User:KellyL09/Asian American activism

Asian American activism broadly refers to the political movements and social justice activities involving Asian Americans. The general definition of activism is "the activity of working to achieve political or social change, especially as a member of an organization with particular aims." Since the second half of the nineteenth century, Asians in the United States have been heavily engaged in social and political organizing. The issues they participate in range from immigration and racial justice to women's rights, LGBTQ+ rights, labor rights, criminal justice and climate change. However, Asian American activism has hardly been visible to the mainstream. The prevalent model minority stereotype which tends to portray Asians as silent, obedient and apolitical not only discredits the important contributions Asian Americans have made to the national struggles for justice and equality, but also discourages the contemporary generations from resisting the status quo of institutionalized racism. As Linh Dich points out, "Asians and Asian Americans. . . are often left out of political narratives, such as the Civil Rights movement, which prevents Asian and Asian Americans from being seen as a generative force for political rhetoric and change." Therefore, to challenge the predominant racial stereotypes against Asians, it is crucial to make the history of Asian American activism more accessible to the public.

Background on Discrimination and Activism
Early Asian immigrants did not refer to themselves using the term "Asian American." The sense of pan-Asian ethnic identity did not develop until Scholar Yuji Ichioka coined the term "Asian American" in 1968. Previously, Asian immigrants could only identify themselves based on their ethnicity, such as Chinese, Japanese, and Filipino. These early immigrants faced widespread discrimination and were prevented many of the same rights and benefits as white Americans. This is due in part because citizenship in the United States was defined through terms of race and gender, in particular, only white males could become citizens. From 1850-1952, exclusionary laws and policies, like the Chinese Exclusion Act, Alien Land Laws, Asiatic Barred Zone Act of 1917 and Immigration Act of 1924 prevented Asian Americans from gaining citizenship and the various rights and protections citizenship included. Thus, early activism embodied various modes and methods outside of mass organization.

In addition to discriminatory legislation, acts of violence and anti-Asian sentiments have existed in the United States since the first wave of immigrants arrived in the United States. Asian immigration started mainly in the late 1840s with the discovery of gold, California statehood, and work on the transcontinental railroad, which was when discrimination and violence against the Chinese in America spread. Violent acts against Asian Americans like in October 1871, when a mob murdered 19 Chinese immigrants in Los Angeles (Chinese Massacre of 1871), in July 1877, when a crowd in San Francisco burned much of the city’s Chinatown (San Francisco Riot of 1877), when miners in Rock Springs, Wyoming, killed at least 28 Chinese in an 1885 massacre (Rock Springs Massacre), and when thirty-four Chinese miners were ambushed and murdered along the Snake River in Oregon in 1887 (Hells Canyon Massacre) have often been tolerated by American citizens and government.

Anti-Asian racism and violence were not limited to Chinese immigrants as later Japanese, Korean, Indian and Filipinos immigrants also experienced similar hostility and attacks from the white-dominated American society. For instance, with the popularization of "Yellow Peril" narrative, multiple Japanese restaurants and bathhouses were vandalized by a group of white supremacists in San Francisco in May 1907. In the same year in Bellingham, Washington, about 200 South Asian workers were evicted from their own houses and put into jail by a mob of white men. Similarly, violence against Filipino Americans also escalated in the late 1920s when an attack by 400 white men on a Filipino dance hall in Watsonville was sparked by the publication of a photograph showing a white teenage girl embracing a Filipino man.

In face of extensive racial violence and exclusion in the United States, Asians have not been passive or submissive to the status quo. Despite the socioeconomic and political restrictions, they have sought different means to constantly challenge white supremacy and resist against racism. Asian Americans lamented the harsh regulations and discrimination which had been imposed upon them by the Chinese Exclusion Act (1882 – 1943) and the Angel Island Immigration Station (1910 – 1940). Angel Island detainees turned to silent protests by writing poetry, often bitter and angry in nature, on the walls. Asian Americans have exercised their activist rights in the form of labor protests and strikes like the Delano Grape Strike in 1965, and in the garment workers' strike of 1982. Today, Asian Americans are active participants in not only race-related issues, but also intersectional issues like women's rights, LGBTQ+ rights, environmental justice, affirmative action, prison abolishment and so on. The increasing heterogeneity of the Asian American population has further diversified the Asian American activism scene, as various new organizations emerge and new voices are heard. The century-long history of activism has deeply shaped the Asian American identity and also allowed them to build solidarity with other marginalized groups.