Asian-American Identity Problems
for Dr. Ryang
Asian Civilization I
1996
Introduction/Overview
While Asian-Americans have a very rich culture, often they suffer from problems of identity crises, as do many in this country. Should one maintain a sense of family history? Or is it better to try to blend in and assimilate with the rest of America? This is a problems many minorities, in general, face, but Asian-Americans seem to have a particular presence in this problem.
There are countless reasons as to why this could be. This paper will explore specific problems among Asian-Americans trying to find an identity as well as possible reasons and solutions for this problem. The information from this paper comes from books containing oral histories, statistical books, and personal interviews, as well as a smattering of hypothesizing and author's contemplation on the subject.
History of Asian Dissension
From the very point in the mid-19th century that Chinese people began to come to the United States, there was a general distaste for these foreigners. Stereotypes surrounded them and while having their supporters, many people made it publically known their views on Chinese immigrants. An 1873 editorial in the magazine The Elevator shows the ignorant hostility being vented:
To our State these people come in vast numbers — not for an incidental good to us bu to do us a grievous wrong. What can our State or metropolis benefit by encouraging the immigration of a class of people who use no common dictates of reason while among us, who are pagans in religion, inhuman in their traits, most scurrilous when their feelings are irritated, illiterate in intellectual education and of the doctrines of morality, and lastly wholly incompetent to become true citizens. (Foner 241)
This disturbing train of thought suffers from what many racist rationalizations do: poorly thought out arguments. The most notable one in this particular editorial is the reference to Chinese as "pagans in religion." This is ironic because while many Chinese of the time did not subscribe to Christianity, their primary religion was Buddhism, a clearly monotheistic religion. A pagan, as defined by the Miriam-Webster dictionary, is a "follower of a polytheistic religion."
This example of unsubstantiated racism contributes to problems of self-hate for Asian-Americans. Thoughts denying one's own self-value are still common today, where Chinese-American women find themselves thinking negatively about their own men to the point that they're surprised by Chinese-American men that fit into the American society. They see a well-built, articulate man with a good sense of humor and think "He's Chinese, how'd he get that way?" (Lee 124).
History's Implications on Today's Asian-Americans
The blatant racism demonstrated above has subsided quite a bit since the last century. However, the poor self-image of many Asian-Americans directly contradicts the idea that viewing Asian-Americans as "the model minority" is a positive thing. The myth of "the model minority" is based on the idea that "Asian immigrants to the U.S. tend to be already highly educated and from the middle or upper class" (Kangas). Unfortunately, this myth has serious implications on today's Asian-Americans.
This myth is a strong argument against Affirmative Action. However, it is a myth, and a harmful one. It suggests that Asian-Americans do not need or wouldn't benefit from programs such as Affirmative Action, when in actuality "the glass ceiling exists for this minority as well, not to mention the poverty and income inequality that afflict all other groups of Americans" (Kangas).
This model minority myth endangers Affirmative Action through slickly-worded propositions like the California Civil Rights Initiative, otherwise known as "Proposition 209." This document, which was on the ballot in California, stated simply:
The state shall not discriminate against, or grant preferential treatment to, any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in the operation of public employment, public education, or public contracting (The Text of CCRI).
Former White House speech writer Eric Liu called Proposition "a real triumph of unreality" (Liu lecture).
The contribution that legislature of this type makes to the identity problem of Asian-Americans is immense. Because many Asian-Americans are touted to be "the model minority" and, in return, believe it, a false sense of security is developed and their culture all of a sudden doesn't seem that important. Frequently, however, Affirmative Action is actually blamed for Asian-American identity problems.
We are told that affirmative action harms the psyches of... minorities and women. Veterans are not stigmatized by the GI Bill. Europeans are not stigmatized by the Marshall Plan. Corporate farmers are not stigmatized by huge water giveaways and million-dollar price supports... Its beneficiaries feel no stigma. Only when the beneficiaries of affirmative action are women and people of color is there a stigma. Where there is a no racism, or sexism, there is no stigma. (Why the Angry White Guys?)
