Stereotypes of East Asians in the United States: Difference between revisions
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==Stereotypes of Asian men== |
==Stereotypes of Asian men== |
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===Emasculation and effeminacy=== |
===Emasculation and effeminacy=== |
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Historically, white European Americans have perceived Asian men as feminine and emasculated since the time of mass immigration of indentured Chinese male labourers to the United States to build the [[transcontinental railroad]] during the mid-1800s. Primary reasons for their emasculated image included: the physical appearances of these laborers, and the fact that they did what |
Historically, white European Americans have perceived Asian men as feminine and emasculated since the time of mass immigration of indentured Chinese male labourers to the United States to build the [[transcontinental railroad]] during the mid-1800s. Primary reasons for their emasculated image included: the physical appearances of these laborers, and the fact that they did what Westerners considered to be "women's work." The Chinese workers were, as a group, shorter than the average white American male, sported long braids (a [[queue]]) and sometimes wore long silk gowns.<ref name="prasso">Sheridan Prasso, ''The Asian Mystique: dragon ladies, geisha girls, & our fantasies of the exotic orient'', PublicAffairs, 2005.</ref> Because Chinese men were seen as an economic threat to the white workforce, laws were passed that barred the Chinese from many "male" labour intensive-industries, the only jobs available to the Chinese of the time were jobs that whites deemed "women's work" (i.e., laundry, cooking, and childcare). <ref name="prasso"/> In the popular press, Asian men were constantly compared to white women<ref name="prasso"/>. |
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Joan Kee observes that "Asian American male sexuality has long entailed a discourse of nothingness."<ref name="Kee">Kee, Joan, "(Re)sexualizing the Desexualized Asian Male |
Joan Kee observes that "Asian American male sexuality has long entailed a discourse of nothingness."<ref name="Kee">Kee, Joan, "(Re)sexualizing the Desexualized Asian Male |
Revision as of 12:37, 31 May 2009
Stereotypes of East Asians are ethnic stereotypes found in Western societies. Stereotypes of Asian people, specifically East Asians, like other ethnic stereotypes, are often manifest in a society's media, literature, theater and other creative expressions. In many instances, media portrayals of Asians often reflect a dominant Eurocentric perception of Asians rather than realistic and authentic depictions of true cultures, customs and behaviors.[1] However, these stereotypes have mainly negative repercussions for Asians and Asian immigrants in daily interactions, current events, and governmental legislation. Asians have experienced discrimination and have been victims of hate crimes related to their ethnic stereotypes, as it has been used to reinforce xenophobic sentiment.
Orientalism, mysticism and exoticism
According to Edward Said, orientalism refers to the manner in which the West [sic:Westerner] interprets or comes to terms with their experiences and encounters with the foreign or unfamiliar Orient, or the East. Said claimed that "the Orient" was a European invention to denote Asia as a place of exoticism, romance, and remarkable experiences and also as a concept to contrast (commonly negatively) against Western civilization.[2]
The effects of orientalism in Western cultures includes: the "othering" of Asians and Asian Americans; their cultures and lifestyles perceived as "exotic", in stark contrast to "ordinary" Western customs. [2] While Western cultures are perceived or believed capable of change and modernization, Asian cultures are considered (in contrast) ancient, [3] static, and entrenched in the past. Western ethnic stereotypes portray Asian cultures as being superstitious, spiritual and mystical, and a trove of "ancient wisdom". The manifestation of this perception of "Chinese ancient wisdom" is evident in fallacious/contrived "ancient Chinese phrases" falsely attributed to Confucius and other similarly ancient Asian philosophers as found in numerous English language novels, cinema and websites. Another example is the enduring popularity of fortune cookies in North American Chinese restaurants catered to Western customers that supposedly predict the future or dispense spurious sage-sounding advice. Other examples of Asian culture as novelty in Western cultures include the Chinoiserie fad during the 18th century, the faddish trends of Asian motifs and the popular Caucasian fascination with Chinese characters (very rarely Japanese) as tattoo designs despite total unfamiliarity with the language let alone the meaning of the character or their combination. Historically, America's Chinatowns have held a place in the collection American mass imagination as a "mysterious sketchy place" of opium dens, gangs, and utterly foreign speech and inhabitants.
