People demonstrate against anti-Asian violence and racism in Los Angeles on March 27, 2021. … [+]
Getty Images
President-elect Donald Trump’s first term has been tied to the start of the deadly global coronavirus pandemic and a surge in hate crimes against Asian Americans. However, a prominent China expert said Asian Americans, especially Chinese Americans, may face a new wave of racist threats in the new year for different reasons: increased pressure on U.S.-China relations, and Biden era’s crackdown on illegal immigration of Chinese people.
“We’re seeing a lot of discrimination against Chinese Americans and Asians,” said David J. Firestein, president and CEO of the Houston-based George H.W. Bush Foundation on U.S.-China Relations. “Unfortunately, I think we’re going to see an incredible increase in hostility among Americans, especially during the pandemic,” Fairstein said last month at a summit organized by the Chinese American Association in New York. trend in that direction. “
Hate crimes increased during Trump’s first term when he called the coronavirus the “Chinese virus,” a description the president said was not racist. Trump has been criticized for calling his former Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, whose family runs Foremost, one of the world’s largest private shipping companies, “Coco Chow.” Elaine Chao, the wife of US Senator Mitch McConnell, resigned the day after the January 6, 2021 chaos in the US capital. Asian American women serving in presidential cabinets.
“I’m proud to be one of the first U.S. nonprofit leaders to speak out about the way President Trump was talking about China and in the minds of Asian Americans at the time[duringtheCOVID-19pandemic]. For many — this was Tragic, disgraceful and beneath the dignity of the American presidency,” Fairstein said.
Suspicion of Chinese scholars in the U.S. during Trump’s first term had earlier stemmed from the China Initiative, which was designed to protect U.S. technology from theft; it was later derided by critics who said racial profiling had little effect and encouraged training in the U.S. Chinese scientists have returned to China, harming U.S. economic interests. Prominent Chinese billionaires leading U.S. technology companies include Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, Zoom founder Yuan Zheng and Yahoo co-founder Jerry Yang.
Billionaire Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is one of America’s most successful Chinese immigrants … [+]
Getty Images
A Pew Research Center report this year cited 2022 U.S. Census data showing that there are approximately 24 million Asian Americans in the United States, including 4.7 million Chinese Americans.
A survey released this year by the New York-based Committee of 100 showed that about two-thirds of Chinese Americans face at least one form of discrimination every month on average. Home Yo-Yo Jack Ma, Hang Lung Properties honorary chairman Chen Qizong and Golden Eagle International billionaire CEO Wang Jie.
Looking ahead after Trump’s Nov. 5 victory, President Joe Biden’s leadership has pledged to crack down on a wave of undocumented immigration, mostly from the Americas, with policies that will also target the relatively small number of mainland Chinese who arrived during the same period.
Citing sources close to the Trump campaign, the network said that “undocumented Chinese immigrants deemed to be of military age will be among the first groups targeted for deportation by the incoming Trump administration” because of their potential national security risks. risk. “The number of undocumented Chinese citizens crossing the north-south border tripled from fiscal 2022 to fiscal 2024, from more than 27,000 to more than 78,000,” NBC said.
Washington and Beijing currently face trade and tariff disputes, as well as geopolitical and military tensions involving the South China Sea and Taiwan. Trump nominated “China hawk” Marco Rubio as secretary of state in the new cabinet.
Fierstein noted, however, that portraying China as an outsize source of America’s problems could appeal to some U.S. politicians given Americans’ overwhelmingly negative views of the Asian country. Fierstein said that according to recent U.S. opinion polls, about 80% of Americans have a negative view of China, and about 50% believe that China is the biggest enemy of the United States.
Accepting and articulating “a hostile framework toward China allows candidates and incumbents for public office to appear tough,” he said. “It allows this person to bash their political opponents in primaries and general elections, calling them weak.”
“China is more valuable to the American political establishment as an unsolved problem than as a solved problem,” Fierstein added.
The Committee of 100 also found that about two-thirds of Chinese Americans face at least one form of discrimination every month on average. Many also experienced verbal abuse (27%) or physical threats or harassment (21%) on an average monthly basis, the report said.
David J. Firestein, President and CEO of the George H.W. Bush Foundation on U.S.-China Relations.
David Falstein
Fierstein’s team in Houston is named after former U.S. President George H.W. Bush, who earlier in his career served as director of the U.S. Liaison Office in China. Neil Bush, the third son of President Bush, serves as the founder and chairman of the board of directors, and Kara Hills, the U.S. Trade Representative of the Bush administration, serves as the honorary chairman. Fierstein’s previous positions include founding executive director of the China Public Policy Center at the University of Texas at Austin and diplomat from 1992 to 2010.
The Chinese American Association was established in New York in 1926. It is an American non-profit organization dedicated to promoting understanding of China.
‘Cheer up’: US business leaders in China during Trump 1.0 examine Trump 2.0
Despite tensions, General Atlantic chairman remains optimistic about China’s prospects
China’s most famous woman talks about her new book and corrects misinformation
U.S.-China politics undermines the fight against a common enemy: cancer (forbes.com)
