Growing Up Korean American | My Struggles 

I'm so happy you shared your story with everyone. Love you, Soso.

This made me cry.

I had to pause the video to comment...I’m sure you won’t even see my comment but I just wanted to say listening to you tell the story so far made me think back to those middle school and high school days at Prince George. It’s crazy because being black and going to school there I personally felt like a minority but it never even crossed my mind how you and Robin probably felt. There were literally no Asians at the school and it was such a small town. Idk if you remember this but it has always stuck with me for whatever reason...one day there was a group of us that went to the movies and your dad called you and of course he spoke to you in Korean and I ask you why do you respond in English and you said you hate speaking Korean in public or around other people and I was just so confused! I thought it was so cool you could speak another language like I wish it could, but I never thought about how different it was because it was not “normal”. Anywho I just basically wanted to say you are amazing and always have been since I met you I’m in 6th grade girl! 💞💞

Wow you and Jenn and Weylie has such similar backgrounds with your parents running businesses in sketchy neighborhoods and connecting more with black friends and fighting with your parents. It’s really cool to see how strong and mature and successful you all are and how yalls backgrounds shapes y’all

I was adopted from Korea when I was 4 months old and now live in Melbourne, Australia with the most wonderful family I could ever ask for (I am now 21). I completely understand your struggles throughout your childhood and high school because I was the exact same. I despised my culture and hated the constant bullying. I can honestly say that discovering your channel at the start of 2010 saved me. I finally started to understand what it really meant to be Korean, and that it shouldn't be something I am ashamed of, and you're the reason I rock a winged liner every day too! My best friend Jess, who is Chinese, and I always talk about our friendship in regards to the friendships you have with Jenn and Weylie because we see so many similarities and the way you guys embrace your culture helped us so much over the years. Your story is beautiful and tragic and it means so much that you shared it. Thank you for everything you do, I know it's not always easy but you make magic happen on this channel. You are a huge part of why I am proud of my background, and I thank my lucky stars that I stumbled across your channel 8 years ago. Thank you for everything xo

I love the way you speak. You're so wise and open minded. I really hope your relationship with your parents now is warm and full of love and understanding. ❤

I'm Nigerian American and this hit me hard. I love this. Thanks for sharing, Soph! We do not have to choose. We can be both because we ARE both

You're a beautiful Korean American😍 LOVE you Sophia!

People are missing out on a lot of good food by being judgmental

I love how open and honest you are. I know this must have been a hard video to make. Being a child of immigrant parents is tough, but I am so proud. Our parents went through so much hardships just so we could live the American dream. Love you Sophieee!

I think this why I feel like I can watch your videos. You are relatable. You’re not Bougie, stuck up, like you been around the block lol I knew you was a SISTA (raised around black people) i understand how your parents feel. People tend to generalize all black people from one experience or from an encounter. We all not the same! My step mom is Hmong they thought my dad & family (who is black) were TERRIBLE people based off what they heard/seen. But now that they know us, they run up and hug us, feed us, come to our family gatherings & we go theirs (weddings, graduations, celebrations) I mean I’m glad you embrace everyone! Because I do! The world will be such a better place with that message. Great video!!

That story was heartbreaking at some parts. Thank you so much for sharing this with us. I feel like most of 1st generation children have to deal with seeing their parents work so hard for them. Seeing their mom's and dad's doing the hardest jobs in order to provide their children with security and well-being. Grateful for these fighters & heros! Therefore, we should not take anything for granted and aspire for more to share the benefits of their hard labor with them in the future :)

I 100% relate with you, I am Chinese born in another country. My parents have also worked tough jobs, most of their life in a bar/ restaurant. My dad was beaten up on the date I was born so my mom was delivering me alone while he was in the hospital having a surgery for his broken nose. They have been through so many robberies, even after they have changed to running a convenience store. I have witnessed an assault while helping my parents store, the most traumatizing experience ever and painful as I saw how they have attacked my dad even though he wasn’t stopping them from taking anything, they beat him up. I don’t understand why would they beat an older man. I relate with you and the moment u were telling your story, girl! I started crying nonstop because I know how that feels. To see your loved ones in danger or a possibility of losing them is painful. I never felt accepted where I was born, I don’t have much childhood memories but I do remember people throwing rocks at me just because they hated I was Asian as a kid and called me names and telling me horrible things. I never felt like I belonged there, now that I have moved countries I feel different and a sense of belonging where I am now. Also, I remember that some neighbours have burnt our clothes when I was young.

