(Something asks) There are frequent incidents of hatred of Asians. What kind of disease is the United States suffering from?
China News Service, Beijing, May 24th, title: There are frequent incidents of hatred of Asians. What disease is the United States suffering from?
China News Agency reporter Xie Ping and Xu Wenxin
Li Minghuan.
Photo courtesy of the interviewee
May 25 is the first anniversary of Freud's death due to police violence.
A year ago, the cry of "I can't breathe" exploded the topic of racial discrimination in the United States.
In the past year, the problem of racial discrimination in the United States has not improved, and the situation of ethnic minorities remains difficult.
In May, the United States entered the "Asia-Pacific American Tradition Month."
As usual, all walks of life in the American society usually hold celebrations to thank Asians for their contributions to American society and enhance mutual understanding among all ethnic groups.
This year is no exception.
First, US President Biden issued the "2021 Asia-Pacific American Heritage Month Declaration", and then Chinese Congressman Meng Zhaowen announced that he would introduce legislation to promote the teaching of Asia-Pacific history in schools across the United States.
At the same time, commendation activities for Asia Pacific Heritage Month are also being carried out in various places.
But Asian Americans did not seem to feel relieved.
Since the outbreak of the epidemic, American society’s hatred for Asia has continued to rise, and hate crimes against Asians have continued to increase. Asians lack a sense of security and live in fear.
In this regard, Li Minghuan, a professor at the School of Public Affairs of Xiamen University and a distinguished professor at the Overseas Chinese and Chinese Research Institute of Jinan University, recently accepted an exclusive interview with China News Service on "Question of East and West" and made an in-depth interpretation: the root of the American hatred against Asians is the deep-rooted white supremacy in American society. Ism.
Data map: On April 17, 2021 local time, hundreds of people participated in a rally against discrimination against Asians in Millbrae, San Francisco Bay Area.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Liu Guanguan
"Exclusion of Asia" and "Exclusion of China" go hand in hand
"From the moment I set foot on American soil,'Exclusion of Asia' and'Exclusion of China' accompanied the Asian community." Li Minghuan combed the history of Asian immigration to the United States.
In the 1860s, when the western United States was developed, the Central Pacific Railway Company began to build a railway across the American continent. In order to meet its labor needs, the United States and the Qing government signed the "Panchen Treaty" to recruit Chinese workers.
At that time, China’s domestic economic and political environment was turbulent, coupled with the troubles outside of the Opium War, and some people decided to go to the United States to work and earn a living. The Pu Anchen Treaty just opened the door for Chinese labor emigration to the United States, and a large number of Chinese entered the United States and became the development of the western United States. An important new force.
But soon, there was a wave of anti-Chinese in the United States.
In 1880, the United States revised its immigration terms with the Qing government and signed a treaty in Beijing, which stipulated the number and number of years restricted to the United States.
In the following two years, the wave of Chinese exclusion in the United States rose. In 1882, the United States passed the Chinese Exclusion Act to ban Chinese immigrants.
Since then, China has been exclusion for nearly a hundred years.
In 1943, the Chinese Exclusion Act was repealed by the Magnuson Act, but the latter still only gave a quota of 105 Chinese immigrants per year.
It was not until the United States passed the "Immigration and Nationality Act" in 1965 that the quota system was abolished and Chinese immigrants re-entered the United States.
Today, although the "exclusion of Asia" and "exclusion of China" in the United States seem to have changed, white supremacy has persisted.
In May 2020 local time, when the white policeman Xiao Wan arrested Freud, an African-American man, he knelt for 9 minutes and caused Freud's death.
The video of Freud dying calling for help saying "I can't breathe" triggered mass protests across the United States.
The picture shows a woman in Denver, Colorado, paying her respect in front of a mural by George Floyd
Racism in the United States: different targets at different stages
Li Minghuan pointed out that American racism is not only aimed at Asians. Under the dominance of American national interests, racism has different targets at different stages of development, and different problems will also arise.
"In this new crown pneumonia epidemic, we have seen that blacks are also being discriminated against very seriously. This reminds me of the historical phenomenon traced back in the movie "Green Book". Only more than half a century ago, black Americans were still living in strict conditions. Under the apartheid in the 1960s, the situation of black Americans gradually improved after the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s. The famous speech "I have a dream" by the leader of the black civil rights movement, Martin Luther King, is still fresh in the memory." Li Minghuan said.
