How The Model Minority Myth Keeps Asian Americans Out Of Management
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Published 2021-05-01
Many of these ideas are because of the model minority myth—a set of assumptions about Asian American achievement and behavior that have held Asian Americans back from equal opportunity in academia, the workforce, and necessary government welfare. However, the perception of overachievement also leaves Asian Americans out of important equity conversations and suppresses their career growth.
In recent years, Asian representation among college students and in executive leadership has come under scrutiny. According to studies, nearly 60% of Asian Americans go to college. After school, they comprise 13% of working professionals but just 6% of executive leadership.
So is the career suppression of Asian Americans a hidden form of racism? If not, why exactly have Asian Americans been underrepresented in management roles, and what can we do about it?
For many years, anti-Asian biases and discrimination have largely gone unacknowledged. Until now, as the nation takes a closer look at the origins of discrimination in a climate of racial reckonings and increased violence.
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In some ways, Quincy Surasmith says he didn’t feel like an outsider growing up. Surasmith, who is Thai- and Chinese-American, was raised in a part of L.A. that had a large Asian American community.
But while Surasmith excelled in his early school days, by high school, his grades were slipping. He was engaged in class and tested well, but he stopped completing his homework and his GPA suffered.
“I almost flunked out,” Surasmith says, “and [teachers] didn’t have an answer for that. They were like, well, why wouldn’t you want to achieve?”
What teachers didn’t consider was that, because of disruptions at home during his parents’ divorce, filling out extra worksheets after school wasn’t exactly his priority.
Additionally, “it was expected of us or assumed of us that we were kids who had parents who had steady incomes and access to money for extracurricular activities or prep classes, or even just having like a car to get to places,” Surasmith says. “But I know I didn’t necessarily have all those things.”
Surasmith’s experience is just one of countless examples of how Asian Americans have been subject to the model minority myth — a set of assumptions that Asian Americans are hardworking overachievers who have made it to the highest levels of success. By positioning Asians as the model minority race, it also assumes that Asians don’t need any help, and don’t require any further examination of how their race is discriminated against.
But these assumptions are just that, and the consequences of the stereotype go beyond the classroom.
“By grouping all the Asian Americans together and assuming all of them will do well just because you’ve measured them as a group, you end up ignoring the people who might not fit into that,” Surasmith says.
For decades, the model minority myth has kept Asian Americans out of important equity conversations and held members of the community back from equal opportunity in academia, the workforce and necessary government welfare.
The origins and consequences of the model minority myth
The term “model minority” was first coined in the 1960s by sociologist William Petersen for a New York Times Magazine article. It was used to describe the so-called “success stories” of some Japanese American families, who during World War II were forced into internment or pushed to enlist in the military as a means to prove their patriotism, yet were able to rebuild and reintegrate into society after the war.
Ellen Wu, an associate professor of history at Indiana University Bloomington, links this portrayal to essentially a rebranding effort as the U.S. rose to become a global super power. If America was truly the land of democracy and equal opportunity, U.S. leaders had to show that immigrants could overcome anything, even racist and exclusionary policies, to succeed here.
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How The Model Minority Myth Keeps Asian Americans Out Of Management
All Comments (21)
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It’s crazy how different races and ethnicities have different myths associated with them. I grew up envying how people automatically assumed intelligence + hard work with Asians but assumed the very opposite for me (black women). As I’ve grown up and even watching this I’ve seen how both (and all assumptions) are just SO DANGEROUS
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Keep in mind that India and China have lower literacy rates than the U.S. There's nothing that makes Asians inherently smarter; it's just that the Asians who immigrate to the U.S. generally work in high-skilled jobs which required college degrees.
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I grew up thinking how lucky Asians were to have such positive stereotypes. Being Black an always an over achiever, I worked so hard to disprove the negative stereotypes of African Americans. I never thought of how damaging all stereotypes are to all minorities. Very interesting.
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For all those that keep saying "I can't believe asians are upset they have positive stereotypes." Did you not watch the video? These are only seemingly positive. It doubles down against asians that don't fit into the stereotype. Asians are not a monolith. We all do not have the same cultures and values. You can't stereotype people from over 20 very diverse countries holding over a billion people anymore than any other race. When an Asian doesn't perform, they are shamed, told to just do better, and lack access to help and benefits. So many Asian groups aren't even counted due to lack of funding to address language barriers and they are terribly misleading. Asian poor are some of the poorest in the country. We have some of the largest pay gaps of ethnic minority groups. And when people tell all asians to shut up and appreciate a stereotype they don't fit into, there's also no awareness of how big the issue is. "The misperception that Asians “are doing fine” is damaging. In fact, income inequality in the U.S. is greatest among Asians, who displaced Blacks as the country’s most economically divided racial group, according to Pew Research Center in 2018. Asians at the top of the economic pyramid are doing well, but many people at the very large base are not." https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/its-a-myth-that-asian-americans-are-doing-well-in-the-pandemic/ https://www.urban.org/urban-wire/asian-americans-are-falling-through-cracks-data-representation-and-social-services It's assumed that because all Asians are the model minority, none of them need help, so almost none is provided. How is that not dangerous?
