The Way This Non-English Speaking Immigrant Was Treated When He Arrived In The US Is Going Viral
Language and identity are firmly back in the headlines lately, after video footage of an aggressive man berating Spanish speakers in a New York deli became a major talking point.
“They should be speaking English, because this is America!” he ranted, despite there being no law or constitutional support for this claim, as the U.S. has no official language. As a counter to all the negativity around the story, and the history of people trying to force others to speak English just because, read this viral Twitter thread about a young Korean immigrant who was inspired and motivated to learn English by the kind actions of his teacher.
T.K, the voice behind the Ask A Korean blog, shared the beautiful story of his formative experiences in the U.S. as a non-English speaking 10th grader who was struggling to come to terms with not being able to express himself. Sure, he had knowledge, but he felt helpless and frustrated at school because that knowledge was suddenly quite useless. But then along came his biology teacher Ms. Gallagher, who recognized his struggles and his potential, and decided to go the extra mile to ensure that T.K felt valued and included.
The moment has stayed with T.K ever since, he was motivated to learn English to a high level and is now a successful attorney and renowned blogger. But it all began with a little encouragement and welcoming spirit. He reminds us that the USA as it is today was built on immigration, and newcomers require kindness and patience to adjust to their new surroundings. There are many ways of becoming an American, and bullying people over things like the languages they speak, or aren’t yet able to speak, certainly doesn’t help!
Scroll down to check out T.K’s story for yourself, and let us know what you think in the comments!
A story about the experiences of a young Korean immigrant has gone viral for all the right reasons
Image credits: Daniel Lee (Not an actual photo)
T.K, the voice behind the Ask A Korean blog spoke about living in the U.S. as a non-English speaking 10th grader
Other people reacted to the story
Well done Ms Gallagher. You made a difference that day, but taking an interest in an individual student. It would have been easy for her to just ignore his paper, but she cared to know if he was smart of not so she made the effort.
as a first-gen american who constantly had/has to play translator, i wish more people would be this patient. especially with some of my older relatives. people are convinced they're senile or confused, but they really are very sharp. it's just difficult for them to express that in english.
Yea, a lot of my family only speak spanish but I dont see them often, but I can understand spanish almost as well as english, except when speaking it Im slower because I dont do it on a daily basis. So whenever I have people come in at work who I can tell are struggling with saying something in English and they can speak Spanish, I always invite them to ask me in spanish and warn them that my spanish speaking isnt as good, but I can understand well. We all end up repeating ourselves sometimes, but in the end we will understand each other. And if they cant speak spanish (Ive had some customers visiting here from china and korea) they were struggling a bit to say certain things but through gestures and lots of repeating we worked it out. Some of them were the sweetest people too. I always love when they tell me stories about their trip or something random even as Im checking them out and also how happy they look when I take extra time to help them.
Load More Replies...I don't if anyone would read this but I wish I had a teacher like that when I suddenly changed countries. I knew everything in my own language but didn't know the word in English. I didn't know the name of a triangle with three equal sides was and I was in Year 10. My teacher was mocking me and the whole class was snickering. My teacher thought I haven't been to school before. I used to be a smart kid but all of a sudden due to the language barrier I wasn't. I went home and cried that day. I said I wanted to go back. But then my dad told me to work hard and show them how cool being bilingual could be. So I did. I worked hard. I could finally show my teacher that I wasn't an immigrant who hasn't been to school before. I showed my class that I was smart as well. Plus I was fluent in two languages. It took me a long time to redeem my self, but it was worth it. I hope no one ever gets a teacher like the one I had. Everyone deserves a Ms. Gallagher in their life.
Aqua Sky - you certainly had an ignorant teacher. I cannot understand why anyone would think mocking a person who is struggling is at all appropriate - regardless of why that person is struggling. Even if a person isn't smart it's hardly their fault. I'm really glad it turned out well and that your hard work paid off.
Load More Replies...My apologies to anyone who has to learn English as a second language. English is a language born of the merger of the tongues of the Angles, Saxons, Jutes, Scots, Welsh, Irish, Normans, Romans, Gauls (and many more). All these people have only one thing in common - drinking problems.
