Fenna felt she was insulated by her Dutch community. In what ways did you believe this helped or hurt her? If you were raised in an immigrant community what did you think of the experience?

Fenna felt she was insulated by her Dutch community. Do you feel she was correct? In what ways did you believe this helped or hurt her? If you were raised in an immigrant community what did you think of the experience?

I think it's really important to have a sense of community around you, and it's particularly vital for new immigrants. Having that commonality is extremely comforting regardless of one's age. Sometimes those communities can be stifling, especially when they discourage interaction with "outsiders," but generally they're a good thing (and I think that was true in Fenna's case; she needed the support).

I grew up in the Hungarian section of Cleveland, and it was a pretty tight-knit community. I'm happy I had the experience, as I feel like having that cultural background really added to my life. I think it also helped me be a well-behaved child; I always had "aunties" looking after me, and in those days, it was expected that they'd keep you in line as much as your parents did.

I think having a community is always helpful. That insulation as you adjust to a new country, can't help but be beneficial. It gives you time to grow and be accepted in your new place. While not a new immigrant, my in-laws were immigrated from Italy. And my Jewish grandparents were immigrated from Russia/what is now Belarus. I think in both cases the insulation gave them time to learn a new language, or allowed them that time to nurture the next generation. Which in most cases were fully assimilated. First generation can always use whatever support they can get.