as an asian american in born & raised throughout diff ethnic enclaves in california, i def take my culture for granted. hearing stories of asian americans who were marginalized as minorities is so insightful. it's a reminder that we must deconstruct the myth of the model minority and really highlight the struggles/lived experiences of immigrants/diasporans. it would be a shame if we glossed over our own struggles because lord knows our stories aren't shared publicly very often. that said, thank you for being a part of the new generation of asian american creators who are contributing to a larger and more nuanced discourse around the asian/asian american experience. thank you for being so vulnerable

I’m over here crying. Omg 😭😭😭 thank you for sharing your story! Love you Sophia ❤️❤️

I forget exactly what grade i was in but one day in english class we were reading Chinese folktales and few kids were laughing and saying racist things to me. I regret not being able to say anything back then but im just thankful i got through those times and being happy where i am today! Im also a Korean American raised in virginia! Thanks for sharing your story Sophia!

I remember hearing a glimpse of your dad's incident in your video long time ago, but I'm so glad to hear the full story. I'm in tears right now. Love your story, Soph. ❤

Your story is so touching. In many ways, I can relate, whereas the story of your parents and their gas station, I relate a little bit less. My family and I are so lucky that we never had to go through what your mom and dad had to go through, constantly putting themselves in a dangerous position to support their family. It speaks to the self sacrificing nature of our parents, that they’re willing to endure so much to provide. I feel like that’s how they express their love, along with food. Always making sure our basic needs are met. But in terms of our childhood, I feel you. My relationship with my parents was also rough, with a lot of our conflicts ending in corporal punishment. Growing up in the Deep South was not easy, and the stories of being teased and humiliated by white children has really embittered me and shaped me into who I am. When you spend most of your life hating yourself, it begins to define you. It’s only since leaving the south that I’ve really learned to embrace my culture, my identity, and accept myself. Thanks so much for sharing. Voices like yours give us hope and a narrative that we can actually relate to.

I’m so sorry for your experience, the world has so much growing to do. My best friend in high school told me that he dad dislike black people because of one guy at his job. It’s crazy to think that one person can change his view of an entire race.

First & foremost, I wanna applaud you for being able to share your deeply profound upbringing. It takes a lot of courage to open up about something so personal. I'm glad you were able to overcome the battles you had with not only your parents, but with yourself & that makes you that much more beautiful. From a fellow Korean American, 수고했어요!!!

This was amazing. I love listening to your story. I am truly thankful every single day that my self and my family were born and raised in LA. because I don't know anything but culture and diversity. I know people in other places are not as blessed. My best friend since 6th grade is Asian, we are 25/26 now. My boyfriend is white and I am black. I am just surrounded by different things and its a blessing my parents were born and raised here because they are so open minded because of the culture. I went away to school in a different state for a little and it was a freaking culture shock because there was no diversity of people or foods and i was so use to everything right at my door.

You are so relatable and you have made me cry. I forget how much my mom and dad work for me and my older sister and my older brother. My mom and dad moved to the U.S. when they were maybe around their 20s, currently we live in Florida. Thank you for sharing your story😊💖

I'm Korean Canadian and my parents also had a store growing up. Them getting hurt during a robbery was always my biggest fear. I'm so sorry that happened to your family.

As a fellow Asian American your experience resonated with so much of my life and my family; great video Sophia.