If I had a student turn in a quiz with answers or 'something ' in another language, I would have it translated too...just out of curiosity
This is why parents should think very carefully when moving overseas with their family. Regardless of what country it is, if they don't speak the native language then they need to go to an international school, or a special school, or have more language lessons. I teach English in Japan and it's awful that Chinese parents drag their kids with them and just put them in a normal school and say "they'll manage"... the same happened to an Indian kid recently. It doesn't help them because they struggle to make friends, can't ask for help, and are not even with friends or family while at school. I can relate to these kids because when I came to Japan I spoke little Japanese - you feel completely helpless and stupid when everyday things becomes a challenge... such as buying milk, catching a bus, saying sorry.
That's not an option for everyone though. International schools cost a ton, and not everyone has a language that could be accommodated by an international school. I"m sorry, but you're making a lot of presumptions with a condescending statement like that.
Load More Replies...Too many of my fellow Americans forget that this is indeed a country built on immigration and seem to think that strict quotas should have always been the rule- starting just after THEIR ancestors arrived
I remember learning photosynthesis long before 10th grade. Probably as early as 6th or 7th.
They teach it multiple times tbh. I remember it being introduced in like 2nd grade and then learning in depth in 5th grade and then again we had it in our 7th grade life science, and AGAIN in 10th grade biology. That and cell function/life cycle
Load More Replies...Nice story, but this tendency to break down longer stories into many, many tweet-able chunks is just annoying, even with reasembly done by BP.
Well, it is a story being told on twitter. And when navigating twitter itself it's very easy to follow a thread of tweets, even if they're all short. And text-lengthening services such as external links or pictures have their downsides too.
Load More Replies...Many Americans think that as an immigrants we ar stupid and came from a backward country. But they didn't know even in a 'backwards' country there are smart people, and our education for some reason is higher than them. They just didn't realize that because they never went outside America.
I'd like to think my wife is such a teacher. We always talk about how most teachers simply teach the exam and students end up as illiterate graduates. I finally dropped out in 9th grade due to frustration with my 5th-9th-grade teachers because I was far too advanced and bored out of my mind. No one would listen to me or help out so I gave up. Kudos to teachers like Ms. Gallagher!!
God bless the Mrs. Gallaghers. Fie upon the racist nincompoops who squawk “speak english, you are in america”
I love that he still gave his answers even in a different language. a teacher will always accept trying.
I wish Ms Gallagher could read that :) It's nice to know that what you did for someone had an positive impact on his life !
My dad came to Australia not speaking any English. 27 years later, we kids are appreciating him more and trying to help him more. I feel sorry for grown adults that come to Australia with English as their second language (or non-existent language) and have kids that speak it better than them and they don't even learn the language properly. That's why we need to help them even more
I only speak English, but grew up surrounded by non english back ground kids. Our school taught You do not have to like everyone You DO have give everyone a fair go. English is HARD. I have found ten, yes ten ways to pronounce the letter O.
When I still lived in Germany (a city with a big American military base), we used to have American teens at my school (High-school equivalent) every now and then. I was always very interested in English, so had a pretty good grasp of the language. When American teens would end up in any of my classes, the teachers would seat me with them, so I could help translate if they got stuck due to language barriers.
I really began to learn English once I started attending an English local high school because the English taught in French speaking Québec schools is pathetic. While I was attending that school I began to attend a Protestant English speaking church that I still attend to this day (41 years later). When I was at that school everybody including my classmates helped to teach me the language. Now, forty-something years I have a B.A. in English Studies with a Major in Professional Writing in English, and I graduated with a G.P.A halfway. between B- and B.
What a wonderful teacher! I remember my high school years as the worst years of my life, because I came to the US from a foreign country at 17 and was placed into Junior level at hight school and because of my English ended up in a lot of ESL classes that were boring as hell, because I already knew everything - just not in English. I hated my English class because we were reading Newbery Award books, and I already read all of Dostoyevsky in Russian. Just like TK I felt so stupid and felt that other people thought I was stupid and not old enough to read anything more sophisticated than 5-grade books... Thanks to my chemistry teacher, also a Russian immigrant, I got placed in AP chemistry and calculus the next year and was spared all English classes so finally school was bearable. However, to this day I regret staying in high school for those 1.5 years and not taking GED and heading straight to college.
This made me remember being a Philippine-educated physical therapist on her first job ever in a Cantonese-speaking country. I remembered feeling like this man had felt - watching people of the same professional level as me speaking but not understanding a word, feeling very, very stupid. And angry. And frustrated. Their lips were moving, making sounds that should mean something but didn't to my ears. So I started asking. I was very fortunate to have coworkers who were patient enough to answer all my queries. I would write the Chinese words phonetically to make sure I would say it with the right tone. And I went to Cantonese classes. I did not like feeling stupid when I knew I wasn't. I felt so free and confident after learning Cantonese. Proud to have made myself trilingual!
