Week 8 - Joshua Vandermeyde

Joshua Vandermeyde

Week 8 - Student Activism

In the article, “What Asian Americans Are Bringing to Campus Movements for Racial Justice,” Mark Putterman highlights the issue of Asian American inclusion in fights for social justice and where they belong in what is seen as a fight between “black and white” in America. He describes how asian american student movements are starting across the country, and how they are acting in solidarity with their black and other minority peers. At many schools across the country, there is little representation for asian americans and these movements are helping bring communities together where otherwise they would feel like outsiders. I had not considered this problem, because at Davis we have so many asian students, but at other universities there is a real problem of inclusion of asian americans and many universities do not have the classes to explore their heritage. From the article we can also see the benefits of asian american movements with movements such as black students at Brandeis University. When these communities come together it easier for their voices to be heard, because their combined movements can make a greater impact on the administration. But, there have been issues with inactiveness within the asian community in areas where some members of the community do not see the need for activism. My question would be how do you get the silent members of the community to participate in activism? If they agree with the movement but do not participate, how do you convince someone that it is worth it?

Resources:

Why and How Asian Americans Must Mobilize for Black Lives. (2016, September 27). Retrieved May 21, 2017, from http://reappropriate.co/2016/09/why-and-how-asian-americans-must-mobilize-for-black-lives/

Putterman, M. T. (2017, March 28). What Asian Americans Are Bringing to Campus Movements for Racial Justice. Retrieved from 3/28/2017 What Asian Americans Are Bringing to Campus Movements for Racial Justice | Race Files https://www.racefiles.com/2016/02/01/what-asian-americans-are-bringing-to-campus-movements-for-racial-justice/