Asian Privilege

The following statement was published by the National Association of Asian American Professionals Minnesota chapter.

Let’s start by acknowledging that there are levels of privilege amongst Asians. 

“Asian” representation has historically been associated with East Asians. These communities came to America largely for education, entrepreneurship, and opportunity. They are the academically-focused Asian Americans you find attending elite colleges and universities and climbing the ranks of management consulting firms, bulge bracket banks, and tech companies. But this perception is not entirely representative of the Asian communities it is used to describe.

There is an entire segment of the Asian community that does not have the same access to technology and after-school tutoring. Nor do they have Tiger parents to map out their achievement schedule from birth to college. Minnesota has the largest concentration of Hmong in America (second-largest by population, behind California) and many live in St Paul’s Frogtown neighborhood. Driving down University Avenue, there is a stark difference not just in demographics of residents, but also in what residents have access to. The difference is that one area is lined with organic grocery stores and yoga studios, while the other has a liquor store, a payday lender, and a church to make it all feel better. These differences can be seen reflected in health outcomes, too. The average life expectancy in Frogtown is 70, while just a few miles down the road the average is 83. (Wilder Foundation)

The same applies to all the other Southeast Asian refugee populations that have grown up in economically depressed parts of the country. It is unrealistic to hold these communities to the same model minority standards when they lack the same socioeconomic, cultural, and academic privileges. In order to progress as Asian Americans, we need to recognize that opportunities are not equal among us. Marginalized cultures also exist in this mislabeled bucket term.

Model Minority status is a privilege, but it is also a ceiling.

As Asian Americans, our lives are marked by achievement, steadily advancing by following the rules of the system. Our parents worked hard to give us these opportunities and doing anything less would be squandering their sacrifice. Good grades are expected. Getting into a name-brand college makes your parents happy. Landing a high paying stable job out of college brings honor to the family. Academic and professional achievement amongst Asians is higher than any other group, yet there is a stark absence of Asian American leaders in senior management. We serve as an example for other minority groups, of what they could be if they work hard, save more, and follow the rules. 

In exchange for some of the privileges of the majority, we’ve given up our voice. Our muted support for Black Lives Matter following George Floyd’s killing is a product of not wanting to be the “bad minority”, or “thugs” as some would call them. We have forgotten that the rights that our ancestors enjoyed as immigrants were a direct result of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, which stemmed directly from the civil rights movement. Being the ‘model minority’ keeps us focused on what we could lose, instead of what we can gain. Our privilege has created a generation of box-checkers that does as it is told, fears failure, and is content to be silent. 

It is time for us to understand that the model minority myth is meant to be divisive and subtly oppressive. We must push for rejection of the model minority as a goal, but leverage its privilege to advocate for change. In the end, this movement is about everyone. When we live in a country that values love and community support rather than racism at its core, we all will be stronger for it. We have a collective Asian American voice and we need to use it. 

Let’s take action and build community together.

NAAAP’s mission is to build the next generation of leaders, and we feel the need to lead by example. We are ready to have uncomfortable conversations about privilege, first with ourselves and then with our family, friends, and coworkers.  As leaders of the Asian American professional community in Minnesota, we commit to doing the following:

1. We’re dedicating the entire month of July to acknowledging and understanding privilege, admitting first that not all Asians have it and then figuring out what to do about it. We’ll spend the next month engaging other professional diversity and employee resource groups, listening, digesting, and truly understanding. We will release actionable next steps at the end of the month, after we better understand what we need to do.
2. We’ll be launching a Virtual Mentorship platform that gives each and every one of our members access to the stories of senior Asian American leaders who have succeeded in the workplace despite adversity. The platform will be available starting 7/7. 
3. We will move to diversify our executive team and board members to more accurately reflect the communities we serve in Minnesota. We will also ramp up support of all other Asian development groups, with the intent of leveraging NAAAP MN’s business and community relationships, programming, and mentors to accelerate talent development.