The Term "Asian American"

Most of us, like myself, will use the term "Asian American" nonchalantly, referring to ourselves and any American who has some form of origin in the Asian continent. However, I recently learned that this term has a history, and a purpose.

The term "Asian American" is actually a recent term, first used in 1968. Before then, there were no dignifying term to refer to the collective communities who had origins in Asia. The term "Orientals," a pejorative term, was used mainly by Europeans and White Americans as a way to (1) center Europeans as the center of the world (the word orient means, "east") and (2) simultaneously exoticized and create a sense of alien threat far off, all this to further their imperialistic exploitation.

Within the collective communities, they mainly refer to themselves based on their origins. For example, the Chinese community would refer to themselves as Chinese American, and the Filipino community would refer to themselves as Filipino Americans. There was no sense of having a connection with the continent, but rather, a connection with their country and culture of origin.

There was no sense of connection with one another, each community to its own. For example, other communities did not protest the renewal of the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1901, and during the removal of Japanese Americans from their homes into internment camps (basically, prison camps), Chinese and Korean Americans wore badges, stating their identities, to prevent being mistaken and incarcerated.

As stated above, the term "Asian American" first appeared in 1968, coined by activist and historian Yuji Ichioka. He was inspired by the Black Power movement, a movement that advocated for Black Americans to empower themselves as a way forming a more equitable society that is racists. Ichioka believed that the collective Asian community can benefit by following this movement, empowering themselves through shared experiences. Ichioka and Emma Gee, who were Berkeley students at that time, formed the Asian American Political Alliance (AAPE) as a way to unite Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Filipino students on campus.

However, this term did not immediately took off, requiring years and years of rooting itself into the collective conscious. However, it toke hold in 1982, in the wake of the murder of Vincent Chin. Chin was a Chinese American who was mistaken as Japanese and murdered by two white auto-workers who were angry that the Japanese automobile industry were aggressively competing with the American auto industry, which laid off many workers. This murder galvanized the Asian collective communities. There was a realization that racism against Asians crosses cultural borders that each collective community thought to be firm, if you were thought to be Japanese because of your looks, you were targeted. Racism supposedly intended for a specific group tends to attack other groups. There was a realization that the Asian collective communities were in this together, an attack on one is an attack on all. Gone were the days of wearing badges, they were going to stand up for one another. The Asian collective communities began to form into the Asian American community.

Therefore, the term "Asian American" became a political term. A term that signified self-determination, they reject the term "Orientals" and chose "Asian Americans" for themselves. A term that rejected White notions and portrayals of the whole Asian community. A term that sets a political agenda: equality and acceptance of the whole Asian community. A term that fights racism and imperialism. A term that demands justice not just for oneself and their group, but justice for each other, justice for all. Overall, there is strength and solidarity in numbers.

The term "Asian American" gained powerful traction, but as the year goes on, this term not only has been normalized to some extent, but is now questioned, and even at times, objected, of its relevancy, today.

One issue is the question of who is actually included as Asian Americans. For some people, they see "Asian Americans" referring only to Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, and Filipinos. Other groups such as Hmong, Burmese, Laotian, Cambodian, Mongolian, Sri Lankan, Nepalese, Pakistani, etc. may feel left out, like they don't belong. It must be recognized that Asia is an enormous and diverse place, what looks and what is considered "Asian" will need to be expanded. It must be recognized that the Asian American community is a massively, diverse group. When there are calls for and celebration of diversity in the entertainment industry, people tend to think of actors and actresses such as Steven Yuen or Constance Wu, both with East Asian roots, while other actors and actresses such as Aziz Ansari and Mindy Kaling aren't thought of as Asian.

Another issue is that the lumping of many groups into the singular Asian American label creates an untrue image of the Asian community being a monolith, that they all share the same culture and issues. It's obvious that each group has their own unique culture, experiences, and issues that they deal with. This monolithic misrepresentation also mask the disparities between certain Asian communities. For example, according to Pew Research 2017, the average median household income for Asian Americans is $73,600, compare to $53,600 within all other American households. But within the Asian American community, groups such as Bangladeshi ($49,800), Hmong ($48,000), Nepalese ($43,500), and Burmese ($36,000) all have average median household incomes that are well below the average American median household income. Contrast them to other groups such as Indian ($100,000), Filipinos ($80,000), and Japanese and Sri Lankan (both $74,000).

Again, such issues have made many question whether the term "Asian American" is still useful now. I acknowledge that these issues are grave and must be addressed by viewing each community as distinct, but nevertheless, I will argue that "Asian American" still is useful, if we used it as it was originally envisioned by Ichioka. Asian American is still a useful term when we realize that we are better when we stand up for each other in times of trouble, when we recognize that we have a social responsibility for each other's well-being, when we push against racism and bigotry that has plagued the Asian community, both outside and within, to form a better society.

We have the shared experience of being seen as aliens coming from a different world. I think we can turn that twisted vision into something better: we are all immigrants (or came from immigrant families) coming to this unfamiliar place, looking and hoping for a better life, and we can help each other achieve that life, going past our differences and embracing them. I think that's what it means to be Asian American, at least for me.

Lopez, G., Patten, E., Ruiz, N. G. 2017. Key facts about Asian Americans, a diverse and growing population. Pew Research Center.