born in other countries but came to the U.S. between the ages of 5 and 12 and have a foot in two worlds. They call them Generation 1.5.
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HooptieWagon
(17,064 posts)...than a teen. Teenage years might be the toughest. I have a friend born in Colombia, she came here at age 5 with parents. Shes American in every aspect.
jeffrey_pdx
(222 posts)We talked about it a few times, but not a lot. I do remember him saying that it was quite the culture shock for him. It would be so much easier for a younger person, and the younger, the easier. But I also think where you are moving from (and how similar the culture is) would make a big difference too.
A very funny side note to his story... his first day in the US was halloween. He told me he thought everyone was crazy and dressed like that all the time.
HooptieWagon
(17,064 posts)It was a culture shock, but they were warmly welcomed by local sailing community. They've adapted fairly well. Biggest thrill to them was discovering paper towels and duct tape..."We don't have this in Russia!". Its funny the stuff we take for granted...