Myth of Asian “˜model minority’ reeks of racism

  Chris Diaz Diaz is a second-year
political science and Asian American studies student with an
English minor. E-mail him at [email protected].

So many people talk about how “Asian kids” are smart
and dedicated to working hard. In fact, it’s obvious that
“Asian kids” are born mathematical and scientific
geniuses ““ they’ve got superior cultural values that
emphasize education, math, science, hard work, quietness, kung fu,
cell phones and even more education. Apparently, all of this has
allowed Asians to achieve a large degree of success, indicating
that racial barriers ““ such as stereotypes ““ no longer
stigmatize their community.

Knowing that, let’s see how we can take advantage of their
values to help us reach our own success. Here are six easy steps on
how we can get at least a “B+” in any lab:

Step One: On the first day of your science lab wait until
everyone sits down.

Step Two: Count to 10 in a silent manner, making sure not to
publicly use your fingers to do so.

Step Three: Search around the room for the quiet looking Asian
guy, or girl, with eyeglasses and sit next to them.

Step Four: Evaluate your newfound Asian friend ““ do they
take good notes, pay close attention to the TA and seem submissive
enough? If so, keep your friend and establish a strong link with
them by having a nice talk about “Crouching Tiger, Hidden
Dragon.” If not, repeat Steps One thru Four with someone
new.

Step Five: Let them know you support them 100 percent, and shake
hands. Don’t forget to jot down their cell phone number,
it’s very important.

Step Six: Look forward to an easy quarter because of your
newfound friend.

If you’ve gotten through all six steps successfully,
congratulations. You’ve eliminated the need to fully
participate in cumbersome experiments, the need to do the write-ups
with much thought, and the need to basically think for yourself.
Thank you Asian culture and family values.

  CASEY CROWE/Daily Bruin

Although a lot subtler these days, racism against all people of
color ““ including Asians ““ perpetuates itself in our
society. Asian Americans, for instance, are constantly racially
stereotyped by mainstream society as a homogenous “model
minority” no longer requiring protection against racist
institutional practices. This has had a negative impact on our
community by illegitimating our cries against continuous unfair
mistreatment.

In a political science class I took this summer, which focused
on the legitimacy and illegitimacy of affirmative action programs,
opponents of affirmative action often argued that racial
preferences unfairly affected the Asian Pacific Community. Although
I strongly support affirmative action, the aspect of the
discussions that bothered me the most wasn’t the disagreement
on affirmative action, but the opponents’ consistent
misunderstanding and misrepresentation of the Asian Pacific
Community. Essentially, most of them had stereotyped our community
as a fully successful, assimilated and respected group ““ they
had stereotyped us as a “model minority.”

In 1993, it was reported by the U.S. Bureau of the Census that
Asians had a median family income of $44,456 compared to $39,300
for whites. Opponents of affirmative action, such as those in my
summer class, would use this as evidence to support that being
Asian no longer matters in our system, arguing that individual hard
work and dedication represent all that is necessary to succeed in
this world. They would assert that race no longer affects
individual success; Asians have worked hard, and now they’re
even earning more than whites.

Their conclusion that the Asian Pacific Community is now doing
better than whites in terms of income, however, is inherently
flawed. Firstly, the method of collecting this data fails to
recognize that Asians have a larger percentage of family members
employed in the workforce, which naturally increases household
median income. Secondly, the study does not distinguish between
Japanese-American citizens and Japanese business executives who are
only residents of the United States. Because this distinction is
not made, the high incomes of many Japanese executives currently
within the United States on business (who plan on returning to
Japan) boost the overall median income.

Furthermore, this measurement of household median income
doesn’t break down our community of over 30 ethnicities,
which would reveal the strong disparity of income and poverty
levels within the group itself. Although East Asians may have low
poverty levels, Southeast Asians groups, such as Laotians and
Hmongs, have high poverty levels. This measurement of median income
does not recognize this strong disparity, preventing a true
representation of community dynamics.

What you often hear of as the Asian American “model
minority” myth is a racial stereotype. Although it’s
not as explicitly racist as other Asian stereotypes, it is equally
ignorant and insulting. How dare others cite the Asian American
experience as some sort of racial success story when racism is
still a part of our community’s struggle? How dare they make
false generalizations about our community when clearly our skin
tone continues to stigmatize us?

This specific racial stereotype only hurts us by implying we are
immune to racism. For instance, according to the U.S. Commission on
Civil Rights, U.S.-born Asian American men are 7 to 11 percent less
likely to hold managerial jobs than white men with the same
educational and experience levels.

Similarly, the U.S. Census Bureau indicates that the median
income for Asian Americans with four years of college education is
$34,470 a year, compared with $36,130 for whites.

Attempts at correcting this glass ceiling, however, are dampened
by the “model minority” myth. Because we’re
supposedly doing well, our protests against such racist phenomenon
are often neglected and delegated as issues relevant only to other
communities of color.

No matter what some may think, in our society it still clearly
matters if you’ve got “slanted” eyes. The notion
that we can be exploited by fellow students in math and science
classes, the constant misrepresentation of our community in debates
regarding discrimination, and the glass ceiling in employment are
just a few examples illustrating how we still face racism in our
daily lives.

So if you’re someone who decides to sit next to an
“Asian kid” in class this quarter because you think
they will help increase your chances at a good grade, remember one
thing: you’re part of the problem.