Comments on: What Does Being “Asian” Mean? http://www.8asians.com/2009/05/22/what-does-being-asian-mean/ A blog for Asian Americans Mon, 13 Feb 2012 19:07:33 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Chris http://www.8asians.com/2009/05/22/what-does-being-asian-mean/comment-page-1/#comment-123582 Chris Mon, 25 May 2009 04:55:54 +0000 http://www.8asians.com/?p=3153#comment-123582 Ain't genetics fun? Living things, animals, mammals, homo sapiens, asians, orientals, chinese, taiwanese, korean, japanese, gay, straight, rich, poor, smart, dumb. Why is life so complicated? Or do we make it such? Ain’t genetics fun?

Living things, animals, mammals, homo sapiens, asians, orientals, chinese, taiwanese, korean, japanese, gay, straight, rich, poor, smart, dumb. Why is life so complicated? Or do we make it such?

]]> By: Chris http://www.8asians.com/2009/05/22/what-does-being-asian-mean/comment-page-1/#comment-141204 Chris Mon, 25 May 2009 04:55:00 +0000 http://www.8asians.com/?p=3153#comment-141204 Ain't genetics fun? Living things, animals, mammals, homo sapiens, asians, orientals, chinese, taiwanese, korean, japanese, gay, straight, rich, poor, smart, dumb. Why is life so complicated? Or do we make it such? Ain’t genetics fun?

Living things, animals, mammals, homo sapiens, asians, orientals, chinese, taiwanese, korean, japanese, gay, straight, rich, poor, smart, dumb. Why is life so complicated? Or do we make it such?

]]> By: Phil http://www.8asians.com/2009/05/22/what-does-being-asian-mean/comment-page-1/#comment-123471 Phil Sun, 24 May 2009 00:23:31 +0000 http://www.8asians.com/?p=3153#comment-123471 "I’m Korean and was raised by white people. I used to use the term Oriental but was told that it was offensive. So there is an appropriate occasion to use the word? For people from Indonesia and thereabouts?" I think it depends on who you ask. To some, even calling them Asian is offensive. I don't know, maybe just call them by their ethnic groups? Chinese? Japanese? etc. If that's offensive, then find out what's not offensive. “I’m Korean and was raised by white people. I used to use the term Oriental but was told that it was offensive. So there is an appropriate occasion to use the word? For people from Indonesia and thereabouts?”

I think it depends on who you ask. To some, even calling them Asian is offensive.

I don’t know, maybe just call them by their ethnic groups? Chinese? Japanese? etc. If that’s offensive, then find out what’s not offensive.

]]> By: Phil http://www.8asians.com/2009/05/22/what-does-being-asian-mean/comment-page-1/#comment-141203 Phil Sun, 24 May 2009 00:23:00 +0000 http://www.8asians.com/?p=3153#comment-141203 "I’m Korean and was raised by white people. I used to use the term Oriental but was told that it was offensive. So there is an appropriate occasion to use the word? For people from Indonesia and thereabouts?" I think it depends on who you ask. To some, even calling them Asian is offensive. I don't know, maybe just call them by their ethnic groups? Chinese? Japanese? etc. If that's offensive, then find out what's not offensive. “I’m Korean and was raised by white people. I used to use the term Oriental but was told that it was offensive. So there is an appropriate occasion to use the word? For people from Indonesia and thereabouts?”

I think it depends on who you ask. To some, even calling them Asian is offensive.

I don’t know, maybe just call them by their ethnic groups? Chinese? Japanese? etc. If that’s offensive, then find out what’s not offensive.

]]> By: Phil http://www.8asians.com/2009/05/22/what-does-being-asian-mean/comment-page-1/#comment-123468 Phil Sat, 23 May 2009 23:57:38 +0000 http://www.8asians.com/?p=3153#comment-123468 Mongolia Mongolia

]]> By: Phil http://www.8asians.com/2009/05/22/what-does-being-asian-mean/comment-page-1/#comment-141202 Phil Sat, 23 May 2009 23:57:00 +0000 http://www.8asians.com/?p=3153#comment-141202 Mongolia Mongolia