Not Korean but I appreciate this video

we love a korean-american sista!!!! much love to you sophia, I've been watching you since you first moved to L.A. and started your channel and you've just gotten even more amazing throughout the years. btw I was making kimchi fried rice in my kitchen while watching this and you made me crave kimchi jjigae LOL😩

I'm sure you don't remember me, but I was in a bunch of your classes at FIDM and always wondered why you were so quiet and kept to yourself. Watching this, I wish I was more confident back then to spark up a conversation and get to know you and your story. I always admired your make up from afar lol! I grew up in NJ, not too far from Virginia with my mom being first generation from Germany. I, too brought different German foods for lunch and got made fun of. Luckily for me, that didn't really affect me, but when I got into middle school, my parents had divorced and my mom came out as gay and that was tough. I've learned from reflection now as an adult that the thing that bothered me the most wasn't that my situation was different and "not normal", but that the most difficult thing to do is to see and hear people judge your parent whether directly or indirectly. Luckily, the older you get, the more you find comfort in your own skin and realize that people say hurtful and negative things as an expression of their own unhappiness and you can only feel bad for them. I, too think moving to LA was the BEST thing that I ever did and I love how educated and cultured I've become. I'm so happy you got to experience the same thing & hope your parents can retire soon and come live in LA with you!! I know I'm working on my parents.

You are seriously the most beautiful person, inside and out, and your pride in your culture inspires me so much. Your integrity, work ethic, creativity... all of it. Thank you for making this video Sophia, as a bi-racial young woman with two immigrant parents, I needed to hear the encouragement and experiences you shared.

Watching your story about your dad really hit home for me. I hope you know how much impact you’ve made in my life over the last few years of being proud of who I am as a fellow Asian sister. Thank you for sharing your story 💕

This is so important. I'm so glad that I have something like youtube where I can learn about other cultures and see that things aren't as scary or different as the people that raised us makes us believe. I'm so sad there wasn't anything like this when I was younger, I wish my school talked about it more, I wish they taught kids more respect about anything that might be perceived as different. But I'm glad the generations growing up now has this. I'm glad it's discussed more. I'm glad that we're becoming better, so thank you so much for this

I love being Korean American. ❤ I used to hate it but as I've gotten older it's truly a beautiful thing. I've learned to not only love it, but embrace it. Thank you for sharing your struggle and experience xx

My parents are also the same whenever something happens, they don’t tell us because they didn’t want us to worry. Love hearing your story. I started crying when you talked about your dad’s incident.

My parents and I moved to Canada from Seoul when I was 7 (I’m now 21). I remember my first day of school, my classmates asked me where I was from & no one knew what “Korea” was. So I said I’m from Asia, which I pronounced the Korean way Ah-See-Ah and got made fun of, but I didn’t even know what was wrong. I’ve started to really embrace being Korean only in the last few years, and I think it’s mainly thanks to Korean culture being more accepted by the public (kpop, kdrama, kfood, kbeauty). RU-vidrs like you, Stephanie, Jenn, Claire, Jen, Amy, etc. have such a big influence on how outside cultures perceive Korea and it’s definitely making a positive mark on how many Korean-Americans/Canadians/others perceive their own culture. I’m hellaa proud to be Korean!!

Thank you so much for sharing your story! It is truly great that you had inspired others who had been in the same situation like yours. I hope this video and your channel will keep influencing positively those who feel insecure about who they are because of their ethnicity or heritage. I'm Korean born and raised in Korea, so I grew up surrounded by kids who have similar backgrounds with me. But your video made me think about kids in Korea who have different ethnic or cultural background and are struggling with it. As a person who wants to be a teacher in public schools, I believe I should try hard to make my students embrace diversity. I really wish the world to become a place where no one has to feel shitty about being different. Thanks again for this video:)

The story about your parents really resonated with my own experience being a child of immigrant parents. Especially about your mother. My mom, especially when something life changing would happen to us, kept us in the dark to spare us the pain. Even to this day she does because, like you said, shes afraid someone might be driving or it will affect us dramatically. Thank you for sharing, this was an honest reminder of the hard work our parents being immigrants go through to make sure their children are well off and have eveything they need. It made me appreciate my parents 100x more. 💕

I relate to this on so many levels! Your story is so inspiring and your parents are SO strong and brave to overcome all of that after moving to America. Bless your beautiful family. Always love your videos xxx

your story about your parents really brought me to tears. i grew up not understanding why i couldnt do certain things or why they didnt like the friends i had. now its gotten better since ive been in college theyre still traditional but all the pieces fit together much better. i dont feel alone anymore. youre such an inspiration