In the musical comedy Thoroughly Modern Millie, Mrs. Meers, a Caucasian masquerading as an Asian (in this instance ambiguous whether Chinese or Vietnamese) claims that soy sauce is capable of magically removing stains: one of the "mysteries of the Orient." The librettist of the musical Miss Saigon deliberately makes the Vietnamese prostitute's lines "mystical and obscure,"[4] giving her nonsensical lyrics steeped in contrived mysticism such as: "paper dragons in the sky" and: "You are sunlight and I moon/joined by the gods of fortune."[5]
Stereotypes of exclusion
"Yellow Peril"
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/YellowTerror.jpg/220px-YellowTerror.jpg)
The term "Yellow Peril" refers to a Caucasian apprehension, peaking in the late 19th-century, that white inhabitants of Australia, Canada or the United States would be overwhelmed and swamped by a massive influx of Asians; who would fill the nation with a foreign culture and speech incomprehensible to those already there and "steal" jobs away from the white inhabitants. During this time, numerous anti-Asian sentiments were expressed by politicians and writers, especially on the West Coast, with headlines like "The 'Yellow Peril'" (Los Angeles Times, 1886) and "Conference Endorses Chinese Exclusion" (The New York Times, 1905) and the later Japanese Exclusion Act. The Immigration Act of 1924 limited the number of Asians because they were considered an "undesirable" race. [6] Australia had similar fears and introduced a White Australia policy, restricting immigration between 1901 to 1973, with some elements of the policies persisting to the 1980s. Similarly, Canada had in place a head tax on Asian immigrants to Canada in the early 20th century; a formal government apology was given in 2007 (with compensation to the surviving head tax payers and their descendants).
Perpetual foreigner
Throughout America's history, Asian Americans have been conceived, treated, and portrayed as perpetual foreigners; unable to be assimilated and inherently foreign regardless of citizenship or duration of residence in America.[7] This is evident through government actions such as Takao Ozawa v. United States and the Chinese Exclusion Act (United States), and statements made in the nation's literature and periodicals. A statement made by Justice Harlan in the 1897 court case of United States v. Wong Kim Ark explicitly illustrates this stereotype of Asians in saying that Asians are "strangers in the land" who are "incapable of assimilating".[8],[9],[10],[11]
Racial triangulation theory
According to political science professor/author/scholar Claire Jean Kim, Asian Americans have been racially triangulated in American society in relation to America's preexisting deeply-rooted black-white bipolar racial dichotomy. This theory focuses on the intersection of the model minority stereotype and the Perpetual Foreigner stereotype. Jean Kim argues that America has a pre-existing construct of "racial valorization": whites have been considered the dominant "superior" group in contrast to blacks considered a subordinate "inferior" group. Moreover, Jean Kim argues that in this US racial valorization construct, the dominant group has labeled Asian Americans as being "superior" to blacks, and are stereotyped by whites and blacks alike as: an intelligent, hard-working people (a "model" minority as it were) having an "ancient venerable culture", but nonetheless "inferior" to whites. Jean Kim elucidates that within this theoretical construct both whites and blacks are regarded as "insiders" to American culture; thoroughly assimilated and "native" to America. Asian Americans, in stark contrast on the other hand, despite a perceived "superiority" by the dominant group are regarded as unassimilable perpetual "foreigners," inherently fixed in their own exotic Asian cultures and unable to adapt to American ways.[12]
Model minority stereotype
While Asian Americans were once considered "unassimilable heathens," they have been transformed from "cruel, enemy aliens" to "industrious, quiet, law-abiding citizens." For years, the mass media press has portrayed Asian Americans as a "model minority". In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Asian Americans were depicted as achieving the American dream through hard work: commentators attributing the success to strong family values, structure, and stability.[13] Researchers contend that this image change is attributable to professional attitudes and upward social mobility among college educated Asian Americans, coupled with the new arrival of highly-educated Asian immigrants. To investigate this image, many scholars have examined Asian Americans' academic achievement, as they do well as a group. Reasons cited for academic excellence include social values, cultural importance given to education, parental factors, economic factors and school factors.[14] Persistent problems include communication/language problems, refugee waves, residence, discrimination, and the affirmative action quota system. (Contains 61 references.) (SM) Asian Americans have also been stereotyped as a "model minority"; that is, positive traits are applied as a stereotype. Asians are seen as hardworking, politically inactive, studious, intelligent, productive, and inoffensive people who have elevated their social standing through merit and diligence. This label is given in contrast to other racial stereotypes which routinely accuse minorities of socially unwelcome traits: such as laziness or criminal tendencies.[15]
