THE PAN-ETHNIC IDENTITY CRISIS: FILIPINO-AMERICANS AND ETHNIC IDENTITY
By: Edward Berdan
Tags: Asian American, Filipino

In the article entitled, “Am I Really Asian?” Anthony Ocampo addresses a question that I too have long asked myself. Being a Filipino-American, I have always tussled with the question of identifying myself as a Filipino-American or an Asian-American (and even a Pacific-Islander for that matter). The general fragmentation found within the Asian-American community, especially within the Filipino-American community, is a significant obstacle for the Asian-American community needs to address to become a more effective voting bloc and thus more politically influential. However, Filipino-Americans are also asking themselves about how they should identify themselves. To associate a Filipino-American as an Asian-American is easier said than done. There are many factors on the side of the Filipino-American community that contributes to the issue of an association with the pan-ethnic label of Asian-American.

One story that was part of the article’s introduction was the story of Aaron. His story is one that many Filipino-Americans have encountered, myself included. It grapples with the issue of inter-Asian stereotypes that we hold in the various Asian-American communities (I’ll use the term “Asian-American communities to denote the overarching Asian-American population as a whole). Within the introduction, Ocampo states the following:

Although Filipinos are the largest Asian American population in California, they are far outnumbered by East Asians within the larger UC system. Besides this gap in representation, Aaron noted that the respective stereotypes he heard about Filipinos and other Asians differed. Asians were stereotyped as studious science majors, while Filipinos were more inclined towards liberal arts fields and were comparably less focused on their academics. (2013, p. 295).

This highlights what Ocampo states as a “…close (though problematic) association between Asian American identity and educational achievement.” (2013, p. 295). The issue of perception, and of what constitutes what exactly is an “Asian-American”, is most likely at the root of this neglected problem.

Traditional understanding of immigrant incorporation was, per Ocampo, identity (2013, p. 296). He also points out another important facet on the topic of identity: “Identity choices are not mutually exclusive, as identity is multilayered. Children of immigrants often switch seamlessly and imprecisely among ethnic, pan-ethnic, and pan-minority categories. However, the degree to which these identities resonate varies greatly.” (Ocampo, 2013, p. 297). The suggestion of identity and various experiences related to identity formation can’t necessarily be a singular casual factor for immigrant incorporation. We can also introduce the factor of more contemporary immigrants, in which Ocampo states that “…they cannot necessarily be applied to the identity experiences of contemporary immigrants and their children, who overwhelmingly hail from societies in Latin America and Asian and lack the white racial privilege necessary to identify as ‘unhyphenated’ Americans” (2013, p. 297).

The idea of “unhyphenated Americans” is a very important factor that tends to be overlooked as well. The idea that a stereotypical stigma around those who are from areas of Latin American or Asia (or ethnically identify as such) is a crux that inhibits an immigrant from full integration into our society. This could explain reasons why immigrants tend to self-segregate into communities of similar ethnic backgrounds. Additionally, Ocampo points out that “…identification with the ethnic community facilitates access to important cultural, social, and economic resources that lead to upward mobility and offset the negative effects of racial discrimination.” (2013, p. 297). The lingering issue being an “unhyphenated American” does place an unwritten negative externality on the immigrant or ethnic communities who must grapple with it.

So, as we can see, many factors contribute to the overall stereotype that affects the immigrant and ethnic communities. But where does this play a role in the dilemma of Filipino-American’s hesitation to pan-ethnically identify as Asian-American? It boils down to the more specific instances of what Ocampo determines to be “…implicit ‘rules’ of pan ethnic membership that are used, often unconsciously, to decipher the boundaries of community belonging.” (2013, p. 298). Another factor that contributes to the separation of the Filipino-American identity and the Asian-American identity is the perception of a common culture. Ocampo, in this regard, states that “…studies show that most people-whether of Asian descent or not-perceive Asian Americans to share a ‘common culture’, which is often conflated with East Asian American experiences.” (2013, p. 298).

This issue of implicit perception on both the Asian-American community at-large and the communities themselves is also present within the context of education (as shown in Aaron’s story). The issue of implicit perception finds form within another problem dealing with the Asian-American community: the model minority stereotype. Historically, Ocampo states that the model minority stereotype was “…a neoconservative strategy to dispel claims of racial discrimination…” (2013, p. 299). This perception has led many people to believe that Asian-Americans are intellectually-gifted or simply an academic whiz (Ocampo, 2013, p. 299). However, the more important takeaway from this is that the model minority stereotype “…serves as a litmus test to set boundaries for who is ‘authentically’ Asian American.” (Ocampo, 2013, p. 299).

But what many who use this flawed methodology fail to realize is the significance of each ethnic community’s take on education, how education is interpreted within each community, and the narrative of education within each ethnic community. Not all specific ethnicities within the Asian-American community interpret and apply educational principles similarly. Although, this argument can be found in the broader contexts of a generalized population. To think that an ethnicity would follow a pattern because of their ethnic identity is flawed. And this is where we find a sort of disconnect between the pan-ethnic Asian-American label and the Filipino-American label. It’s not necessarily education per se, but the interpretation of education helps explain the issue in a more relatable fashion. The stereotype of Asian-Americans is of studious, academic achievement. While Filipino-Americans (any many other ethnicities) believe in a strong education and educational achievement, it’s the implicit action of becoming relegated because they are different from the stereotype that promotes that disconnect.