Introduction
In the United States, Mexican-Americans and Asian-Pacific Americans are usually categorized as Hispanic-Americans and Asian-Americans. I have always had a problem with this categorization because, for example, Asian-Pacific Americans, like the Japanese, are completely different from Southeast Asians. They have differing cultures and educational and historical experiences (Paik et al. 2). The same applies to Hispanics, those who originate from North and South America. The categorization provides the danger of undermining the experiences of Mexican-Americans and Asian-Pacific Americans who have endured a lot across the United States history. It is the reason why I aim to evaluate what it means to be Mexican-American and Asian-Pacific American.
Many people say that a Mexican-American is any individual who originated from Mexico, while Asian-Pacific Americans are those who come from the Pacific region. However, I argue that shared experiences are also an important factor in determining what it means to be Mexican-American and Asian-Pacific American. It is these experiences that define and differentiate one American group from another. I aim to showcase why shared experience is important in defining an ethnic group by discussing how Mexican-Americans and Asian-Pacific Americans have been viewed and treated in the United States. Then, discuss the way the groups responded to the challenges America presented to them. I will also assess the issues the groups are facing in today’s United States.
Treatment Across American History
Asian-Pacific Americans such as Chinese, Filipinos and Japanese communities migrated to the United States in the 20th century in search of a better life due to the hardships that existed in the Pacific region during that period. The arrival of these communities, especially the Chinese and Filipinos, provided cheap labour to various industries across America. The stereotype of being hardworking and cheap meant many businesses preferred them, especially when it came to manual over their white counterparts (Oliver 1). As the number of Chinese and Filipino migrations grew, there was an outcry among poor white communities that these Asians were limiting their opportunities (Takaki 9). Filipino communities were even attacked in California riots (Paik et al. 24). The Asian-Pacific Americans had become a problem. The policymakers started to pass key policies to limit their population in America. The government policies passed, such as the immigration act of 1924, to curb the immigration of Asian-Pacific Americans targeting the Chinese, Japanese and Koreans (Paik et al. 2). The situation only got worse during the world wars as specific Asian-Pacific groups such as Japanese were targeted with discriminatory policies such as housing segregation (PBS 1). They were pushed to create urban ethnic enclaves (Liu & Geron 19). The enclaves still exist today, for example, Chinese towns in major American cities where the Chinese feel safe in numbers.
Mexican-Americans also experienced tremendous hardships across American history. There was a massive increase in the Mexican-American population in the 20th century as these communities were looking for opportunities in America’s Agricultural sector. Economic problems during the Depression led to Mexican-Americans to start experiencing hostilities with other racial groups. They were victims of numerous raids by government officials for reparations back to Mexico. The Cold War period also did not help as distrust towards non-Americans grew, and Mexican-Americans were lumped into this group. They became victims of the 1952 immigration act, which sought to limit the number of Mexican-Americans in the United States. Mexican-Americans, as part of the minority communities, were also victims of punitive laws. For example, they were legally restricted to only own homes in specific areas (Hayes-Bautista 119). Such laws strained their chance of upward mobility in American society. It is among the reasons why Mexican-Americans are among the communities that form a significant portion of low socioeconomic groups in the United States.
Resistance
The enclaves that Asian-Pacific Americans formed in the 20th century became areas for resistance against the discrimination and punitive actions they faced (Liu & Geron 22). These enclaves ensured these communities unify and fight for social justice. Movements such as the Asian-American Movement were initiated, whose aim was to unite the Japanese, Chinese and Filipino communities against the mistreatment, marginalizing and discriminative nature of American society (AAFE 1). Various labour movements also join in on the social change fight. The Filipino labor movement’s efforts contributed to the civil rights fight that sought for radical changes in the United States (Hinnershitz 132). Japanese Federation labor did the same in Hawaii (Takaki 14). Mexican-Americans were also involved in this resistance movement, although sometimes through violent means. For example, 1965 Watts riots conducted by Latino communities in California ended the punitive home-ownership laws (Hayes-Bautista 119). Mexican-Americans and Asian-Pacific Americans were never known to comply with the dominant system. Mexican-Americans, for example, joined with other Hispanic communities and showcased their resistance whenever they felt the American system had grieved them.
Contemporary Issues
Even in today’s America, Mexican-Americans and Asian-Pacific Americans still experience numerous problems. Mexican-American have still been stereotyped as lazy and unintelligent people who limit opportunities for other deserving Americans. They are viewed as a group that is too dependent on government entitlement programs, hence a burden to the American society. There has been an increased backlash in the immigration of people from the Latino world, such as Mexico. Extremists and racist groups in America argue that Mexicans who migrate to America are usually not the best that Mexico can offer. The rapid growth of the Hispanic population has led to panic in some white communities that they are being replacement, leading to the formulation of the great replacement conspiracy theory. I think the theory has increased hostilities towards Mexican-Americans. Asian-Pacific American groups such as the Chinese suffer from the same issue, especially in today’s world where there is some sort of cold war going on between the United States and China as the fight for world leadership. Some Americans view Chinese-Americans with distrust due to their ancestral ties with China. Asian-Pacific Americans are also targets for racially motivated violence, especially in inner-cities. They are viewed as a group that siphons out economic opportunities from other minority communities. Asian-Pacific Americans, such as the Samoans, even have problems with their citizenship (Oliver 1).
Conclusion
My discussion is an evaluation of shared experiences that Mexican-Americans and Asian-Pacific Americans have faced and some they are still enduring today. Shared experiences such as the hostilities that Asian-Pacific Americans faced after their migration to the United States or the racially motivated violence they are facing today are something that is unique to them. At the same time, the hate Mexican-Americans have faced across the United States history is also distinctive to them as an ethnic group. Hence, these unique shared-experiences are always the best way to define what it means to be Mexican-Americans and Asian-Pacific Americans.
Work Cited
Asian Americans for Equality (AAFE). Beyond Activism: Four Decades of Social Justice. 2014. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQ1Nu7fu30U
Hayes-Bautista, David E. La nueva California: Latinos in the golden state. Univ of California Press, 2004.
Hinnershitz, Stephanie. ““We Ask not for Mercy, but for Justice”: The Cannery Workers and Farm Laborers’ Union and Filipino Civil Rights in the United States, 1927–1937.” Journal of Social History 47.1 (2013): 132-152.
Liu, Michael, and Kim Geron. “Changing neighborhood: Ethnic enclaves and the struggle for social justice.” Social Justice 35.2 (112 (2008): 18-35.
Oliver, John. Asian Americans: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO). 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29lXsOYBaow
Oliver, John. U.S. Territories: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO). 2015. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CesHr99ezWE
Paik, Susan J., et al. “Historical perspectives on diverse Asian American communities: Immigration, incorporation, and education.” Teachers College Record 116.8 (2014): 1-45.
Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). Betrayed: Surviving an American Concentration Camp. https://www.pbs.org/video/betrayed-survivng-an-american-concentration-camp-1J4Nna/
Takaki, Ronald. A history of multicultural America. Raintree Steck-Vaughn, 1993. Strangers from a Different Shore.
Takaki, Ronald. A history of multicultural America. Raintree Steck-Vaughn, 1993. From Japan to the Land of “Money Trees”
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