However, Asian Americans believe the model minority stereotype to be damaging and inaccurate, and are acting to dispel this stereotype. [16] Scholars, activists, and most major American news sources have started to oppose this stereotype, calling it a misconception that exaggerates the success of Asian Americans.[17][18][19][20][21] According to those trying to debunk this belief, the model minority stereotype alienates Asian Americans from other minorities and covers up actual Asian American issues and needs that are still not properly addressed in America today.[22] For example, the widespread notion that Asian Americans earn higher-than-average income obscures issues such as the "glass ceiling" phenomenon, where advancement into the highest-level managerial or executive positions is blocked,[23][24][25] and the fact that Asian Americans must acquire more education and work more hours than their white counterparts to earn the same amount of money.[26] The "model minority" image is also seen as being damaging to Asian American students because their assumed success makes it easy for educators to overlook Asian American students who are struggling academically.[27] Bhattacharyya, Srilata: From "Yellow Peril" to "Model Minority": The Transition of Asian Americans: Additional information about the document that does not fit in any of the other fields; not used after 2004. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Mid-South Educational Research Association (30th, Little Rock, AR, November 14-16, 2001): Full text available: [14][28]
For example, 25.2% of Asian Americans over age 25 hold a bachelor's degree compared to only 15.5% of the general American population, thus giving the impression of Asian American success. However, only 6.9% of Cambodians, and 6.2% of Laotians in this age group in America hold bachelor's degrees- albeit attributed by researchers due to poverty and severe mental health issues due to these nations' civil war.[29] [30] Despite this stereotype of supposed Asian American success, there is a high 80% unemployment rate among the Hmong Americans and other Asian Americans groups from refugee backgrounds. [26]
Furthermore, the model minority concept can be emotionally damaging to Asian Americans, particularly as they are pressured to live up to their peers who are part of the "model minority" and perhaps, internal cultural and parental expectations. Studies have shown that Asian Americans suffer from higher rates of stress, depression, mental illnesses, and suicide attempts in comparison to other groups.[31] The pressures to achieve and live up to the model minority image have taken a mental and psychological toll on Asian Americans. [32][33]
The Asian Americans model minority construct was shaken by a string of incidents involving Asian Americans engaging in criminal or unethical behavior.[34][35] In 2007, Asian Americans were implicated in cheating scandals, shooting sprees, and political corruption. Most notable is the Virginia Tech massacre by Korean Seung-Hui Cho, which led to the deaths of 33 individuals, including Cho himself. The shooting spree, along with Cho's Korean ethnicity, stunned the Asian American community. [36] Other scandals which made headlines were the arrests of Norman Hsu, a former campaign donor to Hillary Clinton, Ed Jew, the former San Francisco Supervisor, and Kyung Joon Kim, a former Los Angeles City Commissioner who served as a business partner to current South Korean president Lee Myung-bak. Also in 2007, 34 MBA students, primarily of East Asian descent, were caught in a major cheating scandal at Fuqua School of Business of Duke University. Of those 34 students, 9 were permanently expelled, 15 were suspended for one year, and the rest received failing grades. [37]
Archetypal Asians in American fiction
Fu Manchu and Charlie Chan are two important and well-known fictional Asian characters in America's cultural history. Both were created by white authors, Sax Rohmer and Earl Derr Biggers respectively, in the early part of the 20th century. Fu Manchu is a sardonic, intelligent, yet evil Chinese murderer with plots of world domination, an embodiment of America's imagination of a threatening mysterious Asian people. Charlie Chan is an apologetic submissive Chinese-Hawaiian detective who solves cases while politely handling the many racist insults hurled at him by white American characters, and represents America's archetypal "good" Asian. Both characters found widespread popularity in numerous novels and films, and therefore have pervaded the American consciousness with stereotypes of Asians.[38]
Fu Manchu: "evil" Asian