Unfortunately, these are small issues to many politicians. "The way in which our leaders that frame the debates and decide what the cover story will be are looking for the big fight. They're not attuned to the subtleties of race relations" (Liu lecture).
Subtleties, Stereotyping, and Assimilation
These "subtleties" that Liu speaks of are the result of generations of Asian stereotyping. The result is perhaps even more subtle than that of black stereotyping since it has existed for a much shorter time, therefore leading people to think that it isn't as big of a problem as it really is.
Perhaps the most glaring subtlety, as much of an oxymoron as it may be, is the idea that America groups together Asian-Americans into a "neat, little package" that can be checked off on a census form (Liu lecture). Liu says that "Pan-Asian seems to be an umbrella we want to put everyone under one of the five boxes." This results in a notably significant negative effect on Asian-American self-image. "I didn't know what Chinese groups or Japanese groups were like. I knew I wasn't that, but I didn't want to be that, either. I don't know why it was a bad thing," said first-generation Vietnamese-American Huyen Campbell (Huyen Ly) (Campbell interview).
Campbell came to the United States when she was two years old in 1978, escaping from Can Tho, South Vietnam. She and her family stayed in California for about a decade. Throughout these elementary school years, Campbell noticed that other children always asked her "Are you Chinese?" before anything else, and even though she wasn't, she was still assumed to be the same:
People always asked, "Are you Chinese?" And no matter what you said, they still grouped you with them. And that was in California, where I thought there was more of a mixture of people. There were a lot of people that didn't hang out with others because they were a different race (Campbell interview).
Senior Meilina Wilkinson, whose mother was Taiwanese and whose father is English-American, feels the same way. "In America if you say you're Asian, they use Chinese as a synonym with Asian. They keep together all Asian culture" (Wilkinson interview). This is a common reaction among Americans. Liu finds this to be especially detrimental to Asian-American's identities. He stresses that there is no single set of "Asian" foods, philosophies, or traditions (Liu interview). This tends to result in "benign neglect" (Liu lecture). America may not realize that they are contributing to a more serious problem by simply grouping together all Asian-Americans.
Being viewed as a homogenous group often leads to severe physical harm. The most famous case illustrating this is the Vincent Chin case. In this 1982 incident, Chin, a Chinese-American, was beat to death by two white males with baseball bats who mistook him for a Japanese person. In addition, in 1990, a Vietnamese immigrant was severely beaten in Brooklyn by black gang members who thought he was Korean (Min 31).
Fortunately, many Asian-Americans have noticed that if they are to feel proud, the pride must come from within themselves. Yvonne Chang, a Chinese-American freshman at Cornell University is one who hasn't faced any difficulties:
I know who I am. Although many people cannot tell the difference between Chinese, Japanese, and Korean, etc. I have no problem making such distinctions, and it has never made any large difference in my life (Y. Chang interview).
Sometimes, these stereotypes cause curiosity among Americans. They seek to learn more about the differences between Asian cultures. Mike Chang, a 19-year-old Chinese-American, found these questions of curiosity arousing interest in his own culture:
During my life I have been asked the question of what country am I from or "Are you Chinese, Japanese, Korean...?" Most of the time I tell them Chinese and the question ends at that. But sometimes, especially when I first came to Long Island I wanted to tell them that I'm from the U.S. Born, raised, and English speaking. It never really [made me question] my identity, but it did make me want to know more about my own heritage. A lot of good questions at the time were being asked but I couldn't answer them (M. Chang interview).
Interracial Dating and Asian/White Dating Disparity
The following ratios show a disturbing and surprising trend in dating among Asian people and white people. The ratio of white males married to Asian females to Asian males married to white females in the United States is 3.3:1. For second and later generation Asian-Americans, the ratio is 1.7:1. However, for first-generation Asian-Americans, the ratio is 4.8:1 and if you take Indian-Americans out of the equation, leaving Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, and Filipino, this ratio jumps to a shocking 7:1 (Tanaka 0.1).
