Asian Americans

This article is about the U.S. population of Americans of Asian ancestry. For populations of Asians across the Americas, seeAsians in the Americas.For the documentary series, seeAsian Americans (film series).

Asian Americans

Distribution of Asian Americans by county
Total population
Alone (one race) 19,886,049(2020 Census) 6.00% of the total U.S. population In combination (multiracial) 5,938,923(2020 Census) 1.24% of the total U.S. population Alone or in combination 24,000,998(2020 Census) 7.24% of the total U.S. population Chinese Americans:5,143,982 Indian Americans:4,506,308 Filipino Americans:4,089,570 Vietnamese Americans:2,162,610 Korean Americans:1,894,131 Japanese Americans:1,542,195 Pakistani Americans:526,956 Thai Americans:329,343 Hmong Americans:320,164 Cambodian Americans:300,360 Laotian Americans:262,229 Taiwanese Americans:213,774 Bangladeshi Americans:213,372 Burmese Americans:189,250 Nepalese Americans:175,005 Indonesian Americans:116,869 Sri Lankan Americans:61,416
Regions with significant populations
Suburbanandurbanareas along theWestandEast Coast,and in theSouth,Midwest,andSouthwest;Hawaiiand the Pacificterritories
California	7,045,163
New York	2,173,719
Texas	1,849,226
New Jersey	1,046,732
Washington	939,846
Illinois	875,488
Florida	843,005
Hawaii	824,143
Virginia	757,282
Pennsylvania	603,726
Massachusetts	582,484
Languages
English Several Asian languages
Religion
Christian(42%) Unaffiliated(26%) Buddhist(14%) Hindu(10%) Muslim(6%) Sikh(1%) Other (1%) includingJain,Zoroastrian,Tengrism,Shinto,andChinese folk religion(TaoistandConfucian),Vietnamese folk religion

Asian AmericansareAmericansofAsianancestry (includingnaturalizedAmericans who areimmigrantsfrom specific regions inAsiaand descendants of those immigrants).Although this term had historically been used for all the indigenous peoples of the continent of Asia, the usage of the term "Asian" by theUnited States Census Bureauonly includes people with origins or ancestry fromEast Asia,Southeast Asia,and theIndian subcontinentand excludes people with ethnic origins in certain parts of Asia, includingWest Asiawho are now categorized asMiddle Eastern Americans.Furthermore,Central Asiansare not mentioned in any census racial category.The "Asian" census category includes people who indicate their race(s) on the census as "Asian" or reported entries such as "Chinese,Indian,Bangladeshi,Filipino,Vietnamese,Indonesian,Korean,Japanese,Pakistani,Malaysian,and Other Asian ".In 2020, Americans who identified as Asian alone (19,886,049) or in combination with other races (4,114,949) made up 7.2% of the U.S. population.

Chinese, Indian, and Filipino Americans make up the largest share of the Asian American population with 5 million, 4.3 million, and 4 million people respectively. These numbers equal 23%, 20%, and 18% of the total Asian American population, or 1.5%, 1.2%, and 1.2% of the total U.S. population.

Although migrants from Asia have been in parts of the contemporary United States since the 17th century, large-scale immigration did not begin until the mid-19th century. Nativist immigration laws during the 1880s–1920s excluded various Asian groups, eventuallyprohibiting almost all Asian immigrationto the continental United States. After immigration laws were reformed during the 1940s–1960s,abolishing national origins quotas,Asian immigration increased rapidly. Analyses of the 2010 census have shown that, by percentage change, Asian Americans are the fastest-growing racial group in the United States.

Terminology

As with otherracialandethnicity-basedterms,formal and common usage have changed markedly through the short history of this term. Prior to the late 1960s, people of various Asian ancestries were usually referred to asYellow,Oriental,Asiatic,Brown,Mongoloid,orHindoo.Additionally, the American definition of 'Asian' originally includedWest Asianethnic groups, particularlyTurkish Americans,Armenian Americans,Assyrian Americans,Iranian Americans,Kurdish Americans,Jewish Americansof Middle Eastern descent, and certainArab Americans,although in modern times, these groups are now consideredMiddle Eastern Americanand grouped underWhite Americansin the census.The term "Asian American" was coined by historian-activistsYuji IchiokaandEmma Geein 1968 during the founding of theAsian American Political Alliance,and they were also credited with popularizing the term, which meant to be used to frame a new "inter-ethnic-pan-Asian American self-defining political group".This effort was part ofNew Leftanti-warandanti-imperialistactivism, directly opposing what was viewed as an unjustVietnam War.

Prior to being included in the "Asian" category in the 1980s, many Americans of South Asian descent usually classified themselves asCaucasianorother.Changingpatterns of immigrationand anextensive period of exclusion of Asian immigrantshave resulted in demographic changes that have in turn affected the formal and common understandings of what defines Asian American. For example, since the removal of restrictive "national origins" quotasin 1965,the Asian American population has diversified greatly to include more of the peoples with ancestry from various parts of Asia.

Today, "Asian American" is the accepted term for most formal purposes, such as government and academic research, although it is often shortened toAsianin common usage.The most commonly used definition of Asian American is the U.S. Census Bureau definition, which includes all people with origins inEast Asia,Southeast Asia,and theIndian subcontinent.This is chiefly because the census definitions determine many governmental classifications, notably for equal opportunity programs and measurements.

According to theOxford English Dictionary,"Asian person" in the United States is most often thought of as a person ofEast Asiandescent.In vernacular usage, "Asian" is usually used to refer to those of East or Southeast Asian descent, withSouth Asiansnot included as often.This differs from the U.S. census definitionand the Asian American Studies departments in many universities consider all those of East, South, or Southeast Asian descent to be "Asian".

Census definition

In theU.S. census,people with origins or ancestry in East Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Indian subcontinent are classified as part of theAsian race;while those with origins or ancestry inWest Asia(Israelis,Turks,Persians,Kurds,Assyrians,Arabs,etc.), and theCaucasus(Georgians,Armenians,Azerbaijanis,Chechens,Circassians,etc.) are classified under the "Middle Eastern and North African" race,and those with origins fromCentral Asia(Kazakhs,Uzbeks,Turkmens,Tajiks,Kyrgyz,Afghans,etc.) are not mentioned in any racial definitions provided by the United States Census Bureau.As such, "Asian" and "African" ancestry are seen as racial categories only for the purpose of the census, with the definition referring to ancestry from parts of the Asian and African continents outside of West Asia,North Africa,andCentral Asia.

In 1980 and before, census forms listed particular Asian ancestries as separate groups, along withwhiteandblack or negro.Asian Americans had also been classified as "other".In 1977, the federalOffice of Management and Budgetissued a directive requiring government agencies to maintain statistics on racial groups, including on "Asian or Pacific Islander".By the 1990 census, "Asian or Pacific Islander (API)" was included as an explicit category, although respondents had to select one particular ancestry as a subcategory.Beginning with the 2000 census, two separate categories were used: "Asian American" and "Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander".