Thirteen novels, three short stories, and one novelette have been written about Fu Manchu and Sir Denis Nayland Smith, the British agent determined to stop him. Millions of copies have been sold in the United States with publication in British and American periodicals and adaptations to film, comics, radio, and television. Due to his enormous popularity, the "image of Fu Manchu has been absorbed into American consciousness as the archetypal Asian villain."[38] In The Insidious Doctor Fu-Manchu, Sax Rohmer introduces Fu Manchu as a cruel and cunning man, with a face like Satan, who is essentially the "Yellow Peril incarnate".[39]
Sax Rohmer inextricably tied the evil character of Fu Manchu to the entire Asian race as a physical representation of the Yellow Peril, attributing the villain's evil behavior to his race. Rohmer also adds an element of mysticism and exoticism to his portrayal of Fu Manchu. Fu Manchu contrives unnecessarily elaborately creative and cruel methods of murdering his victims, replete with allegedly Asian methods or elements in his murders such as: "death by silk rope"- none of which have any basis in reality. Despite Fu Manchu's specifically Chinese ethnicity, his evil and cunning are pan-Asian attributes again reinforcing Fu Manchu as representational of all Asian people.[38] Blatantly racist statements (note: not considered so at the time the novels were published) made by white protagonists such as: "the swamping of the white world by yellow hordes might well be the price of our failure" again add to Asian stereotypes of exclusion.[40] Fu Manchu's inventively sardonic methods of murder and white protagonist Denis Nayland Smith's grudging respect for his intellect reinforce stereotypes of Asian intelligence, exoticism/mysticism, and extreme cruelty.[38][41]
Charlie Chan: "good" Asian
Charlie Chan, a fictional character created by author Earl Derr Biggers loosely based on Chang Apana (1871-1933), a real-life Chinese-Hawaiian police officer, has been the subject of 10 novels (spanning from 1925 to as late as 1981), over 40 American films, a comic strip, a board game, a card game, and a 1970s animated television series. In the films, the role of Charlie Chan has almost always been played by white actors (namely Warner Oland, Sidney Toler, and Roland Winters) in "yellowface."[42]
In stark contrast to the Chinese villain Fu Manchu, Asian American protagonist Charlie Chan represents the American archetype of the "good" Asian.[38] In The House Without a Key, Earl Derr Biggers describes Charlie Chan in the following manner: "He was very fat indeed, yet he walked with the light dainty step of a woman. His cheeks were chubby as a baby's, his skin ivory tinted, his black hair close-cropped, his amber eyes slanting."[43] Charlie Chan speaks English with a heavy accent and flawed grammar, and is meticulously polite and apologetic. After one particular racist affront by a Bostonian woman, Chan responds with exaggerated submission, "Humbly asking pardon to mention it, I detect in your eyes slight flame of hostility. Quench it, if you will be so kind. Friendly co-operation are essential between us." Bowing deeply, he added, "Wishing you good morning."[43]
Because of Charlie Chan's emasculated, unassertive, and apologetic physical appearance and demeanor he is considered a non-threatening Asian man to mainstream audiences despite his considerable intellect and ability. Charlie Chan has none of the daring, assertive, or romantic traits generally attributed to white fictional detectives of the time. Instead, Charlie Chan's successes as a detective are in the context of proving himself to his white superiors or white racists who underestimate him early on in the various plots.[38] His character also perpetuates stereotypes of orientalism as well, oft quoting supposed ancient Chinese wisdom at the end of each novel, saying things like: "The Emperor Shi Hwang-ti, who built the Great Wall of China, once said: 'He who squanders to-day talking of yesterday's triumph, will have nothing to boast of tomorrow.'"[44]
Stereotypes of Asian men
Emasculation and effeminacy
Historically, white European Americans have perceived Asian men as feminine and emasculated since the time of mass immigration of indentured Chinese male labourers to the United States to build the transcontinental railroad during the mid-1800s. Primary reasons for their emasculated image included: the physical appearances of these laborers, and the fact that they did what Westerners considered to be "women's work." The Chinese workers were, as a group, shorter than the average white American male, sported long braids (a queue) and sometimes wore long silk gowns.[45] Because Chinese men were seen as an economic threat to the white workforce, laws were passed that barred the Chinese from many "male" labour intensive-industries, the only jobs available to the Chinese of the time were jobs that whites deemed "women's work" (i.e., laundry, cooking, and childcare). [45] In the popular press, Asian men were constantly compared to white women[45].
