The murder of six Asian women by an Atlanta gunman shocked many Americans. However, not one of the Asian Americans I spoke to in the aftermath of the attack was surprised. They all expected something like this to happen because it was clear that hate crimes against Asian Americans had been increasing exponentially over the past year. Leaders have continued to fuel the fire without many consequences.
Despite this clear and devastating trend, there had been very little media coverage of Asian hate crimes until recently. This stems from a long history of anti-Asian discrimination in American culture. In 1882, the first and only law restricting immigration based purely on nationality was introduced with the Chinese Exclusion Act. During WWII, Japanese Americans were sent to internment camps just for having Japanese heritage, despite two-thirds of those individuals being born in the U.S., with many never even having been to Japan. This long history of being systemically excluded in America has led to the silencing of Asian voices.
Another common stereotype about the Asian American community is the myth of the “model minority.” This has long been propagated under the impression that it should be considered a compliment, that it should be a measure of pride. The dark reality is that this myth was created to pit Asians against other minority groups and create a hypothetical hierarchy of minority groups, with whites at the top. As Cathy Park Hong wrote, “When I hear the phrase ‘Asians are next in line to be white,’ I replace the word ‘white’ with ‘disappear.’ Asians are next in line to disappear.” The model minority myth harms the Asian community by ignoring the unique challenges they face, like the recent surge in anti-Asian hate crimes as well as less violent, more systemic forms of discrimination.
How does this relate to corporate America?
The model minority myth and systemic racism against Asians have weaved their way into the fabric of corporate America. Many reports have grouped Asians together with White Americans, because on the surface they may not appear to be facing the same challenges as other minorities. Asians are the highest-earning minority group, but this simple statistic does not tell the whole story.
Digging deeper into the data, Asians are overrepresented at lower levels in organizations yet significantly underrepresented in leadership. Asians in the U.S. are the least likely racial group to be promoted from individual contributor roles into management. The median income and visibility of Asian Americans at lower levels seems to promote the fallacy that Asian Americans need no special support for career development when in fact the opposite is true.
In addition, income inequality for Asians in the U.S. is the greatest among all racial and ethnic communities. Over the last 50 years, the distribution of income among Asians transformed from being one of the most equal to the most unequal.
These concerning trends suggest that without intervention, Asian Americans will increasingly suffer from the social and economic consequences of inequality and their missing voices in leadership.
What can we do about it?
Understand the unique double standards Asians face
Being overrepresented in corporate America, Asians are not often considered to be a group that faces discrimination in the workplace, despite evidence showing this couldn’t be further from the truth. As a result, attempts to provide growth opportunities for Asians are often met with incredulity. While Asians are the least represented group in management, as a “model minority” they are often sought after to provide a guiding light for other minorities. As Steven Yuen put it, “Sometimes I wonder if the Asian-American experience is what it’s like when you’re thinking about everyone else, but nobody else is thinking about you.”
Bring Asians into the conversation about DEI&B
Even if there are many Asian employees at your company and they are not classified as an underrepresented group, ask whether they are experiencing the same career growth as other groups. If not, are there diversity programs that they are missing out on? Check to see if you’re missing Asians in your company’s racial classifications.
Amplify Asian voices
Just because your Asian colleagues aren’t saying anything, it doesn’t mean they aren’t hurting. Leading by example sets the tone for the organization, and it’s important that employees have a voice and feel empowered to speak without fear of repercussions. When company leadership amplifies a diverse set of voices and shares unique stories, it helps provide understanding and build trust. Getting a glimpse into how different people see the world and the context for their views promotes empathy and visibility.
Consider intersectionality
Intersectionality is the way multiple aspects of an individual’s identity such as race, gender, class, sexuality, or disability combine to create a multifaceted experience of discrimination and privilege. This multifaceted experience can often blur the lines as to whether individuals are facing racism, sexism, classism or ultimately any discrimination at all. For example, some commentators argued that the Atlanta murders were motivated by misogyny, not anti-Asian prejudice; in fact, both biases and more came into play.
It’s easy to group people into boxes; in fact, our brains want to categorize things and people — but not fighting against that instinct is what leads to stereotyping and prejudice, and it denies individuals the complex identity that makes up the human experience.
Individuals are not made up of one simple identity, so often it is not just one factor at play. Consider how all these factors may affect the individuals in your team and recognize that having multiple underrepresented identifications can make them exponentially vulnerable to discrimination.
Even as I reflect on my own journey, I can identify several instances where I have found myself attempting to hide my Asian heritage as a direct result from societal pressures. But as I have grown as a professional and as a person, I realize that I have been doing myself a disservice and embracing it has allowed me to thrive in ways I never thought I could.
When companies are able to bring Asian Americans into the light as a minority that faces its own unique challenges in the evolving racial dynamic of the U.S., they will provide space for Asian Americans to grow and will ultimately benefit from the vast array of skills and talents that Asian Americans can offer.
Originally published at https://www.linkedin.com.