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Happy Asian American Pacific Islander History Month!! 🥳🙌🏼 Thank you for covering how harmful the model minority stereotype is or can be. As hard as 2020-2021 has been with rising asian hate crimes, I'm focusing on the fact that more attention is being given to hearing our perspectives in media and seeing more Asian representation in pop culture. Illinois is actually the first state to pass legislation requiring teaching Asian American history starting in the 2022-2023 school year.
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Yup. All of this. Last month I interviewed for a VP position at a company. Looking at the website, I could see that their leadership team was a sea of white faces. I interviewed so well on the phone, that they advanced me to the next round of interviews to be conducted via Zoom. Well, despite my non-ethnic-sounding name, they could now see my big Asian face during these Zoom meetings. A couple of weeks later, my headhunter calls me to tell me that the company felt "I wasn't the right fit" for the position. Hmm... I wonder why...
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The model minority myth is dangerous... there are marginalized in the “Asian” categorization. I’m “Asian” but Filipinos differ culturally from say East Asians or even south and south East Asians but we are clumped into the model minority. Essentially breaking the rules of being Asian. Thank you for talking about this topic!
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Asians - if you're held back by the bamboo ceiling, look elsewhere. Build a skillset that makes you indispensible and easily transferrable. In fact, even if you're comfy with your job, keep looking for new ones/freelancing/setting up your own business. Sell yourself all the time - your business skills, your technical skills, your interpersonal skills. Keep pushing, keep seeking more. I know a couple of Asians who rapidly went up the technical promotions, but just stayed there - they then made a startup, and in a few years, they were headhunted by corps to be on their board. Never assume the only route is to work your way up the same company. Whenever you face an obstacle, find ways around it or through it.
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I had a horrible time in math, yet they kept putting me in advanced math classes. WTH? I dropped my science class Senior year. My teacher said I'd regret it. Turns out, I"m good at social sciences and arts. Go figure.
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I know a guy here in Switzerland, the company he used to work for, hired a Chinese American man as their team leader. The guy move from American to Switzerland. According to him, the Asian American manager has done some really successful projects back in the U.S and that’s why the company hired him. The whole team despised the idea that the company hired an Asian man to manage their project, which spiked an unprecedented resignation. Many people straight up quit their job.
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When Mr. Buck Gee mentioned that we have been taught to be humble and not ask for promotion, it hit the nail on the head, which is the main reason I conducted research on 473 Filipino-Americans, confirming that our culture clashes with assertiveness. As a result, I have begun speaking to audiences about respectful assertiveness, a strategy that allows us to be FIRM yet still calm and dignified in our message. I would love to speak to any group that is interested! This is so needed. As Mr. Gee said, we need to recognize the problem and be open to learning new skills. We hear you, Mr. Gee, loud and clear! Thank you for this video, #CNBC! #CNBCMakeIt
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As a Burmese, it hit right on the mark as my mom makes about $40,000 a year. For us, alot of people don't even know where Myanmar when they ask us "Are you Chinese? Korean"" when we're not.
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As an "Asian" living in Asia, I am just "flabbergasted" on how US categorized 60% of world population in one single category. Even in China or India, different cities and regions speak different languages, embrace different cultures/values... The Pakistanis in South Asia, have nothing in common with Koreans in East Asia... lol.
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“You’re one of us but you’re not” so true
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I relate to this soooo much and yet I’m an Asian in Europe
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I can tell y’all did not watch the video before commenting
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It just goes to show, good or bad stereotype, you could work your but off, doesn't automatically mean access to success, opportunity or even a seat at the table as many of us had hoped. It's not even about who you know, if who you know doesn't like you *on sight*.
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Glad this subject was brought up. I’ve read and learned about it for a while now since college, but this is the first time I see it made in a video.
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Students: You were born good at math. Me: I have 2 learning disabilities, so I had to work hard for my grades.
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“Grouping all together” under a stereotype…..sounds very familiar 🤔.