안녕하세요, 언니한테는 영어로 해야 언니가 읽을 수 있겠지만 영어를 아직 공부하고 있고 한국어로 써야 제 말을 충분히 전할 수 있을 것 같아 이렇게 댓글 남겨요. 한국계 미국인들, 더 나아가 해외에 계시는 모든 동포들이 이렇게 고생하는지 정말 무지했어요. 힘들게 살아가고 있다는 건 알았지만, 이 정도일줄은 몰랐어요... Jenn 언니나 Weylie 언니의 영상을 보면서도 뼈저리게 느낀 것 같아요. 그런 환경 속에서 멋지게 성장한 소피아 언니도 대단하다고 생각해요. 항상 멋지고, 제게 영감을 주는 사람 중에 한 명이에요. 그리고 언니는 한국어 하는 게 제일 귀여워요!! ☺️

Thank you for sharing your story, Sophia. I'm 26 years old and born and raised in the Midwest. Not a whole lot of Asians were amongst my peers. It only wasn't until recently over the past year that I began coming to terms with my own struggles and truly owning the confidence of being an Asian American. I commend you for how far you've come and grown...it's truly such a powerful thing to love yourself and to be happy with who you are. I always comment on your content and tell you how much I love ya because I really feel like we'd be friends in real life haha. You're my favorite RU-vidr and watching this video makes me love you even more because I feeeeel you girl. Thank you for being our voice and for being a great role model.

This is very sad but beautiful story. I can’t grasp how strong and loving your parents were for their kids... I am praying for your parents to experience deep inner healing from what they had to go through.

Hey Sophia, I grew up in Dinwiddie, VA. 15 min from Petersburg. I'm sorry your family went through that experience with the store getting robbed. I'm glad you're dad is okay though. Its amazing that your parents supported your dreams as well as your sisters. I enjoyed listening to your journey growing up Korean American.

Sophia, thank you for this video. This hit me HARD in sooo many ways. I grew up in Finland and until this day there aren't a lot of asians here. I was so embarrassed about my heritage growing up and until this day I sometimes feel ashamed of being different than all my friends. I was embarrassed about speaking chinese in public, or eat traditional chinese food and how I looked like. I was trying so hard to be like everyone else and didn't embrace that I was different. My parents also had a small store when I was growing up and it got robbed four times. Your story made me cry so hard, I don't think I have related to anyone so much my entire life. I truly want to thank you for sharing your story and making me feel like I wasn't alone and that there is a community that I belong in.

I am Jamaican-Canadian and your story truly is heart breaking. It didn't have to be that way. I grew up in Canada,Montreal and was one of only a handful of black kids throughout my years of schooling. I was never teased,mocked or bullied. Being different was celebrated. Right down to my quirky accent and fuzzy hair. Its the way it should be for everyone. Stay strong and good luck with all your plans for your future.

This made me cry. I really appreciate how you shared about your experience as a minority; hope you can do more "sit down" and sharing-type videos in the future too.

소피아 언니 항상 화이팅이예요

Girl be PROUD OF WHO YOU ARE. You are very beautiful and have such a warm inviting personality. I hate that your family went through this. May God bless you and your family 🙏 💗💖

Kids can be very mean and what is worse is a lot of it is learned from home. I'm Canadian my background is West Indian (parents from Barbados and St. Lucia), I understand how it feels to not fit in and there was a few of us or I was the only one. I use to wish there was more kids in my school who looked like me, and to not be the only one. I've watched Weylie, Jenn, and Amy's video and now yours. It was interesting to watch and see the similarities and differences that you have all experienced. I'm happy to see how much you have embraced your culture.

My heart broke hearing about what happened to your dad. I'm a daddy's girl and I literally cannot imagine living life without mine. At 53, he still drops damn near everything for me if I need help, and I'll always appreciate that. You're parents seem like lovely people from what I've seen in past videos, and I love the fact that no matter what, they encouraged you and Robin to go forth with your dreams and passions. Although I'm not Asian American, I am African American so a lot of the issues you had to go through feels very familiar to me (to this day, I'll still get a troll here and there who would make fun of my nose and lips). Thanks for sharing this with us, Sophie!

