Stereotypes have always existed around racial minority groups’ representatives in the United States, influencing their roles in society, self-perception, access to recourses, and life choices. Asian Americans have first-hand experience dealing with biases to build successful careers and become equally valuable citizens as the white majority. Indeed, Canwen Xu mentioned in their Ted Talk that the most effective way to fit into society is to reject their heritage and pretend to be similar to everyone (Xu, 2016). The most common stereotypes Asian Americans have to deal with are that they are good at maths and computers, play multiple musical instruments, are hard-working, and that men have small genitalia (NBC Asian American, 2016). The latter is proven to be incorrect and independent of race; however, the perception of Asians as evil and aggressive has been strong since the early twentieth century, and the humiliating characteristic became the outcome (NBC Asian American, 2016). As the stereotypes described by a researcher and young student are different, comparing them provides valuable insight into how they affect gender roles, attitudes, and behaviors of racial minority representatives.
Microaggression, the unwilling or humorist characterization of a person based on their race, is mentioned in both videos about Asian-American stereotypes. Canwen Xu described the situations that reveal that people frequently experience difficulties communicating and being around a person with visible distinction, such as appearance (Xu, 2016). Jason Chen claimed that Asian men are perceived as unattractive, and microaggression occurs with the “I do not date Asians” phrase (NBC Asian American, 2016). Such racial categorization makes Asian Americans less self-confident, forces them to avoid socialization, and severely affects their decision-making.
Asian Americans are the racial category that does not proclaim their rights and does not have such a wide representation and defense in media as African-Americans. Canwen Xu explained that as their attitudes and roles become more American and less Asian, the better they are perceived by their peers (Xu, 2016). Jason Chen also emphasized that men are biased as less successful than their white colleagues, and the choices at work roles might be unfairly not in their favor (NBC Asian American, 2016). Both videos explain that these circumstances resulted from the formers’ deliberate adaptation to the white culture.
References
NBC Asian American. (2016). Where stereotypes about Asian-American men come from [Video]. NBC News.
Xu, Canwen. (2016). I am not your Asian stereotype [Video]. TEDx Talks.