How the ‘model minority’ myth harms Asian Americans

[Pelican Press 0]

How the ‘model *********’ myth harms ****** Americans

Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

May is

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

, a time when Americans celebrate the profound contributions of ****** Americans and Pacific Islanders—a group that is commonly abbreviated as AAPI—to U.S. society. It’s also a time to acknowledge the complexity of AAPI experience.

And as

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

, I think the focus on AAPI communities this month provides an excellent occasion to push back against a stereotype that has long

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

a diverse range of people: the myth of the “model *********.”

The term “

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

” first appeared in popular media in the 1960s to describe East Asians—primarily ********* and ******** Americans—as having high educational attainment, high family median income and low ****** rates. That label has since been applied to all AAPIs.

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

of native-born ****** Americans have heard of the “model *********” description. Among those who are familiar with it, 4 in 10 feel it is harmful.

Racially visible, in practice invisible

The narrative of the “model *********” portrays ****** Americans as uniformly successful and privileged. Yet the reality is far more complex. In reality, AAPIs encompass over

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

, yet are often lumped into a single category.

This obscures wealth and status disparities within the community. Income inequality among AAPIs is high, with more than 10 groups, including

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

, experiencing ******** at rates equal to or worse than the national average.

The myth of the model *********

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

of these underserved communities. It also perpetuates the harmful notion that AAPIs don’t need support or advocacy to address systemic inequities.

The myth also undermines AAPIs in the workplace. Research shows that the depiction of AAPIs as diligent and hardworking has burdened them with

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

. Unfortunately, their efforts often go unnoticed. Stereotypes portraying Asians as passive and unassertive also frequently lead to their talents

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

. Top executives in Fortune 500 companies of East ****** descent

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

than their non-****** counterparts.

AAPIs also often encounter unique barriers to upward mobility in the workplace—a phenomenon known as the “

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

.” They may struggle to align with stereotypical Western models of leadership, which include

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

, and are disproportionately

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

, particularly into upper-level management.

Forever foreign

Alongside the myth of the model *********, another related narrative holds that AAPIs are

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

—a manifestation of racism or xenophobia, where naturalized or even native-born Americans are viewed as outsiders because of their ******* or ******* background.

This myth has persisted despite generations of assimilation. Asians have often been viewed as outsiders since their arrival on ********* shores in the mid-19th century, labeled under the broad umbrella of “Orientals” and subjected to

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

.

As a result, AAPIs often face

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

about their origins, such as “Where are you really from?” and “Your English is really good.” These and similar microaggressions can lead AAPIs to grapple with a sense of otherness that undermines their

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

at work and beyond.

The belief that AAPIs are America’s “other”—compounded by historical prejudices such as the “yellow peril” and contemporary scapegoating during events such as the COVID-19 pandemic—

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

. This poses a real and immediate threat to the safety and well-being of AAPI individuals and communities.

Time for a post-model-********* narrative

The model ********* narrative not only implicitly denies remedies to systemic discrimination, but it also harms other marginalized and oppressed groups. It implicitly suggests that non-Asians and non-****** Americans cannot be considered model minorities.

Successful AAPIs are often presented as examples of what’s possible through hard work and grit—which masks the

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

they, like other people of ******, must overcome to succeed. This, in effect, pits different ******* groups

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

.

This ****** Heritage Month—and all year round—I hope people can embrace a more inclusive and nuanced understanding of AAPI experiences. A

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

to do this include amplifying the voices of underrepresented AAPI communities, challenging stereotypes and advocating for policies that address the systemic inequities faced by all marginalized groups.

And instead of

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

in terms of elite credentials and earning power, Americans might want to consider celebrating more

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

, too.

Provided by
The Conversation

This article is republished from

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

under a Creative Commons license. Read the

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

.

Citation:
How the ‘model *********’ myth harms ****** Americans (2024, May 29)
retrieved 29 May 2024
from

This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no
part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

Science, Physics News, Science news, Technology News, Physics, Materials, Nanotech, Technology, Science
#model #********* #myth #harms #****** #Americans

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

For verified travel tips and real support, visit: https://hopzone.eu/