Just look at all of the important historical events involving Asian Americans that took place in May:
May 7, 1843 Arrival of the first Japanese immigrants to the U.S.
May 10, 1869 The completion of the Transnational Railroad, in which the majority of the workforce were Chinese laborers. This marks the 150th Anniversary of the celebration of the railroad’s completion.
May 6, 1882 The Chinese Exclusion Act was signed by the U.S. government to exclude all immigration of Chinese laborers. This was the first U.S. law affecting immigration.With their largest source of labor cut off, railroads began recruiting laborers from Japan and Korea. Japanese and Koreans were soon excluded under the Chinese Exclusion Act.
May 26, 1924 The Immigration Act of 1924 limited the number of immigrants based on a national origins quota. The law was signed to completely exclude immigrants from Asia under the Asian Exclusion Act.
Yes, it is a good time to remember how Asians contributed to this country, even though they were not welcomed as residents or citizens. Asians are the majority of people on the globe, but they are only a small minority group in America. While 60% of the global population is Asian, Asians are only 5.6% of the US population. After the long history of legal discrimination against Asian Americans, we have rebounded by becoming the fastest growing racial group in the U.S.!
Minnesota, where I live, is a home for many new immigrants from Asia. The Asian American population is only 4.6% of the total population, whereas more than 85% are white. Among Asian Americans, the Hmong American community has been active in the political arena to be advocates for Southeast Asian Americans and others. The capital city where I live has the biggest number of Asians in the state: about 18%. By 2045 St. Paul will be one of the minority majority American cities, with a strong presence of Asians.
America is a country of diverse people. If we can’t adapt to change, we will repeat our unwanted history. Harvard and other universities are trying to modify the admission requirements to limit the increasing Asian student population. Exclusion or Flexibility? Which one is the best solution in our global era?