Debates and criticism

See also:Racial classification of Indian Americans

The definition ofAsian Americanhas variations that derive from theuse of the wordAmericanin different contexts. Immigration status, citizenship (by birthright and by naturalization), acculturation, and language ability are some variables that are used to defineAmericanfor various purposes and may vary in formal and everyday usage.For example, restrictingAmericanto include only U.S. citizens conflicts with discussions of Asian American businesses, which generally refer both to citizen and non-citizen owners.A 2023Pew Research Centersurvey of Asian Americans found that 28% self-identify as "Asian", with 52% preferring to refer to themselves by more specific ethnic groupings and 10% simply self-identifying as "American".

In a PBS interview from 2004, a panel of Asian American writers discussed how some groups include people of Middle Eastern descent in the Asian American category.Asian American author Stewart Ikeda has noted, "The definition of 'Asian American' also frequently depends on who's asking, who's defining, in what context, and why... the possible definitions of 'Asian-Pacific American' are many, complex, and shifting... some scholars in Asian American Studies conferences suggest that Russians, Iranians, and Israelis all might fit the field's subject of study."Jeff Yang,ofThe Wall Street Journal,writes that thepanethnicdefinition of Asian American is a unique American construct, and as an identity is "inbeta".The majority of Asian Americans feel ambivalence about the term "Asian American" as a term by which toidentify themselves.Pyong Gap Min,a sociologist and Professor of Sociology atQueens College,has stated the term is merely political, used by Asian American activists and further reinforced by the government. Beyond that, he feels that South Asians and East Asians do not have commonalities in "culture, physical characteristics, or pre-migrant historical experiences".

Scholars have grappled with the accuracy, correctness, and usefulness of the term Asian American. The term "Asian" in Asian American most often comes under fire for only encompassing some of the diverse peoples of Asia, and for being considered a racial category instead of a non-racial "ethnic" category. This is namely due to the categorization of the racially different South Asians and East Asians as part of the same "race".Furthermore, it has been noted that West Asians (whom are not considered "Asian" under the U.S. census) share some cultural similarities with Indians but very little with East Asians, with the latter two groups being classified as "Asian".Scholars have also found it difficult to determine why Asian Americans are considered a "race" while Americans of Hispanic and Latino heritage are a non-racial "ethnic group", given how the category of Asian Americans similarly comprises people with diverse origins.However, it has been argued that South Asians and East Asians can be "justifiably" grouped together because of Buddhism's origins in South Asia.

In contrast, leadingsocial sciencesandhumanitiesscholars of race and Asian American identity point out that because of the racial constructions in the United States, including the social attitudes toward race and those of Asian ancestry, Asian Americans have a "shared racial experience".Because of this shared experience, the term Asian American is argued as still being a usefulpanethniccategory because of the similarity of some experiences among Asian Americans, including stereotypes specific to people in this category.Despite this, others have stated that many Americans do not treat all Asian Americans equally, highlighting the fact that "Asian American" is generally synonymous with people of East Asian descent, thereby excluding people of Southeast Asian and South Asian origin.Some South and Southeast Asian Americans may not identify with the Asian American label, instead describing themselves as "Brown Asians" or simply "Brown",due to the perceived racial and cultural differences between them and East Asian Americans.

Demographics

Main article:Demographics of Asian Americans

Proportion of Asian Americans in each U.S. state, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico as of the2020 United States census

Proportion of Asian Americans in each county of thefifty states,theDistrict of Columbia,andPuerto Ricoas of the 2020 United States census

Asian Americans (single race) population pyramid in 2020

The demographics of Asian Americans describe a heterogeneous group of people in the United States who can trace their ancestry to one or more countries in East, South, or Southeast Asia.Because they compose 7.3% of the entire U.S. population, the diversity of the group is often disregarded in media and news discussions of "Asians" or of "Asian Americans".While there are some commonalities across ethnic subgroups, there are significant differences among different Asian ethnicities that are related to each group's history.The Asian American population is greatlyurbanized,with nearly three-quarters of them living in metropolitan areas with population greater than 2.5 million.As of July 2015,California had the largest population of Asian Americans of any state, and Hawaii was the only state where Asian Americans were the majority of the population.

The demographics of Asian Americans can further be subdivided into, as listed in alphabetical order:

• East Asian Americans,includingChinese Americans,Hong Kong Americans,Japanese Americans,Korean Americans,Macanese Americans,Mongolian Americans,Ryukyuan Americans,Taiwanese Americans,andTibetan Americans.
• South Asian Americans,includingBangladeshi Americans,Bhutanese Americans,Indian Americans,Indo-Caribbean Americans,Indo-Fijian Americans,Maldivian Americans,Nepalese Americans,Pakistani Americans,andSri Lankan Americans.
• Southeast Asian Americans,including Bruneian Americans,Burmese Americans,Cambodian Americans,Filipino Americans,Hmong Americans,Indonesian Americans,Iu Mien Americans,Karen Americans,Laotian Americans,Malaysian Americans,Singaporean Americans,Thai Americans,Timorese Americans, andVietnamese Americans.

This grouping is by country of origin before immigration to the United States, and not necessarily by ethnicity, as for example (nonexclusive),Singaporean Americansmay be ofChinese,Indian, orMalaydescent.

Asian Americans includemultiracial or mixed racepersons with origins or ancestry in both the above groups and another race, or multiple of the above groups.

• Asian American (alone) population distribution over time
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  1870
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  1880
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  1890
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  1990
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  2010
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  2020

Ancestry

According to estimates from the 2022American Community Survey,the Asian-American population was composed of the following groups:

Ancestry	Number in 2022 (Alone)	Number in 2022 (Alone or in any combination)	% Total US Population
Chinese	4,258,198	5,465,428	1.6%
Indian	4,534,339	4,946,306	1.5%
Filipino	2,969,978	4,466,918	1.3%
Vietnamese	1,887,550	2,301,868	0.7%
Korean	1,501,587	2,051,572	0.6%
Japanese	717,413	1,587,040	0.5%
Pakistani	560,494	625,570	0.2%
Cambodian	280,862	376,096	0.1%
Hmong	335,612	362,244	0.1%
Thai	197,158	328,176	0.1%
Taiwanese	263,772	324,389	0.1%
Central Asian Not includingKazakhorUzbek	186,393	269,255	0.08%
Nepali	247,639	260,323	0.08%
Laotian	173,524	245,220	0.07%
Burmese	225,591	244,086	0.07%
Indonesian	84,074	155,173	0.05%
Uzbek	25,849	52,304	0.02%
Malaysian	25,809	43,019	0.01%
Mongolian	24,052	36,863	0.01%
Sikh	20,170	34,023	0.01%
Okinawan	7,645	23,206	0.01%
Mien	17,193	22,340	0.01%
Bhutanese	19,521	22,184	0.01%
Kazakh	11,407	21,913	0.01%
Singaporean	8,168	13,212	<0.01%
Other Asian (Specified)	8,233	18,963	<0.01%
OtherSouth Asian	8,452	13,389	<0.01%
OtherEast Asian	3,525	7,135	<0.01%
OtherSoutheast Asian	3,106	5,523	<0.01%
Broadly "Asian" (No group specified)	218,730	591,806	0.2%

Language

In 2010, there were 2.8 million people (age 5 and older) who spoke one of theChinese languagesat home;after theSpanish language,it is the third most common language in the United States.Other sizableAsian languagesareHindustani (Hindi/Urdu),Tagalog,Vietnamese,andKorean,with all four having more than 1 million speakers in the United States.

