The Cultural Connotation of Asians

Although the specific situation of Asian ethnic groups is different, the trend of cultural choice is generally consistent with that of Chinese, and they basically agree with the United States without hesitation. In the 1960s and 1970s, the situation reversed, that is, most Asian Americans advocated giving up the pursuit of American mainstream culture and establishing the real status of Asian American culture in American society by examining their social status and identity attributes in the United States. This change is a milestone, reflecting the profound awakening of pan-Asian ethnic consciousness in the United States, and it is a fruitful spiritual achievement achieved by all Asian Americans in a specific historical period. This paper will focus on the internal and external causes of the formation of pan-Asian ethnic consciousness, and explore the cultural significance of the title "Asian American". The formation of Pan-Asian national consciousness has a profound social and historical background.

The 1960s and 1970s

The international political forces have undergone a major reorganization, and a large number of newly independent countries have separated from the imperialist colonial system, forming a "third world". This new combination not only combats the arrogance of imperialism and colonialism, but also makes racial equality an internationally recognized norm, thus opening a new revolution in world history. This new phenomenon in the world has greatly inspired American intellectuals with the tradition of criticizing reality, and set off a massive "New Left Movement", "Anti-traditional Culture Movement" and the Black African-American People's Rights Movement at home, pointing directly at American domestic and foreign policies and social problems. Among them, two themes have attracted much attention, one is to demand racial equality, and the other is to oppose the Vietnam War. The powerful social thoughts formed by these movements have had an unprecedented impact on the current system in the United States.

In the fierce social turmoil, the research concept of American academic circles has also changed. Ethnic minorities, once neglected or marginalized social groups, have become an important part of historical research. "Black history, Asian history, Native American history, Hispanic history, female history, homosexual history and other fields are all prosperous." As a result, the status of ethnic minorities in American history has been emphasized as never before. During this period, the United States government promulgated and implemented a new (Immigration Law) (1965), abolishing the old system of racial origin and implementing the principle of priority under quota conditions. With the implementation of the bill, the number of Asian immigrants has surged, making the Asian team expand continuously; The quality of immigrants has been greatly improved, which has obviously strengthened the socio-economic status of Asians; The number of women among immigrants has greatly increased, making the gender ratio of Asians more balanced. This is undoubtedly a favorable opportunity for Asian Americans to oppose racial discrimination and strive for equal rights in society. Under the above background, Asian Americans who were silenced by the mainstream society joined the movement of questioning American society, culture and basic values in a positive attitude and unique way, although their pace was a little slow.

Anti-Vietnam War Movement

The invasion of Vietnam by the United States caused widespread anger among people of all ethnic groups in the United States. Many Asians believe that the essence of this war is racial discrimination and racial aggression by the United States against Asians. Moreover, "throughout the history of racists roaming the world, the current white colonial plunder war and the bloodshed of Asian people will not stop soon, but will drag on indefinitely." In view of the atrocities committed by the US military in Vietnam, more and more Asian American college students and high school students are shocked to realize: "The enemy that American soldiers aim at and shoot is an Asian with the same face as them." Therefore, when they took to the streets excitedly, they did not shout slogans such as "We want peace" and "Withdraw troops" like white protesters, but from their own perspective, they held high placards such as "Stop killing Asian brothers and sisters" and "Reject racial war" and shouted the same slogans in unison to participate in anti-war demonstrations. Obviously, they linked this war with their own racial oppression and began to believe that no matter how hard they tried, the fact that the mainstream society regarded Asians as Asians and outsiders would not change. This new understanding is conducive to the formation of pan-Asian national consciousness.

Black civil rights movement

The reason why Asian Americans actively participate in the movement of black people for civil rights is that they really feel that their identity and status are similar to those of black people. This movement "has brought us racial pride and self-esteem; At the same time, I realized: "There is an important connection between political struggle and brand-new identity, and … I have a new understanding of the meaning of being an Asian American"; There is a close relationship between the third world countries striving for economic, political and cultural independence and the American minorities striving for autonomy. The struggle of the people of the third world for national liberation is closely related to the struggle of American minorities for equal rights. "In addition, the Black Panthers' self-defense and the purpose of re-establishing equality for blacks also have a great influence on Asian students. Therefore, the civil rights movement can not be ignored in promoting the consciousness of pan-Asian ethnic groups.

