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South Asian Stereotypes in Film and Television

A video essay made by a film student compiling the South Asian roles presented in Hollywood throughout time, and the problematic nature of many stereotypes in film.

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Asian Representation in American Media | Visibility in Hollywood

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WHAT CAN WE DO ABOUT THE MYTH?

The first step is to be consciously aware of the existence of the Model minority myth, and how it negatively impacts Asian American communities. One must be cognisant of the ways the myth may manifest into daily life, and understand that it will present itself in multiple, covert, and overt ways (Raikes).

Be vigilant and notice where you might see the effects of the myth coming up in your environment

Second, becoming more knowledgeable and aware of the diverse demographics existing within the Asian American monolith will help to build distinctions between ethnically, religiously, and socio-economically differing groups – countering the overgeneralization of Asian Americans that the myth presents (Raikes).

Refer to Asian Americans by their specific ethnic affiliations, rather than calling them 'Asian' – Try using the classifications of East Asian, South Asian, Vietnamese American, Arab American, etc. more actively.

Educate yourself, and then educate others. Call out anti-Asian racism when you see it.

Listen and uplift Asian voices and stories. Encourage Asian Americans to speak on their experiences and don't undermine them.

As Asian Americans: encourage one another to have these conversations and work to unlearn these biases in the community. Work to break the stigma around mental health and open doors to more inclusive mental healthcare, as well as more encouragement, scholarship, and support for Asian Americans pursuing creative fields.

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A For Average, B For Bad: Behind The Model Minority Myth | NBC Asian America

Listen to Harvard alum Shannen Kim talk about how her academic success in academia is connected to her identity, and the way that the model minority myth has followed her throughout her life.

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Why is Never Have I Ever a Big Deal to the South Asian Community? | Video Essay

How the Netflix show, Never Have I Ever, portrays the effects of the Model Minority Myth on a young South Asian girl – and further, how it makes the girl ashamed of her own culture. The show represents the experiences of many South Asian Americans growing up in a society which perpetually paints Asian Americans as 'others.'

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SO, WHO REINFORCES THIS MYTH?

To be quite honest, most of us do.

(1) Asian Americans have deeply internalized the myth themselves

After facing some of the worst forms of xenophobia, significant fear was triggered within Asian American communities, and such sentiments encouraged them into acting as ‘model minorities.’ Staying out of trouble and working hard made achievement crucial to their existence – ultimately as a means of quiet assimilation into white American society (Sathian). Gaining high professional status allowed Asian Americans to be associated with labels such ‘doctor,’ rather than racial slurs – insulating immigrants from xenophobia by making them seem socially productive (Sathian). 

(2) Conservative, white Politicians

To predominantly white conservative politicians, a minority group rising to the highest median income in the country meant that all minorities, like Asian Americans, could be successful, if they only worked hard enough. Asian Americans' values allowed them to overcome such racism (Yu). Their promotion and continuous emphasis in media and political campaigning supported white Americans and conservative politicians’ claims that they were not racially biased, but simply emphasizing data trends which pointed to certain minorities lacking in work ethic and strong family dynamics (Sullivan). These assumptions, furthermore, supported conservative arguments against the need for social assistance in disadvantaged communities, and against the severity of racism.

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(4) THE MYTH ACTS AS A WEDGE BETWEEN MINORITIES

The Model Minority myth was originally created with the intent to use Asian Americans to target other minorities, and in this, undermines the effects of discrimation.  The myth originates in anti-Black racism, implies the existence of ‘problem minorities,’ keeps Asian Americans complacent in Civil Rights’ issues, and is used to justify a lack of political action addressing social issues in minority communities

Making Asian Americans a model implies that ‘problem minorities’ i.e Black and Hispanic Americans – should be looking up to the model minority (Wu 62).

When observing how Japanese Americans had gained success shortly after being released from internment camps, the question that arose was – why couldn’t Black Americans just do the same?

This idea ignores the fact that discrimination doesn’t always exist in the same forms nor in the same severities across all minorities.

The discrimination which Asians experienced in the United States is significantly different to that faced by African American communities (Wu 65).

Furthermore, the model minority myth was used as a tactic to divide Asian Americans from contributing to, or raising their voices for Civil Rights.

Asian Americans, who aimed to stay out of conflict to prove their American-ness, have been championed by conservative politicians and white Americans as ‘deserving’ and ‘hard-working’, simply to demean Black communities who were seen as a threat to a culture of white supremacy.

When Asian Americans are used as a wedge between ethnic minorities, they are further used to justify a gap in action, especially political action, in addressing racialized welfare issues in the United States

Asian Americans seemingly achieved financial and academically capable positions in the country, without any government assistance (Wu 63), and this claim is used to criticize social programs working to provide aid and assistance to other disenfranchised communities (Petterson).

In education and school reform policies, Asian Americans are evidence of conservative policies emphasizing accountability, merit, standards, and competition – countering policies which focus on social circumstances and opportunity distribution (Yu).

Politicians use Asians as an example to deny social welfare aiming to help racial minorities.

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(3) A MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS

With pressures both within and outside of the Asian American community to preserve the image of the model minority, Asian Americans are significantly less likely to seek professional help for low mental health, and often find mental health professionals to be culturally insensitive or ignorant.

Many studies indicate that the immense pressure placed upon Asian American students to live up to the expectations of representing a model minority correlates positively with poor mental health, and further, a massive avoidance of seeking professional help (Fuchs).

