Finding Pride in Culture

For many individuals in the BIPOC community, a sense of identity is a huge component to who we are, our community, and belongingness. The product of immigration can look like a lot to so many first generation people with immigrant parents. Reclaiming or staying connected to culture can take any forms, but for Eric, it’s through hunting.

Here’s Eric’s story:

My views and feelings of being a hunter of color has without a doubt evolved throughout the years. I am a first generation Asian American, who grew up hunting. My parents are immigrants from Laos, my father particularly grew up hunting - hunting, growing/raising their own food, gathering, etc. is how they regularly procured food. When my Dad immigrated to America, he was able to continue his passion of hunting on state managed waterfowl areas and public lands. I grew up waterfowl and upland game hunting, with waterfowl being my favorite pursuit.

In the beginning, when I was very young - it didn’t mean anything to be a POC hunter. It was a normal part of my early childhood. As I grew and matured, unfortunately you begin to realize you are a minority in the hunting community, being a hunter in California in general - is a minority group.

I’d like to highlight though that I have never been treated poorly in the field, nor have I ever felt discriminated against. I know not all have the same experience. I have always felt a sense of pride being a POC hunter, yet there was also a period of time I felt the need to “prove I belonged”. I’m not sure that is exclusive to me being a POC, or just a regular part of a hunters journey of maturity.

Today, I realize I was extremely lucky to grow up with the opportunities I had. To have a father who hunted, and who was willing to do everything he could to get me outdoors whenever I wanted. I see that many hunters of color did not have those same opportunities, and that many are adult on set hunters.

I have also grown a sense of pride for my own cultural history, and how hunting has been an aspect of my culture for hundred and hundreds of years.

Asians are a minority. And Laotians are a minority within a minority. For a long time I struggled to be proud of my families culture, but today could never be prouder.