Asian-American Identity: A Historical Perspective - Essay Sample

Introduction

Asian Americans are a group of Americans whose original homeland is East Asia, South Asia, or Southeast Asia (David 171). It is a group of people who indicate their race as Asian or reported entries such as Japanese, Chinese, and Indians. Asian Americans comprise more than 5.6% of the United States population. The migration of Asians to the United States has been in parts of modern America since the early seventeenth century. There were nativist immigration laws which forbid the movement of Asians to the United States and, hence, the Asian immigration in America increased rapidly. Most of the Asian American people live in urban areas, with more than seventy-five percent of the population leaving in metropolitan areas. Some Asian Americans believe that living in America offers them a better way of life. On the other hand, some Asian Americans do not appreciate their stay in America. Despite the advancement of justice, equality, and improvement of social status, Asian Americans still face a myriad of problems based on class, educational level, social-economic perspectives, and political perspectives.

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As an Asian American, we have faced racial challenges to advance our goals in a complex and diverse society. There are almost twenty to thirty cultures of Asian Americas, which impact on their economic and social life. It is nearly insolent to attempt to categorize such a diverse group of identities as one group. However, the increased population means that Asians and Pacific Residents have been a growing population group in America over the last thirty years. A typical start of them now is that of the "model minority," this a minority collection of people which has through solid work rather than political conflict accomplished the American Dream (Shilpa, Nishime, and Oren 219). Simple economic and educational contrasts recommend that Asian Americans have done relatively well. However, I feel that those assessments can be deceptive. In society, Asian Americans have fewer opportunities than their White counterparts. Asian Americans, particularly new immigrants, also have higher poverty rates, whether for entities than Whites. Generally, the effect of race remains to be substantial for the well-being of this minority community, putting them at a disadvantage in American culture.

In the early nineteenth century, Asian Americans excepted themselves from the labor market, but they ventured into their business activities. Today they have extended their participation in the American economy. As an Asian America, I feel that we now have better opportunities to start businesses in professional offices like hi-tech companies and in business initiatives, thus, becoming fruitful and significant in the American community. Recently, Asian American is involved in professional areas and are earning good wages. From the research, it is evident that many Asian Americans have now occupied high positions in the United States, especially in Chief Marketing offices (Tran). Therefore, I feel that we have substantially participated in the growing economy of America. This is because Asian Americans maintain almost two million businesses, which have formed job opportunities to more than three million people.

Today the society tries to organize Asian Americans in terms of equally selective binaries such as citizen or alien and from white or black. This brings modifications and also disempowering structures as well as maintaining gender and racism in America (Rosalind 4). Moreover, society depicts another dualism that tends to threaten gender and class as a segregated category. White feminists engage in thought, especially when they assert gender tyranny against Asian Americans. This brings divisions among the women associated with the race, social class, and myriad forms of differences. Additionally, men depend on dualism once they believe that the system of racial tyranny happens over that of gender oppression. Today analysis has been done to stress the need to examine and understand cultural factors on how the immigration of Asian are incorporated in the United States Community. The socioeconomic accomplishment of Asian Americans has geared towards the fast increase of attention in the implications of comprehending ethnic disparity in the United States (William 107).

Asian Americans have been a political target of violence that has emerged from diversities in their race and ethnicity. There were Bellingham demonstrations that happened in the early nineteenth century that targeted southern Asians. There was also an attack on Chinese, that involved the killing by Indians and Chinese during the Snake war. The rising population of Asian Americans uplifted them by viewing them as an elite community that is fruitful and a highly educated group. However, Asian Americans who failed to fit into model minority were prone to problems, especially when expectations of people did not match with reality. Today, Asian Americans face baboon ceiling that entails an amalgamation of individuals, cultural, and also factors that abide by Asian Americans in their organizations. Asian Americans are usually seen as a minority group since many of their cultures inspire a significant ethical consideration, a vast valuation of families, and religion (David 3).

As an Asian American in the United States, the society presents numerous opportunities yet massive challenges to advance once career and life goals. Asian Americans have different cultures that influence their economic and social way of life in America. Most of them live in urban areas, and they have significantly impacted the American economy. This is because Asian Americans possess almost two million businesses, which have created job opportunities to more than three million to people in America. Additionally, the Socioeconomic success of Asian Americans has geared towards the quick increase of attention in the implications of comprehending ethnic disparity in the United States. Finally, Asian Americans have been a political target of strength that has emerged from their diversities in their race and ethnicity.

Works Cited

Chou, Rosalind. Asian American Sexual Politics: The Construction of Race, Gender, and Sexuality. Lanham, Md: Rowman & Littlefield, 2012. Print.

Dave, Shilpa, LeiLani Nishime, and Tasha G. Oren. Global Asian American Popular Cultures. New York: New York University Press, 2016. Print.

Palumbo-Liu, David. Asian/American: Historical Crossings of Racial Frontier. Stanford, Calif: Stanford University Press, 1999. Print.

Tran, Victoria. "Asian Americans are falling through the cracks in data representation and social services." Urban Institute. Retrieved from: https://www.urban.org/urban-wire/asian-americans-are-falling-through-cracks-data-representation-and-social-services

Wei, William. Asian American Movement. Temple University, n.d. Print.