WHY Asian American Studies Today? Janelle Wong, PhD University of Maryland Asian American Studies Program

Why study Asian Americans today? 1. Critical lens for understanding laws and policies that shape “Who we Are” as nation

Why study Asian Americans today? 2. Experience of “Race” as an important and dynamic process

3. Connections between different groups “Every reason that exists against the toleration of free blacks in Illinois may be argued against that of the Chinese here.” - San Francisco Alta paper, 1853

Lynchings 1871 Alta California newspaper reports: “Twelve hours ago…fifteen staring corpses hung ghastly in the moonlight, while seven or eight others, mutilated, torn and crushed lay in our streets, all of them Chinamen.” Other instances of historical discrimination (other Asian groups)

In the Mid-1880s, Dominant Stereotypes of Chinese Were… Excellent cooks, known for exotic cuisine? Well adapted for clearing wild lands, farming skills? Especially well-suited for sewing garments, because of small hands?

“No people in all the East are so well adapted for clearing wild lands and raising every species of agricultural product…as the Chinese” Plan Submitted to U.S. Congress to Recruit Workers to Build Transcontinental Railroad and Farmworkers -quoted in Takaki 1990, 22 1870, nearly 9 percent of California’s population was of Chinese origin

Eastern and Southern European Immigrants during the Asian Exclusion Period Faced… Widespread social hostility, including physical mob attacks? Restrictions on immigration? Legal racial restrictions on becoming citizens, similar to the Chinese?

Many Immigrants Faced Hostility European immigrants were confronted with widespread hostility, but never faced the kind of legal racial restrictions on becoming naturalized citizens experienced by Asian immigrants

“Who are We?” : Connections between US laws and race 1906, the San Francisco Board of Education attempted to force Japanese students who were attending public school in San Francisco to attend the segregated Chinese school 1913 California Alien Land Law prohibits Asians, mostly Japanese, from owning land or from long-term leases 1930s – Washington State attempts to pass laws barring marriage between White women and Filipino men

Is immigration to the U.S. Studying Asian Americans helps us to understand immigration as a force in shaping the U.S. Is immigration to the U.S. Increasing? Decreasing? Leveling off?

Leveling Off

Immigration to the US is mostly from Asia? Latin America? Africa?

Since 2011, foreign Born Entering U. S Since 2011, foreign Born Entering U.S. Each Year is Mostly from China Net Migration (Legal and Undocumented) from Mexico negative - The Economist

Not largest, but fastest growing Today, 1 out of 7 Asian immigrants is undocumented - AAPI data 2017

Immigration policy hidden force that shapes our views of different groups

Recruitment of High-Skilled Immigrants after 1965, especially in the 1990s Most Asian Americans have arrived in the U.S. since 1990 72% of high-skilled visas go to immigrants from Asia, mostly Indians and Chinese Majority of international student visas go to Asian immigrants, with largest number going to students from China - Brookings 2014

An Asian American Population Transformed More than 50% of Chinese immigrants in the U.S. have a bachelor’s degree. In China, the rate is about 8%. (While 17% of Mexican adults in Mexico have a college degree, about 5% of Mexican immigrants in the U.S. have a college degree) -J. Lee 2015 So, U.S. immigration policy creates a highly educated Asian American class and this group sponsors highly educated family members. And the Model Minority stereotype is given life.

All Groups, Not Just Asian Americans, Invest in Education Once one takes into account differences in parents’ income and education levels, “the amount of investment [in education], for the most part, is not significantly different from that of Whites” for blacks, Latinos, or Asians. -Bureau of Labor Statistics 2014 All groups have a “cultural value” for education http://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2014/article/investment-in-higher-education-by-race-and-ethnicity.htm

Is a Four-Year College Degree Necessary for Success? Latinos value four-year degree more than Asian Americans 2013

2013

Asian Americans Experience with Discrimination: Poorer Service In an average month, do any of the following things happen to you? You receive poorer service than other people at restaurants or stores.

Experiences with Discrimination: Non English Speaker In an average month, do any of the following things happen to you? People act as if you don’t speak English.

Why Asian American Studies today? U.S. Complex story of exclusion, changing modes and degrees of discrimination and public policy Revealed through the study of Asian Americans today