Real Life Application

Earlier this month a friend, ‘Pat’, asked me if “it was ‘okay’ to ask someone if they are Asian”. I replied that they should instead inquire about their ethnicity. At the time, ethnicity seemed to be a quick and simple solution to issues resulting from racial categorization, since ethnicity allows incorporation of cultural aspects. I assumed ‘Pat’ was asking in order to gather information about a person and determining their ethnicity can be considered more effective than determining their race.

Upon further reflection I wonder if that was the correct response. Our discussion of the Glenn article defined race as a social construction. Further discussions have questioned what being Asian means and the subjectivity of the Asian experience, which differs due to legal status, location and subcategory of Asian. Ethnic labels generalize these experiences as race does, and although allowing for more subjectivity than race, defining ethnicity still permits for societal ideas of an ethnic group to influence a person’s opinion and public identity.

I am still contemplating the implication of ‘Pat’s’ question. Our society categorizes people by race and those categories physically manifest. These physical manifestations affect our lives through laws, jobs and social interactions that affect those categorized as certain races in similar ways (although many other factors must be considered when determining the degree and manner). By asking that question, did ‘Pat’ hope to discover more about their unique experience within this socially constructed racial category? Or does ‘Pat’ believe that being Asian is a similar experience for all who identify as Asian, and the simple yes or no response would supply reliable information? Unfortunately I have not been able to ask ‘Pat’ of their intentions, but it has led me to examine how the term ‘Asian’ functions in our society. Asia, the continent, is immense and includes extremely diverse groups of people: Russian, Pilipino, Japanese, Indian, etc., so what does society hope to accomplish by lumping these groups under one blanket term?

I have discussed the inaccuracy of the blanket term ‘Asian’ with peers outside of class, and while most seem to comprehend the concept, the idea of applying it to everyday life is met with apathy, implying that encouraging the disuse of ‘Asian’ as a blanket term is too nit-picky and not worth the effort. How can we encourage the application of concepts learned in class to our (and our peers’) everyday lives? Sparking discussion has been successful in introducing concepts, but has anyone experienced similar situations and found effective methods to combat apathy?