However, some researchers believe these statistics to be too low. Tomoyuki Tanaka, the author of the "Disparity in Asian-White Dating FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)" notes:
People I've talked to in the various parts of this country told me that these ratios seem too low. That is, the observed ratio from real life is somewhere between 10:1 and 20:1 (Tanaka 0.1).
The most notable reason for this is that most Asian/White couples that one sees are casually dating and not married. Among casually dating couples, the ratio is somewhere between 10:1 and 20:1 (Tanaka 0.1).
This severe disparity results in significant identity problems. Asian females may view their male counterparts as undesirable. Interviews conducted for this paper resulted in comments regarding Asian men as "scrawny" and that for a white female to date an Asian male is considered "dating down" whereas an Asian female that dates a white male is considered to be "dating up" or "marrying up" (Voon and Yoon interviews). Other research concurs with these comments (Tanaka 1).
Another feeling is that in American society, white men are glamorized to Asian women, while at the same time stripping attractiveness from Asian males, never putting them in leading roles or in a sexy light (Wilkinson interview).
Another possible cause for this disparity are the traditional roles of Asian males and females. In a traditional Asian male/Asian female relationship, things are unbalanced, with the female playing a subservient role, working to make her man happy. In a white male/Asian female relationship, the Asian females are given the opportunity to grow and become stronger as individuals, making this relationship like "moving a level up" (Yoon interview).
What also tends to occur when individuals identify closely with their traditional ethnic gender roles is that an Asian male may be more likely to feel intimidated by white women, since they are viewed to be more liberal (Voon interview). Asian males have compared their thoughts about dating a white woman to a gay people wondering whether a person they find attractive is gay or straight. They may think, "She's cute, but would she be interested in an Asian guy?" (Tanaka 2.2). This type of thinking seems to decline with later generation Asian-Americans (Tanaka 2.2.3).
Tomoyuki Tanaka makes another observation about the culmination of these factors result in less Asian male/white female relationships:
There is something a bit adventurous about dating or marrying out of one's race. White males are more adventurous (less cautious) than Asian males. This contributes to the disparity (Tanaka 2.4).
Something that we have not yet explored in this section about interracial dating is the relationships of African-Americans and Asian-Americans. The overwhelming view of many Asian-Americans is that it's OK, and even preferable, to date white people, while at the same time, the idea of dating a black person is out of the question. Several people interviewed made comments like "my mom has a thing against blacks and Hispanics" and "this is a little racism in me, but I couldn't see myself dating a black guy, though I've been friends with many." One Korean participant spelled a pronunciation of a slang term for black people that her mother uses: "kkumdungee" (interviews1).
This remarkable, yet alarming, culmination of ideas, quotes, and facts is quite a sure sign of identity problems of Asian-Americans in this society. It would seem to be as simple as telling Asian males that they should have a better view of themselves and telling Asian females that dating Asian males is "good." Unfortunately, history has shown that traditions and ideas are two very hard things to change. Perhaps we need to start promoting positive self-image at a younger age, rather than trying to fix our mistakes. Preventative action may be the best medicine for this disease of poor self-image among Asian-Americans and all minorities in this country.
The Most Influential Life Stage: Childhood
It's common knowledge that children are easily influenced by mass media (television, movies, music) as well as by their home and school environments:
Children's attitudes toward their race and ethnic group and other cultural groups begin to form early in the preschool years. Infants can recognize differences in those around them, and young children can easily absorb negative stereotypes. Children are easily influenced by the culture, opinions, and attitudes of their caregivers. Caregivers' perceptions of ethnic and racial groups can affect the child's attitudes toward those minority groups (Gomez).
Different interview participants had different level of culture stressed in their household growing up. One Taiwanese-American participant had little emphasis placed on his culture in his home due mainly to the fact that his parents had been in the United States for a while and seemed to be well-integrated into American society. However, as he got into college, he began to grow more curious about his roots (Wei interview).
