Karen Nguyen
Margirie Dublin
Riyan Claude Lacara
Robert Zhu
Professor Valverde
Group Presentation
22 May 2017
Student Activism
The presence of Asian Americans in political and social movements have been strikingly absent. As a result, the standings of Asian Americans on these issues have been very ambiguous and has created this misconception that Asian Americans are apathetic toward these movements and their messages. This has created a divide amongst Asian Americans and their fellow peers of color. The results of this are that Asian Americans are being seen as“invisible,” and it is incredibly hard for Asian American activists to bring about change and get noticed. So, not only do Asian Americans face opposition from other races, they face opposition within their own communities and they also have to overcome different types of personal obstacles as well such as going against the wishes of their parents. Despite all of this, Asian Americans have been able to address issues their community has been facing, which have been overlooked, and bring about change, primarily through student activism.
Within the article, “What Asian American Are Bringing to Campus Movements for Racial Justice” by Mark Tseng Putterman, Putterman starts off the article with how an Asian man tried to interview members of a black movement but he is denied access. This moment is important because as a reporter he is trying to get the scoop on what is going on, yet because he is an Asian American student, he is denied access. Movements tend be more successful when they tend to include solidarity with other minority groups who also face oppression so this can be considered odd. Therefore, this rejection just exposes how many Asian Americans are seen as outcast from social and racial movements.
Furthermore, in comparison to the other minority groups, the AAPI (Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders) community seems disjointed. As mentioned in Professor Valverde’s paper, there seems to be a social hierarchy between the different groups that make up the AAPI community. This is where, “East Asians are always perceived as on top, and when broken down further,it is Chinese, Japanese, and Koreans in that descending order. South Asian and Filipinos come after, and Southeast Asians occupy the lowest rung.” (Valverde). These divisions come from the fact that Asia is one continent and not one country. As a result, it is made up of many different countries that have their own history and culture. In addition, not all Asian countries get along with one another and these tensions do affect the people from there. Furthermore, there are also individual obstacles that stop a person from participating in protests such as parental influence and risk of academic success could hinder a person’s decision to participate. For example, in “Precariously Positioned: Asian American Women Students Negotiating Power in Academic Wonderland” by Leslie L. Đỗ and Shannon Deloso, the paper goes in depth about what that is like. The paper focused heavily on what it was like to be a female Filipina American Activist by going in depth about Deloso’s experience as an Filipina American female who was taught to be reserved and meek by her family yet end up going against her father’s wishes and switching her major. As a result, she became a strong advocate for the Ethnic Studies department that was getting their fundings cut and also, the ASI President of her school while also going a hunger strike. As Deloso talks about her experience, she also focused on how she felt during the whole ordeal. She talked about how she had the imposter syndrome, how it was like growing up in a Filipina family where the dad was the “breadwinner,” what it was like trying to break the news to her dad about switching her major, and worrying about repercussions from being an activist-student. Being a student activist can led to involvement of various different social movements.
There have been a variety of different social movements that are centered around Asian-Americans. An example of which would be the #notyourasiansidekick hashtag that hit the Twitterverse in 2013. This specifically revolved around Asians and Asian Americans within the film industry and how they are typically given a side role, almost never a lead one. This movement is example of how the AAPI community has been trying to stand up for themselves and actually be heard. Furthermore, another example is a movement that took place at Brandeis University. The BAATF (Brandeis Asian American Task Force) set out to create a course that centered around Asian Americans, named “The Asian American Experience.” However, this would have been overshadowed by another the Ford Hall sit-in, which focused on the concerns of the Black community. Therefore, BAATF decided to make a statement of solidarity with Black community at the Ford Hall protests. Later, they would continue to push on the fight for the creation of an Asian American studies course, which had support from many members of the Ford Hall sit-ins. This came to a climax at a town hall meeting between members of BAATF and members of administration (Moran). As of the 2016-2017 school year, 20 students were enrolled in the course (Gardener). The creation of different programs surrounding the AAPI community can be seen in some other universities. For example. at the College of William & Mary, an AAS (Asian American Studies) minor was created in 2016. Furthermore, in the same year, an AAS major was created at Northwestern University after two decades of organizing (Tseng-Putterman). Yet, as the victories are slowly start to accumulate, the AAPI community needs to continue to fight, on any and every level possible.
In the midst of confronting invisibility during social movements, Asian American students are brewing their own movement. Asian Americans are voicing their own rights by seeking spaces to voice their own experiences with racism and invisibilization while acting in solidarity with people of color. Asian American students also show resistance by challenging the model minority myth, and demanding for the establishment or expansion of Asian American programs and majors. Mark spoke with the student organizers of different universities and found that Asian student discrimination is still a prevalent issue. Through an interview, it was discussed that even though Asian/ Asian Americans make up a large population of some universities, they are not the face of the school and not a part of the school even if they reached a numerical majority (Tseng-Putterman). In the fight for racial justice in higher education, students are embedding an anti-racist politics of Asian American inclusion. The stigma surrounding Asian Americans participation in student activism has caused opposition against other minority groups, and neglect among Asian American social and racial movements. There are also conflicts within the Asian American and Pacific Islander community as a result of a social hierarchy between different AAPI groups. Despite these challenges, there have still been some prevalent Asian-American social movements that brings Asian Americans and other people of color together. Asian Americans are fighting for their rights through direct and indirect methods by voicing their experiences with racism and acting in solidarity with people of color in order to express unity.
References
Do, Leslie and Deloso, Shannon. Precariously Positioned: Asian American Women Students Negotiating Power in Academic Wonderland. Retrieved May, 2017.
Gardener, Abigail. "‘Asian American Experience’ Course Takes Root At Brandeis". The Brandeis Hoot. N.p., 2016. Web. 19 May 2017.
Moran, Max. "Town Hall Discusses Asian American Studies Course". Thejustice.org. N.p., 2016. Web. 19 May 2017.
Tseng-Putterman, Mark. "10 Times Asian Americans Took On Systemic Racism In 2016". Medium. N.p., 2016. Web. 19 May 2017.
Valverde, K. Fight the Tower: A Call to Action for Women of Color in Academia. Seattle Journal of Social Justice. 12(2). 367-419. 2013.
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