You've come a long way💜

Watching this video after knowing that your parents are now retired makes me so happy. Now I realize why that was the thing that was most important to you. I'm glad that now you'll be able to spend more time together!

This is my first comment on RU-vid, ever. I never imagined that someone could have the same life/experiences as me. I've always watched your videos and enjoyed them, but this is the first time I've truly connected. Thank you so much for sharing this. I grew up in west Tennessee, and my brother and I were the only asians in our school and we rejected our culture for a very long time. I lost my Korean in the process, and now I also sound like a "little kid" haha. But today, in my mid 20s, I feel like the most badass Korean American and I can't imagine any other life for myself. And today, I'm so grateful that I grew up the way that I did because it made me who I am. Thank you for reflecting back to me what I know now, but maybe needed to hear from another person.

So proud of your transparency and your ability to articulate and reflect--inspirational! I know exactly what you went through in your youth with family, peers. and ignorant people. I love being Korean American too! You rock girl!

I'm not Korean American but I am a South Asian Canadian and as you were talking, whether it be about the cultural food or the traditional parents, it gave me flashbacks to my own childhood. Particularly about the part about lying to your parents because my parents were super strict and had a lot of curfews. Thanks for taking the time to make this video. I really needed it.

This was everything. First of all, my parents own a gas station 40 minutes away from Petersburg, Virginia and so I worry about them all the time. Everything you said was so real and heartwarming. Thank you for your courage in sharing this!

I cried ; ; been following you around for years, I clearly know how overthink your mind is. you can be all stressed just by getting yourself on your bed. seeing you be all fine now, I couldn't be happier. pls always be happy, sophie, you deserve it. happiness looks good on you! ♡

I really connected with all of what you were saying except about your father (which I am so sorry that happened)... I really had the same embarrassment as a kid living a primarily white town but now I moved to Queens in NY which had a lot of asians... Girl I finally learned to love being Korean American as well. GIRL ROCK ON AND BE PROUD!!!! I love you and I have been watching you since the day you started and I am so proud of how much you evolved!!!! ❤❤❤

I can so relate to being rebellious. I'm Filipino. It blows my mind how insane the traditional Asian culture is.

This is so emotional

Your story make me realize that every people is going through a certain problem and that we should always be optimistic and never give up in seeing this life..

I'm Argentinian. Now that I grew up I look more like a random girl but when I was a child I looked like an Asian person and everyone would make me feel the weird one. Till I was 17 years old, took a trip with the school, one of the entertainers made fun of my face saying that I was Korean. I don't have anything against Korean people, or Chinese or Japanese or so. People were the ones that made me feel like looking differently was not ok and even wanted to have a surgery to "fix" my eyes. Boy I haven't thought of this in a long time but I know it hurt me. When I was about 19 I saw a Korean pop music video and I loved the girl who was singing. From that moment on I embraced my appearance and liked myself more. Though I changed through the time, I also had big lips that were a bit weird in my small face. Well. I wasn't happy at school and never made any real friends. Now I'm a more confident person but I still have a lot of problems with my body

I grew up as a minority and can relate to so many feelings and experiences you encountered. Embracing my own culture is so important to me, especially since I really struggled with that in the past. Love this video!! And also your hair looks so amazing 💖

ugh girl. so real. got me tearing up! my parents also continue to sacrifice all they've got for my brother and I. forever grateful for them

I cried. Sophia, you're so inspiring!! Love you!

한국에서도 잘 보고있어요! 초기부터 구독했는데 소피아의 메이크업, 패션 등등 너무 좋아해요 영상에 가끔 나오는 어머님도 유쾌하시고ㅋㅋ 소피아 화이팅♡

This is an amazing video. So many of us feel like you did. I hated being Mexican as a kid. And even now I still struggle with being excepted I’m not white enough, even though English is my strong language. And Mexican’s say I am not Mexican. So I think that’s why we relate with other minority people. Thank you for sharing 🙏🙏🙏

Your story made me cry. You are strong and confident. And beautiful. We support you❤️ and. I admire your parents. The sacrifices they made for you are amazing

as a half-japanese/half-american 16 year old living in america, i’m so glad i have asian american influencers like you to look up to. it gets very hard sometimes, dealing with the ignorance towards asian culture here. thank you so much for sharing your own struggles and bringing awareness to the issues asians experience.

im a korean american and have literally been a subscriber since like 2012 and i've been waiting for this video girl!! thank you so much for making it. 언니 진짜 멋지다... haha well thank you sophie!!!!!!

