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An Immigrant's Dream Izzie Jacob

Sylva Das’s grandfather was standing under his favorite mango tree when his mother ushered him inside. A bomb threat had just gone off. He and his brothers got through the door just seconds before the tree disintegrated.

“That was his favorite mango tree and he likes to mourn it,” said Das, a senior at CHS.

Das’s grandfather, Sunil Das, grew up during World War II in Malaysia. His family immigrated from India to Malaysia when he was young, looking for work and chasing the booming railroad industry. Sunil Das’s father became a railroad engineer, his older brother following in his footsteps.

Sunil Das’s parents wanted him to go into the railroad industry, a dependent and steady career that his family was familiar with. Sunil Das had a pen pal in high school that lived in America; her name was Joan Nord. Nord was located in Indiana and explained to Sunil that she was going to college. When Sunil found out about the potential opportunities that came with college, he became invested and knew he couldn’t live the rest of his life on Malaysian railroads.

“He decided when he was 18 to just come here and see what happened,” Das said. “He got on this random cargo ship that was going to New York City, and then when he got here, he somehow made it to college in Indiana, and he met up with his pen pal. That’s how he met her for the first time.”

In 1954, Sunil Das left everyone he knew behind for a shot at becoming something more. The hardest part for Sunil was leaving his family. He left behind more than six siblings and his parents. He didn’t know the language, the culture, or the country. All he had was persistence and a pen pal.

Sunil Das and his family are pictured in Malaysia. Sunil Das was a child. Photo Courtesy of Sylva Das

Sunil Das ended up attending the same college as his pen pal. A small Catholic college in Indiana called Manchester College (now called Manchester University in Indiana). Sunil didn’t really fit into the college environment right away and often faced subtle and outright discrimination. Being one of the only people of color at his school, many people were unwilling to make an effort to communicate with him due to ignorance, especially because of his lack of fluidity in English and the color of his skin. Nonetheless, he was the first in his family to get a college degree. However, not everyone thought he would make it that far, especially those who taught him.

“A lot of people also didn't think that he was going to be able to do very well because all the programs were in English, and he didn't speak English,” Das said. “So they doubted him."

As a result, his rough experiences in college molded his views and distorted his respect towards his own culture and how he passed it on - or didn’t pass on - to the next generation.

“I think my grandpa's view as an immigrant was that you just want to acclimate to the American culture, you want to erase everything from your past, from where you came from,” Das said. “He thought that speaking languages from his past country was not American. I definitely have resentment of the fact he was made to feel that his culture was not valid and in order for him to be American, his culture needed to be completely erased.”

This issue is felt by many immigrant communities across cultural barriers. When immigrants come to this country, they feel as though they are not “American enough,” that they have to drop their culture to assimilate, blend in, keep their head down and survive. Immigrants are made to feel this way by discrimination, ignorance from others and feeling like the odd one out. Immigrants often never feel American enough - even though this land was created and built by immigrants. This issue is often felt by the descendants of immigrants as well.

Sunil Das stands with his siblings on a trip to Malaysia. He is the fourth from the left. Photo Courtesy of Sylva Das

“It just kind of makes me sad that now I don't speak the language and I don't have as deep a connection to the culture as I could have,” said Das.

A balancing act of never feeling American enough - nor cultured enough.

Sunil Das ended up going into medicine to help others. He earned the title of Dr. Sunil Das and was able to create a steady income and settle down in Michigan. He sent money back to Malaysia to support his parents and other siblings. Today, Dr. Das lives in Michigan near his grandchildren and children.

Das talked about how her grandfather's stories and experiences motivate her in various ways. But the most important was how pure of a heart he was able to maintain through the good and the bad.

“I think that's why he went into medicine because he loved helping people,” Das said. “I mean, he was always able to see the good in people. Even with all these experiences that he had as a child and coming here, he had seen the bad in people but he was always able to take this, hope that people really were looking out for each other and we're really there to help each other.”

His positive mindset and consistent outpour of love is something that Das carries with her in her heart; she leans on these stories during the rough times.

Though Das knows her grandfather risked everything for a better life in this land with more opportunity, she struggles with the idea of the ‘American Dream.’

“I don't think America gives you the dream,” Das said. “I think immigrants make their own dreams.”

Das knows she’s able to live a more opportunity-filled life because of the decisions her grandfather made. A decision she could never repay her grandfather with. Was all the hard work and sacrifice part of the American dream? Or was it just immigrant grit?

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