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Chapter 5: Conclusion and Recommendations

Conclusion

The first and largest project of its kind, the State of Chinese Americans Survey collected data from

nearly 6,500 participants from across the United States and provided much-needed evidence on the

cultural identity, racial discrimination experiences, political engagement, and health and economic

well-being of the rapidly growing Chinese American population. This study found that, first, Chinese

Americans are diverse with regard to birthplace, place of upbringing, language spoken at home, and

English proficiency. While the overwhelming majority of Chinese Americans see themselves as accepted

in American society and culturally blended between American and Chinese cultures, they are also

often marginalized and have experienced discrimination in their daily lives. Second, Chinese Americans

are active political participants. The overwhelming majority of Chinese American citizens vote. They

are concerned about issues facing American society and want better relations and more collaboration

between the U.S. and China. Third, Chinese Americans are not homogenous. While often stereotyped

as a “model minority,” which fuels the perception that Chinese Americans are more prosperous and

face fewer challenges than other racial groups, many in fact face disadvantages or hardships in health

and economics and need better support from policies and services.

These findings provide important implications for promoting greater equity and inclusion of Chinese

Americans. Chinese Americans possess rich and diverse sets of experiences and varying needs. The

diversity of Chinese Americans calls for proactive research and education in order to design equitable

and inclusive policies, programs, and services. Chinese Americans are active political participants, and

the importance of including their voices and perspectives in political discourse and decision-making

should be emphasized. The findings also highlight significant marginalization and hardship in the

Chinese American community as a whole, despite individual differences among respondents. As such,

policymakers must understand how intersecting identities and experiences shape the status and wellbeing

of Chinese Americans.

Based on the findings from the State of Chinese Americans Survey, we offer the following

recommendations for policy, program, and practice:

To promote greater equity and inclusion of Chinese Americans, our first recommendation is to

incorporate or expand Asian American history lessons across all levels of education, from K-12 to higher

education, to help Americans understand the diverse accomplishments, contributions, and challenges

of Chinese and Asian American populations. In recent years, Illinois, Rhode Island, New Jersey,

Connecticut, and Florida have enacted new laws requiring the teaching of Asian American and Pacific

Islander (AAPI) history in schools, and 14 additional states and the District of Columbia established

AAPI curriculum requirements through other means (Kerr et al., 2022). A complete American history

curriculum includes the rich traditions, accomplishments, and challenges of the diverse Chinese and

broader AAPI communities. Improving public discourse requires that all Americans–likely through their

K-12 education–learn about the lived experiences of Americans of Asian descent.

Second, we recommend allocating or increasing funding for programs and services that directly affect

Chinese Americans. Language access is fundamental to providing Chinese Americans with low English

proficiency with equal access to services and opportunities. Language barriers negatively affect the

daily lives of Chinese and Asian Americans, particularly those who recently immigrated to the U.S. A

lack of language access excludes people from receiving necessary and adequate medical care, accessing

legal services, obtaining education and training, and finding employment opportunities (Ngo-Metzger

et al., 2007; Noe-Bustamante et al., 2022; Pandey et al., 2021; Truong, 2022). To ensure a high quality

of services, it is imperative that language access providers partner with community members and

organizations and regularly solicit and incorporate their feedback. We also recommend allocating

or increasing funding for community programs and organizations that bring support services and

initiatives directly to Chinese Americans.

Third, we recommend law enforcement and prosecuting agencies to establish clear guidelines on

addressing and responding to reports of anti-Asian hate and discrimination. Existing research and

anecdotal experiences, from this study and a multitude of others, highlight instances of authorities

avoiding the discussion of race, not naming anti-Asian hate, or blaming individuals for hate crimes

without addressing the influence of systemic racism (Hong & Bromwich, 2021; Lee & Arroyo, 2022). As

shown by our findings as well as those reported to Stop AAPI Hate (2022), most incidents experienced

by Chinese or other Americans were not physical violence (16% in our report and 17% in Stop AAPI

Hate report) but instead verbal, behavioral, gesture, or written harassment (54% in our report and 67%

in Stop AAPI Hate report). Such incidents are under-covered in media and public discourse, but they

significantly affect the daily lives of Chinese and Asian Americans in schools and workplaces (Chen &

Wen, 2021; Kim et al., 2022). Authorities and organizations must ensure clear and culturally-informed

protocols for various types of anti-Asian hate and discrimination, in order to promote the safety and

wellness of those affected by incidents as well as to seek accountability for the reported incidents.

Further, we recommend law enforcement and prosecuting agencies to undertake efforts to reduce

unfair treatment and biases against individuals of Asian descent within the U.S. legal system. Policies

should require demonstrated cultural competency by the officers and adequate access to language

assistance and legal counsel. Research by Committee of 100 found that individuals of Asian descent

prosecuted for economic espionage were three times more likely than individuals with Western

surnames to be wrongfully accused of spying against the U.S. government.

Fourth, we recommend corporations, government entities, civil organizations, and academic

institutions to research and evaluate the effectiveness of their diversity, equity, and inclusion programs

to assess if they sufficiently take into consideration the unique challenge AAPI employees may

encounter. In particular, they should examine how the model minority stereotype may be creating

biases that deter AAPI employees’ opportunities to advance to leadership positions with long-term

implications (Huang, 2021; Lin et al., 2005; Milkman et al., 2012; Tinkler et al., 2019).

