“The American path that has brought me here these past few weeks has definitely been…unexpected. But I’m no stranger to unexpected journeys. To my mother, Shyamala Harris, I’m unwavering. I had a dream of traveling from India to California.”
On the final night of the epic convention, Vice President Kamala Harris celebrated reaching the Democratic presidential nomination by unprecedented means and accepted the term with these words, while elevating her identity as the daughter of an Indian immigrant mother. He began his speech. .
For those of us who never imagined we might have an Asian American president in our lifetimes, this was an amazing moment — especially Donald Trump’s response to Harris’ biracial identity. Trump’s bizarre questions had greatly derailed the debate leading up to the convention. . Following President Trump’s claims that Harris had in the past only “promoted her Indian heritage” before deciding to “turn black,” some in the Asian community have criticized Harris for her mother. There were whispers of concern that he would be forced to downplay his lineage. She researched her ancestry, reaffirming her father’s Caribbean roots.
Never before in U.S. history have Asian Americans been considered prominent in this country’s political discourse.
That worry was unnecessary. Like most people of multiracial background, Ms. Harris has always proudly celebrated the birthright of Black and Asian people equally, and not one or the other, but both. And in the run-up to the convention, Black and Asian Americans celebrated with her. .
The Black Women for Harris Zoom call that shook the internet attracted 44,000 participants and raised $1.5 million in three hours. Three days later, an online South Asian Women for Harris rally headlined by U.S. representative Pramila Jayapal and actor-producer Mindy Kaling drew a crowd of 9,000, 150 more than its predecessor rally in the same period. It was equivalent to $1,000,000. This paved the way for a series of other Asian American events, packed with energetic and enthusiastic participants such as actor and comedian Ken Jeong, and the next online AANHPI Men for Kamala event. I appealed as follows. ”
The excitement that Chong and many Asian Americans feel about Harris’ rise to power is immeasurable. Because when it comes to the major organizations tracking elections, both figuratively and literally, polls don’t measure that.
For decades, a term has been used to refer to Asian Americans in election processes that begins with an O (no, not “Oriental”; yes, that’s that too). The word is “other,” as in the miscellaneous trash can. Pollsters populate their data samples with non-white, non-black, non-Latino figures, turning us into unidentified clippings taken from Democratic donkeys and Republican elephants, mysterious bulk filler for political sausage. It ends up.
Harris was sworn in as San Francisco District Attorney in 2004, succeeding her mother, Dr. Shyamala Gopalan Harris. Photo: George Nikitin/AP
In 1980, when Asian Americans were a small portion of the population and even less of the electorate, when Asian Americans made up 1.5% of the U.S. population, or about 3.7 million people, There may have been some meaning in lumping them together with other people who are different. , representing approximately 1 million registered voters.
But that was then. This is now. Asian Americans have consistently been the fastest growing racial or ethnic group in the United States in census counts over the past half century, currently accounting for 6.2% of the population, or 21 million people. , at least 15 million of whom are eligible. Vote. This is larger than the number of Latinos and black Americans eligible to vote in the United States in 1980. At the time, both groups had already been categorized in voter surveys and targeted by campaigns. And battleground states such as Pennsylvania (up 769% since 1980, to 612,567 people) and Georgia (up 2,246% since 1980, to 610,257 people) have seen rapid increases in their Asian populations. They are a significant floating electorate in key battleground states. In fact, an analysis by election consultant TargetSmart suggests that Joe Biden’s margin of victory in these states in 2020 may have been entirely due to a surge in Asian American voting.
But today, despite the growing influence of Asian American Democratic presidential candidates, Asian Americans remain “ostracized” in many major polls.
Pollsters were quick to point out language issues (three-quarters of Asian Americans speak English as fluently as the Latino population), difficulty finding willing respondents, and cultural sensitivity. They blame a lack of research and data tools. In reality, with the right investment and effort, all of these challenges can be easily solved. The fact that they almost didn’t comes down to one troubling truth. That is, Asian Americans have never in the history of the United States been considered prominent in this country’s political discourse.
You cannot be what you cannot see. But it’s not just about seeing, it’s about being seen
Of course, it’s an uphill battle to be considered “politically relevant” when you’re part of the only group that has been explicitly excluded from this country on the basis of race. The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 banned nonresident Chinese from entering the United States, and 35 years later that ban was extended to the “Asiatic Forbidden Zone,” which included most of Asia. This exclusion was a precursor to outright hostility. Throughout the 20th century, the United States faced conflicts with Asians, conducting military operations against enemy forces in Japan in the 40s, South Korea in the 50s, and Vietnam in the 60s and 70s, and then resurgence. waged an ugly trade war against Asian countries. Japan in the 70s and 80s, and the rapidly rising China of the 90s and 2000s.
Given that for most of this country’s modern history, Asians have been excluded as undesirables or vilified as enemies, it’s important to note that for most of this country’s modern history, Asians have been excluded as undesirables or denigrated as enemies. Even so, it is not surprising that many newcomers distanced themselves from politics and politics. They went on to pursue other careers in the spotlight, such as journalism and entertainment, and advised their descendants to do the same. The nail that sticks out gets hammered, they said. It is better to remain silent than to be scrutinized and found wanting. It’s better to be invisible than to be targeted. Many of us who have entered such careers have done so despite the skepticism and disapproval of our parents.
That was not the case with Kamala Harris. Her Jamaican father and Tamil Indian mother raised her among Oakland’s black activist community, instilling in her a passion for service through the example of her maternal grandfather, PV Gopalan. She was a lifelong administrator overseeing refugees. He worked in relief operations in Zambia and served as joint secretary to the Indian government in the 1960s. Together, they encouraged her to step into the public eye and embrace politics as a career from an early age.
Harris will appear on the final night of this month’s Democratic National Convention. Photo: Laura Brett/Zuma Press Wire/Rex/Shutterstock
And Harris’ example resonated widely, including with people who have made similar decisions to pursue high-profile jobs.
At the recent Asian American Journalists Association convention in Austin, Texas, St. Louis Post-Dispatch opinion columnist Aisha Sultan talked about how Harris’ ascension to the throne “gave her hope in a very dark time. ” he said.
“All of us Asian American journalists who have had to penetrate predominantly white neighborhoods know what she had to go through to get here,” she said. spoke. “So we know it’s possible, and now I’m absolutely going to make this a reality. I’m not going to accept anything other than President Harris.”
Sultan’s excitement was echoed by former ABC News producer Waliya Lari, now communications director for Pillars Fund, a nonprofit organization that aims to increase visibility for Muslim Americans. “The day after Harris became the nominee, I got very emotional,” she said. “I was happy to be able to say to my daughters, ‘Look at this.’ That’s someone just like you. They say you can’t be what you can’t see. Well, they’re seeing it now. I’m watching.”
Because for those of us who have always been American but have not been recognized as such, the elevation of an Asian American president means that pollsters, political activists, and policy makers alike are This is because it means that we need to acknowledge that we are no longer other people. And as Ken Jeong says, this is our moment. That’s because the first wave of a growing number of young voters is finally ready and eager to see an Asian American in the Oval Office. Data from the Asian American Foundation’s Status Index survey shows that 34% of Americans 65 and older feel “very comfortable” with an Asian American in the White House, while 45% feel “very comfortable” with an Asian American in the White House. Although only 42% of ~64-year-olds, a majority of older adults say 16-44 countries have been more prepared since Harris was elected vice president.
You cannot be what you cannot see. But it’s not just about seeing, it’s about being seen. And for the first time ever, on the biggest stage possible, in the brightest spotlight possible, we could finally be seen.
