A stereotype refers to a strongly held idea that people may have towards a particular group of people and in most cases, the idea is always wrong and does not reflect on the truth (Sue et al. 2009). This paper seeks to explain the historical events that helped to shape the stereotype, the prejudices and the attitudes of a majority of the Asian Americans that have left legacies that we have to deal with today. The essay would also offer evidence about how these historical events contributed by the use of both primary and secondary sources. This paper also provides explanation and describes events which can be seen today that demonstrates the legacy of the historical events and stereotypes.
Like it has been in other racial, and those communities or ethnic groups who have been considered to have experienced such problems, the Asian Americans have experienced a good number of stereotypes. In this section, the essay examines two broad categories which have been labeled as the ‘yellow peril’ and the ‘model minority’ stereotypes (Sue et al 2008). It also seeks to describe, history and a slight critic towards each of the stereotype mentioned earlier.
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Asian Americans can be considered today as the model minority, and although its definition may vary from one individual to another, it can be defined as a non-white group of people that have achieved a lot of success economically. In addition to this, those who have gained acceptance in the society through their exemplary efforts and through their values which can be best described as conservative in nature (Harrell 2000). In consideration the Asian people have been viewed to have significant academic achievements, they have also been portrayed to have very high family incomes besides being industrious. These individuals have also been noted to have very minimal criminal records as compared to the indigenous people. Due to the cultural values of non-aggression and the way they have preserved their status quo, they have been considered to have blended neatly into the corporate and the community structure of the American people (Lee et al 2005).
In the mid-1960s, different titles were bestowed on the Asian American people by the educators, the politicians and even the media who would have tried to conserve the dignity of search individuals. Even the White House bestowed on them a title such as the “Americas’ Super Minority.” President Reagan in 1984 even made a declaration that the Asian Americans “preserve by living up to the bedrock values” of the people of America. Some of the praises which the Asians Americans were showered with can be traced to the inherent superiority of the Asian race. There were some fears among the Americans that the vast intelligence that the Asian people were blessed with was racial. Evidently, the failures witnessed among the other immigrants were attributed to the lack of these qualities which the Asian people had. A variety of social and political factors can be used to accurately explain the model minority stereotype specifically by the social climate witnessed in the 1960s and 1970s together with the immigration policies which were formulated to regulate those who had gone to America (Kim 1998).
The first is the historical factor which led to the creation of the model minority stereotype which can be linked to the Immigration Act of 1965 which allowed quite a good number of Asians to enter into America. It is evident that the act rejected ethnic quotas which were initially present and relaxed the restriction which was made prior towards their migration of the Asian people, but it provided entry only to a particular social group of the Asian people(Crothers et al 2012). Notably, those who migrated into America were the wealthiest and the most educated from their native countries. During that period the Asians who were recruited joined the others as professionals and technicians, and they were categorized as skilled workers, unlike their predecessors who were drafted in hard labor positions. But in a nutshell, the policy makers only wanted to attract the Asians whom they considered to be more intelligent than them to fill the technical and scientific positions which they had not filled. The quality of the Asian immigrants who were allowed in was controlled by the immigration policy something was not done to the other minorities.
The entry of a vast number of immigrants in the post-1965 into America substantially changed the Asian American community as they came with wealth and a status which they did not have before. They were also considered to have to go with expertise to a minority group which was initially considered as poor and uneducated laundry and owners of most of the restaurants. To add on this, the second generation Asians started to move to towns and most of the urban centers to live and even to work with the American people.
The social atmosphere which prevailed at that particular time also perpetuated the model minority stereotype where the 1960 activism led to the endowment of some of the necessary legal rights to the Asian American people. And as a result, equal protection was extended even to the Asian Americans, and this would have contributed to the Asians being considered as valuable participants in the American society.
It can also be noted that the recognition of the Asian American people regarding the achievements that they made came at a time when the other minority groups faced a lot of challenges such as poverty and high crime rates began to attract a widespread concern. The idea that Asian Americans as the model minority came as proof that the traditional structures of the American people were still intact in spite of the social pressures that the white Americans had on them.
Even though the model minority stereotype was greatly praised, to an extent it was injurious to some of the Asian Americans as many of them did not conform to the model minority as it presumed them as a monolithic group whose members were considered to be fungible. Despite, fact that a significant number of differences existed between and within the separate Asian ethnic groups. Also, the sociological data failed to offer critical demographic information which indicated that a good number of Asian American households had a good number of their members working not forgetting that quite a good number of them have dominated in the cities which have been considered to have high living standards. Even though the Asian American men tend to be highly educated than their white American counterparts, they could not be promoted to senior executive positions, and this has majorly been supported by the culture of corporate America which tends to preserve the dignity of the Americans more than those of Americans.