Fifth, we recommend commissioning art and uplifting diverse creative voices to share stories and

lived experiences of Chinese and Asian Americans to educate the public and build community. Art has

been an integral part of coping and response against anti-Asian hate in recent years. Asian American

Federation, a nonprofit organization based in New York City, created a series of posters that tell stories

of 10 Asian American trailblazers and the cities that they call home, which include New York City,

Houston, Seattle, San Diego, and St. Louis (Wang, 2021). The Thai Indonesian American artist Amanda

Phingbodhipakkiya created the “I Still Believe in Our City” campaign during her public art residency

with the New York City Commission on Human Rights (NYCCHR). It included a series of iconic images

of Asian Americans and powerful messages that were first launched in neighborhoods experiencing

anti-Asian bias and hate incidents to raise awareness and call for change. From social media to public

art installations, art created by Chinese and Asian American artists across the country in response to

the rise in anti-Asian hate helped voice the pain and call for action. It is imperative that the continuing

efforts in support of Chinese and Asian American communities incorporate the power of art to build

greater understanding, awareness, and alliance.

crease levels of political engagement and reduce the negative impact of contentious political rhetoric

and strained U.S.-China relations on the lives of Chinese Americans, our first recommendation is to

increase get-out-the-vote efforts and political mobilization of Chinese Americans. Asian Americans

have historically participated less in politics than other racial groups, and in part, this is due to the fact

that political parties and activists are less like to mobilize registered Asian American voters than other

groups that are registered to vote (Barreto, 2018; Garcia-Castañon et al., 2019; Wong, 2022). Despite

the already high rates of political participation among Chinese Americans revealed in our findings,

every voice matters and every vote counts. We especially recommend that mobilization occurs at the

grassroots level to increase political participation of groups whose voices tend to be less heard and who

tend to turn out at lower rates: those that are younger, have less income, are less educated, and are

less proficient in English (Brady et al., 1995; Ramakrishnan & Espenshade, 2001; Wong et al., 2011).

Second, we need to actively speak up against usage of inflammatory and derogatory language in

discussions of U.S.-China relations, which has many direct negative effects on the lives of Chinese

Americans. Our findings powerfully reveal a potential strong link between biased and hateful rhetoric

concerning China, U.S.-China relations, the COVID-19 pandemic, and a wide spectrum of negative

outcomes experienced by Chinese Americans, particularly heightened racial discrimination experiences

and related mental burdens. Other work corroborates our findings on outcomes ranging from negative

physical and mental health to declining business revenue (Bresnahan et al., 2022; Huang et al., 2023; Ta

Park et al., 2022; Wu et al., 2021). Such effects are likely to grow and become more pervasive over time

unless all Americans work collectively to eliminate language that is discriminatory against individuals of

Chinese and other Asian descent.

Third, we recommend establishing and increasing opportunities for more in-depth and meaningful

conversations about political and civic engagement issues among Chinese Americans. This work

should extend across different racial or ethnic groups to enhance mutual understanding, promote

alliance building, and build upon the long-standing work of other communities. Asian Americans share

the struggles associated with marginalization and racial discrimination that other non-White racial

groups experience. With increased awareness of anti-Asian racial discrimination during the COVID-19

pandemic, recent survey data show that Asian Americans express strong support for civil rights

advancement and equal opportunities for marginalized groups, a necessary condition for future joint

efforts and alliance building.

To meet the health and economic needs of Chinese Americans, our first recommendation is to

provide health and economic services in various languages and dialects to support Chinese Americans

with limited English proficiency to reduce their barriers to receiving services. Findings from this study

and many other studies have revealed that Chinese Americans experience large disparities in health

conditions and financial hardship, despite model minority stereotypes that falsely present Chinese

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and Asian Americans to do well in areas such as academics, professional careers, and business (Islam

et al., 2022). Our findings in particular found Chinese Americans with low English proficiency had

higher proportions of health and medical disadvantages and economic hardships. Limited English

proficiency compounds the obstacles that Chinese Americans face to achieve good health and financial

stability, such as the ability to communicate with their healthcare and other service providers. Services

and programs that offer multilingual support, such as interpretation and translation services, can

help members of the diverse Chinese American community reduce their barriers to accessing public

assistance services and meet their needs. Although some cities with large Chinese populations have

enhanced their language support, gaps in nationwide efforts still remain to support Chinese Americans

in all regions and states.

Second, we recommend further facilitating discussions of disadvantage and hardship among the

Chinese American population and advocating for culturally informed policies and services to reduce

stigma around and increase access to receiving services. By raising awareness of the disadvantages

and hardships in the Chinese American community, we can dismantle model minority stereotypes and

increase service provision for Chinese Americans that are underserved. Chinese and Asian Americans

have been underrepresented in the social safety net and receive fewer assistance from government

programs throughout history (King, 2022; Tran, 2018). Efforts from all domains, including community

practice, policymaking, and research are needed to further understand and address the inequities that

Chinese Americans face. Reducing stigma around receiving services may increase public assistance

take-up among Chinese Americans, and thus alleviate disadvantages and hardships in the Chinese

American community.

Lastly, we recommend increasing the number of bilingual and culturally informed Chinese and Asian

American mental health and social work professionals. Working with service providers of similar

racial, cultural, and language backgrounds can improve the experiences of and reduce barriers for

Chinese Americans receiving services. This can be achieved by establishing funding and scholarships

to encourage more Chinese and Asian Americans to enter the mental health and social work field. In

addition, providing Chinese language classes and training to service providers who are not Chinese

American but work with Chinese clients can support this goal of improving services for the Chinese

American population.