In 2012,Alaska,California, Hawaii,Illinois,Massachusetts,Michigan,Nevada,New Jersey, New York, Texas, and Washington were publishing election material in Asian languages in accordance with theVoting Rights Act;these languages include Tagalog,Mandarin Chinese,Vietnamese,Spanish,Hindi,andBengali.Election materials were also available inGujarati,Japanese,Khmer,Korean,andThai.A 2013 poll found that 48 percent of Asian Americans consideredmedia in their native languageas their primary news source.

The2000 censusfound the more prominent languages of the Asian American community to include the Chinese languages (Cantonese,Taishanese,andHokkien),Tagalog,Vietnamese,Korean,Japanese, Hindi,Urdu,Telugu,andGujarati.In 2008, the Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Tagalog, and Vietnamese languages are all used in elections in Alaska, California, Hawaii, Illinois, New York, Texas, and Washington state.

Sexuality

According to a Gallup survey conducted from June to September 2012, 4.3 percent of Asian Americans self identify asLGBT,compared to 3.4% of the general American population. This makes the Asian-American population disproportionately over-represented within the LGBT community.

In a Gallup survey conducted in 2017, 4.9 percent of Asian Americans identified as LGBT, representing the second-highest growth of LGBT representation in the United States, behindHispanic Americans.

Religion

Religious affiliation of Asian Americans in 2023

Christianity(34%)

Buddhism(11%)

Hinduism(11%)

Islam(6%)

Other faith (4%)

Unaffiliated (32%)

No answer (2%)

According to aPew Research Centersurvey conducted from July 5, 2022, to January 27, 2023, the religious landscape of Asian Americans is both diverse and evolving.The survey reveals that 32% of Asian Americans are religiously unaffiliated, up from 26% in 2012. Christianity remains the largest faith group among Asian Americans at 34%, although it has seen an 8% decline since 2012.

Christianity

As of the most recent Pew Research Center survey, approximately 34% of Asian American adults identify asChristians,a decrease from 42% in 2012. This decline is especially notable among Protestants, who currently constitute 16% of the Asian American population, down from 22% in 2012.Catholics, on the other hand, have maintained a relatively stable presence, making up 17% of the Asian American adult population, nearly unchanged from 19% in 2012. Beyond formal religious identification, an additional 18% of Asian Americans report a cultural or familial closeness to Christianity. This means that about 51% of Asian Americans express some connection to the Christian faith.

Filipino and Korean Americans display particularly strong affiliations with Christianity. Among Filipino Americans, 74% identify as Christian, and when considering those who feel culturally close to Christianity, this figure rises to 90%. Among Korean Americans, 59% identify as Christians, and 81% express some connection to the faith. Most Filipino Americans are Catholic (57%), whereas Korean Americans tend to be Protestant, with 34% identifying as evangelical Protestants.

Unaffiliated

Religious disaffiliation among Asian Americans has been steadily increasing. 32% of Asian Americans identify as religiously unaffiliated, which encompasses individuals identifying as atheist, agnostic, or "nothing in particular".This represents a growth from 26% in 2012. The majority of these individuals describe their religion as "nothing in particular" rather than explicitly identifying as atheist or agnostic. Despite a lack of formal religious affiliation, a significant number of religiously unaffiliated Asian Americans maintain a connection to various religious or philosophical traditions due to cultural or ancestral reasons. In total, only 12% of Asian Americans report having no connection to any religious or philosophical tradition.

Among Asian Americans, Chinese and Japanese Americans are more likely to be religiously unaffiliated, with 56% and 47% respectively identifying as such. Both groups are also more likely to feel a cultural or ancestral connection to a faith tradition despite their lack of formal religious affiliation. Conversely, Indian, Filipino, and Vietnamese Americans are considerably less likely to be religiously unaffiliated and more likely to express some form of connection to a religious tradition.

Religious trends

The percentage of Christians among Asian Americans has sharply declined since the 1990s, chiefly as a result of large-scale immigration from countries in which Christianity is a minority religion (China and India in particular). In 1990, 63% of the Asian Americans identified as Christians, while in 2001 only 43% did.This development has been accompanied by a rise intraditional Asian religions,with the people identifying with them doubling during the same decade.

History

Main article:History of Asian Americans

See also:Asian immigration to the United States

Early immigration

Five images of theFilipinosettlement atSaint Malo, Louisiana

Because Asian Americans or their ancestors immigrated to the United States from many different countries, each Asian American population has its own unique immigration history.

Filipinoshave been in the territories that would become the United States since the 16th century.In 1635, an "East Indian" is listed inJamestown, Virginia;preceding wider settlement ofIndianimmigrants on theEast Coastin the 1790s and theWest Coastin the 1800s.In 1763, Filipinos established the small settlement ofSaint Malo, Louisiana,after fleeing mistreatment aboardSpanishships.Since there were no Filipino women with them, these "Manilamen", as they were known, marriedCajunand indigenous women.The first Japanese person to come to the United States, and stay any significant period of time wasNakahama Manjirōwho reached the East Coast in 1841, andJoseph Hecobecame the first Japanese Americannaturalized U.S. citizenin 1858.

Chinese sailors first came toHawaiiin 1789,a few years after CaptainJames Cookcame upon the island. Many settled and marriedHawaiianwomen. Most Chinese,Koreanand Japanese immigrants in Hawaii or San Francisco arrived in the 19th century as laborers to work on sugar plantations or construction place.There were thousands of Asians in Hawaii when it was annexed to the United States in 1898.Later, Filipinos also came to work as laborers, attracted by the job opportunities, although they were limited.Ryukyuanswould start migrating to Hawaii in 1900.

Large-scale migration from Asia to the United States began when Chinese immigrants arrived on theWest Coastin the mid-19th century.Forming part of theCalifornia gold rush,these early Chinese immigrants participated intensively in the mining business and later in the construction of thetranscontinental railroad.By 1852, the number of Chinese immigrants in San Francisco had jumped to more than 20,000. A wave of Japanese immigration to the United States began after theMeiji Restorationin 1868.In 1898, all Filipinos in the Philippine Islands became American nationals when the United States took over colonial rule of the islands fromSpainfollowing the latter's defeat in theSpanish–American War.

Exclusion era

Under United States law during this period, particularly theNaturalization Act of 1790,only "free white persons" were eligible to naturalize as American citizens. Ineligibility for citizenship prevented Asian immigrants from accessing a variety of rights, such as voting.Bhicaji Balsarabecame the first known Indian-born person to gain naturalized U.S. citizenship.Balsara's naturalization was not the norm but an exception; in a pair of cases,Ozawa v. United States(1922) andUnited States v. Bhagat Singh Thind(1923), the Supreme Court upheld the racial qualification for citizenship and ruled that Asians were not "white persons". Second-generation Asian Americans, however, could become U.S. citizens due to thebirthright citizenshipclause of theFourteenth Amendment;this guarantee was confirmed as applying regardless of race or ancestry by the Supreme Court inUnited States v. Wong Kim Ark(1898).

From the 1880s to the 1920s, the United States passed laws inaugurating an era of exclusion of Asian immigrants. Although the exact number of Asian immigrants was small compared to that of immigrants from other regions, much of it was concentrated in theWest,and the increase caused some nativist sentiment which was known as the "yellow peril".Congress passedrestrictive legislationwhich prohibited nearly all Chinese immigration to the United States in the 1880s.Japanese immigration was sharply curtailed by adiplomatic agreementin 1907. TheAsiatic Barred Zone Actin 1917 further barred immigration from nearly all of Asia, the "Asiatic Zone".TheImmigration Act of 1924provided that no "alien ineligible for citizenship" could be admitted as an immigrant to the United States, consolidating the prohibition of Asian immigration.

