Letter to the Globe & Mail (January 12, 2011) Amy Chua’s book highlights one segment of Chinese parenting in the West to the detriment of another swath of the community. According to recent census data, the majority of Chinese-Canadians grow up in low-income households, and within this group children typically do not play musical instruments or devote many hours to homework. Many Chinese-Canadian youths from low-income backgrounds face problems of underachievement and criminality. I grew up in a very poor Chinese family where none of my siblings completed post secondary schooling. I was arrested twice as a teenager and dropped out of high school before eventually finishing at age 20. However, I did go on to get degrees from the University of Toronto and Princeton, where I faced a cultural shock when meeting Chinese students there who conformed to Ms. Chua’s background. Because the Chinese tiger mom stereotype is so ingrained, few, if any, outreach programs target at-risk Chinese youths. Some of my childhood Chinese friends are now in jail or drug addicts because people in authority always thought our households resembled Ms. Chua’s. Kai L. Chan, New York The Globe and Mail © Copyright 2011 CTVglobemedia Publishing Inc. All…
Letter to the Wall Street Journal (January 14, 2011) Although the way Ms. Chua raised her children may be typical of many high-achieving Chinese families, there are many Chinese families who live quite the opposite life. According to recent Census data, the majority of Chinese people grow up in low-income households, and within this group children typically do not play musical instruments or devote many hours to homework. I grew up in a very poor Chinese family in which none of my siblings completed post-secondary schooling. I was arrested twice as a teenager and dropped out of high school before eventually finishing at age 20. However, I did go on to earn a doctorate. Because the "superior Chinese mother" stereotype is so ingrained into society, few outreach programs target at-risk Chinese youths. Some of my childhood Chinese friends are now in jail or are drug addicts because people in authority always thought our households resembled Ms. Chua's. Kai L. Chan New York Letter as it appeared in the WSJ Copyright ©2011 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved 
