From: webihara@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (Wataru Ebihara)
Subject: Re: What is Asian ?
Organization: The Ohio State University
Date: Sat, 7 Nov 1992 17:02:50 GMT


(vallamn@ucbeh.san.uc.edu):

> You are right in that the way the notion of race is perceived is
> an important factor in inhibiting generalizations ( such as all
> people from Asia being referred to as Asians ).  This is also
> probably the reason why Indians feel they are different from
> East Asians.  Indians are still considered foreigners, even
> if they are citizens, as they have not been around for a *long*
> time.  This is because the Indians refuse to be identified as
> anything other than an Indian.  So when there is an asian american
> newsgroup with all-oriental( please, no offence intended ) posters,
> the Indian obviously feels that there is nothing he has to say
> in a *different kind of* asian newsgroup.
> 
> 
> Nalini Mohan Vallampati
> University of Cincinnati
> Cincinnati, OH 45219

I have to agree that as I read thru this newsgroup, the focus
seems to be primarily on people from East Asian ethnic
backgrounds. And in the context of the world, I guess, there
shouldn't be any reason for any Asian to feel a nationalistic
sense for any other country than the one where they originally
grew up and lived.  And it's probably the same with European,
Africans, etc...  I guess, for me, since I grew up in the U.S.,
my ties to Asia are more a search for my cultural roots, rather
than any national or racial sense.

I think the catagory "Asian American" is strictly an "American"
convenience, since many people tend to think in catagories.  We
need some political unity in this country to have at least "some"
kind of voice to acknowledge our issues.  Right now, if you take
all Asian American ethnic groups separately, each will be too
small to have much impact to make a difference.

Some of the common issues deal with assimilation (since many
Asians are new immigrants) -- the adjustments new immigrant
families need to make to be sucessful in the U.S..  Since most
people of Asian backgrounds are "non-white" minorities in this
culture, there are issues of racism, stereotypes and prejudice
that we need to deal with. Also since many Asians are from "third
world" traditional cultures, Asians also seem to be linked with
a similar attitude toward things like education, work, and family
relations.  Sometimes they conflict with those in mainstream
American society.

I guess, for me, since I'm third-generation (Japanese American),
I've never really felt that distant from Indian Americans.  Might
be mostly from the minority, immigrant background, and non-white
status. I guess, when I was young and growing up in Ohio, the
Indian family and their kids who lived down the street seemed
like one of the few minorities around.  Seems like we might have
had similar needs to search out an American identity in a land
where Asians are not always an accepted part of a mainstream
America. (We need to change the perception of an "American" to 
include more diversity besides "white".)

I think some of the controversy centers around whether "Asians"
are lumped together by physical appearance (non-white) or whether
Asians are linked by very unspecific "Asian" culture. For me
personally, when you take away the barriers of language and
nationality, I've always felt the "intuitive" cultural link to be
stronger. I think part of it might be the influence of various
Eastern philosophies like Buddhism which spread from India
through most of Asia, or it could be the "third world" nature of
many Asian countries, or maybe the experience of many immigrant
Asians with some form of Western colonialism.  I don't really know.

As with things in life dealing with relations among people,
there are many overlapping circles which either bring people
together or pull them apart.  I hope there will be more things to
bring "all" people together.

Wataru