]]> By: Efren http://www.8asians.com/2009/05/22/what-does-being-asian-mean/comment-page-1/#comment-123454 Efren Sat, 23 May 2009 19:45:27 +0000 http://www.8asians.com/?p=3153#comment-123454 If you really want to be technical and speaking from the history of classified groups, it was the governments of the United States and the UK who made those different distinctions that the OP raised here. For the US government, "Asia" constitutes all the countries from India eastward to Japan, Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, etc, and "Middle East" to Pakistan, Afghanistan westward to Israel, Syria, Jordan, etc. In the UK, it becomes even more muddled, since "black" and "Asian" was used to term both South Asians from India, Sri Lanka, etc., while "black" was also used to classify people from sub-Saharan Africa, and "Oriental" for people in East and Southeast Asia. Asian American/Asian Canadian is very useful in a political sense, but at the same time, it's also extremely problematic, since we're all lumping everyone under "Asia" and more often than not, there's an assumption that we all have similar backgrounds. I also find it interesting that non-Asians are using Asian in very much the same way that Oriental was used and that very few people have called people out on that. It's amusing to me to see how people have always used the term "Asian American" from beyond a political sense to define something cultural, when really it can be argued that "Asian American" as a cultural identity has only now begun to make some kind of sense, even if I still think it's weird. As for the "reclamation of Asian", how does one reclaim something that was imposed on us by people outside our cultural and ethnic identities, and thus was never really ours to begin with? If you really want to be technical and speaking from the history of classified groups, it was the governments of the United States and the UK who made those different distinctions that the OP raised here. For the US government, “Asia” constitutes all the countries from India eastward to Japan, Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, etc, and “Middle East” to Pakistan, Afghanistan westward to Israel, Syria, Jordan, etc. In the UK, it becomes even more muddled, since “black” and “Asian” was used to term both South Asians from India, Sri Lanka, etc., while “black” was also used to classify people from sub-Saharan Africa, and “Oriental” for people in East and Southeast Asia.

Asian American/Asian Canadian is very useful in a political sense, but at the same time, it’s also extremely problematic, since we’re all lumping everyone under “Asia” and more often than not, there’s an assumption that we all have similar backgrounds.

I also find it interesting that non-Asians are using Asian in very much the same way that Oriental was used and that very few people have called people out on that.

It’s amusing to me to see how people have always used the term “Asian American” from beyond a political sense to define something cultural, when really it can be argued that “Asian American” as a cultural identity has only now begun to make some kind of sense, even if I still think it’s weird. As for the “reclamation of Asian”, how does one reclaim something that was imposed on us by people outside our cultural and ethnic identities, and thus was never really ours to begin with?

]]> By: Efren http://www.8asians.com/2009/05/22/what-does-being-asian-mean/comment-page-1/#comment-141201 Efren Sat, 23 May 2009 19:45:00 +0000 http://www.8asians.com/?p=3153#comment-141201 If you really want to be technical and speaking from the history of classified groups, it was the governments of the United States and the UK who made those different distinctions that the OP raised here. For the US government, "Asia" constitutes all the countries from India eastward to Japan, Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, etc, and "Middle East" to Pakistan, Afghanistan westward to Israel, Syria, Jordan, etc. In the UK, it becomes even more muddled, since "black" and "Asian" was used to term both South Asians from India, Sri Lanka, etc., while "black" was also used to classify people from sub-Saharan Africa, and "Oriental" for people in East and Southeast Asia. Asian American/Asian Canadian is very useful in a political sense, but at the same time, it's also extremely problematic, since we're all lumping everyone under "Asia" and more often than not, there's an assumption that we all have similar backgrounds. I also find it interesting that non-Asians are using Asian in very much the same way that Oriental was used and that very few people have called people out on that. It's amusing to me to see how people have always used the term "Asian American" from beyond a political sense to define something cultural, when really it can be argued that "Asian American" as a cultural identity has only now begun to make some kind of sense, even if I still think it's weird. As for the "reclamation of Asian", how does one reclaim something that was imposed on us by people outside our cultural and ethnic identities, and thus was never really ours to begin with? If you really want to be technical and speaking from the history of classified groups, it was the governments of the United States and the UK who made those different distinctions that the OP raised here. For the US government, “Asia” constitutes all the countries from India eastward to Japan, Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, etc, and “Middle East” to Pakistan, Afghanistan westward to Israel, Syria, Jordan, etc. In the UK, it becomes even more muddled, since “black” and “Asian” was used to term both South Asians from India, Sri Lanka, etc., while “black” was also used to classify people from sub-Saharan Africa, and “Oriental” for people in East and Southeast Asia.

Asian American/Asian Canadian is very useful in a political sense, but at the same time, it’s also extremely problematic, since we’re all lumping everyone under “Asia” and more often than not, there’s an assumption that we all have similar backgrounds.

I also find it interesting that non-Asians are using Asian in very much the same way that Oriental was used and that very few people have called people out on that.

It’s amusing to me to see how people have always used the term “Asian American” from beyond a political sense to define something cultural, when really it can be argued that “Asian American” as a cultural identity has only now begun to make some kind of sense, even if I still think it’s weird. As for the “reclamation of Asian”, how does one reclaim something that was imposed on us by people outside our cultural and ethnic identities, and thus was never really ours to begin with?

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