Photos by Canelle Vanderford  

Written by Katie Chandler

In a year where Asian American hate crimes were up 150%, students like Christina Nguyen, are here making sure the much-needed, tough conversations are happening at Missouri State. 

“Love yourself the way you love others.”

This is the short but powerful mantra our student feature for Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage month, Christina, lives by. 

Growing up in Kansas City, Christina found her way to Missouri State and now serves on the Student Government Association cabinet, as well as a resident hall advisor, and serves on the Asian American Pacific Islander Committee. This year Christina was awarded Cabinet Member of the Year for SGA and Outstanding First Year Residence Hall Advisor of the Year. While she may seem like a natural in these positions, it wasn't by accident. 

“I feel like I did a lot of things in high school to please others which was really difficult coming to that realization, especially now in college because I'm doing things now that are benefiting me because I like doing it,” she said. “I've always been super intentional about placing myself into roles that allow for me to grow as a person but also continue my current passion, such as advocacy and service.”

Learning that lesson did not come easy. After losing her mom during her sophomore year of high school, Christina had to step up and become a role model for her siblings. Family being a crucial part of not only her culture but her personal values influenced everything. As hard as it was thinking about the typical high school experiences she had to sometimes give up, like hanging out with her friends on the weekend and going to the mall, it helped her find her passion in life. 

“After I graduate I want to work for social change campaign agencies that work to advocate for social issues like human rights, equal pay, feminism, climate change, those sorts of things,” Christina said.  “Whatever job I can take that will allow for me to continue advocating for others is something big for me.”

This past month Christina spoke on the Missouri State Asian American Student Panel to talk about her experiences and how as a collective we can change the world for the better. She is Vietnamee, but she believes these issues and solutions are bigger than one community. 

“One big thing that we can do is change the way that we like to look towards Asian Americans. There are some individuals that used to be discriminatory and racist and make comments about how we are the Kung Flu or the Chinese virus. That's not correct, and that's not even remotely who we are,” she said.

“Removing those harsh stereotypes, I think, allows for us to grow as individuals and find better ways that we can advocate for ourselves but also it allows us to not fit into those stereotypes and not be perfect all the time.”

Coming up with possible solutions to these major issues allowed Christina to also look within herself and analyze how she learned when she was wrong. She remembered the day she learned about giving second chances to people. The day her baby brother came home from the hospital.

“I just didn't really want to be around him, and I didn't like him that much even though he was a baby,” Chirstina laughed. “I had this idea in my head that my younger brother was terrible but I think knowing that he was not going to be the way that I interpreted him and then allowing myself to grow from that and giving him a second chance, even though he didn't need one, is a big thing.”

Learning to love her brother came first, and then came learning to love herself which was slightly harder.

“By fourth grade, I was already going through a culture identity crisis. I was like ‘well, I can either stand out from my peers and accept my culture but be isolated in the process, or I can assimilate to society but then lose myself and my culture.’ So I chose the latter.”

Christina was born Thien Nhi, but in her efforts to fit in, she became Christina. 

“It's all in my head and I know that, but I built up this whole identity around Christina. Christina is the one who gets the good grades, good with people, and can do all this other stuff. If I change my name it's like I don't have that same concept or the same credibility that I do as Christina.”

Everyday Christina reminds herself that she should give the same the love and patience she gives others to herself. While she has no plans to go back to her original name, if she could go back in time she would tell younger Christina to trust in herself more to stand out. 

In her positions on campus, Christina is not only able to serve as a role model, but grow as one too. Inspired by characters like Hermione Granger and Princess Leia, she learned that being a woman and being a leader were not contradictory.

“It's okay to be a super high achiever and kind of obnoxious sometimes,” she laughed. She says you have to ask yourself, “What can I do to help others and advocate for other women, as opposed to using things like your own identity to protect your own agenda.”
Christina’s advice to anyone who has the felt the same as she has or is trying to get involved with a cause they care about is to ask: 

“What can you do to help benefit society? Is it through education? Is it through protesting? Is it signing petitions? Is it just through reading or asking more questions?

Only together can we change the world. To see Christina's future endeavors follow her on instagram @chrissychaaos