Joan Kee observes that "Asian American male sexuality has long entailed a discourse of nothingness."[46] Instead, according to Sheridan Prasso, Asian men in film have with little exception been portrayed as "small, sneaky, and threatening... spineless, emasculated wimps", or "incompetents" who always lose when "faced with white man's superior strength or firepower."[45]
The recurring image of the Asian male as a "sexually impotent voyeur or pervert" has pervaded television and film throughout American history. Examples include Mickey Rooney in yellowface as the bucktoothed Japanese landlord who sneaks peeps at Audrey Hepburn in the 1961 film Breakfast at Tiffany's, or the nerd Long Duk Dong from John Hughes's 1984 adolescent classic Sixteen Candles whose every entrance is accompanied by the clash of a gong.[46]
Even action movies like Kiss of the Dragon (2001), Romeo Must Die (2000), or The Replacement Killers (1998), which feature Asian male protagonists, deny the Asian male characters romances with the women whose lives that they save. Instead of the kiss usually granted to the white male protagonist, the rescued woman only gives the Asian action hero a hug or a grateful obligatory "thank you" kiss; there is almost never a relationship between the characters even if there is romantic tension.[45][47]
In the media, Asian American men may be depicted as shy, awkward, nerdy, and/or physically unfit. [48] These factors combined may be part of the reason why interracial marriages involving Asian Americans and Caucasians skew in one direction. Caucasian male/Asian female relationships outnumber Asian male/Caucasian female relationships by a factor of three to one. [49].
Predators of white women
Asian men have been portrayed as threats to white women[50] in many aspects of American media. Depictions of Asian men as "lascivious and predatory" were common at the turn of the 20th century.[51] Between 1850 and 1940, both U.S. popular media and pre-war and WWII propaganda portrayed Asian men as a military and security threat to the country, and therefore a sexual danger to white women[38] due to the perception of a woman's body traditionally symbolizing her "tribe's" house or country.[52] In the 1916 film Petria, a group of fanatical Japanese individuals invade the United States in an attempt to rape a white woman.[53]
Misogynists
Another stereotype of Asian men is that they are misogynistic, insensitive and disrespectful towards women. They are commonly portrayed as male chauvinists. [54] [55] [56] This stereotype originated from Asian media that portray Asian men as sexist. [56]
The Joy Luck Club is particularly consistent with this racial cliché because it portrays Chinese culture (especially Chinese males) as being negative and restrictive to the freedom of Chinese females. Many Asian Americans (particularly Chinese Americans) were offended by the negative portrayal of Asian men in this film. Such screen portrayals are consistent with the restriction and/or absence of Asian American masculinity in the western media. [1]
Stereotypes of Asian women
Hypersexuality
Asian women have been portrayed as aggressive or opportunistic sexual beings or predatory gold diggers using their feminine wiles to entrap white males or rob white females of their husbands. [57]. Western film and literature has continually portrayed such stereotypes of Asian women: depicting Asian women as cunning "Dragon Ladies"[58][59][60] as servile "Lotus Blossom Babies", "China dolls", "Geisha girls", war brides, or prostitutes.[61] Japanese media have also at times sensationally promoted the negative stereotype of Japanese women overseas as "yellow cabs".[62] UC Berkeley Professor of Asian American Studies Elaine Kim has argued that the stereotype of Asian women as submissive sex objects has impeded Asian women's economic mobility and has fostered increased demand in mail-order brides and ethnic pornography.[63]. Staci Ford of the University of Hong Kong concluded that stereotypical depictions of women in general created by sexist white men continue to haunt movies though they now have a disguised form.[64]
The "China doll" stereotype
According to author Sheridan Prasso, the China [sic: porcelain] doll stereotype and other variations of this submissive stereotype exist in American movies: "Geisha Girl/Lotus Flower/Servant/China Doll: Submissive, docile, obedient, reverential (including Asian men as effeminate, servile); Vixen/Sex Nymph: Sexy, coquettish, manipulative; tendency toward disloyalty or opportunism; Prostitute/Victim of Sex Trade/War/Oppression: Helpless, in need of assistance or rescue; good-natured at heart." [45][65]
Gwen Stefani's adoption of this component of Japanese culture drew criticism from Mihi Ahn at Salon.com, and others who feel that Stefani has stripped Japanese street fashion of its authenticity and created yet another example of the 'submissive Asian female' stereotype.[66] Stand-up comic Margaret Cho has labeled the Harajuku Girls as a "minstrel show" that reinforces ethnic stereotypes of Asian women[67].
