By Rachel Kim
Concerns around the use of anti-Asian bigotry and anti-immigrant rhetoric by members on the house and senate floor have not gone unnoticed.
A coalition of national organizations is calling them out in a letter submitted to Congressional leadership, denouncing such rhetoric as politically motivated and urging members to refrain from peddling belligerent language for the safety of the broader immigrant and Asian American communities.
In May, two House hearings on the “Unprecedented Surge of Chinese Illegal Immigration” became a platform for officials to point out the influx of Chinese nationals entering the US/Mexico border as a geopolitical “threat” to national security. Organizations believe the portrayal of the surge was “vilified” to heighten fears using “invasion” conspiracy language.
The congressional hearings and the general mainstreaming of fear about Chinese migrants entering the nation prompted organizations like APIAVote, a national, nonpartisan organization that helped contribute to a 60% AAPI voter turnout in 2020, and America’s Voice, a pro-immigration advocacy organization, to draft and submit the letter. Nearly 90+ organizations were signatories.
“In the past six months, the focus of anti-Asian rhetoric has shifted to demonizing Chinese migrants coming to the US-Mexico border seeking a better life. What was once a conversation relegated to the fringes of the internet has now permeated mainstream political dialogue. This shift has led to problematic congressional hearings and deeply concerning speeches from political leaders, which further fuel anti-Asian sentiment and normalize xenophobia,” Christine Chen, co-Founder and Executive Director of Asian Pacific Islander American Vote (APIAVote), told AsAmNews.
The letter alluded to the 2021 Atlanta Spa shootings, which stoked fears of anti-Asian sentiment, and to the rise of xenophobia during the pandemic. Organizations made a connection to how the continued use of anti-Asian bigotry by leading representatives exacerbated the uptick in anti-Asian hate crimes. Some representatives used militarized rhetoric, referring to Asian immigrants entering the country as an “invasion” and drawing analogies to the Israel/Hamas war.
“The concern here from the extreme rhetoric is several-fold. One is that when we use language of invasion to talk about immigrants or to characterize Chinese migrants as a
‘secret army’ or characterize them as ‘military age men’, this kind of rhetoric is extremely linked to the great replacement theory, the White nationalist, anti semitic conspiracy, and then has inspired multiple acts of domestic terrorism over the last several years. The second thing is the extreme policy. When we dehumanize immigrants as a group of people, when we falsely assert that they are an existential threat to the United States to the public safety of our community – that they are a threat to our material wellbeing and to our identity, as Republicans are doing with this sort of rhetoric – it creates the pretext for that same sort of extreme policies,” Zachary Mueller, senior research director at America’s Voice, a pro-immigrant advocacy organization, told AsAmNews.
AsAmNews reached out to Asian American Republican Representatives Michelle Steel and Young Kim, both from California. They did not return our request for comment.
Organizations emphasized the dangers of dehumanization, and its connection to genocide, citing similar historical contexts have led to extreme policies like the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 and the WW2 Japanese American incarceration camps.
“I think a lot of it is in ignorance –– ignorance turning into dehumanization –– and it’s like a stepping pyramid to, to worse and worse crimes…so [it is] disturbing, how quickly we can descend into the opposite of democracy,” Ricky Ly, one of the co-founders of Asian American Pacific Islanders Coming Together (ACT), told AsAmNews.
Ly further emphasized the importance of taking action to protect the rights of the AANHPI community.
“We’ve got to make sure we’re vigilant especially against the ugly heads of hate and prejudice and discrimination that often rears itself,” said Ly.
The letter attempts to examine the political implications and motivations behind the anti-immigrant remarks, divulging the statements made by representatives during the hearing causing concern among advocacy groups and Asian American communities. Particularly, the letter warns of this type of “inflammatory” language, which may appear to provoke a historical recurrence of racial profiling and discrimination experienced by AAPI communities.”
One of the organizations noted that the timing of the letter was not a coincidence to be released at the end of AANHPI Heritage Month.
“It’s significant because while dangerous rhetoric around Chinese migrants and anti-Asian sentiment at-large has existed for some time, it has become increasingly mainstream. More elected officials and political commentators are driving fear amongst the public about Chinese migrants, and just this month, as the letter mentions, there have been congressional hearings on the issue. During a time where we should be celebrating our communities, we are being increasingly demonized and made unsafe by such a narrative permeating the news landscape,” said Chen.
Citing the “Alien Land Laws” passed by Florida legislation that bar foreign nationals from purchasing property in the U.S., the letter calls for a re-evaluation of laws that invite discrimination and racial profiling.
“Right now in Florida, we’re facing a very kind of a dog whistle of the Chinese Exclusion Act,” said Ly. “Discrimination is a big one that we can’t change the color of our skin. But from ignorance comes stereotypes, which comes into laws.”
Chen urged AAPIs to “triple your vote.” She encouraged AAPI voters to register and vote themselves, then bring two more community members to do the same
“To be sure our communities won’t be silent, we will continue to make our concerns known and the sort of leadership and respect that we believe political leaders should show the American people no matter where they or their parents were born,” said Chen.
AsAmNews is published by the non-profit, Asian American Media Inc. Follow us on Facebook, X, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation to support our efforts to produce diverse content about the AAPI communities. We are supported in part by funding provided by the State of California, administered by the California State Library in partnership with the California Department of Social Services and the California Commission on Asian and Pacific Islander American Affairs as part of the Stop the Hate program. To report a hate incident or hate crime and get support, go to CA vs Hate.