I didn’t get a chance to watch this video at the time you made this. But I’m SO GLAD that I found this again. After watching Jenn’s and Weylie’s I thought your story would be somewhat similar to theirs. But, your story HIT. Having described the story of your childhood and your parents being the “successful immigrant” - I resonate with your story SO much. This meant so much to me, thank you Sophia!!!. X

My parents are like that too... so many times something serious has happened, people have died, my sister had a stroke this year and they didn’t say anything until 3 weeks later when I was at home with them. I understand that they love me so much and just don’t want me to be sad, but it’s hard not to be trusted and relied on in those situations. Thank you so much for sharing your story Sophia. You have quickly become one of my absolute favorite RU-vidrs in a year, I always look forward to your videos. ❤️

I'm German. Grew up there, too. My childhood friend from primary school is Japanese (only one in school) and I remember I always wanted to look like her hihi Enjoyed listening to your story very much! So interesting, thank you! X

inspiring af ❤️❤️❤️ work queen!!!! you’re such a strong person

im sorry about all those things you had to deal with growing up but im glad your dad is okay now!! not korean but can relate to many things you've felt. Thanks for sharing, and i hope noone ever feels alone on these matters!

I just finished watching this video and didn't even realize it was 35 minutes cuz I really enjoyed every words you said. You are beautiful and independent. Like you. Subscribed.

This spoke to me on a visceral level. Being different is so hard, but so worth it.

Your storytelling skill is so great. Let's put her on the TED stage! very emotional

i'm literally balling my eyes out and your story is so relatable

Hey Sophia! I really love you and your videos. Again, stories like yours put me back into perspective on the Asian American experience and the diaspora that we face coming to and living in America outside of my own. I really happy that you chose to tell us you and your family's story. I think it was truly important that you recognized how a large portion of the Asian-Am experience though does have to do with a lot of anti-blackness which took up a good portion of your video. Anti-blackness is significant globally, however, as Asian-Americans and our parents, anti-blackness is one of the prevalent issues that define who we are. Like your parents, my parents (and all of ours) have grown up showing disdain and aggression towards black people. Although growing up in the "ghetto" is a violent situation to be in, I'm so sorry that your parents were/are met with this violence being there on a daily basis, I think it's important to know recognize that it isn't the type of community that black people have created for themselves because they're inherantly violent. It's the racism that this country was built off that have forced black people into slavery, prisons, and poverty that create these conditions, not the people themselves. They're also, like your parents, trying to survive in a world that experiences even more racism and violence (systematic racism) than we Asian Americans experience. I'm only saying this because I think that it's important to address and not justify (not that I think that those were your intentions) that your parents are racist/anti-black and not to negate that. It is hard to accept, but it is a real issue that all of our parents and our community as a whole shares and need to own up to. I'm not saying that your parents' experiences were invalid in any way, and it's true that our parents don't have the education to know any better. But, I just hope that you know it yourself that this is our reality.

Very interesting regarding school lunches. I'm also Korean American, but my mom would NEVER pack me Korean food for lunch because she knew Korean food wouldn't smell very great to others. Hearing your experience makes me very thankful that she did that for me when I was young.

I shed a tear on this story😢

This video really hit close to home for me, thank you so much for sharing your story. I used to feel the same way about being Chinese American, but seeing positive, beautiful, and inspiring Asian role models like you have helped me tremendously in accepting and appreciating myself and my heritage. Thank you.