I learned about photosynthesis in Costa Rica while I was in the 2nd grade.
I work with many ESOL students at the college I work at. I'm always moved by thier willngness to relearn subjects they know, in a language they dont,. They have a great amount of patience and motivation. Its very inspiring, as is this story!
I work with many ESOL students as the college where I work. Im always moved my their willingness to relearn subjects they know, in a language they dont. Many of them show a great amount of patience and motivation, its very inspiring, as is this story!
As an immigrant who had to learn English, this was an incredible story to hear. I didn't struggle nearly as much as T.K. because I was young when I came to the U.S., but nonetheless I remember the feelings of isolation that arose when I was limited in my expression due to my limited handle on the English language.
Well done Ms Gallagher. You made a difference that day, but taking an interest in an individual student. It would have been easy for her to just ignore his paper, but she cared to know if he was smart of not so she made the effort.
as a first-gen american who constantly had/has to play translator, i wish more people would be this patient. especially with some of my older relatives. people are convinced they're senile or confused, but they really are very sharp. it's just difficult for them to express that in english.
Yea, a lot of my family only speak spanish but I dont see them often, but I can understand spanish almost as well as english, except when speaking it Im slower because I dont do it on a daily basis. So whenever I have people come in at work who I can tell are struggling with saying something in English and they can speak Spanish, I always invite them to ask me in spanish and warn them that my spanish speaking isnt as good, but I can understand well. We all end up repeating ourselves sometimes, but in the end we will understand each other. And if they cant speak spanish (Ive had some customers visiting here from china and korea) they were struggling a bit to say certain things but through gestures and lots of repeating we worked it out. Some of them were the sweetest people too. I always love when they tell me stories about their trip or something random even as Im checking them out and also how happy they look when I take extra time to help them.
Load More Replies...I don't if anyone would read this but I wish I had a teacher like that when I suddenly changed countries. I knew everything in my own language but didn't know the word in English. I didn't know the name of a triangle with three equal sides was and I was in Year 10. My teacher was mocking me and the whole class was snickering. My teacher thought I haven't been to school before. I used to be a smart kid but all of a sudden due to the language barrier I wasn't. I went home and cried that day. I said I wanted to go back. But then my dad told me to work hard and show them how cool being bilingual could be. So I did. I worked hard. I could finally show my teacher that I wasn't an immigrant who hasn't been to school before. I showed my class that I was smart as well. Plus I was fluent in two languages. It took me a long time to redeem my self, but it was worth it. I hope no one ever gets a teacher like the one I had. Everyone deserves a Ms. Gallagher in their life.
Aqua Sky - you certainly had an ignorant teacher. I cannot understand why anyone would think mocking a person who is struggling is at all appropriate - regardless of why that person is struggling. Even if a person isn't smart it's hardly their fault. I'm really glad it turned out well and that your hard work paid off.
Load More Replies...My apologies to anyone who has to learn English as a second language. English is a language born of the merger of the tongues of the Angles, Saxons, Jutes, Scots, Welsh, Irish, Normans, Romans, Gauls (and many more). All these people have only one thing in common - drinking problems.
If I had a student turn in a quiz with answers or 'something ' in another language, I would have it translated too...just out of curiosity
This is why parents should think very carefully when moving overseas with their family. Regardless of what country it is, if they don't speak the native language then they need to go to an international school, or a special school, or have more language lessons. I teach English in Japan and it's awful that Chinese parents drag their kids with them and just put them in a normal school and say "they'll manage"... the same happened to an Indian kid recently. It doesn't help them because they struggle to make friends, can't ask for help, and are not even with friends or family while at school. I can relate to these kids because when I came to Japan I spoke little Japanese - you feel completely helpless and stupid when everyday things becomes a challenge... such as buying milk, catching a bus, saying sorry.
That's not an option for everyone though. International schools cost a ton, and not everyone has a language that could be accommodated by an international school. I"m sorry, but you're making a lot of presumptions with a condescending statement like that.
Load More Replies...Too many of my fellow Americans forget that this is indeed a country built on immigration and seem to think that strict quotas should have always been the rule- starting just after THEIR ancestors arrived
I remember learning photosynthesis long before 10th grade. Probably as early as 6th or 7th.
