What does it mean to be Asian-American in the US?
When considering the current understanding and experience of Asians and Asian-Americans in the United States, we must first turn to examine the history that spans from before the establishment of the US until now and shows the movement of people, ideas, and the impact of capitalism, colonization, imperialism, and orientalism. While Asian-Americans are lumped into one group and seen as a monolith, this group is filled with individuals of diverse and distinct backgrounds, languages, religions, cultures, ideologies, and histories.
The first known Asians to the Americas were from the Philippines and were slaves, sailors, and servants brought to New Spain which was colonial Mexico. Later, “coolies” or indentured laborers of Chinese and South Asian origin were kidnapped and forced to be part of the “transatlantic world of settler colonialism”. Their stories are crucial to the discussion of the historiography of modern societies and the use of bodies in creating in the Americas as we know it today.
In order to understand the later nineteenth and then twentieth century migration of Asians to the Americas, we must also see the diversity in patterns, perspectives and experiences. Some came for work or studies, others for freedom from state violence and challenges, some were influenced by the growing presence of the United States within Asia. This has led to adaptive living, transnational relationships, and supported the reconstitution of what it means to be American along with other immigrant experiences.
Today, Asian-Americans are the fastest growing group in America and have created communities all over the nation. They have been integral to the growth of the United States that many benefit from. However, many people are unaware of this history and have sustained the misconceptions and prejudice that has been part of Asian experience in the Americas, like many people of color. For Asian-Americans, there is always a perception of “otherness” and their American-ness is often disqualified based on appearance. This intersection of Asian and American is important to conversation of the complexities of identity and labels.
These experiences are not only Asian, but should be included within the discourse of “American History” and must be reflected in our understanding of gender, race, identity, relationships, economics, law, and more that is attributed to the study of the United States. In the next few reflections, we will break down the history and identity of Asians and Asian-Americans in the United States and explore the individual stories and experiences. This will then allow us to look closer at the Asian-American presence in Arkansas.
This project also wants to acknowledge that the term AAPI or Asian American and Pacific Islander (as well as AANHPI Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander or Asian Pacific Islander)has been used since the 1970s and May was set as AAPI Heritage Month in the US. This has been a way to explore the shared experiences of communities from both regions and within the US with histories and present experiences that are rich in culture, tradition, and diversity, but also heavily impacted by pain, western imperialism, colonization, and stolen land. However, the argument stands that just within the label of “Asian-American” there are diverse narratives, peoples, experiences, and histories which even within this group are often excluded from the Asian-American conversation. When considered in the context of AAPI, we see an erasure and exclusion of the Native Hawaiian and Pacific Island community with this lumped-together label that does not allow for individual awareness. It also prevents the NH/PI community from being uplifted through their own platform and perpetuates confusion surrounding the separate experiences of diverse NH/PI groups while minimizing awareness on the issues that they face. In this way, this project will seek to uplift spaces and platforms that are giving voice to the Native Hawaiian and Pacific Island communities and support cross-cultural dialogue through allyship rather than lumping in lived experiences and overshadowing.
Check out the resources used for this post and more resources to keep learning:
They’re Asian. They’re American. But, They Wonder, Are They Asian American? by Amy Qin
A Part and Apart: Asian American and Immigration History by Erika Lee
Asia in Arkansas 
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