ASIAN AMERICAN FEATURES




We are undermined most by association with Asian Americans who exploit the downside for their own purposes.
by Peter Choong



Fingering the Weak Links

ou probably know the people I mean. The ones who are always placing us at the bottom of the totem pole, as though we are universally despised and forever scorned like the dregs of American society. People who perpetuate messages this ugly would normally be lumped with the nastiest of racists. But when they're Asian Americans, we need a change in terminology.
     These sad individuals are always making assertions that even the most fervently anti-Asian racists wouldn't be brazen enough to utter: we're weak, small, mindless pushovers without a shred of decency, honor or pride. We're so ashamed of ourselves that we are helter-skelter seeking mates of every race but our own. We're wifebeaters, whiteslavers, thugs, drugdealers, AIDs victims, you name it. Every miserable human condition you can think of, they claim in spades for us Asian Americans. What's galling is that some of these sad specimens claim to be speaking out in the name of Asian pride. To such people, I say, Speak for yourselves because you are our weakest links!
     The reality for most of us is that we enjoy respect from other Americans as people who know how to work hard to take care of ourselves and get ahead. Most of the stereotypes non-Asian people keep foisting off on me are more positive than negative: smart, educated, affluent, trustworthy. Stereotypes are annoying and they aren't cool , but to the extent that virtually everyone is saddled with them, ours aren't so bad. On the other hand, I do object strenuously to the insulting claims made for us all by those Asian American Weak Links. Those go beyond the annoying to the downright offensive.
     So why do these people persist in trying to make us out to be a basket-case minority group? "We're just trying to call attention to our problems so they can be fixed," is their usual reply. No doubt some of these people are simply caught up in a misguided effort at doing just that. As for the rest, here are the types of Asian Americans who make up our weakest links:

1. People Seeking Excuses for Personal Failings
     Many who are charmless and/or timid with women grumble that Asian men get no respect from women, including Asian American women. Others who are abrasive and are treated with hostility complain that Asians are American society's most despised people. Those who slack off and can't get hired lament that even the brightest of Asian Americans can't find respectable jobs because of racial bias. Those with flawed characters who can't get promoted beyond a certain level lament that a glass ceiling keeps Asian Americans toiling thanklessly in the bottom rungs of the corporate ladder. These Weak Links ignore the abundant evidence of disproportionate Asian American success and cling fiercely to the position that we Asian Americans are the lowest of the low in American society.
     Does America harbor racists who treat us unfairly or with hostility? You know it. My own experience tells me that upwards of ten or fifteen percent of the American population fits that description. Obviously, such people have produced some real victims by their racism. The Weak Links point to those victims as perpetual excuses for their own personal failings. What they forget is that racism or other forms of bias are found in every society on earth. Even in supposedly homogenous nations like Japan or Corea, ignorant and hateful people show prejudice based on regional accent, facial type, religion, fashion sense, even school affiliation. Prejudice is a part of the human condition. To build our lives around it would be as silly as to build our wardrobes around rainy days.
     Those who keep insisting that we Asian Americans are doomed to scrape the bottom annoys the hell out of the vast majority of us Asian Americans who know better. Yes, racial prejudice has victimized some of us, but most of us have overcome it through the effort and discipline we bring to our lives. Let's give ourselves the credit we deserve as achievers rather than falsely making us all out to be victims.