Wilkinson, half Taiwanese, spent her first three years frequently around her mother's side of the family (Taiwanese). From three years on, she spent it with her English-American father. However, she didn't feel that she lost self-identity or respect for her background because of her father's teaching of universal respect for others (Wilkinson interview).
Clara Voon, 3/4 Chinese and 1/4 Malaysian, said that her parents' tried to keep her up on her culture, but she didn't pay much attention because she was so influenced by American culture (Voon interview). Jung-Hyun (Liz) Yoon, a Korean-American that arrived here when she was eight, said that her mother heavily stressed (and still stresses), "Don't ever lose your language." At home, she speaks Korean with her mother. Yoon's 14-year-old sister, however, is not proud of her culture and has immersed herself in Japanese studies (Yoon interview).
Huyen Campbell, a Vietnamese-American, wishes her mother had kept up with the Vietnamese traditions. She felt a real sense of community on her visits to Tet celebrations (Vietnamese New Year's Parties). She ate Vietnamese food on a regular basis, but most of the other Vietnamese traditions weren't kept in her house. She attributes this to her mother trying to fit into American society as well as a stepfather who wouldn't allow her family to speak Vietnamese in the house because he didn't understand it. This is a sore point now with Campbell (Campbell interview).
Yvonne Chang's parents "excessively" stressed cultural knowledge. She attended Chinese school, an intensive once-a-week school that teaches Chinese language and history, for 12 years and her parents speak Chinese all the time at home. They also celebrate Chinese holidays. Chang said that having her "American identity" at school and her "Chinese identity" at home was "a bit confusing at first, but... eventually provided a stability..." (Y. Chang interview).
Chinese-American Michael Chang had similar experiences to Yvonne Chang. His parents also strongly stressed their culture in his house as far as traditions and holidays. His end experience was extremely positive, "I am proud of my culture as I am proud to be American" (M. Chang interview).
One major problem for a lot of children is that the opportunities aren't even provided to them for them to learn about their culture and other cultures. Will Hao, a Hawaiian-American, said, "My friends and I never really learned about the Hawaiian language. If it was put on us, fine, but we never sought it out. We didn't have a choice in school, so we never thought about it" (Lee 34).
In "Teaching With a Multicultural Perspective," an article available on the Clearinghouse on Elementary and Early Childhood Education web site, Rey Gomez proposes that elementary school teachers and caregivers use the easily-influenced nature of children to mold them into a more accepting generation than generations past. Gomez says that stressing similarities among ethnic groups is important:
Young children can develop stereotypic viewpoints of cultures different from their own when similarities among all individuals are not emphasized. Teachers can help eliminate stereotypes by presenting material and activities that enable children to learn the similarities of all individuals. Circle time is particularly helpful in this respect, as it provides children with a feeling of group identity and introduces them to the variety of cultures represented in the class (Gomez).
He continues to dispel myths about multi cultural education and propose new ways to bring ethnic pride and knowledge to the American schoolchildren of all races.
Asian-Americans in the Entertainment Industry
Children are easily influenced by who they see on television or in the movies or who they hear on the radio. Unfortunately, aside from Kung-Fu movies, Asians and Asian-Americans have traditionally been all but absent from American pop culture. Increasing the number of Asian-Americans in positions of role-models frequently found in the entertainment industry has the potential to give Asian-American children a chance to identify with someone like themselves that's famous. One important part of having a good self-image is having a goal in life, and for many children, their goal is to be like their role model on television.
Steve Wei, a Taiwanese-American graduate of Temple University, feels that Asian-Americans need to make this move into the entertainment industry. "Hollywood and pop culture shape your identity as a young child," explained Wei (Wei interview). Wei is doing his part. He and two other Asian-Americans, Scott Jung and Chris Wang, form the rap group the Mountain Brothers. They have just signed to Ruffhouse, a subsidiary of Columbia, one of the country's biggest major record labels. This makes them the first all-Asian-American rap group to sign to a major record label. Their lyrics frequently show the distress of being called names as little kids while trying to maintain a strong identity:
Old school is one of forsaken places,
Kids steady making faces, already making racist
Comments, shit I'm tense, it was only third grade,
Nasty words sprayed in my direction, damn, even nerds played
Along, fade the song about the Chinaman on the fence,
Sittin', spittin', just trying to make a dollar... out of 15 cents.