Stereotypes of physical attributes and traits
There exists a pervasiveness racialized discourse throughout U.S. society, especially as it is reproduced by network television and cinema.[68]
Ethnicity-specific stereotypes of physical appearance exist as well. A common perception among Westerners is that "all Asians look alike", which may or may not be racist, depending on the context.
In a neutral context facial recognition researchers have found experience plays a major role in the ability to determine or distinguish race particularly among a general grossly generic homogeneous (for example dark hair, dark eyes, non-white skin)[69]. The influential studies of Meissner & Brigham conclude all races have an own race bias and have difficulty distinguishing individuals outside their own race, but moreover, Caucasians have the greatest difficulty distinguishing between individuals in US minority races, including Asians, Blacks and Hispanics.[70][71][72]
As an overtly hostile statement, "all Asians look alike" is an intentionally sharp dehumanization reminiscent of the "faceless Yellow Hordes" of the 1800s "Yellow Peril" fears.
During World War II in strenuous efforts were made in America to distinguish "enemy" Japanese from "friendly" Chinese solely by physical appearance (as seen in wartime Life Magazine article [15]), thus leading to further stereotyping and the attribution of physical traits to each group.[73][74] Asians are also stereotyped to be capable martial artists. [16]
Physiological caricatures of East Asians include the epicanthic fold positively coined "almond-shaped" or negatively "slant eyes" and many worse are common portrayals of the East Asian population, yellow-toned or brown skin referencing colorism, negatively contrasting 'coloured' Asian-Americans against the white Europeans in North America in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; and a stereotypical hair-type: straight dark (or shiny "blue") hair, commonly in a "bowl cut" hair style. A lack of facial hair or the predominance of the 'Fu Manchu' moustache are also common. Some television and cinematic examples include Dr No from James Bond, the now hilariously camp "Japan-isation" of James Bond in You Only Live Twice- where his fake epicanthic folds are applied surgically by appropriately skimpily dressed female Japanese attendants and the Get Smart's The Claw (Leonard Strong) the 'quintessential' Asian villain representing the Oriental branch of KAOS. When the Claw stated his name or his horseshoe magnet prosthetic he would say: "the Craw" and thus Smart would refer to him as the Craw, angering the Claw "No, not da Craw -- da Craw!" The Claw's chief henchman was also a Caucasian in "yellow-face" : the bald, burly Bobo. Dr Yes (Donald Davis), the character a spoof of Flemming's Dr No was yet another caricature, albeit somewhat sympathetic. Incidentally, Cheese laundries were always fronts for criminal KAOS activities in the series Get Smart.[75]
Another common racist caricature of Asian physiology is the alleged widespread "buckteeth" or enlarged front incisors. This assumed physiological trait of enlarged teeth in certain segments of east Asians were studied, also found among American Indians whose ancestry originates from northeast Asia when they arrived in North America about 20,000 years ago. [citation needed]. The physiological trait of enlarged teeth presents occasionally as it does in any race as per the infantile pejorative for playground taunting of such effected children as a "Bugs Bunny" or "Donkey-boy". But the trait was specifically widely exaggerated portrayal for unsympathetic east Asian characters subject to the ridicule Asian Americans as per the "slant-eyes", "bowl hair cut" and "yellow skin" were used.[76]
Asians are also stereotyped as computer nerds or gadget-nerds fascinated by the latest electronic gimmick, although these trends for any youngster to be interested in such things is hardly a racial characteristic. Gonul Puttar agrees in quoting Jasmine_novel: "Du becomes the all-American teenager, refusing to talk Vietnamese, watching science fiction movies on television, hoarding gadgets, making friends, getting good grades in school"[77] referencing Bharati Mukherjee's Jasmine_novel Jasmine in his essay criticizing also Asian stereotypes within American society.[78]
East Asians are depicted as possessing "weird" behaviors: emotionless or "robotic", lack of feelings (always not smiling to superiors or their elders), and displays autistic characteristics associated with a mental disability found in all races and cultures. East Asians are also often seen as passive, docile to authority, politically-inactive, and socially-inept. The now-politically incorrect medical terminology "Mongoloid" for people affected with Down's syndrome to have faces reminisicent of east Asian people has further depicted Asian people as physiologically different from the white or Caucasian race. [citation needed]
Marginalization
Exclusion from leadership positions, lack of leadership ability
A survey showed attitudes of white views of Asian CEOs: [79] 7% of Americans would not want to work for an Asian American CEO. This is in contrast to 4% for an African American, 3% for a woman and 4% for a Jewish American.
