The horrific murder of Vincent Chin suggests that people are ignorant to the fact that numerous ethnic groups exist within the same “race.” They view all Asian Americans as the same race despite there being different ethnic groups, such as Japanese, Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese. As a result, anti-Japanese sentiment meant discrimination towards all Asian Americans in general because to Whites, they all “looked the same.” Chin was in a club celebrating his upcoming wedding before he was savagely attacked by two white men who accused him of “stealing” their jobs. At this time, due the influx of Japanese immigrants as a result of the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act, many Whites lost their jobs, especially in the automobile industry. Consequently, they began to place the blame on the Japanese. However, …show more content…
His murder was national news that spread across the country because all Asian Americans felt affected and vulnerable regardless of their various ethnicities. Dale Minami, a Civil Rights Attorney, in the documentary Vincent Who?: The Murder of a Chinese-American Man, referred to this as a public lynching, which was a wake up call for Asian Americans. His story should motivate future generations to fight and stand up against injustice. The two white men who were responsible for his death did not receive any jail time for their atrocious actions. They were simply fined a measly $3000 and three years of probation. Asian Americans were outraged at this decision, so they put their cultural differences aside and focused on one common goal: to achieve justice. Vincent Chin’s racially motivated beating indicated that all Asians living in the United States could be targets for similar hate crimes. If they chose to ignore this injustice, more hate crimes against Asian Americans would be lightly brushed
Chapter six examines the anti-Chinese sentiment with the emerging class antagonism and turmoil between white capitalists and workers. The unwelcomed arrival of Chinese immigrants brought along their own social organizations such as the huiguan, fongs, and tongs. These types of social organizations secured areas of employment and housing for Chinese immigrants in California. This social structure that was unknown to Anglos led them to also categorize Chinese on the same level as Indians by depicting them as lustful heathens whom were out to taint innocent white women. These images were also perpetuated onto Chinese women, thus, also sexualizing them as all prostitutes.
The Virginia Tech mass murderer “Seung-Hui Cho” is a mass murderer. He is a mass murderer because he killed more than four people at one location during one continuous period of time. Even though that Cho went into two class rooms it still counts as one location because he was still at the school. Cho killed thirty two people and wounded many more within an hour. He walked in the classroom closed the door and started a shooting rampage.
The racism and hate that people of color faced is still alive today, it has actually increased. Because of Emmett Till and Vincent Chin’s appearances, they were savagely beaten and killed because of their race. Emmett Till was murdered for allegedly whistling at a white women. Vincent Chin was murdered because he was mistaken for being japanese.
In1924animmigrationactwasimplementedto totally restrict the Asians from entering the United States of America. During the Second World War over 120000 Asian Americans were imprisoned on grounds that they were enemy aliens. 65% of the imprisoned victims were American born citizens. This book therefore talks about the Asian American experiences and difficulties they faced living in a society that was driven by racial prejudice. The fact that the American government was able to cover up the crime against the Chinese miners despite their efforts to
Vincent Chin was a hardworking 27-year-old Chinese American draftsman and a waiter who was engaged to be married in June. Chin was harassed and attacked by two white males on June 19, 1982 in a strip club in Michigan. The white males blamed Chin and Japanese for the U.S. auto industry layoffs. Chin and his friends were out celebrating for his bachelor party the two auto workers harassed him calling him anti-Asian racial slurs and saying things like “it’s because of you little m-f-s that we’re out of work” (Frances Kal-Hwa). The two men were kicked out of the bar but they continued to harass and eventually attacked Chin in the parking lot later that night.
This is a time where racial oppression in LA begins to affect each race in a different way, which then produced a different reaction from both races (37). The African Americans had an easier time getting housing since they were actually seen as citizens, unlike the Japanese. Black homeowners and civil rights lawyers worked together on the housing front to break restrictive covenants whilst Japanese consular officials decided their best course of action was to avoid racial conflict and just let things be (37). However, once being “subjected to violent attacks” and witnessing the “racist structures affect[ing] all communities of color,” they changed their minds and began to look to the African Americans for help (37). The Japanese continued to have similar reactions towards racism when they started a massive “campaign against discrimination and ‘Yellow Peril’” when they received major opposition for the creation of a subdivision in Jefferson Park (91).