World War II

President Roosevelt issuedExecutive Order 9066on February 19, 1942, resulting in theinternment of Japanese Americans,among others. Over 100,000 people of Japanese descent, mostly on the West Coast, were forcibly removed, in an action later considered ineffective and racist.Japanese Americans were kept isolated in military camps just because of their race including children, old person and young generation. 'Issei:The first generation' and 'Children of the camps' are two great documentaries to represent the situation of Japanese American's during World War II.

Postwar immigration

World War II-era legislation and judicial rulingsgradually increased the ability of Asian Americans to immigrate and becomenaturalizedcitizens. Immigration rapidly increased following the enactment of theImmigration and Nationality Act Amendments of 1965as well as the influx ofrefugeesfrom conflicts occurring in Southeast Asia such as theVietnam War.Asian American immigrants have a significant percentage of individuals who have already achieved professional status, a first among immigration groups.

The number of Asian immigrants to the United States "grew from 491,000 in 1960 to about 12.8 million in 2014, representing a 2,597 percent increase."Asian Americans were the fastest-growing racial group between 2000 and 2010.By 2012, more immigrants came from Asia than from Latin America.In 2015, Pew Research Center found that from 2010 to 2015 more immigrants came from Asia than from Latin America, and that since 1965; Asians have made up a quarter of all immigrants to the United States.

Asians have made up an increasing proportion of the foreign-born Americans: "In 1960, Asians represented 5 percent of the U.S. foreign-born population; by 2014, their share grew to 30 percent of the nation's 42.4 million immigrants."As of 2016, "Asia is the second-largest region of birth (after Latin America) of U.S. immigrants."In 2013, China surpassed Mexico as the top single country of origin for immigrants to the U.S.Asian immigrants "are more likely than the overall foreign-born population to be naturalized citizens"; in 2014, 59% of Asian immigrants had U.S. citizenship, compared to 47% of all immigrants.Postwar Asian immigration to the U.S. has been diverse: in 2014, 31% of Asian immigrants to the U.S. were fromEast Asia(predominantly China and Korea); 27.7% were fromSouth Asia(predominantly India); 32.6% were fromSoutheastern Asia(predominantly the Philippines and Vietnam); and 8.3% were fromWestern Asia.

Asian American movement

Main article:Asian American movement

Awkwafina(right) withKen Jeong

Prior to the 1960s, Asian immigrants and their descendants had organized and agitated for social or political purposes according to their particular ethnicity: Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, Korean, or Asian Indian. The Asian American movement (a term coined by the Japanese AmericanYuji Ichiokaand the Chinese AmericanEmma Gee) gathered all those groups into a coalition, recognizing that they shared common problems with racial discrimination and common opposition toAmerican imperialism,particularly in Asia. The movement developed during the 1960s, inspired in part by theCivil Rights Movementand theprotests against the Vietnam War."Drawing influences from theBlack Powerand antiwar movements, the Asian American movement forged a coalitional politics that united Asians of varying ethnicities and declared solidarity with other Third World people in the United States and abroad. Segments of the movement struggled for community control of education, provided social services and defended affordable housing in Asian ghettoes, organized exploited workers, protested against U.S. imperialism, and built new multiethnic cultural institutions. "William Wei described the movement as "rooted in a past history of oppression and a present struggle for liberation".The movement as such was most active during the 1960s and 1970s.

Increasingly Asian American students demanded university-level research and teaching into Asian history and interaction with the United States. They supportmulticulturalismand supportaffirmative actionbut oppose colleges' quota on Asian students viewed as discriminatory.

Notable contributions

For a more comprehensive list, seeList of Asian AmericansandList of Asian-American firsts.

Arts and entertainment

Main article:Asian Americans in arts and entertainment

See also:Asian American art,Asian American literature,Asian Americans in music,Asian-American theatre,andAmerican television series with Asian leads

Jerry Yang,billionaire co-founder of the search engineYahoo!.He is currently the founding partner of the venture fund AME Cloud Ventures

Steve Chen(middle), co-founder ofYouTube.

Jensen Huang,billionaire, founder andCEOofNvidia,the largestAIconglomerate and the third largest company in the world as of March 2024

Steven Chu,physicist, former Secretary of Energy (2009–2013), winner of1997 Nobel PrizeinPhysicsfor research in laser cooling.

Kamala Harris,Vice President of the United States

Satya Nadella,current CEO ofMicrosoft

Kenneth P. Moritsuguwas the first Asian-American Surgeon General of the US.

Asian Americans have been involved in theentertainment industrysince the first half of the 19th century, whenChang and Eng Bunker(the original "Siamese Twins" ) became naturalized citizens.Throughout the 20th century, acting roles in television, film, and theater were relatively few, and many available roles were for narrow, stereotypical characters.Bruce Lee(born in San Francisco, CA) only achieved movie stardom after leaving the United States for Hong Kong.

More recently, young Asian American comedians and film-makers have found an outlet onYouTubeallowing them to gain a strong and loyal fanbase among their fellow Asian Americans.There have been several Asian American-centric television shows in American media, beginning withMr. T and Tinain 1976, and as recent as the TV seriesFresh Off the Boatin 2015.

In the Pacific, American beatboxer ofHawaii Chinesedescent Jason Tom co-founded the Human Beatbox Academy to perpetuate the art of beatboxing through outreach performances, speaking engagements and workshops inHonolulu,the westernmost and southernmost major U.S. city of the 50th U.S. state ofHawaii.

Business

When Asian Americans were largely excluded from labor markets in the 19th century, they started their own businesses. They have started convenience and grocery stores, professional offices such as medical and law practices, laundries, restaurants, beauty-related ventures, hi-tech companies, and many other kinds of enterprises, becoming very successful and influential in American society. They have dramatically expanded their involvement across the American economy. Asian Americans have been disproportionately successful in the hi-tech sectors of California's Silicon Valley, as evidenced by theGoldsea100 Compilation of America's Most Successful Asian Entrepreneurs.

Compared to their population base, Asian Americans today are well represented in the professional sector and tend to earn higher wages.The Goldsea compilation of Notable Asian American Professionals show that many have come to occupy high positions at leading U.S. corporations, including a disproportionately large number as Chief Marketing Officers.

Asian Americans have made major contributions to the American economy. In 2012, there were just under 486,000 Asian American-owned businesses in the U.S., which together employed more than 3.6 million workers, generating $707.6 billion in total receipts and sales, with annual payrolls of $112 billion. In 2015, Asian American and Pacific Islander households had $455.6 billion in spending power (comparable to the annual revenue ofWalmart) and made tax contributions of $184.0 billion.

