MIRAGE X WVU Asian Association

Dear Asian Association,

We are in a time where support and a sense of community for all are so important in today’s world that starting the Asian Association at West Virginia University felt like a necessity For me, being adopted as a baby from China and being brought to a small town in West Virginia surrounded by people who didn’t always look like me or understand what I was experiencing was always difficult West Virginia is known for having the smallest relative population for Asian Americans, and it was very apparent to me everywhere I went Against the majority, I stood out like a sore thumb, and felt alone in my feelings Growing up, I struggled a lot with identity issues and just finding my place in the world I felt underrepresented, and not heard or seen.

Coming to WVU, these struggles didn’t necessarily disappear, but they did get smaller as I began to meet people of all different backgrounds and immerse myself in the culture here. I realized that there were actually many people like me in the world with similar stories and experiences. Stories that are never heard or talked about. Being Asian in America is not an easy experience, and can not be summed up just by one person's story. Constantly being the butt of racist jokes, and then being told to not make a big deal over “nothing” just continues to silence us. This lack of a voice in society planted the seed in my head to start something of my own for the community I wanted to create something big Something meaningful, and bigger than myself I wanted people who were like me to not feel so alone and confused here; whether they were from West Virginia, a different state, or even a different country It was something I didn’t realize we needed when I first came to WVU, but now that it is fully established, I can see our school desperately needed something like this sooner So many students I’ve never seen or met before were coming together to create a community here, telling me their stories and what experiences shaped them to be who they are today This made me realize even more that representation is so significant in how we view ourselves with many people having similar upbringings to mine. A lack of community can cause us to feel isolated and just not understood or heard. Uplifting the students here, and creating a platform they can stand out on is so meaningful to me, because I feel that growing up, I was nev

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