However, an Asian American Presidential candidate is considered slightly more favorably than a Muslim but less than an African-American. 23% of Americans are uncomfortable voting for an Asian American to be President of the United States. This is in contrast to 38% with a Muslim candidate, 15% compared with an African American candidate, 14% compared with a woman candidate and 11% compared with a Jewish candidate. [80]
Business stereotypes
In the early 20th Century, Chinese and in particular Japanese were seen as: "sly, tricky, dirty and sneaky"[81]. Toward the middle of the century- close to the commencement of World War 2 both Chinese and Japanese were perceived as: "a combination of industrious and sly"[82]
Gilbert et al. in The handbook of social psychology: 2-Volume Set [83] argue these perceptions then gave way to the current Model Minority construct albeit with connotations of Japanese in the 1980s and currently Chinese being "disloyal, clannish, greedy ambitious and pushy". Gilbert et al. argue that both "Jews and Chinese have an overlap of stereotype of being "disloyal, intelligent, clannish, greedy, ambitious and pushy" which may stem from both Jewish and Chinese immigrants both developing a strong mercantile" role[84].
Poor English skills
In many American movies, television shows, and theatre productions, Asian characters have been represented as speaking English poorly, with amateur mistakes or caricaturist accents. Examples include the accent of the Vietnamese exchange student in Sixteen Candles, "Long Duk Dong". In the movie Breakfast at Tiffany's, Mickey Rooney in "yellowface" plays the bucktoothed Japanese neighbor who constantly yells at the protagonists in broken English for being too noisy.[85]
See also
- Japanese stereotypes
- Asian fetish
- Asian pride
- Chinabounder
- Chinaman
- Chinese Exclusion Act
- Ching Chong
- Stereotypes of Eurasians
- Fresh off the boat
- Model minority
- Orientalism
- Pan-Asianism
- Racial profiling
- Stereotype threat
- Yellow Peril
- American Born Chinese, a graphic novel by Gene Luen Yang that satirizes stereotypes of Chinese-Americans
References
- ^ a b Kashiwabara, Amy, Vanishing Son: The Appearance, Disappearance, and Assimilation of the Asian-American Man in American Mainstream Media, UC Berkeley Media Resources Center
- ^ a b Said, Edward. Orientalism. New York: Vintage, 1978, p. 1-2.
- ^ Rosen, Steven L. "Japan as Other: Orientalism and Cultural Conflict".
{{cite journal}}
: Cite journal requires|journal=
(help) - ^ Behr, Edward, and Mark Steyn. The Story of Miss Saigon. New York: Arcade Publishing, 1991, p.36
- ^ Schonberg, Claude-Michel, Alain Boublil, and Richard Maltby Jr. Miss Saigon. (Original 1989 London Cast).
- ^ History World: Asian Americans
- ^ Neil Gotanda, "Exclusion and Inclusion: Immigration and American orientalism"
- ^ United States v. Wong Kim Ark (169 U.S. 649 1898: 731)
- ^ [1]
- ^ [2]
- ^ [3]
- ^ Claire Jean Kim, "The Racial Triangulation of Asian Americans," Politics & Society, Vol 27. No. 1, March 1999, 105-138.
- ^ Stacey J. Lee, Unraveling the "Model Minority" Stereotypes: Listening to Asian American Youth, Teachers College Press, New York: 1996 ISBN 0807735094
- ^ Stacey J. Lee, Unraveling the "Model Minority" Stereotypes: Listening to Asian American Youth, Teachers College Press, New York: 1996 ISBN 0807735094
- ^ Bhattacharyya, Srilata: From "Yellow Peril" to "Model Minority": The Transition of Asian Americans: Additional information about the document that does not fit in any of the other fields; not used after 2004. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Mid-South Educational Research Association (30th, Little Rock, AR, November 14-16, 2001): Full text available: [4]
- ^ ASIAN-AMERICAN SCIENTISTS: Silent No Longer: 'Model Minority' Mobilizes - Lawler 290 (5494): 1072 - Science
- ^ Stacey J. Lee, Unraveling the "Model Minority" Stereotypes: Listening to Asian American Youth, Teachers College Press, New York: 1996 ISBN 0807735094
- ^ Bill Sing, "'Model Minority' Resentments Spawn Anti-Asian-American Insults and Violence," Los Angeles Times 31 February 1989, p. 12.