This was a really interesting and informative chapter to read because I had no idea how big of a role the Chinese played in American History. I wasn’t surprised when I was reading about how “white” laborers demanded that certain companies to not hire any Chinese people. I though to myself “here we go again”, but I was happily surprised when I read about what the President of the Central Pacific Railroad had to say about these demands. The President of the company Leland Stanford had nothing but positive things to say about his Chinese workers. He often referred to them as quiet, peaceful, reliable, and willing to learn all the different kinds of work.
The heinous nature of the crime sent shockwaves through the community, leaving many feeling vulnerable and fearful for their own safety. The brutal violence inflicted on a close-knit family in their own home was deeply disturbing. Additionally, The Lin family was part of the Chinese-Australian community, and their murders raised concerns within this community about targeted violence and the need for support networks. It sparked discussions about cultural identity, integration, and community cohesion. Moreover, The Lin Family Murders became a high-profile case due to its complexity and subsequent trial.
This shows the similarities that happened during this period what happened to Asian Americans. Similarly, Asian Americans faced discrimination and racism in similar ways. Asian Americans during WW2 and the COVID-19 pandemic were both treated unfairly and accused of things they were a part of. For example, “People of Asian descent have been living in the United States for more than 160 years, and have long been the target of bigotry” (The long, ugly history of anti-Asian racism and violence in the US).
African Americans on the battle front are put into segregated divisions, whereas Native Americans dealt with compliment racism or unintentional racism. Chinese Americans were concerned with being accused of being Japanese, while the Japanese Americans tried to prove they were American too. Throughout his book, Takaki demonstrates the varying levels of racism experienced, and how hard work and perseverance helped these groups prove themselves to some degree. Takaki claims, all of these minorities groups, gained some form of freedom and equality either through the military or through job opportunities and improvements.
Sherry Lee ASAM 15 MWF 10am-10:50am Professor Franklin Ng 23 October 2015 Racial Crimes against the Hmong Hate crimes can happen anywhere, anytime, or to anyone. A hate crime is an act of violence that is prompted towards a person or group of people based on aspects that make them different from a specific group such as race, religion, or sexual orientation. Hate crimes occur when there is a dominant person or group over another. As defined by Merriam-Webster, a hate crime is “any of various crimes (as assault or defacement of property) when motivated by hostility to the victim as a member of a group (as one based on color, creed, gender, or sexual orientation).”
The Horrific Springfield Race Riot of 1908: How Injustice Strengthened the Civil Rights Movement “[T]wo elderly Black men were lynched and four white men were killed in the midst of a mob motivated by prejudice and hate” (Weisenhofer, 65). On August 14-16, 1908, a race riot broke out in Springfield, Illinois. White Americans and European immigrants of Springfield violently and destructively rioted against the Black population of Springfield. The riot followed the lynching of two Black men after accusations of violence and rape against white people that sent a mob of 5,000 white people into the streets terrorizing 2,000 Black people (Zinn Education Project).
Americans started thinking the Japanese knew about the attack before it happened (Sandler 24). Everyone blew everything out of proportion. “During the early 1920’s the anti-Japanese crusade grew nastier” (Marrin 63). Americans started saying “Once a Jap, Always a Jap” (Martin 23). The people became prejudice.
It all started when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, causing the U.S. citizens to be extremely furious and unite the support of media to create propagandas. The Japanese are portrayed with slanted small eyes and buck teeth- undermining the intelligence of their race; moreover, they were even dehumanized and depicted as animals. The U.S media was very biased when comparing the Chinese to the Japanese. While the Chinese man had an amiable appearance and a slender body, the Japanese had an unpleasant frown on his face and was described as short and stout (Miles). The article “WWII Propaganda: The Influence of Racism” also states that “The Chinese man’s occupation implies that he helps people, while the title of Japanese warrior alludes to danger and disloyalty,” (ibid).
After Japan’s actions, the US justified its revenge attacks on Japan and the atomic bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima. Time and