Asian American Model Minority

Gladwell’s “Rice Paddies and Math Tests” shows readers that stereotypes are formed by race, culture, gender, and nationality. He used several scenarios to show people that the Chinese and Asians are smarter than English speaking individuals because of their custom of living and the way in which their numbering system is used in mathematics (Gladwell, 229). Despite all the positive attributes that Gladwell gave to the Chinese and Asians, there is no truth behind stereotyping, only judgements. This is because stereotyping is placing a group of people in a certain category and each individual is different from each other. Some English speaking people are just as smart as the Asian or Chinese.

Regarding the passage of the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 was that it was the first act to ever regulate immigration. The main reason for its passage was that the chinese were seen as an invasive species, even to the minority groups. It was all because they were not white, and that was only one of the problems that sparked hate towards them. The Germans, Italians, and Jews were all white, and the Chinese were not. Not to mention they were an easy scapegoat for the problems America faced.

Stacey Lee speaks of these social constructions in her book, Unraveling the “Model Minority” Stereotype: Listening to Asian American Youth. Asian Americans who conform to the “model minority” stereotype are more likely to associate themselves with Whites, and not with Blacks, because Blacks have been socially constructed as an underachieving and misbehaving group. Therefore, the social construction of the African American race structures Asian American experiences and communities by making them scorn African Americans. In terms of ethnicity, the Korean American community has been socially constructed as high-achieving and isolated. This social construction structures Korean American experiences and communities because it makes them prioritize success and disassociate themselves with those of different ethnicity.

Woodson challenges the meaning of the educated Negro. He claims that the educated Negro often removes himself from the black community and is brainwashed by whites; to view their race as inferior. The author points out Negros desire high paying job that require minimum skills, he argues foreigners come to America and become more successful than African American because of the white privilege that doesn’t favor black. This mean newcomer from other countries have a better chance of having a good life compared to blacks because the American system controlled by whites prevent them from being successful. Dr. Piper spoke about intersectionality, white privilege, and its effects on society.

This Chinese community, which consisted of Hop Alley and an ethnic ghetto, allowed immigrants to evade Colorado's unwelcoming atmosphere. Hop Alley, as dubbed by Denver’s white residents, was suspected of housing heathen immigrants, dealing in copious amounts of gambling, prostitution, and opium. Various columnists were quick to attack, using yellow journalism to feed readers’ simultaneous fascination and contempt for Hop Alley. However, Chinatown’s inner workings provided for its inhabitants a refuge from Denver’s harsh prejudice. In this ghetto, Chinese immigrants were free of prejudice, and “could find goods and services denied them elsewhere.

Californian labor leader Dennis Kearny, author of the letter “Our Misery and Despair”: Kearney Blasts Chinese Immigration (1878) was known for his nativist and racist persona. As the title portrays, this document is an example of the strong animosity several people had towards Chinamen, specially Kearny. For instance, President Kearny “described the Chinese as a race of “cheap working slaves” who undercut American living standards and thus should be banished from America’s shores.” (Kearny, 1) President Kearny was a very opinionated person who was aware of his words and his translation of things. That is to say, he disliked the Chinese people who migrated to the country. He wanted something to be done, something that would evict the Chinese; For President Kearny Chinamen were intruders.

This relates back to points one and two. Botton explains that James thought that we based feelings of success or humiliation on things that we put our effort into. Botton claims that James would be upset if he met someone who knew more about psychology than him because he took pride in his knowledge of psychology. James also created a great equation for expressing this thought. James believed that self-esteem was equal to success divided by pretentions (35-36).

___add solution___ The idea that the success of Asian people is based solely on their ethnicity is a harmful stereotype that is detrimental to the growth of our society. When society unanimously believes that one ethnic group reigns supreme, nobody questions how other minorities are affected. Minorities are divided—too often, we face each other on the battlefield instead of standing in solidarity. “If the Asians can do it, then why can’t you?” The model minority myth is a common argument used to justify dismissive or derogatory comments made towards other minorities. Dark-skinned people, in particular, are on the receiving end of those remarks.

In Chinese culture, a good education is highly valued. It is strongly believed that higher levels of education ensure a better future, showing honour and respect to the family. Even in America, Chinese parents are believed to have high expectations of their children, leading to parenting styles that differ from Western styles distinctively. This contributes to an undeniable difference between American’s perception of Chinese parenting and Chinese parent’s definitions of their own parenting. The term ‘tiger mother’ became a phrase widely used in America when referring to Chinese immigrants practicing strict parenting strategies.

not hurting other’s feelings and not disappointing their parents). Furthermore, when asked if their cultures and ethnicities treat lying differently, the answers were surprising. Two Asian students proclaimed that lying is more prevalent in Asian culture because of “Asians and their obsession with exterior image” and their standard of upholding reputation. Both, moreover, along with those who identified themselves as Caucasian, expressed that Americans are less likely to lie, not only because they are more “understanding,” but also because they “seem more open and honest.” As for the only participant who identified as black/African American, Tyiana stated, “As a black person, sometimes lying is personally easier for me in terms of assimilation. For, example, lying about the pronunciation [of my name] to make it easier for people to say or, at times, tuning down my ‘blackness’ as to not make people uncomfortable.