- ^ Greg Toppo, "'Model' Asian student called a myth ; Middle-class status may be a better gauge of classroom success," USA Today, 10 December 2002, p. 11.
- ^ Benjamin Pimentel, "Model minority image is a hurdle, Asian Americans feel left out of mainstream," San Francisco Chronicle, 5 August 2001, p.25.
- ^ "What 'Model Minority' Doesn't Tell," Chicago Tribune, 3 January 1998, p.18.
- ^ www.modelminority.com
- ^ Woo, Deborah, "The Glass Ceiling and Asian Americans," Key Workplace Documents: Federal Publications, (1994) [5]
- ^ "The Glass Ceiling for African, Hispanic (Latino), and Asian Americans," Ethnic Majority, [6]
- ^ Constable, Pamela, "A 'Glass Ceiling' of Misperceptions," WashingtonPost, 10 October 1995, Page A01 [7]
- ^ a b Ronald Takaki, "The Harmful Myth of Asian Superiority," The New York Times, 16 June 1990, p. 21.
- ^ Felicia R. Lee, "'Model Minority' Label Taxes Asian Youths," New York Times, 20 March 1990, pages B1 & B4.
- ^ ARONSON J. (1) ; LUSTINA M. J. (1) ; GOOD C. (1) ; KEOUGH K. (1) ; STEELE C. M. (2) ; BROWN J. (2) ; When white men can't do math : Necessary and sufficient factors in stereotype threat, Journal of experimental social psychology vol. 35, no1, pp. 29-46 (1 p.3/4): Elsevier, San Diego 1999
- ^ Kim, Angela; Yeh, Christine J, Stereotypes of Asian American Students, ERIC Educational Reports
- ^ Yang, KaYing (2004), "Southeast Asian American Children: Not the Model Minority", The Future of Children, 14 No. 2: 127–133
- ^ "Mental Health and Depression in Asian Americans"
- ^ "Push to achieve tied to suicide in Asian American women"
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- ^ Internet Movie Database - list of Charlie Chan movies, IMDB
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- ^ Biggers, Earl Derr, Charlie Chan Carries On (1930; reprint ed., New York: Bantam, 1975), p.233.
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- ^ How to tell Japs from the Chinese Life Magazine: Dec. 1941
- ^ Darrell Y. Hamamoto, Monitored peril: Asian Americans and the politics of TV representation University of Minnesota Press, 1994: ISBN 0816623686: 311 pages
- ^ Darrell Y. Hamamoto, Monitored peril: Asian Americans and the politics of TV representation University of Minnesota Press, 1994: ISBN 0816623686: 311 pages
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- ^ Daniel T. Gilbert, Susan T. Fiske, Gardner Lindzey, The handbook of social psychology: 2-Volume Set: Oxford University Press US, 1998 ISBN 0195213769: 1984 pages
- ^ Daniel T. Gilbert, Susan T. Fiske, Gardner Lindzey, The handbook of social psychology: 2-Volume Set: Oxford University Press US, 1998 ISBN 0195213769: 1984 pages. pp:380-381
- ^ Daniel T. Gilbert, Susan T. Fiske, Gardner Lindzey, The handbook of social psychology: 2-Volume Set: Oxford University Press US, 1998 ISBN 0195213769: 1984 pages. pp:380-381
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External links
- Model Minority A forum for articles and discussion concerning Asians in aspects of culture.
- Asian-Nation Anti-Asian Prejudice & Racism
- Black Racism Article about blacks against Asians.
- Hollywood Chinese Hollywood Chinese, a 2007 documentary film about the portrayals of Chinese men and women in Hollywood productions.
- The Slanted Screen The Slanted Screen, a 2006 documentary film addressing the portrayals of Asian men in American television and film.
- AllLookSame An educational online quiz which tests the taker's ability to differentiate persons of Chinese, Japanese, or Korean origin.