A “model minority” refers to a person of color who is in a desirable spot on the social ladder, or as Nguyen refers to the concept: “the nonthreatening kind of person of color” (Time). They are safely ignored by the rich and successful until they can be used as a convenient scapegoat for issues they didn’t cause. This label is dangerous because this ‘acceptance’ is effectively a lie. It can’t change the fact that racism still exists and will be used as a tool to persecute people who don’t deserve it, even when it’s not obvious. Even if someone has lived in America their whole life, they will run into people who ask them to prove their loyalty to their country, motivated purely because they were born the wrong color. The Model Minority label serves corporations and politicians that want to use the vulnerable as steppingstones. They exploit the vulnerable to make the most profit they can, whatever it costs the public. The politicians know that the voters want easy ‘solutions’ that won’t fix complicated problems but instead appease the public desire to punish. The existence of the Asian American label is tied to that of racism and capitalism. The ‘need’ for such a label is based on racial inequality, thus the author is states that this label: “…should not exist in a land where everyone is equal…” (Time). If these things no longer existed, ‘Asian Americans’ and all who are labelled based on race in America would simply be referred to as ‘Americans’ as they always should have been. This essay challenges the idea that America is that perfect ‘Land of the Free’ that many Americans may blindly cling to. It shouldn’t be ignored that this country hasn’t always been led by the most moral people on Earth, and that the idea of it being called “the greatest country in the world” has no weight behind it when those who call it that have also never left the country to experience other countries.