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ASIAMS.NET |
ASIAN AMERICAN ISSUES
San Diego: Asian American Boomtown?
an Diego doesn't have much of an Asian American history. That could be one reason it may have the brightest future of any Asian American city.
Between 1992 and 2002 the area's Asian American population jumped a spectacular 44%. Its current AA population of 360,000 -- the nation's 10th largest -- is only 12% of the 3,000,000 in the San Diego metro area, but the growth trajectory remains strong due to a steady influx of Asians drawn to the area's paradisial climate and growth potential.
AA Boomtown?
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The area's emerging prominence as the nation's biotech capitol promises to be an growth engine and a powerful magnet for ambitious young Asian Americans. La Jolla, the city's ritziest neighborhood, is home to talent incubators like the Scripps Research Institute, the nation's biggest private research organization. La Jolla is also home to UC San Diego, a top bio engineering power. It doubled its Asian enrollment from 22% of undergraduates in 1991 to 43% in 2002, nearly equal to Whites (44%). The balance is tilting toward Asians. The 2001 freshmen class is 46.5% Asian and 42% White.
The area is also attracting a disproportionate share of other growth industries like software, communications, defense and entertainment, accelerating the escalation of housing prices, not to mention its traffic congestion.
Perhaps because of its blue-sky economic climate and white-collar demographics, San Diego seems to have been hospitable to Asian success. A Corean American architect named C. W. Kim designed several prominent features of its sparkling seaside skyline, including the Emerald Plaza, the Marriott and the First National Bank building.
The city's first Asian success story was Ah Quin, a Chinese immigrant who made a name as a merchant and labor broker during the 1880s when only a few hundred mostly male Chinese made up the city's entire Asian population. Many of those early settlers came to dominate a thriving fishing industry that supplied not only San Diego but Chinese communities on both sides of the Pacific. Today all that remains to commemorate that first small wave of Asian immigrants is the Chinese Museum near Marina Park in the Gaslamp District.
The majority of Asian San Diegans arrived with the wave that began in the late 1960s. Today the city's Asian presence is most visible in the Convoy area located in a triangle formed by the I-805 to the west and Highways 52 and 163 respectively to the north and east. Convoy, Clairemont Mesa Blvd and other streets are lined with Vietnamese, Chinese, Corean, Japanese and Thai eateries, markets, pearl tea shops and business offices. Making up nearly a third of the area's Asians, and its fastest-growing Asian population, Vietnamese have established visible commercial stretches as well in the El Cajon and Mira Mesa districts.
Is San Diego an Asian American boomtown in the making? Or is it destined to become just another L.A. South?
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WHAT YOU SAY
[This page is closed to new input. --Ed.]
(Updated
Tuesday, Apr 1, 2008, 05:56:56 PM)
San DIego is VERY segregated. Walk around La Jolla, Del Mar or Pacific Beach and you'll see very few Asians. Go to the convoy area and NE San Deigo County and there are tons of them.
Unfortunately, one cannot look at sheer numbers. Distribution is important. The choice places and jobs are still overwhelmingly white dominated.
LaJolla
Saturday, July 06, 2002 at 12:48:21 (PDT)
Filipino guy,
What I've observed:
1. The Phillipine Expo at the Del Mar Fairgrounds had "authentic" entertainment consisting of Hawaiian and Tahitian dances. When I asked someone who appeared to be in charge why don't they perform the tiningkling, he said "Nobuddy know how to do dat wan!"
2. Cars owned by Filipino youth are easily recognizable. They have Hawaiian print care seat covers and a Hawaiian War helmet hanging from the rear view mirror.
3. Young Filipino people love to wear Hawaiian puka shell necklaces. They even wear kukui nut leis with sportswear (In Hawaii, such leis are worn at weddings, graduations, etc, not in the gym). Once, some guy was wearing one in the gym. I asked him where did he get it from because that same lei can be bought at the Manila store for 4 dollars. He immediately took it off.