Campus physical education

In the 1960s, Asian students from the University of California, Berkeley and San Francisco State University also launched a campaign for equal rights on campus. The incident originated from the fact that the school ignored the legitimate requirements of Asian students to reform the history curriculum, which led to the collective strike of Asian students. American colleges and universities generally implement an education system centered on Europe and the United States, completely ignoring the needs of ethnic groups, which is also a typical racial discrimination. Under this system, many Asian students know little about their ethnic history, and even as Chinese, they don't know the fact that they were forced to live in Chinatown. To this end, students often hold their own reports, such as the "yellow race identity conference" held in Berkeley campus, which respectively described the identity history of China and Japanese, the US policy toward Asia, the social structure and customs of Chinatown, etc. A student who heard this kind of report later recalled: "During the whole process of listening to the report, I nodded frequently and agreed with the speaker's words. For a moment, I suddenly realized that everything I experienced was racial discrimination. It was at that meeting that I found an accurate expression to express the feeling that had accumulated in my heart for a long time. Therefore, Asian students are eager for history curriculum reform. After being left out in the cold by the school, students began to doubt the real purpose of school education. Someone pointedly asked, "What does a degree from Berkeley mean to Asians? My uncle got an engineering degree from Berkeley in 1930s, but he eventually became the owner of a grocery store in Chinatown.

When the request to establish a "Third World College" was shelved again, Asian students were finally angered and joined the radical "Third World Liberation Front" one after another, and launched a tit-for-tat struggle with the school. 1In the autumn of 968, the students of San Francisco State University went on strike, which pushed the campus movement of Asian students to a climax. After more than five months' strike, in the spring of 1969, San Francisco State University established the first Asian-American department. Soon, the University of California, Berkeley, also opened a course on minority studies. By the early 1970s, Shu Qiao University in California and some universities on the East Coast also offered courses on Asian history, society and culture.

The Asian student movement centered on campus sports is one of the important symbols of the formation of pan-Asian ethnic consciousness, and its influence on American society and Asian groups cannot be underestimated. First of all, it changed the attitude of education and academic circles towards Asians, and made Asian studies and minority studies begin to occupy a place in the American university education system. Asian studies, a new discipline, has become a respected and respected field, which has played a role in the improvement, innovation and prosperity of American racial studies. Secondly, the Asian student movement changed the public opinion environment, making Asians silenced and erased in the late 1960s and heard and seen by the mainstream society. Although they are still on the edge of society, the inter-racial alliance has strengthened their strength, public opinion can no longer ignore their existence, and government decision-making departments have also improved their understanding and attention to Asians. Third, it is the cradle of the first generation of Asian American scholars and writers in the true sense of Asian American culture, history and literature. 1960, founded by the radical Asian intellectual elite of the University of California, Berkeley, links the "Asian American Political Alliance" all over the United States, which is a very active mass organization. At that time, it was the first time in American history that the concept of "Asian American" was formally put forward, and its great significance was obvious as the main actor of a political organization. It reflects the awakening of Asian national consciousness from at least the following aspects:

First of all, admitting that you are an "Asian American" rather than a "pure American" shows that Asians no longer follow the values of white Americans in cultural identity.

Rose Lee's "integration theory" put forward in 1950s really attracted the people of Asia at that time, which led them to pursue and practice their American dream crazily. (1) However, as Mary Uyematsu, a member of the alliance, pointed out: In the process of Americanization, Asians try their best to transform themselves into Americans both physically and psychologically. ..... They gave up their language, customs, history and cultural values to adapt to the white culture. But after these efforts, I found that I was not accepted by the mainstream society and was still discriminated against. So their "contempt for the eyes cast by white people" can only be a kind of "almost desperate inferiority and eternal confusion." Yuji Ichioka, the founder of the alliance, put it more thoroughly: Although Asians pretend to be white, imitate their actions and words, and try to be like them in almost every way, "but this is just a self-deception dream, which exacerbates their own identity crisis."

After such reflection, the majority of Asians deeply realize that the consciousness and culture of white people are beyond their power; We must abandon this unrealistic American identity and establish a new direction more suitable for our own characteristics. This change in understanding is the key to the formation of Pan-Asian national consciousness. Secondly, completely denying the derogatory terms such as "Oriental" shows that the awareness of racial equality among the majority of Asians has increased unprecedentedly.

