(Essential questions) Yan Hairong: Although it is a "model minority", why are Asian Americans still discriminated against?
China News Service, Beijing, April 9th, title: Yan Hairong: Although they are a "model minority", why are Asian Americans still discriminated against?
China News Agency reporter Xie Ping
A new crown epidemic has once again surfaced the issue of racial discrimination in the United States, and Chinese and even Asians bear the brunt.
According to the latest report from STOP APPI Hate (STOP APPI Hate), from March 2020 to the end of February 2021, they received a total of 3,795 anti-Asian racial discrimination reports across the United States.
In this connection, a reporter from China News Agency interviewed Yan Hairong, an associate professor in the Department of Applied Social Sciences, Hong Kong Polytechnic University.
From 1993 to 2007, Hairong Yan studied and worked in the United States. He received a Ph.D. in anthropology from the University of Washington and a post-doctorate at Princeton University.
Yan Hairong.
Photo courtesy of me
Yan Hairong believes that racial discrimination has never disappeared in the United States.
With the occurrence of related incidents, it was mobilized again and again.
The Chinese should take a clear-cut stand against "demonizing" China, and seek partners to unite to jointly oppose racism.
Excerpts from the interview are as follows:
Racial discrimination has never really disappeared from the United States
China News Agency reporter: Recently, in some countries such as the United States, discrimination against Chinese and even Asians has been rampant. There are also traces of discrimination against Chinese Americans in American history. What do you think is the difference between the current discrimination faced by ethnic Chinese compared with the past?
Yan Hairong:
From a general background, the discrimination faced by Chinese Americans today is still very different from before.
During the Chinese Exclusion Act (1882-1943), the discrimination faced by Chinese Americans was a special case of universal discrimination in American society.
At that time, racial discrimination was very common among American whites, covering almost all ethnic minorities, including non-Anglo (Anglo-Saxon, in the United States usually refers to whites from Britain) whites, such as Italians and Irish.
In addition to ethnic Chinese, Asians are basically discriminated against.
After the Chinese Exclusion Act, there was the Asian Exclusion Act of 1917 (Asiatic Barred Zone, 1917–1952). The exclusion of Chinese people was previously extended to a vast area from Polynesia in the Pacific to South Asia, Lebanon, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia.
In 1924, the National Origins Act (1924-1952) extended to immigrants from Southern and Eastern Europe, especially Jews and Slavs.
It can be said that racial discrimination has always existed in the United States, which is an endogenous tumor.
Despite being American, many Chinese Americans will be asked: Where are you from?
This sentence tacitly assumes that you do not belong to the United States, but white people are unlikely to be asked such questions.
Data map: In 2016, the American table tennis team's all-Asian lineup participated in the Rio Olympics.
Including 5 Chinese players: Wang Haoping, Feng Yijun, Wu Yue, Zhang An, Zheng Jiaqi, and an Indian teenager Kanak.
However, the pattern today is different.
First of all, the population of Chinese Americans in the United States has increased a lot, and the same is true for Asians.
If the entire population of Asians in the United States was less than 1% in the past, it is now 6%.
Secondly, there are Asians in many industries in the United States today, and they have made great contributions to the U.S. economy.
If immigrants from Asia are now closed, the economic functioning of the United States may be hit hard.
Third, many countries in Asia, including China, Japan, South Korea, India, etc., have a much stronger national influence than before, which is also very different from before.
Finally, there is the influence of the American civil rights movement.
In the civil rights movement from the 1960s to the 1970s, although the main body was African American, many Asians also participated in it.
On the one hand, they learned a lot in fighting for rights and interests; on the other hand, the civil rights movement also allowed some whites to support anti-discrimination, especially young people. This is helpful to the anti-discrimination of Chinese and Asian Americans today.
China News Agency reporter: Has racial discrimination never really disappeared from the United States? Historically, ethnic Chinese have also made efforts or struggles for anti-discrimination. What is the effect?
Yan Hairong:
Indeed, racial discrimination has never disappeared in the United States.
And it is not static, it is mobilized again and again as related events occur.
It is worth noting that the discrimination against Asian Americans by American racists has also been affected by the American foreign war and social mobilization.
There was the Korean War in the 1950s, the Vietnam War from the 1960s to the 1970s, and the suppression of Japan’s rise in the 1980s. The so-called "hostile" countries of the United States were mostly in Asia.
There is no doubt that war mobilization against Asian countries will affect Asian Americans, because American society does not really distinguish between the two.
On January 20, 2020 local time, thousands of people took to the streets of San Francisco in the United States to celebrate "Martin Luther King Day" with parades and rallies.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Liu Guanguan
In American society and culture, racism is a deep-seated structural problem.
The genocide of Native Americans, the enslavement of African Americans, the treatment of Chinese as coolies, and so on.
And historically, discrimination does not only include people of color, but also Irish, Italian, and Jews who have been racially discriminated against.
Affected by the global expansion of British colonialism at that time, some of the so-called "Old-Americans" believed that they were the real Americans, and the others were "inferiors".
In the second half of the 20th century, influenced by the civil rights movement and anti-warism, anti-discrimination ideas began to spread among white Americans.
Judging from the historical situation, the anti-discrimination of Chinese Americans has a long history and has certain effects.
From the end of the 19th century to the 20th century, Chinese Americans had various resistances.
Including street protests, taking up arms, or talking with local politicians, establishing Chinatown, Chinese communities watching and helping each other, etc.
However, some of the Chinese Americans at that time did not want to stay in the United States, but planned to "return to their roots" after working to earn money. Coupled with the pressure of the Chinese Exclusion Act, the overall Chinese population in the United States was declining at that time, and the strength was relatively weak .