Fashion designer and mogulVera Wang,who is famous for designing dresses for high-profile celebrities, started a clothing company, named after herself, which now offers a broad range of luxury fashion products.An WangfoundedWang Laboratoriesin June 1951.Amar Bosefounded theBose Corporationin 1964.Charles WangfoundedComputer Associates,later became its CEO and chairman. Two brothers, David Khym and Kenny Khym foundedhip hop fashiongiantSouthpolein 1991.Jen-Hsun "Jensen" Huangco-founded theNvidiacorporation in 1993.Jerry Yangco-foundedYahoo!Inc. in 1994 and became its CEO later.Andrea Jungserves as chairman and CEO ofAvon Products.Vinod Khoslawas a founding CEO ofSun Microsystemsand is a general partner of the prominent venture capital firmKleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.Steve ChenandJawed Karimwere co-creators of YouTube, and were beneficiaries ofGoogle's $1.65 billion acquisition of that company in 2006.Eric Yuan,founder ofZoom Video Communications,andShahid Khan,owner of theJacksonville Jaguarsamong others, are both in the U.S. top 100 in terms of net worth, according toForbes.In addition to contributing greatly to other fields, Asian Americans have made considerable contributions in science and technology in the United States, in such prominent innovativeR&Dregions asSilicon ValleyandThe Triangle.

Government and politics

Main article:Asian Americans in government and politics

See also:Foreign relations of the United States § East Asia,Foreign relations of the United States § South Asia,andForeign relations of the United States § Southeast Asia

Asian Americans have a high level of political incorporation in terms of their actual voting population. Since 1907, Asian Americans have been active at the national level and have had multiple officeholders at local, state, and national levels. As more Asian Americans have been elected to public office, they have had a growing impact on foreign relations of the United States, immigration, international trade, and other topics.The first Asian American to be elected to theUnited States CongresswasDalip Singh Saundin 1957.

The highest ranked Asian American to serve in the United States Congress was Senator andPresident pro temporeDaniel Inouye,who died in office in 2012. There are several activeAsian Americans in the United States Congress.With higher proportions and densities of Asian American populations, Hawaii has most consistently sent Asian Americans to the Senate, andHawaiiandCaliforniahave most consistently sent Asian Americans to the House of Representatives.

The first Asian American member of the U.S. cabinet wasNorman Mineta,who served asSecretary of Commerceand thenSecretary of Transportationin the George W. Bush administration. As of 2021, the highest ranked Asian American byorder of precedenceisVice PresidentKamala Harris.Previously, the highest ranked Asian American was Secretary of TransportationElaine Chao(2017–2021), who had also been in the order of precedence asU.S. Secretary of Labor(2001–2009).

There have been roughly "about a half-dozen viable Asian-American candidates" to ever run forpresident of the United States.SenatorHiram Fongof Hawaii, the child of Chinese immigrants, was a "favorite son"candidate at theRepublican National Conventions of 1964and1968.In 1972, RepresentativePatsy T. Minkof Hawaii, aJapanese American,unsuccessfully sought theDemocratic nomination for president.Louisiana GovernorBobby Jindal,the son of Indian immigrants, unsuccessfully sought theRepublican nomination for presidentin 2016.Entrepreneur and nonprofit founderAndrew Yang,the son of Taiwanese immigrants, unsuccessfully sought theDemocratic nomination for president in 2020.In January 2021,Kamala Harris,the daughter of an Indian mother and an African father became the first Asian AmericanVice President of the United States.

An article by the U.S. Agricultural Department posted on their website is a great example, stating that the birthright citizenship law passed in the U.S. Supreme Court due to a year-long battle between Wong Kim Ark (a Chinese immigrant born in San Francisco) and the U.S. Department of Justice.

KingBhumibol Adulyadej(1927–2016) was the first monarch to be born in the United States. He reigned the throne of Thailand from 1946 to 2016.

Voting behavior

Asian Americans were once a strong constituency forRepublicans.In1992,George H.W. Bushwon 55% of Asian voters.However, by2020,Asian Americans shifted to supportingDemocrats,givingJoe Biden70% support toDonald Trump's 29%.Ethnic background and country of origin have determined Asian American voting behavior in recent elections, withIndian Americansand to a lesser extentChinese Americansbeing strong constituencies for Democrats, andVietnamese Americansbeing a strong constituency for Republicans.

Sixty eight percent of Filipinos surveyed for a 2023 survey said they identified politically with the Democratic Party and voted for Democrats.

Journalism

See also:Asian Americans in broadcast journalismandAsian American Journalists Association

Connie Chungwas one of the first Asian American national correspondents for a major TVnews network,reporting for CBS in 1971. She later co-anchored theCBS Evening Newsfrom 1993 to 1995, becoming the first Asian American national news anchor.At ABC,Ken Kashiwaharabegan reporting nationally in 1974. In 1989,Emil Guillermo,a Filipino American born reporter from San Francisco, became the first Asian American male to co-host a national news show when he was senior host at National Public Radio'sAll Things Considered.In 1990,Sheryl WuDunn,a foreign correspondent in the Beijing Bureau ofThe New York Times,became the first Asian American to win a Pulitzer Prize.Ann Curryjoined NBC News as a reporter in 1990, later becoming prominently associated withThe Today Showin 1997.Carol Linis perhaps best known for being the first to break the news of9-11on CNN.Dr. Sanjay Guptais currently CNN's chief health correspondent.Lisa Ling,a former co-host onThe View,now provides special reports for CNN andThe Oprah Winfrey Show,as well as hosting National Geographic Channel'sExplorer.Fareed Zakaria,a naturalized Indian-born immigrant, is a prominent journalist and author specializing in international affairs. He is the editor-at-large ofTime magazine,and the host ofFareed Zakaria GPSonCNN.Juju Chang,James Hatori,John Yang,Veronica De La Cruz,Michelle Malkin,Betty Nguyen,andJulie Chenhave become familiar faces on television news. John Yang won a Peabody Award.Alex Tizon,aSeattle Timesstaff writer, won a Pulitzer Prize in 1997.

Military

Main article:Military history of Asian Americans

See also:Notable Asian Americans in the military

Since theWar of 1812,Asian Americans haveservedandfoughton behalf of the United States. Serving in both segregated and non-segregated units until thedesegregation of the US Military in 1948,31have been awarded the nation's highest award for combat valor, theMedal of Honor.Twenty-one of these were conferred upon members of the mostly Japanese American 100th Infantry Battalion of the442nd Regimental Combat Teamof World War II, the most highly decorated unit of its size in the history of the United States Armed Forces.The highest ranked Asian American military official wasSecretary of Veteran Affairs,four-star general and Army Chief of StaffEric Shinseki.

Science and technology

Main article:Asian Americans in science and technology

Lisa Su,CEO ofAMDsince October 2014.

Asian Americans have made many notable contributions to science and technology. In the technological sector, Asian Americans are the most influential. According to an article by website ideas.ted.com, over 40% of the high-tech companies are established by highly skilled Asian American people. It also states that AAPI (Asian American Pacific Islanders) has been contributing to remarkable technological innovations and scientific discoveries. For example, the co-founders of Yahoo, Zoom, YouTube, and LinkedIn are Asian American contributors. Intury In the 21st century, Asian Americans are building connections with other Asian countries, such as China, Korea, Bangladesh, and India. Another example could be the CEO ofMicrosoft,originally from India, Satya Nadella is an example of the contribution of Asian Americans in the technological fields. Asian Americans have a vital contribution not only in technology, and education but also in political aspects. An article by the U.S. Agricultural Department posted on their website is a great example, stating that the birthright citizenship law passed in the U.S. Supreme Court due to a year-long battle between Wong Kim Ark (a Chinese immigrant born in San Francisco) and the U.S. Department of Justice. Kamala Harris, daughter of an Indian immigrant became the first Asian American vice president of the United States in 2021.