2. Professional Jeremiahs
     To hear some Weak Links, you'd think the Asian American population has been decimated by hepatitis, AIDS, cancer, teen pregnancies, prostitution, wifebeating, alcoholism, poverty and random street violence. This despite the fact that Census Bureau stats show that we rank at or near the bottom for virtually every affliction for which records are kept. What's behind the constant hyping of the problems that are supposedly pandemic to our community? Asian American community activists, social workers, political functionaries and others whose career prospects rise in direct proportion to the level of misfortune that is ascribed to the Asian American community.
     Do we need social workers, political activists and the like? Absolutely. They serve a valuable function on behalf of those who rely on a helping hand from a beneficent society. But for Asian Americans as a group to place these professional Jeremiahs at the center of our consciousness and agenda would be like New York City putting 9/11 at the center of its tourism campaign. Not only is it highly counterproductive, it is plain inaccurate. For example, only about ten percent of the Asian American population, mostly recent immigrants, live in poverty. That's about the same as for the American population as a whole and much less than other minority groups.
     Do I blame professional Jeremiahs for being successful at getting the word out about our community's problems? Of course not. It's their job to do their best to get their fair share of public funding. The disproportionate share of the focus placed on our community's social ills must be blamed on media that find it easier to blow dire press releases out of proportion than to seek out positive angles from which to cover the Asian American community. What I've always liked about Goldsea is its unique perspective on Asian Americans as a successful group instead of a specially needy one as it's represented by many AA media.

3. People Who Fall Under the Majority's Spell
     Saddest of all Weak Links are the otherwise intelligent, educated Asian Americans who see themselves through the eyes of white America. They see our distinguishing traits as deficiencies. More of us attend top colleges and grad schools so they see us as "nerdy". More of us are bilingual, so they see us as "foreign". More of us have the character to pursue longterm success in challenging fields while maintaining strong family values so they see us as "boring". More of us choose to be trim than bulky so they see us as "skinny". More of us value sensitivity and consideration for others so they see us as "timid" or "ultra-conservative".
     Those of us with the good sense to put the majority's biases in perspective can see that, as a group, we Asian Americans have reason to be proud of being exceptionally disciplined, educated, fit, cultured, sensible and forward-looking.
     Free tip for those who find themselves adopting the majority perspective: imagine how the average white American would fare if they were transplanted into an Asian-majority society like Japan, China or Corea.

4. People Justifying Outdating/Outmarriage
     A significant groups of Weak Links are Asian men and women who choose to date or marry non-Asians. So far so good. Unfortunately, many seem to believe they might either be seen as losers who couldn't fine a suitable Asian mate or be castigated by family and friends. Consequently, they seem determined to justify their choices with statements like, "Asians are too short," or "Asians are no fun", or "Asians are too conservative", or "Asians look too much like me." Sadly these rationalizations are usually based on stereotypes, and therefore, tend to reinforce them.
     The more sensible among Asian Americans who choose to outmarry simply say, "I like/love him/her." What more can you say? Most Asian Americans have nothing against inter-racial marriages and aren't really interested in your reasons.

5. People Embracing Inferiority for Acceptance
     The most disturbing type of Weak Links are people who accept, even embrace, inferiority. Examples include those Asians who argue that we aren't built to be as physically strong or tall as Whites or Blacks, or that Asians have proportionately shorter legs than Whites, or that Whites are inherently more creative or honest or independent than Asians. On what are such conclusions based? As best as I can figure, case studies drawn from characters presented in American media.
     Why are these Weak Links so eager to embrace racial inferiority? They are motivated by two distinct impulses: the desire to avoid competition and the hope that by being non-threatening, they may win easier acceptance from Whites. If they accept being weaker, less attractive and blindly deferential to Whites, they hope, they will be spared the need to compete against Whites and will find acceptance as useful, decorative and non-threatening accessories. Sadly, while some do find that peculiar kind of acceptance reserved for lapdogs, they deprive themselves of life as fully functioning human beings. In the process, they help perpetuate stereotypes which, in turn, force the rest of us to come across people harboring annoying and insulting misconceptions.

     No doubt about it, Asian American Weak Links make life less pleasant for the rest of us. But are they to be hated? No, they are to be pitied as the weakest always deserve to be. At the same time, we must make sure to define clearly -- and carefully maintain -- the distinction between the Weak Links and the rest of us so we don't get dragged down to their level. It's especially important to point the Weak Links out to our kids and explain how they think so our kids can learn to avoid their awful fates.

"We must make sure to define clearly -- and carefully maintain -- the distinction between the Weak Links and the rest of us..."