In addition to the above-stated grievances the deserving Asian Americans being excluded from programs designed for the minorities citing the faulty assumptions that the Asian Americans have greatly succeeded and through this the Asian Americans were not included in the social agendas basing their argument that the model minority stereotype was accurate as per the policy makers. The model minority stereotype also intensified the racial animosity, and the competition witnessed towards the Asian American people, and this led to the blaming of the other minority group, for instance, the African American and the Hispanic Americans who were not considered to be as successful as the Asian Americans. This came to be because the Asian Americans were artificially aligned with the existing structures of the white people(Zheng 2012).
The perception of the white Americans towards that the Asian Americans would take away their jobs putting into consideration how they worked diligently. The conflict between the white Americans and the Asian Americans could be noted by the increased number of race-motivated killings which majorly targeted the minorities. The model minority stereotype thus created a lot of racial tensions and conditions among the whites and the non-whites.
The Asian Americans have therefore deprived the power to define themselves as individuals according to the image portrayed by the model minority. This is because it fails to address several mental health and psychological afflictions which the Asian people experienced. Among them were feelings of marginality, loneliness, the threat to cultural identity and the perceived alienation towards them (Modell 1977).
Apart from being celebrated for their conformity with the traditional American values and norms, they also have been a subject to another contradictory stereotype for nearly two centuries. The Asians and the Asian Americans have been perceived as the “yellow peril” a term which is used to cover another stereotype (Cainkar 2015). It majorly refers to them as foreigners who have varied cultural practices and lower ethical and moral standards from the white Americans and that they were, therefore, a threat to the American stability. This has even gone further to affect even the second generation Asian Americans who are still considered to be alien with practices and behaviors.
The general public perceived the Asian immigrants as intellectually inferior, morally deficient, dangerous and uneducated people and therefore they were witnessed as intruders who wanted to disrupt their peace. Although they saw their migration to the towns to open their shops and to engage in their businesses further worsened their perception. Even though the image of yellow peril has consequently disappeared from the vocabulary, the contemporary image which viewed the Asian American as being strangers and foreign remains (Rousmaniere 2001). Because the Asian men are still considered as bumbling and shrieking martial artists and opium sniffing underworld lords even though they have made remarkable improvements regarding professionalism and both political and other positions.
Asian women, on the other hand, are still considered modern day geishas and dragon ladies apart from the remarkable improvements which they have made. The Asians are still being described as having characteristics that are uniquely different from those of the Americans. The foreignness component of the yellow peril stereotype is much enduring because its influence and effects are more advanced on the affected individuals. It becomes even more painful because even the American-born ancestors they have in their families are continually presumed to be foreign-born strangers with thick accents. The emergence of the Asian gangs has also led to the resurrection of their image towards the Americans as being criminals.
Despite the belief that the Asian Americans have made it in the society and that they are immune to racism and the different prejudices, they are still discriminated according to their living standards and their self-esteem and according to their psychological well-being in the society. The study of the Asian Americans shows the widespread prejudice and the discrimination that have been leveled on these groups of people as they have continually been denied the rights of citizenship (Qin et al 2008). In this addition they have been restricted to own land, they have also been targeted by the government when they execute their actions to deny them basic civil and human rights.
The manifestation and the impact of racism upon the Asian Americans can be best understood through the concept of microaggressions which can be described as the stunning, subtle and the most often automatic exchanges which are put down on the neglected people. The different ways through which racism causes harm and more disadvantages to the target groups. These acts discrimination have been shown to harm the victims of perpetrators substantially (Dong 1995). The above described racial microaggressions can also be verbal statements such as “You speak such good English” and “But you speak without an accent” and “So where are you really from?” and the Asian Americans and the Latino Americans has perceived these statements as insulting (Walker-Moffat 1995). This is because they reflect a comprehensive view that these racial or the ethnic minorities are aliens in their countries. It is quite unfortunate that many whites are unlikely to hear the advertent racial slights that are made in their presence and as a result, they may unconsciously perpetuate the Eurocentric attitudes of the white supremacy, and in the end, this can cause the individuals of color to feel invalidated or inferior(Segal et al 2005).
In conclusion, the above-described events and scenarios are a good indication of how the Asian American went through a lot of hardships in the hands of the Native Americans because they still apply. The different cases of discrimination and denial of citizenships to the non-Americans still feature even up to date. The feeling of non-belong and the sense of being academically dwarf for the individuals who happen to study among the American schools still exists. These together with the other hardships which the Asian Americans went through in the hands of Americans remains as a legacy.
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