Global Woman **** if you skip the parts that suck

[livingbyfiction]

I read this thoughtful review of Global Woman 5 years ago, and now I’ve finally read it. Every Sunday, I walk past hundreds of Filipina women who have come to Hong Kong to work as domestic helpers.  They live in little cubbyholes smaller than walk-in closets, so on their day off they congregate on the side of the street just to get out of their “

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[livingbyfiction]

“Clashing Dreams” by Hung Cam Thai was the most surprising article:

1. Highly educated women in Vietnam are unmarriageable because no Vietnamese man wants a wife with more book-learnin’ or higher earning potential. In the case study, a Vietnamese lawyer decides to marry a man who works as an assistant cook at a Chinese restaurant in small-town America.

2. Viet kieu men are often unmarriageable because they have too little education; Viet kieu women prefer white guys with real jobs. However, by their status as Americans, they are able to acquire a college-educated Vietnamese girl. Thus two unmarriageables can, and often do, pair off through arranged marriages.

3. Unfortunately, in addition to the sheer unavailability of Viet kieu women, Viet kieu men go back to Vietnam for brides because they believe Vietnamese girls will be more traditional.

4. Highly educated Vietnamese women are interested in international husbands primarily on the mistaken belief that a man will be more flexible about gender roles if he’s been living in the U.S. for 20 years. The lawyer lady wants such simple things, such as to be allowed to work outside the home and not to have her in-laws live with her.

5. The disconnect leads to problems. Divorce almost never happens because there are massive quantities of extended family involved, and divorce brings shame on everyone.