History of AAPI Discrimination

Diana Zhang and Angelina Xu
Apr 23, 2021
5 min read

“...Still they are forced to live in fear for their lives just walking down the streets in America. It’s wrong, it’s un-American and it must stop,” said President Joe Biden on his first primetime address to the United States, the country that seems “un-united” during the COVID-19 pandemic. From the “Black Lives Matter” protests to the increasing attacks on the Asian-American Pacific Islander (AAPI) community, the country had been divided in parts. Many people might decipher these events as an effect of the coronavirus.

These people would be wrong.

Well... they would be somewhat correct.

The public is ignorant of the fact that racism in its raw form had existed ever since the Europeans stepped foot onto foreign soil. Racism had changed over the course of time, but it never vanished. The constant racist accusations of the black community in law enforcements and the never-stopping discrimination against the AAPI community had always been around. These issues were only significantly addressed due to tragic events in the pandemic. What’s even more prominent, is that AAPIs had become the sacrificing lamb for people who blame this pandemic on certain countries in Asia. They had become targets for racist individuals who attacked Asian elders and children with centuries of racism. Hence, it is important to understand the dangers AAPI communities face, and to acknowledge the history of discrimination against AAPIs, especially East Asians, given that many attacks are specifically targeted to them.

In this article, the DAY NOVA editor team will introduce some historically significant events to the AAPI Community, specifically East Asians and Pacific Islanders as they’ve been constant victims of this hate pandemic.

Please be mindful that we are not trying to prioritize one race or ethnicity above another, these are simply historical facts.

The Chinese Community

During the times between 1750-1900, the European industrialization attracted people globally, especially the Southern Chinese communities. The first Chinese immigrants who first came to the US in large numbers were followers of the California gold rush. They were being hired in jobs such as agriculture and construction. But due to their hard working ethics and their enormous contributions to the United States, white Americans accused the Chinese of “stealing jobs”.

Hence, several white mobs stormed Chinatowns, where most Chinese lived to feel safe and at home. Often seen as the first Asian American hate crime in history, the Rock Springs Massacre aroused a string of hate crimes against Asian Americans. In the late 1800s, America embarked on a new endeavor- building a transcontinental railroad. As demand to find workers for the transcontinental railroad rose, an influx of Chinese workers came to Rock Springs, Wyoming. White miners in Rock Springs found themselves competing with the new Chinese railroad workers, who were willing to do the same work for lower wages. Tensions rose. One fateful day-September 2, 1885-gunshots rang out. Out of fear of losing their jobs, the white miners saw massacring hundreds of Chinese as the only opportunity.

Often seen as a turning point in Asian American hate crimes, the inextricable murder of Vincent Chin shed light on the harsh discrimination and brutal hate crimes against Asian Americans. The automotive industry was declining, and many placed the blame on the Japanese. Places like Detroit were hit especially hard as it was once seen as the car manufacturing capital of America. One fateful day-June 19, 1982-a Chinese American man named Vincent Chin was callously murdered by two white men who mistook him for Japanese. Chin was beaten to death by a baseball bat. The two murderers were only given a $3,000 fine and received no jail time. Vincent Chin’s murder left an indelible impression on the Asian American community.

Because of the public disdain and the systematic racism, the U.S. Congress decided to ban Chinese immigration through the Chinese exclusion act. This ban initially had a 10 year span, but was then extended until 1943.

In addition, about 225,000 Chinese laborers were sent to Cuba and Peru between 1847 and 1874 as indentured servants. This transformed the Chinese communities into replacements for slaves. They were paid minimum and worked in horrible conditions.

The Japanese Community

Because of the conflicts between Japan and the United States during World War II, President Roosevelt implemented Executive Order 9066 that impacted many minorities, especially Japanese Americans.

The American government distrusted and discriminated against the Japanese community by treating them as potential spies for Japan. Hours after Pearl Harbor in 1941, the FBI forced 1291 Japanese community and religious leaders into facilities in Montana, New Mexico, and North Dakota. They were unable to communicate with their close ones throughout the majority of the war.

People of Japanese descent in the state of Hawaii, along with Central American countries such as Mexico, were also arrested and sent to camps in mainland U.S.. Many more U.S.. states followed this action. Between Pearl Harbor and the end of WWII, approximately 120,000 Japanese Americans were held in internment camps, where they faced violence and terrible living conditions.

The Fillipino Community

During the early 20th century, the Philippines was one of the colonies of the United States. Because of pseudoscience-confirmed white supremacy and remaining imperialist ideologies, colonial officials claimed Fillipino insurgents illegal in American laws. In addition, they declared that “tropical diseases'' reside in Fillipino communities. Colonial scientists reviewed the Filipino people, as well as many Pacific Islanders, as a “contaminated” race. By capitalizing on these racist assertions, the U.S. justified their continued colonial presence in the Philippines as well as other islands.

“White Australia”

Due to indentured labor contracts, most Chinese people in Australia were laborers, convicts, or traders. Similar to the situation in the United States, the Chinese population in Australia especially grew during the gold rush period. Unfortunately, the parliament of the province of Victoria reacted the same way as the U.S. government - the parliament passed bills like the Immigration Act of 1855 that limited the number of Chinese immigrants in that particular area. What is more horrifying is during the 1860s, numerous white minors in New South Wales attacked Chinese miners, killing several and wounding many others. These incidents were also due to the overwhelming racism and the belief of immigrants stealing jobs.

In addition to hate crimes, law enforcement did not protect the Chinese community, but in fact harmed them further. Australia passed the Chinese immigration Regulation and Restriction Act in November of 1861. In addition, New South Wales also passed an influx of Chinese Restriction Acts which restricted Chinese immigration by adding entrance taxes.

From these events, we must understand that racism was not developed overnight, nor during the pandemic. However, we cannot ignore this anymore with the phrase “the past is the past''. Asian culture often places emphasis on conformity and obedience, but it is time to speak out about these issues that have cost many lives.