The Cau Bich Tran killing by San Jose Police
On July 13th, 2003, a 25 years old Vietnamese female was shot to death by the police. The incident began as the police arrived at Cau Bich Tran's house because they were responding to a 911 call, and they were let in by Tran's spouse as Tran wasn't at home at the time. Shortly after Tran's arrival, Tran was holding up a coincidently vegetable peeler. The police officer Chad Marshall feared that she might throw the peeler at him, and that his life would be immediately in danger. In response to his fear, he shouted and within seconds shot her right in the heart without identifying himself as a police officer or ordering her to drop the peeler. (Tran Memorial, 2003) The killing immediately awakened the Vietnamese community nationwide. The Asian Law Alliance (ALA) and others formed a coalition and prompted marches on city hall and public vigils for Tran. The Vietnamese American community of Northern California also held a rally at the San Jose Police Department to protest the tragedy of the killing of Cau Bich Tran.
The Killing of Kuan Chung Kao
On April 29th, 1997, a Chinese American was shot to death by the police. Mr. Kao was bought to his driveway by the police because he had consumed a very large amount of alcohol in a bar in the previous evening. Once there, he was yelling and crying out on the street while holding a small wooden stick. Upon the arrival of the police, Officer Rohnert Park worried that his life was threatened by Mr. Kao's weapon, the wooden stick and also feared that Asians to be experts in martial arts. He shot Mr. Kao three times killing him within a minute. (The Model Minority Awakened, 2003) Later, thousands rallied to the case of Kao Kuan Chung and demanded for justice.
Who Killed Vincent Chin
On June 23rd, 1982, a young Chinese American was beaten to death by two White men whom named Ronald Ebens and Michael Nitz. They were calling him a "jap" outside a bar late at night though Vincent was plainly a Chinese American. As in a response, Vincent tried to run away to avoid troubles until he was held down by Nitz while Ebens repeatedly smashed his skull and attacked him to death with a baseball bat. Later, Vincent's murderers were handled by the criminal justice system. First, instead of being put on trial for second degree murder, the prosecutor negotiated a plea bargain for reduced charges of manslaughter. Second, the judge in the case sentenced each man to only two years probation and a $3,700 fine instead of pulling them in to jail. (Asian-Nation.org, 2007) Many Asian American community organizations held protests to fight for justice for Vincent Chin. The Coalition Against Anti-Asian Violence (CAAAV) was formed to "voice the Asian American community's concerns about anti-Asian violence and police brutality in the New York City area." As a result, the Vincent Chin case has become one of the most leading issue confronting Asians in America and awakened API communities to realize the importance of grassroots organizing within the community.
Above are only a few historical and current examples of anti-Asian violence over the 200 years that Asian Americans have been facing, and there are many more were under-reported.
c. Racialization of Asian Americans: Asian Americans are all believed to be exactly the same. Yet according to Darren R. Mooko, "Asian" encompasses at least 29 different ethnic groups, and that they encompass different ethnicity, religion, language, culture, class, color, and race.
Xenophobia and Population Visibility: Asian Americans are the one of the fastest-growing populations in the United States, and this visibility of ethnic diversity often seems to threaten many individuals.
"Unfair" economic competition belief: Asian Americans are often perceived as "aliens" or "foreigners" and that they're taking jobs away from "real" Americans. It is hard to believe the idea that a typical Asian would look like a foreign "Jap" still exists in today's America. It is not rare for a second, third, or even fifth generation South Asian American to constantly be exposed to the question of "No, really, where are you from?"
The Model Minority myth: Asian Americans are believed to have overcome racism because they have succeeded socially, economically, and educationally without obtaining special programs or making violent disagreements with the majority race in the society. Although the idea is that any group of ethnic minority can succeed in America as long as they are willing to work hard, and, therefore, many individuals often have formed a sense of jealousy over this false perception of Asian Americans.
Lack of justice and lack of effective laws for anti-Asian violence incidents: Government has done very little to address the issue or to punish past-time criminals; therefore, potential criminals seem to not fear to commit hate crimes on Asian Americans. Also, anti-Asian violence is traditionally under-reported, and this is due to the lack of effective laws protection for Asian Americans.
Media portraits of Asian Americans: Although Asian Americans have become one of the most fastest-growing ethnic minorities in America for the past decades, Asian Americans are often still viewed as quiet, weak, and powerless. Through music, television, films, magazines, and various other types of mass media, Asian Americans were often used to play very simple characters, portrayed in a simplistic manner, and stereotyped as being inferior. As a result, the mass media has constructed a very negative image of Asian Americans and shaped our individual worldviews.