Since Asians first landed on the North American continent, they have been nicknamed "Oriental". From generation to generation, discrimination is getting stronger and stronger. This title almost makes Asians live in a "cage" full of prejudice and restrictions, which poses a huge obstacle to their foothold and development in the United States. After 1965, although the number of Asian immigrants has been increasing, their quality has improved and their economy has improved, the mainstream society has not reduced their exclusion and discrimination. 1970 survey results show that among the Chinese known as "model ethnic minorities",% of college graduates work in restaurants, gift shops or grocery stores, and many college graduates can't find jobs, becoming typical "semi-unemployed"; Among men with bachelor's degrees, only 13 has a personal income of 1 10,000 dollars. 39%, while among white men with the same education, 27% have a personal income of $65.438+0.0000. 7%。 As far as women in China are concerned, incomplete employment is a common phenomenon; Even if they can find jobs, they mostly work as clerks, such as accountants, cashiers, secretaries, typists and file managers. According to statistics, more than 40% of female secretaries in China have a college degree, while most white women in this profession often have only a high school education. In California, 36% of Chinese female employees work as clerks or typists.

In this case, most Asians hate the title of "Oriental". But for a long time, I have been suffering from no solution and can only submit to humiliation. As a new concept, "Asian American" emphasizes the concept that "Asians are also Americans" that mainstream society has to admit, and then denies a series of names with obvious derogatory meanings such as "Oriental". The essence of this struggle around appellation lies in maintaining or opposing the existing racial discrimination, which reflects the new awakening of the racial equality consciousness of the majority of Asians. Third, different Asians are regarded as a whole, and they have the cognition of "American native third world", which transcends the single racial consciousness.

For a long time, there has been a lack of necessary links between Asian ethnic groups, and the anti-discrimination struggle has been going it alone. This situation has changed fundamentally since the end of the Indian era. Looking at the speech of the Alliance, no matter which specific ethnic group the author comes from, his basic position is the same, that is, he regards himself as a member of the Asian ethnic group and discusses the problem from this point. Roots:a Asian American Reader 1970 is a collection of essays published by Franklin Waldo, Mary Uyematsu, Ken Hannada and Maria Cheng, the core figures of the alliance, who come from different ethnic groups such as Japanese, Indian and China. This book expresses their common aspiration: "We have enriched the pockets of the rich Americans with hard work and taxes, but what we get in return is a life full of restrictions and discrimination without equal rights. Like the colonial people, this kind of life is considered reasonable, indisputable and unchangeable. Obviously, there are many similarities between the treatment of Asians in the United States and that in China. "DH (P24)" Many problems that plague the third world are also plaguing the United States of the third world. " [III (P225) It can be said that the same experience, social status and pursuit of equal rights of Asians have pushed the consciousness of Pan-Asian ethnic groups onto the historical stage of Asian Americans. The word "Asian-American" unites all Asian-Americans across countries, labels their identity and attributes as "unique", and enables them to know themselves from a new perspective, define themselves and explore the true meaning of being Asian-Americans.

In the late 1960s and early 1970s, a group of outstanding Asian writers began to emerge, and their works all discussed the issues of racial identity and cultural identity closely related to them. Qian Zhongshu, a Chinese American writer, is one of the most representative. After historical and cultural filtering, he accurately summarized the cultural connotation of "Asian American": "Asian American is not a ethnic group, but is composed of several ethnic groups such as Chinese, Japanese and Filipinos. Chinese and Japanese are separated from China and Japan by seven generations and four generations in geography, social culture and history respectively. They have evolved a very unique culture and emotion in this land of the United States, which is different from the characteristics of China and Japanese, and also different from the characteristics of white Americans. Even the Asian-American languages still used by Asian-Americans have been adjusted and developed into a unique language to express their new experiences. "

The term "Asian American" brings together all Asian descendants born in the United States with this name with strong political color, and brings together scattered Asian individuals with an unprecedented broad sense of Asian ethnic group collective. It hangs on the chest of all Asians born in the United States, just like a badge of honor and a beautiful trophy.