Tag / immigrant
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Moving Forward And Looking Back
I’m finally ready to say goodbye to the memory of my former self. I thought you were perfect. I thought you had everything. I thought you were me. In reality, I had fabricated an intricate web of lies to fool myself into thinking that I could and would become a doctor. You’re probably thinking, “Another…
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International Institute Of St. Louis
“It is like it is so hard to be stateless. You have no rights, you have nothing. You know you are kind of like, the status of an animal…it’s that bad to be stateless.” This is how Suk Sapopka recounted his experience as a Bhutanese refugee to an intern at the International Institute of St.…
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The Empire Strikes Back: Soccer In A Postcolonial World
As the final whistle blows at a World Cup Quarter Final watch party in Miami, I leave the venue alongside dozens of silent yellow-clad Brazil fans, many on the verge of tears. With their heartbreaking 2-1 defeat to Belgium, Brazil’s elimination narrows the competition to six teams going into the second leg of the Quarter-Finals—all…
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Art Can Only Imitate Life
“Going to Whole Foods, want me to pick you up anything?” This Tinder message— courtesy of Matt, 21—lit up Victoria’s phone, and we both immediately burst out laughing. I was visiting Victoria in her sunny California hometown, and we’d spent the day playing tourist and gorging on acai bowls. Now exhausted and uncomfortably full, we…
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Mushroom Wars
Unionville High School and Kennett High School are bitter rivals. The two schools are 3.2 miles apart. Both are located in the town of Kennett Square, Pennsylvania. If a driver were to travel the 3.2 miles between the two, he would encounter two Landhope gas stations, three developments, plenty of trees, a country club, a…
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A Cultural Separation
“Merry Christmas!” I proudly exclaimed to a fellow four-year-old at the local public pool on a hot and humid July day. At the time, I couldn’t speak English, but desperately wanted to communicate and feel included. So, I tried to communicate with the only “American” phrase I knew. Although I don’t attempt to communicate through…