Sports

Main article:Asian Americans in sports

Asian Americans have contributed to sports in the United States through much of the 20th century. Some of the most notable contributions include Olympic sports, but also in professional sports, particularly in the post-World War II years. As the Asian American population grew in the late 20th century, Asian American contributions expanded to more sports. Examples of female Asian American athletes includeMichelle Kwan,Chloe Kim,Miki Gorman,Mirai Nagasu,andMaia Shibutani.Examples of male Asian American athletes includeJeremy Lin,Tiger Woods,Hines Ward,Richard Park,andNathan Adrian.

Cultural influence

In recognition of the unique culture, traditions, and history of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, theUnited States governmenthas permanently designated the month of May to beAsian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month;before 2021 it was known asAsian Pacific American Heritage Month.Asian American parenting as seen through relationships between Chinese parents and adolescence, which is described as being more authoritarian and less warm than relations between European parents and adolescence, has become a topic of study and discussion.These influences affect how parents regulate and monitor their children, and has been described asTiger parenting,and has received interest and curiosity from non-Chinese parents.

Health and medicine

Origins of foreign professions in the US

Country of origin	Proportion of total in U.S.
	IMGs	IDGs	INGs
India	19.9% (47,581)	25.8%	1.3%
Philippines	8.8% (20,861)	11.0%	50.2%
Pakistan	4.8% (11,330)	2.9%
South Korea	2.1% (4,982)	3.2%	1.0%
China	2.0% (4,834)	3.2%
Hong Kong			1.2%
Israel			1.0%

See also:Health status of Asian Americans

Asian immigrants are also changing the American medical landscape through increasing number of Asianmedical practitionersin the United States. Beginning in the 1960s and 1970s, the U.S. government invited a number of foreign physicians particularly from India and the Philippines to address the shortage of physicians in rural and medically underserved urban areas. The trend in importing foreign medical practitioners, however, became a long-term solution as U.S. schools failed to produce enough health care providers to match the increasing population. Amid decreasing interest in medicine among American college students due to high educational costs and high rates of job dissatisfaction, loss of morale, stress, and lawsuits, Asian American immigrants maintained a supply of healthcare practitioners for millions of Americans. It is documented that Asian American international medical graduates including highly skilled guest workers using the J1 Visa program for medical workers, tend to serve in health professions shortage areas (HPSA) and specialties that are not filled by US medical graduates especially primary care and rural medicine.In 2020, of all the medical personnel in the United States, 17% of doctors were Asian Americans, 9% of physician assistants were Asian American, and more than 9% of nurses were Asian Americans.

Nearly one in four Asian Americans are likely to use commonalternative medicine.This includestraditional Chinese medicineandAyurveda.Due to the prevalence of usage, engaging with Asian American populations, through the practitioners of these common alternative medicines, can lead to an increase of usage of underused medical procedures.

Education

Educational attainment, 25 and older

Ethnicity	High school graduation rate, 2004	Bachelor's degree or higher, 2010
Bangladeshis	not reported	49.6%
Cambodian	not reported	14.5%
Chinese	80.8%	51.8%
Filipinos	90.8%	48.1%
Indian	90.2%	70.7%
Indonesians	not reported	48.7%
Japanese	93.4%	47.3%
Koreans	90.2%	52.9%
Laotians	not reported	12.1%
Pakistanis	87.4%	55.1%
Taiwanese	not reported	73.7%
Vietnamese	70.0%	26.3%
Total U.S. population	83.9%	27.9%
Sources: 2004and 2010

Among America's major racial categories, Asian Americans have the highest educational qualifications. This varies, however, for individual ethnic groups. For example, a 2010 study of all Asian American adults found 42% have at least a college degree, but only 16% of Vietnamese Americans and only 5% for Laotians and Cambodians.It has been noted, however, that 2008 US Census statistics put the bachelor's degree attainment rate of Vietnamese Americans at 26%, which is not very different from the rate of 27% for all Americans.Census data from 2010 show 50% of Asian adults have earned at least a bachelor's degree, compared to 28% for all Americans,and 34% for non-Hispanic whites.Taiwanese Americans have some of the highest education rates, with nearly 74% having attained at least a bachelor's degree in 2010.as of December 2012Asian Americans made up twelve to eighteen percent of the student population atIvy Leagueschools, larger than their share of the population.For example, theHarvard CollegeClass of 2023 admitted students were 25% Asian American.

In the years immediately preceding 2012, 61% of Asian American adult immigrants have a bachelor or higher level college education.

In August 2020, theU.S. Justice Departmentargued thatYale Universitydiscriminated against Asian candidates on the basis of their race, a charge the university denied.

Popular media

Asian American culture is referenced in a number of mainstream forms such as literature, TV shows, and movies.Crazy Rich Asians,directed by John M. Chu, follows Rachel Chu, a Chinese-American economics professor. Min Jin Lee's novel,Pachinko,is an intergenerational story that tells the story of Koreans who immigrate to Japan. Some of the popular Asian American plays are 'Chickencoop Chinaman', ' And the Soul Shall Dance', ' Paper Angels', ' Yellow fever' and many more.

Identity

As of year 2023, a recent survey showed one out of five respondents said they do not identify as Asian to non-Asians. Most immigrants identify as Asian compared to American-born Asian Americans. People under the age 18 are more likely not to identify as Asian. People over the age of 65 are more likely to identify as Asian.

Social and political issues

Media portrayal

Lucy LiuatKung Fu Pandapremiere

See also:Asian Americans in arts and entertainment § Portrayal of Asian Americans in media

BecauseAsian Americanstotal about 7.2%of the entire US population, diversity within the group is often overlooked in media treatment.

Bamboo ceiling

Main article:Bamboo ceiling

This concept appears to elevate Asian Americans by portraying them as an elite group of successful, highly educated, intelligent, and wealthy individuals, but it can also be considered an overly narrow and overly one-dimensional portrayal of Asian Americans, leaving out other human qualities such as vocal leadership, negative emotions, risk taking, ability to learn from mistakes, and desire for creative expression.Furthermore, Asian Americans who do not fit into the model minority mold can face challenges when people's expectations based on the model minority myth do not match with reality. Traits outside of the model minority mold can be seen as negative character flaws for Asian Americans despite those very same traits being positive for the general American majority (e.g., risk taking, confidence, empowered). For this reason, Asian Americans encounter a "bamboo ceiling", the Asian American equivalent of theglass ceilingin the workplace, with only 1.5% ofFortune 500CEOsbeing Asians, a percentage smaller than their percentage of the total United States population.

The bamboo ceiling is defined as a combination of individual, cultural, and organisational factors that impede Asian Americans' career progress inside organizations. Since then, a variety of sectors (including nonprofits, universities, the government) have discussed the impact of the ceiling as it relates to Asians and the challenges they face. As described by Anne Fisher, the "bamboo ceiling" refers to the processes and barriers that serve to exclude Asians and American people of Asian descent from executive positions on the basis of subjective factors such as "lack of leadership potential" and "lack of communication skills" that cannot actually be explained by job performance or qualifications.Articles regarding the subject have been published inCrains,Fortunemagazine, andThe Atlantic.