Suicide is the leading cause of death in those aged 20 to 24 (Murphy-Shigematsu et al.).

With Asian communities having internalized stereotypes associated with the myth, experiencing mental, emotional or academic struggles only heightens feelings of failure and the fear of upsetting the championed image of their communities convinces Asian Americans to avoid seeking help and damaging this representation. 

Because Asian Americans are unlikely to seek mental health help, professionals in mental healthcare don't see a problem in their lack of expertise in dealing with the impact of cultural and social stereotypes in such communities (Kim and Lee).

Healthcare professionals often find themselves perpetuating such stereotypes while being ill-versed in cultural competency and communities not sharing modern-Western individualistic values. 

This gap in healthcare cultural diversity discourages Asian Americans from seeking professional help, making them feel as though they are not capable of being understood (Smith).

The Model Minority Myth silences Asian American’s experiences with racism by whitewashing discrimination (Wu 69).

People simply don’t see the significance of Anti-Asian racism, for at the surface, it seems to have no effect on Asian opportunity, educational attainment, nor financial status.

"You Asians are still successful, so what are you complaining about?"

Racism and xenophobia that Asians experience is not seen as that big of a deal.

These ideas encourage Asians to avoid seeking help to address mental health problems in their communities, and in seeking to combat discrimination.

Families often continue to live with unaddressed trauma as a result of discrimination they face. 

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Clip from the American sitcom, Fresh Off the Boat giving a perfect example of how the model minority myth may manifest in practice.

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(2) THE ASIAN AMERICAN MONOLITH

Source: Krishnakumar, Nicole Chavez And Priya. “We Speak about Asian Americans as a Single Block. Here’s How Incredibly Complex They Are.” CNN, 6 May 2021, edition.cnn.com/2021/05/06/us/demographics-asian-americans-diversity/index.html.

The myth establishes an Asian American monolith, under which one demographic houses twenty-two million people, who hold a diversity of ethnicities originating from across all of Asia.

Includes both Indian Americans as the country’s highest median income group (“Indians in the U.S. Fact Sheet”) as well as Hmong refugees, with an alarming poverty rate of 28.3% that is almost double the national average (Nguyen). 

While Asian Americans may be the ethnic group with the country’s wealthiest population, it is also the group with the largest income disparity, making up a significant proportion of the country’s poorest populations as well (Raikes).

Focuses attention on the highest-earning Asians, and ignores the income equality in need to social or government assistance.

When refusing to acknowledge the demographic variety within the classifying term, one Asian American ethnic group is easily assumed to be representative of another.

After 9/11, the increasing hate crimes against Muslims, Sikhs, Middle Eastern, and South Asians is obvious evidence of the myth allowing such diverse demographics to be blurred into one (Zhou).

Empirically, the lack of representation within the Asian American classification presents consequences to data collection, and especially in medical research and assessments of various ethnic groups.

The ethnic diversity of Asian Americans means social and medical issues will manifest differently, however, most data collected on a national level considers Asian a specific enough ethnicity to investigate trends in ethnic groups. 

Collecting generalized data means that diversity is underrepresented in research, and significant enough data doesn’t exist to help address issues, especially health and medical issues in specific Asian American subgroups.

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(1) MODEL MINORITY MYTH IN THE WORKPLACE

Asians may be hardworking, well-educated, and smart – but are least likely to be promoted to managerial roles.

Because most research focuses on the high number of working Asians, diversity initiatives often ignore them, meaning companies fail to identify and appropriately address hardworking Asian American employees – making them invisible to career growth and leadership positions.

Asian Americans are 'othered' in the portrayal of them as calculating machines in their work ethic (Shah), encouraging workplace discrimination and social exclusion.

The robotic perception dehumanizes Asian Americans, reducing them to nerds who are logical, cold, and boring. Typically, they are seen as anti-social nerds with brilliant minds, yet remain outcasts and don't fit into 'normal' society.

Asian Americans become limited to technical roles, not creative ones.

Asian Americans may be able to be successful in STEM, however, they don't have the same ability in the arts, humanities, or social sciences – especially because these fields are seen to require bold, loud, and critical characteristics – all that Asian Americans are portrayed not to be.

The lack of guaranteed security in the humanities, arts, and social sciences means Asian Americans tend to look down upon them, and encourage one another to pursue more 'prestigious' and stable careers.

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Chow, Kat. “'Model Minority' Myth Again Used As A Racial Wedge Between Asians And Blacks.” NPR, NPR, 19 Apr. 2017, https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2017/04/19/524571669/model-minority-myth-again-used-as-a-racial-wedge-between-asians-and-blacks

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“I am not the model minority. Before I can talk about Asian American experiences at all, I have to kill off the model minority myth because the stereotype obscures many realities. I am an Asian American, but I am not good with computers. I cannot balance my checkbook, much less perform calculus in my head. I would like to fail in school, for no reason other than to cast off my freakish alter ego of geek and nerd. I am tempted to be very rude, just to demonstrate once and for all that I will not be excessively polite, bowing, smiling, and deferring. I am lazy and a loner, who would rather reform the law than obey it and who has no business skills. I yearn to be an artist, an athlete, a rebel, and above all, an ordinary person.” (Wu, 40)

~ Excerpt From: Yellow: Race in America Beyond Black and White, Frank Wu