Asian Americans

Asian Americans

Asian Americans (AA) represent an essential demographic group in the United States history and cultural heritage. Most of them have an ancestral background from China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, India, or the Philippines. The AA is among the highest income-earning minority group, educated and fastest-growing group. Their culture places more value on marriage, family, work ethics, and career progress. The most AA was born outside America, and almost half speak English fluently. These demographic groups have forged a collective identity due to political and economic factors. However, AA has faced challenges because they live in a society with different cultural norms and practices that influence their status and history. This essay uses critical race theory to explain my understanding of Asian Americans. Notably, second-generation Asian Americans grow in an environment dominated by a diverse cultural spectrum. Which shapes theory identity and experiences.

Shared American Identity among Asian Americans (AAs)

Asian Americans have a shared pattern of conditions that resulted in an exclusion that helped forge a shared Asian experience in the United States. The Chinese, Japanese, Koreans, Indians, and later the Filipinos pioneered the wave of Asian immigration into the country. In the 1850s, contract labourers from China opened the chapter for the migration to the west. The Chinese ended up to represent about 20% of the California labour force by 1870. This resulted in anti-Chinese rhetoric that led to the passage of the Chinese Exclusion Act. Then, Japanese and a few Koreans and India replaced the Chinese as labourers on railway, farms, and strike-breakers. The anti-japanese protest led to the enactment of an exclusions act in 1907 to restrict the number of Japanese immigrants (Yoo, and Azuma 14). More Koreans entered the United States during the Russo-Japanese war and the Japanese invasion of Korea. Majority of Indians came to the united through the Canada where the Canadian-Pacific railroad company recruited them.

By 1917, Congress had enacted legislation to restrict or ban immigration from china, japan, Korea, and Indian. However, the Pilipino was free because the Philippines had been annexed by during the American-Spanish war. Anti-Pilipino sentiments and violence during the great depression necessitated Congress to enact exclusion legislation to deny entry. All the Asian pioneer groups hail from different cultural background but faced a shared experience that set the foundation for an Asia identity. The last wave of immigration occurred when America enacted the non-restrictive annual quota of 20,000 immigrant from any country. This allowed Asian from a different setting, including Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos flocked the country (Yoo, and Azuma 114). Similarly, they experience personal struggle, discrimination and restrictive legislation.

Experiences of Asian American children

Second-generation AA experiences culture dilemma because they grow in an environment influenced by multiple cultures. Culture defines a set of beliefs, norms, and social practices shared by people with a shared heritage. Children represent an integral avenue of passing the cultural tradition to future generations. However, children are shaped and influenced by the forces in the environment that they grow. Second-generation AA youths face threats of acculturation, result in social and psychological transformation following prolonged exposure to another culture. As a minority group, AA children should learn to function in their cultural domain and also that of the mainstream society (Farver et al. 345). Hence, the children face bicultural socialization because they struggle to learn and understand norms and values during their development. This is a positive outcome because it helps in enhancing the relationship between the second generation AA children.

On the flip side, bicultural socialization has led to inter-generational discrepancies in the values and cultures among the AAs. Asian Americans live in families characterized by multi-generational members. This explains the changing pattern to a set of cultural values between the child and their children or guardian. Children who grow in a multicultural setting learn new languages, traditions and norms, which introduce conflict with parents. In some instances, it leads to cultural assimilation leading to a loss in the AA identity. Inter-generational; discrepancies results in the adoption of new practices like reduction in filial piety. Asian cultures expect children to show love, respect, and material support to their parents (Tsai-Chae, and Nagata 209). In response, Asian have reported to the ethnic institution as a means to promote and retain their cultural identity. The presence of Chinatown, Koreatown, and Japantown demonstrate the role of those institutionalized avenues to promote cultural heritage.

Theoretical Frameworks and Asian American’s Cultures

The sociocultural theory offers a framework to explain the attitudes, behaviour and perception of second-generation Asian children. Asian children experience different upbringing compared to their counterparts with a European origin. Under the sociocultural theory, children are influenced by their caregivers and the surrounding in which they grow. Children interact with various people, experiences, and social function, which shapes their ideology on numerous aspects of livelihood. Asian parents provide the first sphere of influence on their children. Parenting in an Asian home is characterized by harsh control, academic-orientation, and criticism. For instance, they may use social comparison as a strategy to shame to inspire responsibility and handwork. Besides, the Asian live in a collective setting favouring interdependence, social conformity, and ethics (Helms 224). For instance, the extended family in the Indian culture provide a network for support and encouragement. These characteristics make second-generational Asian to be receptive to other culture and has low levels of intermarriage.