Hence, it was a class game to ridicule my last name,
It's pain, if I complain I have to wipe dirt and grass stains
Off patch-ripped jeans, full of detached split seams,
Boy life hurts, when striped shirts never match with green
socks, you see me rock like three times a week, son,
This geek freaks mathematics but I'm ecstatic when the week's done.
I peep one great fight, I can't wait, right? Late night Friday,
Karate flicks everybody kicks, punches in bunches
but why they speaking British? Boy I feel weak and skiddish
in the tummy, it's not supposed to be funny, my man's not supposed to be a dummy.
Maybe, my sister's the epitome of femininity,
But it's crazy, me and my brother's still have no identity.
In the vicinity of this sweltering hot melting pot, I'm famished,
How can I manage to damage stereotypes if I vanish?(Concrete Jungle Sampler, "Invisible Man")
Also making a positive move to getting Asian-American musicians better exposure are Andy Kawanami and Nelson Wong. These two started AArising Records, a record label dedicated to showcasing the talent of Asian-Americans. "Our goal is to diversify the APA (Asian-Pacific-American) images out there," says Wong. "The more images you have out there the less chance that someone will be able to stereotype Asian Pacific Americans as being a certain way" ("About AArising Records").
Conclusion: Solvable Problems
There are many contributing factors to the identity problems of Asian-Americans. From the time that many of them are small children, they are hearing derogatory terms and comments made about them. Whether it's in reference to their slanted eyes or the assumption that they are Chinese because of the way they look, these children fear being different, as do any other children. Often, this name-calling is a result of a child feeling insecure about himself and thus leads to needing to put someone else down who is different in physical appearance in order to make himself or herself feel better. Oddly enough, this often happens too with adults. However, with adults it is more obviously a sign of a common mental disorder called racism.
Children often use popular culture to find role models to look up to. Sometimes it's television, sometimes movies, sometimes music. Unfortunately, Asian-Americans are a severely under represented group in music and the movies. Fortunately, that seems to be changing with folks like the Mountain Brothers, AArising Records, and Asian-American actors all providing positive role models for Asian-American children.
Education is another area where we must make changes. The current state of public school education is frightening. History and culture that is taught throughout the United States is very whitewashed, not showing more than an inkling of an attempt at a multi-cultural education. Rey Gomez's ideas mentioned in this paper seem to be along the rights lines to correcting this problem.
The home is another place where changes must take place. Judging from the interviews, it is important for parents to continue cultural traditions even after moving to the United States and becoming a part of the American culture. It provides children with a sense of strong self-value and pride. It's not a hard thing to do, until you stop doing it for a little while.
And while, certainly, interracial dating has no clearly right or wrong answer, the important thing to remember in interracial relationships, whether one approves of them or not, is that the offspring of these interracial couples absolutely must be provided with ample knowledge and appreciation of each culture they come from. It's a hard enough world for children to live in today without feeling lost between two socially-viewed polar opposite cultures.
It seems to be the trend, and hopefully becomes an all-encompassing reality, that Asian-Americans in this country are looking to find who they are and where they come from. It also seems that America in general is changing, albeit quite slowly, towards becoming a more accepting society. All of this is indisputably necessary in order for Asian-Americans (and other minorities) to have a positive sense of who they are with respect to their current environment, allowing for future growth and expansion that is emotionally, intellectually, and spiritually satisfying.
Notes
1No specific citation is given here for privacy's sake. Rather, a general reference is made to "interviews" to note that these statements were obtained during personal interviews conducted by the author that are listed in the "Works Cited."
Works Cited
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