Asian Discrimination

Racial discrimination is a huge ongoing problem in our country.  It is like a poison that corrupts people’s lives.  No one knows when, if ever, racism will cease to discourage and hurt.  Today I want to inform you about racism and its aftermaths.  More specifically, I want to enlighten you today about Asian discrimination, and the awful results of it. 

Many ridiculous stereotypes about Asians exist.  We do not eat dogs, we are not always Chinese, and not all of us are smart.  

            Let us begin with one incident, where a young 18 yr old senior, Chen Tsu, was beaten very badly after school at a subway station.  He was assaulted by four other classmates.  They all demanded for money.  Chen Tsu said he had no cash, and all four pummeled him so badly that he had was bruised and swollen for weeks.  What could have possibly lead to this incident?  Racism.        Was Chen Tsu surprised at all about being attacked?  No. 

Here are some more true incidents about Asians being discriminated:

16-year old Bang Mai was killed on July 11, in a massive brawl, as a result of racial prejudice.  Bang Mai tried to walk away from the fight, but he was fatally stabbed by a knife.  The boy who killed Bang Mai was convicted of manslaughter and five years in prison. 

Four Asians were attacked by two white men shouting racial slurs. The white men beat two of the Asians with a steering wheel locking bar. “It definitely doesn’t shock me,” said one white resident of the area about the attack.

On September 2007, Du Doan, a 62 year-old Vietnamese man, was pushed off a fishing pier into the icy waters of Lake Michigan, where he drowned.

            An Asian middle schooler was harassed so much that the teacher had to hide him in cabinets or in different classrooms.

All of these discriminative incidents happen daily in the U.S.  Here are some statistics and reports. 

A 2003 California Survey was made by the Services and Advocacy for Asian youth Consortium, which is a program designed to help out Asian youth victims of racial discrimination.  According to this survey, 14% of Asian youth join gangs to look for protection against bullies and racists.  This shows how Asians look for some kind of defense against racial prejudice.

The Department of Justice, a federal criminal  investigation and enforcement agency, found out that the number of Asians carrying weapons tripled from 1999 to 2001, due to racial violence at school, work, or even small errands.  This is another report which shows what victims have to come to for defense against racism. 

The United States Commission of Civil Rights, a program that analyzes civil rights issues in the U.S., compiled a report about widespread Asian discrimination.  This report took two years to compile, and is based on court cases, bias incidents, scholarly studies, news reports, and other sources.  This report says that over 7.3 million Asians are discriminated each day. 

I have informed you about Asian discrimination, and that is all I have wished to do.  I conclude this speech with a reminder that racism is terrible, no matter what race.  It discourages people, and disrupts people’s lives.  I am not even sure if racism will ever end.  Thank you for listening.