Could people imagine the outcry if this was done to African Americans?

Walking on sixth street in Austin this Saturday night with an asian friend of mine, he jokingly suggested we enter a strip club (Neither of us are into that kind of thing, and as my sister was there it might have been a wee bit awkward).

As we walked on by the establishment some loser* hanging out on the side of the building muttered "I don't think they let people in from China".

I didn't say anything - and no one else heard it. It was not worth getting all upset about.

It's kind of weird, considering that over dinner we were talking about how UT is doing a lot better in the diversity department, then say tech or a&m. Maybe not.


*I realize "loser" is not particularly descriptive considering we were surrounded by UT students.

 

maybe this explains why groups like the OCP exists (although it doesnt do much to explain why they think they can rap).

i cant imagine how much harrassment brown guys with turbans and beards must experience, especially after 9/11

 

sadly this is the truth, i came here in the 6th grade (New York City) , and i was the only asian student in the entire 6th grade (mostly everyone else was latino, Washington Heights for those who lives in NYC), although there were no physical violence, there was a lot of taunting and mental stress. And than i transferred to another school, because its suppose to be better academically, again, same thing different school, except i got into a couple fights, i carried a box cutter, and got suspended, yes it was stupid but i guess i didnt know any better at the time. than i transferred to the best public school in New York City (Mott Hall), again practically same thing, but more confrontations, i try to avoid violence because i know i will get my ass kicked its like 400 v 1.

but high school was waaay better, Bronx High School of Science in NYC, ranked as one the top three public schools in NYC because students needs to take a test before being admitted, and having produced 6 Nobel prize winners. anyways, this school was around 40% asian, mostly Chinese and Koreans, i wouldnt say that everyone bonded and became one big family but it was better. the racial situation at there was kind of a reverse role, with the asian students forming gangs and selling drugs, so i guess asians cant be always model minority.

still, violence took place outside of school, the school is located in a bad area, with DeWitt Clinton high school right beside us, a lot of our students were mugged or assaulted, and as racist as it sounds, the attackers were black mostly. my friend was mugged waiting for a bus by a group of black students and one of them pulled a knife, and he did the smart thing by giving them what they wanted, however, that same group went down the road and beat the living crap out of a gothic white student, without any provacation at all, and mugged him afterwards. i came close to being mugged by a group, i was only saved because my friend called for my school's security guards, and they came and scared off the would be muggers. the cops in NYC are not exactly timely, it would take them forever to come to the help of asian students in distress or assault, this is not an assumption, i have seen it happen, more than once. i have always carried a knife when i was in NYC, switchblades, yes they are against the law because it was longer than 4 inches, it was a spring operated weapon but i did not feel safe at all going home from school everyday.

to decrease the level of violence toward asian students?? only time can do that, it took a while for blacks in this country to gain all their freedom and rights, so the foundation is there, but i guess asians also needs their version of martin luther king jr to get the masses in america to accept us.

 

This level of complacency with discrimination is caused by the ridiculous "model minority myth." We're lead to believe that Asian Americans are hard-working, passive, and the model for all other minorities. We're lead to believe that Asians have it perfect as a minority group and stories like the one above are hidden and never mentioned. It's a sad situation that covert forms of racism and discrimination still exist but the first step to combating that is to at least acknowledge it so I'm glad someone posted it. This is a pretty serious issue to me because I went to a public high school with lots of Asian people and there were some terribly racist things that no one seems to notice.

 

When we lived in London my daughter's school had a pretty prominant 'anti-bully' program. It was something that got a LOT of attention on a consistant basis, not just one speech in the auditorium. I don't see much of that at all in her current school - although there is some mention of it in the student handbook.

 

The racism and discrimination by uneducated, other lower class minorities is the same stuff they hurl at their own kind who dress in nice suits and "work for the man" In other words, they're just "hating" on people, and the "model minority" stereotype certainly plays a huge role in us being the targets of ignorance. As for racism from the established Caucasians who are neantherdrals in this matter, well that's the same attitude that they display towards anyone whos not white.

I'd like to say that Chinese people are singled out merely because I have also felt this before. But objectively, I know it is on a larger scale.

 

high school can be a crappy place for some people. i don't think these kids were solely picked on because they were chinese but simply because they were different and its sad.

 

I think its a mix. I think there's been racism towards Chinese and other Asians in highschool but there's also been a lot of bullying and thugish behavior in highschool. Racism just becomes part of the mix and I think there is a problem with the Model Minority stereotypes that have hurt Asians giving the impressions that they won't fight back and are easy to pick on. I know I encountered that a lot of that in school and what I did to counter to that was to fight back and for awhile got to the point where I think I started to enjoy fighting and cultivated something of a crazy image of almost the anti-model minority.

 

How does the model minority myth cause other high school students to beat up Chinese students? I don't understand that point.

I think the main thing is that our public school systems are such a joke. Kids can get away with this crap and not even worry about getting expelled. How does a kid hurl racial epithets and not get kicked out of class? Ridiculous.

 

If this happened to black students
Their would be quite an outcry

I think Asians
in trying to 'work' within 'the system'
is why it is not getting enough pub

If something happens. .
going to the teach . .then the principle . . then the district super . .
allows for alot of folx to drop the ball
cover it up

Omen River

 

Odd thing is, I felt the same stuff growing up in Saudi Arabia.

 

Heh, kinda like Yao not yelling and cussing when he gets hacked like crazy and doesn't get the foul.

 

Unconsciously or not, it's the general label given by the white media to bait other races. By being a "model minority", it's implying why all the other minorities, particularly Hispanics and Blacks, aren't pulling their weight for the majority by becoming like Asians.

It's a backhanded compliment that ultimately shifts racial tension from minorities against the majority upon minorities who are perceived to be as successful as whites.

 

The model minority myth also contributes to an ignorance of racism and discrimination of asian americans. Because of the common belief that Asian Americans have it all and are able to advance through the system, many of us are fooled into believing that discrimination doesn't happen to them. That's why the title of the thread was "could people imagine the outcry if this was done to African Americans?" Its because we think that Asian Americans don't experience discrimination and have it all while African Americans are more likely to be targeted. This silencing of racism is what allows this type of discrimination to fester.

 

Totally agree with the comments by Invisible Fan and GeeImsobored about the Model Minority stereotype. It is a much of a problem as the stereotype that blacks are gifted natural atheletes and causes a lot of misunderstanding between the races.

 

I think Japan should ship some ninjas over to the US to secretly act like students in areas where this racial intolerance frequently happened.

The problem would then take care of itself.

 

Like someone above me said, because Asians have been portrayed as "the model minority," this often causes resentment and animosity from blacks and hispanics. "The man" placed Asian Americans on a pedestal as hard working and overacheiving as a proof that "anyone can succeed through hard work" and a way to undermine the black struggle for equality. This was one of the underlying causes of the L.A. Race Riots in '92 when blacks targeted much of their fury upon Korean shop keepers even though their direct anger was at "the man."

As a sidenote: we primarily always focus on minority groups in relation to the white man, but examining the relations of different minority groups in America to each other is FASCINATING. During any point in time, there is always one "out group" which incurs the wrath of the nation and it is a kind of a revolving door, but what is more fascinating is that generally, the other minority groups (again, this is VERY broad generalization) tend to be more racist towards the out-group than whites are, in a way of "it's your turn now."

The animosity between Koreans and blacks in Los Angelos is pretty interesting. I watched a documentary on this from the perspective of the Korean shopkeepers. During the riots, the police had originally come to the Korean side of town but turned back and went to protect the white neighborhoods.

 

Examples....