The "Model Minority" label does more harm than good
China News Agency reporter: Recently, the American Association of 100 released a report that quantitatively analyzed the contribution of Chinese Americans in the past 170 years from the perspective of economics. Nowadays, many Chinese in the United States have entered mainstream society to engage in politics and business, and they have received higher and higher levels of education. They have made great contributions to the United States, but why have they not received the corresponding understanding and respect?
Yan Hairong:
The problem with American society now is that having a contribution does not mean that the society will respect you. There is a precedent in history.
Before World War II, the Jewish population in Germany was less than 1%. At that time, 11% of doctors and 17% of lawyers in Germany were Jewish.
In other words, according to the values of mainstream society, Jews have made a great contribution to German society.
However, the contribution of an ethnic group not only means that it is not respected, but it may also be targeted.
This can be said to be some form of exclusion.
The United States has a long history of racism, and this "historical relic" is very vivid.
Once mobilized, its spread is very wide, and no detailed distinction will be made.
Just like today, after the new crown epidemic, the racist attacks in the United States included not only Chinese but also Asians.
What is integration?
Many Chinese Americans have long been able to speak English, especially the second and third generations.
Not being accepted is not the issue of Chinese Americans themselves but the mainstream American society.
They regarded the Chinese culture as "foreign" and did not accept them as part of the "America".
China News Agency reporter: There is a saying: Multiculturalism means that the country allows different cultures to develop to a certain extent, but the status of mainstream culture remains unchanged; cultural diversity means that multiple cultures in a country can develop as much as possible. In your opinion, does the United States advocate multiculturalism or multiculturalism?
Yan Hairong:
There is a word in English called multiculturalism ("multiculturalism").
The rights represented by the civil rights movement are not only equal employment rights, but also cultural rights.
Therefore, through the Civil Rights Movement, some disciplines, such as Asian American studies, have the opportunity to become university disciplines.
I think that mainstream American society now tends to restrict the development of multiple cultures.
Today multiculturalism has been bounced back by the "white supremacy" doctrine.
For mainstream American society, there can be many Chinese restaurants and many cultures, but if they develop to a certain degree, they are still more inclined to restrict.
Data map: Customers dine on the streets of Chinatown in San Francisco, USA.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Liu Guanguan
Reporter from China News Service: Asians are considered by mainstream American society to be "model minorities". Do you think this is an endorsement, or does it deepen certain stereotypes?
Yan Hairong:
Compared with the past, today's Chinese and even Asians have a certain breakthrough in the United States.
Many of the former Chinese were laborers or small businessmen.
Today, Chinese Americans have improved in education and economics, but they still face great difficulties.
The term "model minorities" was put forward in the 1960s.
For the development of Asians, this label actually does more harm than good. It is a damning with faint praise, which means "faint praise."
For Asians, this label is all posted by whites, which in essence strengthens the centralization of whites.
In addition, this label also makes many white people think that Asians are like robots, working hard, obedient, and will not cause trouble. This label is not very good for Asians' struggle.
Another word is "divide and move".
Adding different labels to different ethnic groups also increases the differentiation between them.
For example, "model minorities" seem to be saying that Asians are better than Africans and Latinos, which is not conducive to the unity of ethnic minorities to fight against common problems.
On April 4th, local time, an anti-hate Asian parade was held in New York.
The picture shows the Asian children holding the slogan "Stop Hating Asians" in the parade.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Liao Pan
Anti-discrimination needs to unite all parties
China News Agency reporter: During this period of time, we have also seen some anti-discrimination activities in the United States. People from all walks of life support Asians. Do you have any suggestions on how Chinese Americans and even Asians can better protect their rights and interests? If the discrimination problem in the United States is to be improved, what kind of efforts are required from all parties?
Yan Hairong:
After the outbreak, there have been a lot of stigmatizing remarks about Chinese and China in the United States, many of which are hype about the "yellow peril".
Today, the "Chinese threat theory" is closely related to discrimination and attacks on ethnic Chinese.
In recent years, the United States has launched a new Cold War, and the war has often used and promoted the mobilization of racial discourse.
To resist racial discrimination, we must also resist the new Cold War. Chinese and Asian Americans must stand up and fight back.
Anti-discrimination of Chinese and Asian descent needs to unite with other ethnic groups.
For example, from 1938 to 1939, Chinese Americans resisted Japan's invasion of China. They went to the wharf to protest against the US selling scrap iron to Japan and to protest against the US providing Japanese militarism with raw materials for weapons.
Other ethnic groups joined the protests, such as Jews, Greeks, and Italians. At that time, Italy had already formed an anti-fascist network.
Their protest also moved the dock workers, and many workers also refused to carry the work.
It's the same today.
In my opinion, the Chinese should take a clear-cut stand against "demonizing" China and seek partners to unite.
The Jamaican philosopher Charles W. Mills pointed out in his book "The Racial Contract" that white supremacy is both an internal and global issue in the United States.
On March 27, local time, a large number of people in San Francisco, California, USA took to the streets to protest against discrimination and violence against Asians.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Liu Guanguan
China News Agency reporter: Does the mainstream American society also need to make some efforts?
Yan Hairong:
Actually, a considerable part of today's white Americans support anti-discrimination. This should be traced back to the civil rights movement in the 1960s.
To this day, anti-discrimination has been supported by quite a few people in the United States. During the BLM (Black Lives Matter) movement, many young white men participated.
Chinese Americans should unite the strength of these people and jointly oppose discrimination.
(Finish)