Media hides the truth: The mass media tends to cover up whatever harms the image of the Dominant group in the society and simply presents "the surface of the table". For example, the anti-Chinese violence incidence from New York mentioned above was only reported on a relatively small-audience Chinese newspaper. The mass media, on the other side, has not yet presented a single word about this case.
d. How current Asian American or other groups are trying to address the problem:
Founded in 2003, Asian Media Watch™ is a grassroots non-profit organization supported and privately funded by volunteers, and they rely on the help and support of concerned individuals in the community. In response to the false image of Asian Americans presented in the media and entertainment industry, which made many people to see Asian Americans negatively, this organization works to promote a fair and balanced portrayal of Asian Americans in contrast of what the American mainstream media presents.
Founded in 1991, Asian American Justice Center works to advance the human and civil rights of Asian Americans through advocacy, public policy, public education, and litigation. In response to anti-Asian violence, AAJC strides as one of the nation's leading experts on the issue of anti-Asian violence prevention/race relations.
Founded in 1974, Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF) is a national organization that protects and promotes the civil rights of Asian Americans. In response to the issue, AALDEF conducts free, multilingual legal advice clinics for low-income Asian Americans and new immigrants and educates Asian Americans about their legal rights. This process is similar to the idea of grassroots organizing since this process starts from the bottom up by educating the individuals understand their legal rights so that they know how to treat anti-Asian violence.
Founded in 1985, Asian Americans United (AAU) focuses on building leadership in Asian American communities to build our neighborhoods and unite against oppression. In response to the issue, AAU has worked Philadelphia's Asian American communities and in broader multiracial coalitions around various API issues including anti-Asian violence.
Founded in 1983, Asian Pacific American Legal Center of Southern California (APALC) is the largest organization in southern California that provides Asian and Pacific Islander (API) and other communities with multi-lingual, culturally sensitive services and legal education. In response to the issue, APALC advocates for civil rights, provides legal services and education, and builds coalitions to positively influence and impact Asian Pacific Americans and to create a more equitable and harmonious society.
Founded in 1986, Committee Against Anti-Asian Violence (CAAAV) is a volunteer-driven organization led by members of low-income Asian immigrant communities that mobilizes Asian communities to counter anti-Asian violence. In response to the issue, CAAAV organizes across Asian communities, exposes and struggles against violence with the goal of building community capacity exercises self-determination in hopes of greater social changes
Founded 1929, Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) is the nation’s oldest Asian American civil and human rights organization, and it is committed to protecting the rights of all segments of the Asian Pacific American community. In response to the issue, JACL is working to preserve the rights and well-being of all Asian Americans and other who fall victim to social injustice in the United States, such as victims of anti-Asian violence.
Founded in 1991, National Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium (NAPALC) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that works to advance the legal and civil rights of Asian Pacific Americans through litigation, public education and public policy. In response to the issue, NAPALC addresses and prevents discrimination against Asian Pacific Americans including anti-Asian violence, racial profiling and other forms of discrimination.
Founded in 1973, Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA) is non-profit, non-partisan that is dedicated to advancing the social, political and economic well-being of Asian Pacific Americans in the United States. In response to the issue, OCA commemorated 25th Anniversary of Vincent Chin's Death and renewed its commitment to hate crimes prevention and education on June 19th, 2007.
e. I have learned from my research that anti-Asian violence has been a serious problem for both Asian American individuals and their communities for at least the last few decades. However, although anti-Asian violence is a serious problem for Asian American communities, it forced individuals to stick together at times for physical or political protection, and this has shaped the Asian American communities in a positive way. Overall, this research reinforced me the idea that learning about how the history operated in the past would allow us to make a difference for our people and communities in the future.
f. References
1. The Interrelationship Between Anti-Asian Violence and Asian America by Victor M. Hwang, 2000
2. The Forgotten Revolution by Gordon Lee, 2003
3. The Model Minority Awakened by Christine Ho, 2003
4. Sue & Sue, 1990
5. Singtao Chinese Newspaper, 2007
6. A History of Anti-Asian Violence from University of Miami online database http://umsis.miami.edu/~kpatel2/Historyofantiasianviolence.pdf
7. When Hate Hits You: An Asian Pacific American Hate Crime Response Guide, 2006
8. TranMemorial.com | http://www.tranmemorial.com
9. AsianWeek.com | http://news.asianweek.com/news/
10. Portrayal of Asian Americans in the Media | http://www.azete.com/preview/81981
11. Asian-Nation.org | http://www.asian-nation.org/racism.shtml