Illegal immigration

See also:Deportation of Cambodian immigrants from the United StatesandIllegal immigration to the United States

In 2012, there were 1.3 million Asian Americans; and for those awaiting visas, there were lengthy backlogs with over 450,000 Filipinos, over 325,000 Indians, over 250,000 Vietnamese, and over 225,000 Chinese awaiting visas.As of 2009, Filipinos and Indians accounted for the highest number of alien immigrants for "Asian Americans" with an estimated illegal population of 270,000 and 200,000 respectively.Indian Americansare also the fastest-growing alien immigrant group in the United States, with an increase in illegal immigration of 125% since 2000.This is followed byKoreans(200,000) andChinese(120,000).Nonetheless, Asian Americans have the highest naturalization rates in the United States. In 2015, out of a total of 730,259 applicants, 261,374 became new Americans.According to theU.S. Department of Homeland Security,legal permanent residents or green card holders from India, Philippines, and China were among the top nationals applying for U.S. naturalization in 2015.

Due to the stereotype of Asian Americans being successful as a group and having the lowest crime rates in the United States, public attention to illegal immigration is mostly focused on those from Mexico and Latin America while leaving out Asians.Asians are the second largest racial/ethnic alien immigrant group in the U.S. behind Hispanics and Latinos.While the majority of Asian immigrants immigrate legally to the United States,up to 15% of Asian immigrants immigrate without legal documents.

Race-based violence

See also:Yellow Peril,Anti-Chinese sentiment in the United States,Anti-Filipino sentiment § United States,Anti-Korean sentiment § United States,Anti-Japanese sentiment in the United States,Anti-Indian sentiment § United States,andAnti-Pakistan sentiment § United States

Asian Americans have been the targets of violence based on their race and or ethnicity. This violence includes, but is not limited to, such events as theRock Springs massacre,WatsonvilleRiots,Bellingham Riotsin 1916 against South Asians,attacks upon Japanese Americansfollowing theattack on Pearl Harbor,andKorean American businessestargeted during the1992 Los Angeles riots.Attacks on Chinese in theAmerican frontierwere common. This included the slaughter of forty to sixty Chinese miners byPaiute Indiansin 1866, during theSnake War,the Los AngelesChinese massacreof 1871, and an attack on Chinese miners at theChinese Massacre Covebycowboysin 1887 which resulted in 31 deaths.In the late 1980s,assaultsand other hate crimes were committed against South Asians in New Jersey by a group ofLatinoswho were known as theDotbusters.In the late 1990s, the lone death that occurred during theLos Angeles Jewish Community Center shootingby awhite supremacistwas a Filipino postal worker.On July 17, 1989,Patrick Edward Purdy,a drifter and former resident of Stockton, California, wen and opened fire on Cleveland Elementary School students in the playground who were mainly of southeast Asian descent. Within minutes, he fired dozens of rounds, although reports ranged. He was armed with two pistols and an AK-47 with a bayonet killing five students and shooting at least 37 others. After the shooting spree Purdy killed himself.

Even when it did not manifest as violence, contempt against Asian Americans was reflected in aspects of popular culture such as the playground chant "Chinese, Japanese, dirty knees".

After theSeptember 11 attacks,Sikh Americanswere targeted, becoming the victims of numeroushate crimes,includingmurder.Other Asian Americans have also been the victims of race-based violence in Brooklyn,Philadelphia,San Francisco,andBloomington, Indiana.Furthermore, it has been reported that young Asian Americans are more likely to be the targets of violence than their peers.In 2017, racist graffiti and other property damage was done to a community center inStockton's Little Manila.Racism and discriminationstill persist against Asian Americans, occurring not only against recent immigrants but also against well-educated and highly trained professionals.

Recent waves of immigration of Asian Americans to largely African American neighborhoods have led to cases of severe racial tension.Acts of large-scale violence against Asian American students by their black classmates have been reported in multiple cities.In October 2008, 30 black students chased and attacked 5 Asian students atSouth Philadelphia High School,and a similar attack on Asian students occurred at the same school one year later, prompting a protest by Asian students in response.

Asian-owned businesses have been a frequent target of tensions between black and Asian Americans. During the 1992 Los Angeles riots, more than 2000 Korean-owned businesses were looted or burned by groups of African Americans.From 1990 to 1991, a high-profile, racially motivatedboycottof an Asian-owned shop in Brooklyn was organized by a localblack nationalistactivist, eventually resulting in the owner being forced to sell his business.Another racially motivated boycott against an Asian-owned business occurred in Dallas in 2012, after an Asian American clerk fatally shot an African American who had robbed his store.During theFerguson unrestin 2014, Asian-owned businesses were looted,and Asian-owned stores were looted during the2015 Baltimore protestswhile African American-owned stores were bypassed.Violence against Asian Americans continue to occur based on their race,with one source asserting that Asian Americans are the fastest-growing targets ofhate crimesandviolence.

During theCOVID-19 pandemic in the United States,concern has grown due to an increase in anti-Asian sentiment in the United States.In March 2020, President Donald Trump called the disease "China Virus" and "Kung-Flu", based on its origin; in response organizations such as Asian Americans Advancing Justice and Western States Center, stated that doing so will increase anti-Asian sentiment and violence.Voxwrote that the Trump Administration's use of the terms "China Virus", "Kung-Flu", and "Wuhan virus" would lead to an increase inxenophobia.The disease naming controversy occurred at a time when the Chinese Foreign Ministry was claiming that the disease originated in the United States.Violent acts, relating to the disease,against Asian Americans have been documented mostly in New York, California, and elsewhere.As of December 31, 2020, there were 259 reports of anti-Asian incidents in New York reported toStop AAPI Hate.As of March 2021, there have been more than 3800 anti-Asian racist incidents.A notable incident was the2021 Atlanta spa shootings,a fatal attack in which six of the eight casualties were of Asian descent. The shooter reportedly said "I'm going to kill all Asians".

Racial stereotypes

Main articles:Stereotypes of East and Southeast Asians in the United StatesandStereotypes of South Asians

See also:Ching chong,Perpetual foreigner,andAsian fetish

Until the late 20th century, the term "Asian American" was mostly adopted by activists, while the average person who was of Asian ancestry identified with his or her specific ethnicity.Themurder of Vincent Chinin 1982 was a pivotal civil rights case, and it marked the emergence of Asian Americans as a distinct group in United States.

Stereotypes of Asians have largely been collectively internalized by society and most of the repercussions of these stereotypes are negative for Asian Americans and Asian immigrants in daily interactions,current events,and governmentallegislation.In many instances, media portrayals of East Asians often reflect a dominantAmericentricperception rather than realistic and authentic depictions of true cultures, customs and behaviors.Asians have experienceddiscriminationand have been victims ofhate crimesrelated to their ethnic stereotypes.

A study has indicated that most non-Asian Americans generally do not differentiate between Asian Americans who are of different ethnicities.Stereotypesof Chinese Americans and Asian Americans are nearly identical.A 2002 survey of Americans' attitudes toward Asian Americans and Chinese Americans indicated that 24% of the respondents disapprove ofintermarriagewith an Asian American, second only to African Americans; 23% would be uncomfortable supporting an Asian American presidential candidate, compared to 15% for an African American, 14% for a woman and 11% for a Jew; 17% would be upset if a substantial number of Asian Americans moved into their neighborhood; 25% had somewhat or very negative attitude toward Chinese Americans in general.The study did find several positive perceptions of Chinese Americans: strong family values (91%); honesty as business people (77%); high value on education (67%).

