As a Chinese person living in America, I heard the term “model minority” thrown around a lot. It was present everywhere; it was the “you’re Asian, you should be doing good in this class” and the expectation to excel more than others. Although it might seem that this type of mindset puts Asian Americans into a good light, as Viet Thanh Nguyen writes in his article’s title, “it creates inequality for all.” At its core, being a model minority is simply being the “desirable” and the “favored” person of color—no matter how untrue it is. This label is an extremely dangerous one for everyone because it is a scapegoat for every person of color, especially us as Asians. By using this model minority myth, it furthers the division between Asians and other people of color. By attempting to uplift Asian racial groups through this myth, it tears down other people of color by trying to show that some are better than others. This term does not serve the Asian Americans and it does not serve the other minority groups. Instead, it serves the white elites who would rather blame others for their own shortcomings.
When Nguyen writes that the end of Asian Americans will only come with the end of racism and capitalism, he really is talking about how the racial divisions will never truly leave. As long as America is a capitalist country, the never-ending cycle of using and exploiting Asians will not stop. When at high power, it is easy to blame those of lower power when problems occur. Due to racism, this duality is heightened, where people believe that they are above other racial groups when they truly aren’t. Thus, outside of the business world, this power dynamic between white people and people of color still exists through racism. Immigrants are not the reason for their jobs being taken. Capitalism allows for this competition to exist and businesses will always be overtaken by other businesses regardless of race. To blame the procedures of capitalism on foreign people is just complete racism which is why Nguyen does not allude to an end.
This essay doesn’t challenge any of my beliefs on minority groups in the U.S. but actually reinforces them. I understand that being placed under this model minority myth gives more privilege to us as Asian Americans than other minority groups in America. While we do go through our fair share of racial discriminations, it is truly incomparable to the perils that African American and Hispanic groups undergo. We have the privilege to turn our heads away from crimes done on other races because we don’t go through the multitude of struggles ourselves. Unfortunately, this is not a privilege that many minority groups have so that is why I find it even more important to exercise my voice against injustices and break out of this myth.
I agree that Asian Americans recieve more priveledges than other minority groups and that only helps reinforce the model minority myth. Many Asian Americans have yet to realize that the idea of the model minority is not necessarily indicative of their achievements as it is the system of American society. The idea of the model minority is to serve the white elite, not Asian Americans, who until they realize this, will continue to uphold the status quo.
I agree with the point that Asian American receive more privileges than African Americans and Hispanics, but I disagree with the point that the discriminations that they face are incomparable to those of African Americans and Hispanics. Their experiences may be different, but the ultimate effect that it may have on the community may be the same. Great writing!
When reading the article, I too noticed how the idea of model minority creates divide between people of color. You made a good point about how the term model minority is uplifting Asian Americans but at the same time, tearing down other people of color. I also agree that there can be different levels of racial discrimination. Just because there are different levels of discrimination doesn’t mean that one person’s experience is more valid than anyone else’s. Everyone’s experience will be different, so we need to take that into consideration when hearing everyone’s perspective. Well done!