Asian American Studies 2 : Yun Liu, A01, Week 3

Sunday, April 12, 2020

Yun Liu, A01, Week 3

In “The Time to Fight is Now: Asian American Women, Academia’s Socially ‘Engineered Privileged Oppressed,’ Go Rogue,” Kieu Linh Caroline Valverde introduces “social engineering” as a new way of thinking education system. She indicates that people with power use academia to oppress Asian American women scholars through “social engineering.” Asian American women are “privileged oppressed,” which means Asian American women in the academy are considered as “model minorities,” leading them to be especially vulnerable and have fewer opportunities for promotion and salary rises.

“Social Engineering” overturns how I view the education system. I think college offers scholars and students a friendly community to pursue knowledge. In my perspective, a college degree means a ticket to the middle class and earning decent salaries. However, Valverde reveals the dark side of the education system, leading me to think of stereotypes that existed in Asian American women scholars. Power holders consider Asian American women are less competitive than other race colleagues. A small portion of Asian American women is in leader positions due to the prejudice that Asian American women are silent and lack leadership. “Model minorities” put biased labels on Asian American women, putting Asian American women in a vulnerable position. While seeing the positive side of the education system, we should also be aware of the dark side hidden behind.