The critical race theory provides a useful framework to explain how society and culture pertain to racial outcomes and power. This framework considers race an integral factor in one’s cultural standing and identity. Asian Americans have forged a collective identity based on their historical experiences and pattern of immigration into the country. Besides, the critical race theory argues that racism is a product of social construction and serves to achieve domination. The wave of Asian immigrants into America threatened the jobs of the dominant White majority (Teranishi 147). Congress supported anti-discriminatory rules to promote political objectives and protect white dominance. As the number of AA continue to increase, racism remains an essential tool for advancing systematic segregation and providing rational social hierarchies. Most Asia families engage in ethical racial socialization as a process of transmitting relevant cultural artefacts and information to their children.

Furthermore, the structure of American society and the experiences of Asians in the multicultural setting affects the identity of second-generation children. Between the ages of three to five, children learn “in-group” bias, which gravitates them to favour individuals belonging to their race. However, as they grow and become more acquainted with the social norms, they gravitate towards values and traditions of privileged groups (Bordon and Wang 43). There is a growing wave towards white association among the second-generation children, which affect their self-esteem and identity. Still, AAs gain political awareness as they grow, which augment their Asian American identify considering they belong to oppressed groups. These developments have significantly influenced the creation and formation of a single Asian identity ion America. The development path assumed by seemed generation Asian children have lessened racial perception and have intensified the whitening of the AAs. Money has enabled Asian to gain power and privilege by assimilating the culture and norms of majority White.

Conversely, the Critical Race Theory explains and justifies decimation against AAs in various instances and setting. Asian Americans have suppressed the blacks with the highest rate of unemployment. Besides, most of them continue to face stereotypes and considered foreigners despite their citizenship status. The department of justice indicates that AAs experiences physical, verbal, and psychological bullying and victimization. Asian-America children experience the highest instances of stereotypes and victimization than any other minority group. Majority of Asian Americans in schools and second-generation children (Kiang et al. 998). However, society is structured in a manner that promotes racial construction and justification of dominance. Despite been bi-cultural, Asian children in America confine to their ethnic identity later in life. The American social setting, which promotes systematic discrimination among AAs, influences the cultural identity of the Asian- American community.

Conclusion

The history and experiences of Asian-Americans influence and shape their cultural identity. Despite having a diverse cultural origin, most Asian-Americans experienced similar conditions, which enabled the, to have a shared experience. Asian culture differs from western practices, including the model of parenting, perception of life, and orienting in society. However, second-generational AAs have assimilated some aspects and values of mainstream culture as part of their belief system. However, the critical race theory of how dominant cultures influences their identity and perception. Besides, the social-cultural theory explains the receptive nature of Asian children due to their interaction with the environment.

Works Cited

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Farver, Jo Ann M. et al. “East Meets West: Ethnic Identity, Acculturation, and Conflict in Asian Indian Families.” Journal of Family Psychology, vol. 16, no. 3, 2002, pp. 338-350. American Psychological Association (APA), doi:10.1037//0893-3200.16.3.338.

Helms, Janet E. “Racial Identity and Reflected Appraisals as Influences on Asian Americans’ Racial Adjustment.”. Cultural Diversity & Ethnic Minority Psychology, vol. 7, no. 3, 2001, pp. 217-231. American Psychological Association (APA), doi:10.1037//1099-9809.7.3.217.

Kiang, Lisa et al. “Placing Asian American Child Development within Historical Context”. Child Development, vol. 87, no. 4, 2016, pp. 995-1013. Wiley, doi:10.1111/cdev.12578. Accessed 26 Nov 2019.

Teranishi, Robert T. “Asian Pacific Americans and Critical Race Theory: An Examination of School Racial Climate”. Equity & Excellence in Education, vol. 35, no. 2, 2002, pp. 144-154. Informa UK Limited, doi:10.1080/713845281. Accessed 26 Nov 2019.

Tsai-Chae, Amy H., and Donna K. Nagata. “Asian Values and Perceptions of Intergenerational Family Conflict Among Asian American Students.” Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, vol. 14, no. 3, 2008, pp. 205-214. American Psychological Association (APA), doi:10.1037/1099-9809.14.3.205. Accessed 26 Nov 2019.

Yoo, David, and Eiichiro Azuma. The Oxford Handbook of Asian American History. Oxford University Press.