I had similar experiences. My parents owned a gas station and liquor store in a rough part of town and my parents and I had similar arguments about me having a social life and having friends. I also grew up in a small town and there were like 3 Asian people - luckily my best friend (who is still my bff!) was Asian so I had someone to connect with. I was also physically disciplined and felt so envious of my white friends who had good relationship with their parents. The thing that frustrated me the most was that I DID meet academic expectations. I was a straight A honor student and I didn’t understand why I didn’t have any freedom. It got a lot better when I became a senior and i think my mom recognized I wouldn’t be with her much more. My relationship with mom has improved a lot since I stopped living with her. I think we’ll always disagree on some things, but it’s okay because I can come home and live my own life. :)

It’s so obvious how proud you are of your culture, so at first to hear you say you were ashamed of your background as a child I was so shocked because it’s just so hard to imagine! But then I remembered that I too was SO ashamed of being Filipino Australian when I was growing up. It made me feel like such an outcast because I was literally one of the very few asians in my entire school. But, now I wouldn’t dream of being from any other culture. I am so proud of who I am. Your story is so relatable, it made me cry 💕

THANK YOU for talking about race and parents. It's a really important thing to discuss prejudice amongst ethnic minorities because so often we think it's white on black, or white on Asian. But in reality, there's a lot of stereotyping and disrespecting between groups. It's incredibly complex, especially when it comes to immigrant families.

Thank you sharing your story. It made me sad but I appreciate you being so open with us. I want to travel the world and learn from a variety of cultures as well. I was lucky enough to live and work in Korea for a year. I was following you long before I did but I learned so much about not only the Korean culture but American culture too oddly enough. I fell in love with Korean food and honestly I would love to go back. A lot of the Koreans I met were so loving and open towards us. I felt like I was a part of a whole new family. I'm so sorry about what happened to your dad! It's so hard having to endure such trials when you're making an honest living to take care of your family. Its disheartening knowing that people who do such fowl things paint all of us in a bad light when we are not all crooks,criminals or bad people.

Thanks for being so real and honest. It’s really refreshing to see. And we can all tell when someone is being real real versus fake “real”. Thanks for opening up and it does make us feel closer to you!

I'm not Korean, but your story brought me to tears. I couldn't imagine growing up and feeling like a minority, you are so strong. I also want to mention how you're such an amazing story teller.

not gonna lie, I cried hearing about your story with your dad getting hurt - I'm so sorry that your family had to go through that in the past, sending alot of love to you and your family Sophia ♡ I love watching your videos, thank you for sharing your experiences! I'm Chinese but born and raised in Australia and I can really relate to some of the same struggles that you talked about!!

Thank you so much Sophia for sharing your struggles with us, this literally made me cry. I️ love you girl ❤️

Hands down the best vid about this topic

As a korean (adopted and growing up in Norway) myself, my face is also veeery flat in profile. I also have monolids, no noseridge (the struggle is real when looking for new glasses!) Always been very aware of it, but learned to just accept and laugh at it now. But you look gorgeous and seem like a very genuin and amazing person!

This is such an inspiring story, you are so strong, I cried!! "Nothing is special about being one dimensional" that is so true!!!! The message is just so impactful! I love you Sophie!!!!

as a korean-american myself as well, i feel u so much! this vid made my heart so warm. thank u for opening up and sharing your experiences with us! 3-4년 전 부터 쭉 구독 중이에요! 항상 응원합니다!

I just balled my eyes out thank you for opening upto us must’ve taken a lot of strength sending you lots of love 💕

This was beautiful. Thanks for opening up and being so personal. Made me cry when you talked about your parents. Once I moved away, it made me actually appreciate my parents and cherish them even more as well. ❤️

Such an inspirational video! Coming from a Hispanic family, several things relate as a minority. Thank you so much, truly, for sharing your unique story with us all. I know you have made an impact to many. Love you Sophia, continue living life to the fullest! Thankful to have been watching you for so long!

THAT👏ADVICE👏AT👏THE👏END👏THO👏YAS. LOVE YA GIRL!💕

I literally cried with you Sophia, love this! I too am a proud Korean woman! Keep up the inspiring work love!

I’m crying. Thank you for sharing your story. Love you, Sophia! ❣️

Sophia thank you so much for sharing this with us ❤️ its honestly so amazing to hear your story and as an Australian Born Korean some of the emotions you expressed I empathise with so much :) your parents are absolute troopers !!!