Not only black people, but German-Americans, Latino-Americans, and Japanese-Americans living in the United States have all experienced discrimination.
After the US-Mexico War (1846-1848), many public utilities, companies and homeowners’ associations in the United States formulated "exclusion" policies. Some descendants of Mexican Americans were treated as segregated in the public school system; first During World War II, German-Americans were often prosecuted for being too sympathetic to the German Empire; during World War II, Japanese-Americans were collectively imprisoned in concentration camps, and they still lived under strict control until quite a while after the war. .
American minorities basically feel the invisible racial discrimination in society.
It can be said that the civil rights movement in the United States has never won a real victory.
Data map: On April 17, 2021 local time, hundreds of people participated in a rally against discrimination against Asians in Millbrae, San Francisco Bay Area.
With the outbreak and spread of the new crown epidemic, there has been a surge of discrimination and violence against Asian groups in American society.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Liu Guanguan
The epidemic may be a "black swan", but the discrimination is a "gray rhino"
In Li Minghuan's view, the recent incidents of discrimination against Asians are both accidental and inevitable in the course of history.
Racial discrimination in the United States is deeply ingrained, and it can be said to be one after another at different stages.
Therefore, combating racial discrimination is a long-term struggle in the United States.
"If the new crown pneumonia outbreak is a black swan, then the deep-rooted racial prejudice in American society is the gray rhino." Li Minghuan pointed out that the US epidemic situation is severe, the unemployment rate is rising, and relations among ethnic groups are strained. Asians have become the government's ineffective fight against the epidemic. scapegoat.
In addition, the U.S. government is eager to dump China, unreasonable accusations and malicious attacks on China, politicians deliberately inciting war, and media fanning have swayed public opinion in the U.S. and discriminated against Asian Americans.
At the same time, different cultural customs between ethnic groups, and even multiple factors including gender awareness, are intertwined with each other, which intensifies the contradictions among the various ethnic groups in the United States.
The "black swan" came out suddenly, while the "gray rhino" had accumulated for a long time. Racial prejudice against white supremacy was deeply ingrained, which is a chronic disease in American society.
Data map: On March 21, 2021 local time, hundreds of people from the Greater Washington area of the United States held a rally in the capital Washington to protest against hatred and violence against Asians.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Chen Mengtong
Another form of discrimination: "to kill"
Discrimination is not just suppression.
In many cases, some invisible discrimination is difficult to detect and define.
When reviewing American society’s impressions of Asian groups, it is found that “to kill” is also a form of discrimination against Asians in American society.
In the 1930s, Charlie Chen was seen as a righteous Chinese representative who appeared on American screens.
Charlie Chen in the movie is a Chinese police chief. He is docile, compromising, gentle, courteous, frugal, and eloquent.
But like the Asians in most movies, he has his feet suffocated in English and his body is bloated.
By the 1960s, Chinese and even Asians were promoted as the so-called model minority.
When it comes to ethnic Chinese, people always think of hard work, frugality, education, and non-reliance on government relief, etc., and ethnic Chinese are called a role model for other ethnic minorities.
These impressions seem to be praise, but in fact they are a kind of flattery. This kind of flattery is also the stereotype of the model minority in the American society.
Li Minghuan pointed out, “This kind of stereotype is the recessiveness of racial discrimination, or the dominant low-echo period, or the marginalization (neutralization) of the high-elevation period."
Stereotypes such as model minorities have caused a lot of trouble for Asian groups: In schools, Asian groups are often regarded as high IQ groups and academic dominance, so they are ignored by teachers; in the workplace, they obey the stereotype of diligence It has widened the gap between the Asian ethnic group and other ethnic groups, and concealed the injustice that it might suffer.
Data map: Recently, the New York police claimed that a female vagrant was arrested. She was suspected of "hammering" two Asian women in Midtown Manhattan earlier this month.
Screenshot from Zhongxin Video
Lack of security, not just for Asians
Under the epidemic, attacks against Asians have occurred frequently, the number of hate crimes has increased sharply, and Asian groups lack a sense of security.
Many Asians worry about being attacked by strangers when they go out, and feel increasingly worried and even anxious.
