Racist Attitudes Are Not Solely a White Affliction

I found Unraveling the “Model Minority” Stereotype fascinating. Though logically I know that not all immigrants from Asia are the same, I had falsely assumed that Asian American was an appropriate term. At the beginning of the novel, Lee describes how she was unaware of the cliques that existed and how many of the teachers are the school were still unaware of the student’s preference: “…several teachers informed me that the Asian American students had split themselves into two groups: Koreans in one and all other Asians in another” (Lee 667). Lee discovered that there were actually four distinct groups: Korean-identified, Asian-identified, Asian American-identified, and New Wave Asian-identified. By spending time immersing herself in the students’ lives, she is able to see that they do not see themselves the way others do. It was disappointing that the teachers at Academic High did not spend enough time with their students to realize that they identified themselves differently than society identified them.

I found the mentalities behind each identity to be the most interesting element of the novel. The Korean-identified students placed themselves above all other Asian students and certain non-Asian students: “Underlying conversations regarding Korean difference and superiority was a conversation about social class” (Lee 707). I found it shocking that Koreans wanted to distance themselves so much from other Asians and anyone who were perceived as a lower class. They were deeply averse to anyone who was on public assistance or welfare as if it was a contagious disease. They frequently expressed elitist attitudes about who they deemed worthy enough to include in their social circles or even conversations. They purposely sought out relationships with white students so that they could learn and imitate their behavior. Their parents encouraged them to become assimilated and to climb the ladder of social class through success.

The Korean-identified students’ attitudes made me realize that the stereotypes and racist attitudes do not solely exist outside of a targeted group. Even among ethnically linked groups there is racism and damaging attitudes that promote the continuation of hurtful stereotypes. The Korean-identified students promoted the model minority stereotype because they believed it gave them an edge in American society. This attitude may have been perpetuated from their parents and the fact that most Korean immigrants come from wealthy or educated backgrounds. Each group had a specific attitude toward the other Asian groups. Some were racist or stereotypical attitudes while others were supportive. More often than not, the damaging attitudes persist between groups while the supportive attitudes disintegrate.