They teach it multiple times tbh. I remember it being introduced in like 2nd grade and then learning in depth in 5th grade and then again we had it in our 7th grade life science, and AGAIN in 10th grade biology. That and cell function/life cycle
Load More Replies...Nice story, but this tendency to break down longer stories into many, many tweet-able chunks is just annoying, even with reasembly done by BP.
Well, it is a story being told on twitter. And when navigating twitter itself it's very easy to follow a thread of tweets, even if they're all short. And text-lengthening services such as external links or pictures have their downsides too.
Load More Replies...Many Americans think that as an immigrants we ar stupid and came from a backward country. But they didn't know even in a 'backwards' country there are smart people, and our education for some reason is higher than them. They just didn't realize that because they never went outside America.
I'd like to think my wife is such a teacher. We always talk about how most teachers simply teach the exam and students end up as illiterate graduates. I finally dropped out in 9th grade due to frustration with my 5th-9th-grade teachers because I was far too advanced and bored out of my mind. No one would listen to me or help out so I gave up. Kudos to teachers like Ms. Gallagher!!
God bless the Mrs. Gallaghers. Fie upon the racist nincompoops who squawk “speak english, you are in america”
I love that he still gave his answers even in a different language. a teacher will always accept trying.
I wish Ms Gallagher could read that :) It's nice to know that what you did for someone had an positive impact on his life !
My dad came to Australia not speaking any English. 27 years later, we kids are appreciating him more and trying to help him more. I feel sorry for grown adults that come to Australia with English as their second language (or non-existent language) and have kids that speak it better than them and they don't even learn the language properly. That's why we need to help them even more
I only speak English, but grew up surrounded by non english back ground kids. Our school taught You do not have to like everyone You DO have give everyone a fair go. English is HARD. I have found ten, yes ten ways to pronounce the letter O.
When I still lived in Germany (a city with a big American military base), we used to have American teens at my school (High-school equivalent) every now and then. I was always very interested in English, so had a pretty good grasp of the language. When American teens would end up in any of my classes, the teachers would seat me with them, so I could help translate if they got stuck due to language barriers.
I really began to learn English once I started attending an English local high school because the English taught in French speaking Québec schools is pathetic. While I was attending that school I began to attend a Protestant English speaking church that I still attend to this day (41 years later). When I was at that school everybody including my classmates helped to teach me the language. Now, forty-something years I have a B.A. in English Studies with a Major in Professional Writing in English, and I graduated with a G.P.A halfway. between B- and B.
What a wonderful teacher! I remember my high school years as the worst years of my life, because I came to the US from a foreign country at 17 and was placed into Junior level at hight school and because of my English ended up in a lot of ESL classes that were boring as hell, because I already knew everything - just not in English. I hated my English class because we were reading Newbery Award books, and I already read all of Dostoyevsky in Russian. Just like TK I felt so stupid and felt that other people thought I was stupid and not old enough to read anything more sophisticated than 5-grade books... Thanks to my chemistry teacher, also a Russian immigrant, I got placed in AP chemistry and calculus the next year and was spared all English classes so finally school was bearable. However, to this day I regret staying in high school for those 1.5 years and not taking GED and heading straight to college.
This made me remember being a Philippine-educated physical therapist on her first job ever in a Cantonese-speaking country. I remembered feeling like this man had felt - watching people of the same professional level as me speaking but not understanding a word, feeling very, very stupid. And angry. And frustrated. Their lips were moving, making sounds that should mean something but didn't to my ears. So I started asking. I was very fortunate to have coworkers who were patient enough to answer all my queries. I would write the Chinese words phonetically to make sure I would say it with the right tone. And I went to Cantonese classes. I did not like feeling stupid when I knew I wasn't. I felt so free and confident after learning Cantonese. Proud to have made myself trilingual!
I learned about photosynthesis in Costa Rica while I was in the 2nd grade.
I work with many ESOL students at the college I work at. I'm always moved by thier willngness to relearn subjects they know, in a language they dont,. They have a great amount of patience and motivation. Its very inspiring, as is this story!
I work with many ESOL students as the college where I work. Im always moved my their willingness to relearn subjects they know, in a language they dont. Many of them show a great amount of patience and motivation, its very inspiring, as is this story!
As an immigrant who had to learn English, this was an incredible story to hear. I didn't struggle nearly as much as T.K. because I was young when I came to the U.S., but nonetheless I remember the feelings of isolation that arose when I was limited in my expression due to my limited handle on the English language.
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