There is a widespread perception that Asian Americans are not "American" but are instead "perpetual foreigners".Asian Americans often report being asked the question, "Where are you really from?" by other Americans, regardless of how long they or their ancestors have lived in United States and been a part of its society.Many Asian Americans are themselves not immigrants but rather born in the United States. Many East Asian Americans are asked if they are Chinese or Japanese, an assumption based on major groups of past immigrants.

Discrimination against Asians and Asian Americans increased with theCOVID-19 pandemic in the United States,according to a study done atWashington State University(WSU) and published inStigma and Health.TheNYPDreported a 1,900% increase in hate crimes motivated by anti-Asian sentiment in 2020, largely due to the virus origins in Wuhan, China.

According to a poll done in 2022, 33 percent of Americans believe Asian Americans are "more loyal to their country of origin" than the US while 21 percent falsely believe Asian Americans are at least "partially responsible" for the COVID-19 pandemic.Additionally, only 29 percent of Asian Americans believe they "completely agree" with the statement that they feel they belong and are accepted in the US, while 71 percent say they are discriminated in the US.

Model minority

Main article:Model minority

Asian Americans are sometimes characterized as amodel minorityin the United Statesbecause many of their cultures encourage a strong work ethic, a respect for elders, a high degree of professional and academic success, a high valuation of family, education and religion.Statistics such as high household income and low incarceration rate,low rates of many diseases, and higher than average life expectancy are also discussed as positive aspects of Asian Americans.

The implicit advice is that the other minorities should stop protesting and emulate the Asian American work ethic and devotion to higher education. Some critics say the depiction replaces biological racism with cultural racism, and should be dropped.According toThe Washington Post,"the idea that Asian Americans are distinct among minority groups and immune to the challenges faced by other people of color is a particularly sensitive issue for the community, which has recently fought to reclaim its place in social justice conversations with movements like #ModelMinorityMutiny."

The model minority concept can also affect Asians' public education.By comparison with other minorities, Asians often achieve higher test scores and grades compared to other Americans.Stereotyping Asian American as over-achievers can lead to harm if school officials or peers expect all to perform higher than average.The very high educational attainments of Asian Americans has often been noted; in 1980, for example, 74% of Chinese Americans, 62% of Japanese Americans, and 55% of Korean Americans aged 20–21 were in college, compared to only a third of the whites. The disparity at postgraduate levels is even greater, and the differential is especially notable in fields making heavy use of mathematics. By 2000, a plurality of undergraduates at such elite public California schools asUC BerkeleyandUCLA,which are obligated by law to not consider race as a factor in admission, were Asian American. The pattern is rooted in the pre-World War II era. Native-born Chinese and Japanese Americans reached educational parity with majority whites in the early decades of the 20th century.One group of writers who discuss the "model minority" stereotype, have taken to attaching the term "myth" after "model minority", thus encouraging discourse regarding how the concept and stereotype is harmful to Asian American communities and ethnic groups.

The model minority concept can be emotionally damaging to some Asian Americans, particularly since they are expected to live up to those peers who fit the stereotype.Studies have shown that some Asian Americans suffer from higher rates of stress, depression, mental illnesses, and suicides in comparison to other groups,indicating that the pressures to achieve and live up to the model minority image may take a mental and psychological toll on some Asian Americans.TheAmerican Psychological Associationhas published a paper relying on 2007 data that takes issue with what is said are myths about the suicide rates of Asian Americans.

Alongside mental and psychological tolls that the model minority concept has on Asian Americans,they are also faced with the repercussions that it has onphysical healthand the desire for individuals to seek medical care more specifically cancer screening or treatment. Asian Americans, between the other racial/ethnic groups in the United States, are the only group with the leading cause of death being cancer while having significantly low rates of cancer screenings.Different pressures like alienation if diagnosed or the desire to conform to stereotypes of the image of a healthy lifestylecan deter individuals from seeking cancer screenings or treatment before the onset of symptoms.

The "model minority" stereotype fails to distinguish between different ethnic groups with different histories.When divided up by ethnicity, it can be seen that the economic and academic successes supposedly enjoyed by Asian Americans are concentrated into a few ethnic groups.Cambodians, Hmong, and Laotians (and to a lesser extent, Vietnamese) all have relatively low achievement rates, possibly due to theirrefugeestatus, and the fact that they are non-voluntary immigrants.

Social and economic disparities

In 2015, Asian American earnings were found to exceed all other racial groups when all Asian ethnic groups are grouped as a whole.Yet, a 2014 report from the Census Bureau reported that 12% of Asian Americans were living below the poverty line, while 10.1% ofnon-Hispanic White Americanslive below the poverty line.A 2017 study ofwealth inequalitywithin Asian Americans found a greater gap between wealthy and non-wealthy Asian Americans compared to non-Hispanic white Americans.Once country of birth and other demographic factors are taken into account, a portion of the sub-groups that make up Asian Americans are much more likely than non-Hispanic White Americans to live in poverty.Healthcare accessvaries greatly by race and ethnicity in the United States; some lifelong diseases and impairments affect Asian Americans more negatively compared to otherU.S. Census-recognized racial groups.Research shows manyhealth disparitiesamong differentracial and ethnic groups in the United States.

There are major disparities that exist among Asian Americans when specific ethnic groups are examined. For example, in 2012, Asian Americans had the highest educational attainment level of any racial demographic in the country.Yet, there are many sub groups of Asian Americans who suffer in terms of education with some sub groups showing a high rate of dropping out of school or lacking a college education.This occurs in terms of household income as well; in 2008 Asian Americans had the highest median household income overall of any racial demographic,while there were Asian sub-groups who had average median incomes lower than both the U.S. average and non-Hispanic Whites.In 2014, data released by theUnited States Census Bureaurevealed that five Asian American ethnic groups are in the top ten lowest earning ethnicities in terms of per capita income in all of the United States.

See also

• Middle Eastern Americans
• Central Asians in the United States
• Amerasian
• Asian American activism
• Asian American and Pacific Islander Policy Research Consortium
• Asian American studies
• Asian Americans in New York City
• Asian Pacific American
• Asian pride
• Category:Racially motivated violence against Asian Americans
• Hyphenated American
• Jade Ribbon Campaign
• Index of articles related to Asian Americans
• Asian Americans in California

Bibliography

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• Ling, Huping, and Allan W. Austin, eds.Asian American History and Culture: An Encyclopedia(Routledge, 2015)
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• Bieber, Jeff; Delan, Dalton; Gong, Stephen; Young, Donald; Fifer, Sally Jo; Tsien, Jean; Tajima-Pena, Renee; Chung, Eurie; Chiang, S. Leo; Gandbhir, Geeta; Lee, Grace (2020).Asian Americans(Multiple episodes)(Documentary). WETA, Center for Asian American Media, Independent Television Service, Flash Cuts, Tajima-Pena Productions. Public Broadcasting Service.

External links

• Asian American Data Links— demographic information and reports from theU.S. Census Bureau
• UCLA Asian American Studies Center