In this regard, Li Minghuan believes that the United States is experiencing another severe social division since the post-war period, with intensified ethnic conflicts, economic sluggishness, and turbulence and division in the general social environment.
Therefore, the crime rate in American society remains high. It is not only Asians who are insecure, neither blacks nor whites.
Li Minghuan regards the sense of security as a question of "small family" and "everyone".
"As a'small family', Asians and various ethnic groups certainly cannot be completely separated from the social environment of'everyone', and the social environment of the United States towards division cannot be changed overnight."
But in Li Minghuan's view, as far as the overall trend is concerned, it is impossible for the United States today to have a national anti-Chinese movement like in the 19th century. After all, "political correctness" still occupies the highest point of public opinion in the United States.
At the same time, we must also realize that there is no absolute thing at any time.
The white American subjects still have a sense of justice and blatantly attack the Chinese and other ethnic groups. After all, they are a minority of black sheep.
Asians should have the courage to speak up and defend their rights legally
"In the face of frequent racial discrimination in the United States, Asians must speak up and unite to condemn and resist." Li Minghuan emphasized.
Many Asian Americans have now acted to fight for their rights through strengthening police-civilian cooperation, demonstrations and gatherings, and bravely defending the interests of the ethnic group.
In Li Minghuan's view, in the face of these social problems, justice and active participation are all Asians should handle.
At the same time, she also pointed out that the United States is a country that has highly benefited from immigrants. Immigrant groups from all over the world, including Asians and Chinese, have made outstanding contributions to American society. Asian immigrants should confidently propagate.
Of course, some phenomena in daily life of individual Asians have also been criticized repeatedly.
"For example, new rich (新富) is an obvious derogatory term, and to a large extent it refers to those Asians who show off their wealth. In fact, those show off their wealth are the Asian groups themselves also sneer at them. Asian leaders have already Call for and take the lead in participating more in the public welfare undertakings of the local society. This is an important measure to promote mutual understanding and harmonious coexistence between Asians and other ethnic groups."
Data map: On March 27, 2021 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
Opposing racial discrimination cannot be done in one go
Li Minghuan said frankly that racial discrimination in the United States is a long-term problem, and it is impossible to accomplish it all in one fell swoop.
Through one or two actions and demonstrations, the solution cannot be fundamentally resolved.
But resistance is an essential part of it.
Li Minghuan pointed out that the issue of racial discrimination against Asians should be analyzed from the history of American immigration.
At the same time, we must also see the internal division of Asians, not only ethnic differences, but also class and generational barriers.
First of all, we must see changes in the demographic structure.
According to a report released by the Pew Research Center of the United States, between 2000 and 2019, the growth rate of the Asian population was the fastest among all ethnic groups in the United States, increasing from approximately 10.5 million to a record 18.9 million.
The Chinese, as the largest Asian ethnic group in the United States, now number nearly 5.5 million.
This change will affect the status of Asians and Chinese in the United States.
Furthermore, the status of Asians in the United States is also stratified. Some are social elites, some are bosses, and many are ordinary workers.
There is no shortage of Asian Americans among the high-level wealthy Americans, and there are also a large number of Asians at the bottom of American society.
Asian groups are also culturally diverse.
From the recent anti-discrimination demonstrations, we can clearly see the intergenerational cultural differences. The younger generation who grew up in the United States knows how to use the law as a weapon to protect and fight for their rights in the American institutional environment. They have become anti-Asian people this time. The subject of the hatred movement.
"The abandonment of racial discrimination policies by immigrant societies such as North America and Australia is a gradual change, not a revolutionary improvement." This is a passage translated by Li Minghuan in the book "Chinese among the Others". In her opinion, it is completely There is still a long way to go to eradicate racism in the United States and the world today.
(Finish)
Li Minghuan, Ph.D., University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands, a professor and doctoral supervisor at the School of Public Affairs of Xiamen University, and a distinguished professor of the Overseas Chinese Academy of Jinan University. Special allowance expert of the State Council, has long been engaged in research on overseas Chinese. Chief expert of major projects of China National Social Science Fund, has presided over the completion of dozens of research projects involving overseas Chinese. He is currently the president of the World Society for Overseas Chinese Studies (ISSCO) and the vice president of the Chinese Overseas Chinese History Society.