Asians Americans Look to Future, Not Past
By Romen Basu Borsellino | 18 Dec, 2025

Given the choice of when they could live Asian Americans are far more likely than most Americans to choose the future, according to a new Pew Research poll.

In "Back to the Future: Part II" teenager Marty McFly travels 30 years into the future only to watch a middle-aged version of himself getting fired by his supervisor Mr. Fujitsu.

“McFly!” Mr. Fujitsu AKA ‘The Jits’ shouts. “You are terminated!” 

In "Back to the Future: Part II" Marty McFly is fired by his Japanese supervisor. 

While it’s undoubtedly a low point for the film’s protagonist, AAPI moviegoers likely reveled in the idea that a Japanese man would wield such power over McFly, meant to depict an average American middle class worker.

I was thinking about this scene when reading the findings from a new Pew Research Center poll. 

Asian Americans, the poll found, are twice as likely as White people to want to live in the near or distant future if given the chance.

Just 9% of Asians would choose to live more than 50 years in the future

The survey, which was conducted this summer but only just released, asked nearly 10,000 respondents the following:

“Some people wish they lived at a different period in time. How about you? If you could choose, would you live... 

- 50 or more years in the past 

- Less than 50 years in the past

- In the present 

- Less than 50 years in the future 

- 50 or more years in the future “

Approximately 5.6% of respondents were Asian American, which is just below the national average of 6-7%. Notably only English speakers were included in the survey.

Overall 45% of those questioned said that they would choose to live in the past, 40% said that they would stay in the present, and just 14% said that they would want to live in the future.

But we were strongly represented in that 14%.

The Past

14% of Asians would live more than 50 years in the future

25% of all respondents said that their first choice would be to live “less than 50 years in the past” while another 20% said that they’d choose to live “50 or more years in the past.”

The demographics of those who favor the past may be unsurprising.

The poll found that being older, Whiter, and more Republican are all factors that would make someone more likely to choose the past — particularly the distant past — over the present or future.

The above are often characterized as yearning for the “good ol’ days” when thy enjoyed immense levels of privilege not afforded to any other race in this country. 

It’s understandable, therefore, that while 24% of Whites said that they’d choose to go back over 50 years ago, only 16% of Hispanics, 11% or Blacks and a mere 9% of Asians would choose to do the same.

After all, why would Black people want to return to a time when they were treated like property or, at best, as second-class citizens?

And so too do Asian Americans have ample reason to resent the way we were historically treated in this country. 

Chinese railroad workers — one of the first major waves of Asian immigrants to the US — were subjected to degrading and inhumane conditions that put their lives at risk for paltry wages.

When they went on strike in pursuit of better pay and improved working conditions, the White railroad owners cut off their food supply.

And as a result of the Naturalization Act of 1790, Asians were ineligible for US citizenship.

Countless moments throughout the 19th and 20th centuries would further this country’s discriminatory attitude towards Asians such as the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 and of course the Japanese internment camps of the 1940s.

It can be easy to forget just how much Asian Americans were subjected to.

The Future

Consistent with the findings that White respondents were the most likely to want to live in the past, they were also the least likely to want to live in the future. 

Just 7% of White people would wish to live more than 50 years ahead while 12% of Hispanics, and 14% of both Blacks and Asian Americans, respectively, would choose the distant future.

Once again, this should come as little surprise. Why wouldn’t Asian American Americans be hopeful about the future?

We are, after all, the fastest growing demographic in this country. And we’re gaining power by just about every conceivable metric.

For example few would disagree that the future of this country is in tech and AI, an industry that Asian Americans are thriving in. 

Some estimates have AAPI-ers currently accounting for for a staggering 70% of core technical jobs — engineers, software developers, data scientists — in Silicon Valley.

It’s largely a result of the fact that Asian Americans are the mostly highly educated ethnic demographic in the US, particularly when it comes to STEM fields. 

We’re also leading the way in entrepreneurship. Asian Americans now account for over 3 million small businesses in the US which is more than any other group. There has been a 50% increase in AAPI business owners over the past decade.

Politically there have never been more Asian American elected officials than there are now. And the number of AAPI candidates running for office only continues to increase.

Asian Americans as a voting demographic are also rapidly expanding. 

The Present

For the above reasons few would deny that there has never been a better time to be an Asian American than right now. 

But why be satisfied with the present?

A propensity for thinking ahead has helped get us to this particular level of succes.

Earning degrees, focusing on STEM, starting small businesses, building political power: These are all moves that took considerable time and effort. 

In other words, Asian Americans have proven adept at planning for the future in a way that will likely only continue.

That’s why it makes sense that no other demographic is more keep on the future and less interested in the past as we are. 

Of course time machines don’t actually exist.

But given those STEM numbers, I have a good idea which demographic might be the first to invent them.