4. At a KFC, there were three employees working, all Asian appearing. The girl took our order. She said in a valley girl accent, "Are you Hawaiian", I am too!" The boy said to her, "yeah right, you wish!", he then proceeded to tell me in a thick Filipino accent that he was Hawaiian/Filipino. The manager came out (the 3rd person) and said in thick Filipino accent not to ask the customers their race!. Her name as depicted on her nametag? "Leilanie" (should have been "Leilani" if it is really Hawaiian, as there is no such thing as "Leilanie").
4. A lady in the Hickory Farms at a mall told me in a thick Filipino accent that she was a "Hawaiiana". I understand that because of Spain's influence, Filipinos say "Hawaiiano" to mean Hawaiian male and "Hawaiiana" to mean Hawaiian female. However, in Hawaii, "Hawaiiana" means Hawaiian culture; our dances, our native language, ancient traditions, etc.
So when I apologized to her for mistaking her for a Filipina because of her accent, she said "Ob cours I hab tick accent! My parrrrents cum prom DEEEE Pilipines, but I am from Hawaii so I am aaaaa....HawaiiANA!"
My friend, from Maui told her, "You know what, just because the boat that left the Philippines stopped on Hawaii on the way here and you got off just to use the toilet, that doesn't make you a Hawaiian!".
I could go on and on and on with examples (with stories when I dated a Filipino girl). But there is something people should know. A Californian, a Texan and a Floridian are examples of people who reside in those states without regard to race. Hawaiian has a legal, Federal definition. It is "a descendant of the people of the races who occupied what is known today as the State of Hawaii prior to 1778 " Thus, the definition of "Hawaiian" is one of race.
People who live in Hawaii and have no Hawaiian blood never say that they are "Hawaiian". They call themselves, "Local" or "Hawaii resident".
Once when a Filipino guy told me he was Hawaiian, I immediately swiched from English to Hawaiian. He then admitted he was not Hawaiian. So when I asked him the reason for the charade, he said 2 reasons, 1) No one knows about the Philipines and 2) To be Hawaiian in "cooler".
I told him as to number 1, there are 200,000 Filipinos residing in San Diego county so he cannot tell me that "no one knows about the Philippines". Besides, that even if they did not know, it was his opportunity to educate them.
As to point 2, I told him that if he as a Filipino, as well as the community is embarassed to be Filipino, how can they stand tall and earn the respect from the majority if they themselves, act as if being Filipino is something bad?
Filipino guy, I applaud you for roclaiming that you are Filipino. That is a rarity, especially in San Diego.
San Diegan
Friday, July 05, 2002 at 15:58:23 (PDT)
How come there is a high incidence of Filipinos in San Diego who try and pass off as Hawaiian?
I have no idea! I don't know whats wrong with some people. Hmm....are they ashamed of who they are? Are they saying that they're Hawaiian because it sounds more appealing to other ethnicities. I do notice that some filipinos do that. I think its kind of funny because they can't fool me or most other filipinos. I guess thats just some people being stupid.
A Cute Filipino Guy Who Knows
Monday, July 01, 2002 at 23:47:15 (PDT)
I don't care. I would love to visit there. I would also love to watch the San Diego Chargers play. The only NBA team that should find a home there is the Los Angeles Clippers. In the past, it was called the San Diego Clippers, for that there were many sails that dock at the piers. The Clippers moved to LA in the fall of the 1984-85 NBA. Boo hoo hoo. I wish they came back to San Diego.
dsfbcbsijbdax
Monday, July 01, 2002 at 10:41:22 (PDT)
Hey cute filipino guy,
How come there is a high incidence of Filipinos in San Diego who try and pass off as Hawaiian?
San Diegan
Saturday, June 29, 2002 at 09:00:31 (PDT)
Dude, Cute Filipino Guy, you are freakin' hilarious! Super Bowl XXXIX! HAHAHAHA!!! Keep it up, man.
TSJ
Eric@KristinKreuk.net
Monday, June 24, 2002 at 19:08:33 (PDT)
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