When I first heard of the new TV show American Born Chinese, I was ecstatic. My first reaction was “finally, some API—and more specifically, Chinese American—representation on a mainstream streaming platform.” Don’t get me wrong, after watching the first episode, I’ll definitely be binging the rest of the show. But as I reflect on my first week at CLA, I think back to what Councilwoman Suely Saro asked our cohort during our visit to the Long Beach City Hall: What does representation mean at the end of the day? What does it mean to be truly represented by someone?
Angel asks Councilwoman Saro questions during a Q&A at Long Beach City Hall.
Growing up in Richmond, British Columbia, I was surrounded by other Chinese Canadians. I was fortunate to be able to say that chicken feet was one of my favorite foods without facing disgusted stares and cruel jeers; my elementary school classmates were also my Saturday Chinese school classmates; and there was as much of an emphasis on celebrating holidays like Chinese New Year as there was on celebrating Christmas. There were, of course, moments where I faced the typical microaggressions often experienced by Asian Americans—remarks such as “Wow, your English is really good!” and “You’re not really Canadian because your family is Chinese”—but nowhere near the extent of what it could have been like had I grown up in a predominantly white community. Thus, as I ventured to college in the U.S, I searched for a different type of diversity. I wanted to find a community of people who didn’t look like me, and fortunately, I found that at Pomona College.
Constructing a historical timeline of significant API-related events, bills, and changes.
However, as I spent my first week getting to know my fellow cohort of passionate leaders, I realized that my experiences as a second-generation Chinese Canadian differ greatly from those of my peers. Even among those who do look like me, there is an abundance of diversity. Diversity that I’ve neglected to see partly due to the umbrella term of API, which is both empowering and diminishing. Initially coined as a political term to give our communities a voice, API unites a plethora of communities and inspires a sense of solidarity between radically different groups. Yet this term also neglects many of the groups it claims to include, forcing a diverse continent’s culture to be confined to one label that inadequately represents everyone. One group’s successes are conflated with the entire race; conversely, any fault, controversy, or imperfection is used to villainize entire communities of people, regardless of whatever differences there are between them.
A glimpse into the diversity of backgrounds, experiences, and stories of the cohort through our Orientation activity "Life Maps".
While we are finally getting a seat at the table at all levels of society, that is not enough, especially when that seat is meant to represent the entirety of the API community. As CAUSE Executive Director Nancy Yap explained, “it’s hard to admit we don’t know [what other communities want] when we are the only ones that have been invited to the table.” As such, power is not simply about sitting at the table and trying to speak for an entire population of people; the true power of representation lies in the ability to invite other people to the table, to give them a microphone that they otherwise wouldn’t have in order to voice their concerns and needs. Councilwoman Saro said that she has the “privilege to shape the narrative” as a representative of the API community in Long Beach, but she also emphasizes building power by working directly on the ground, with community organizers and representatives to make other groups feel seen and heard.
I have the privilege of being represented on the big screen in movies like Everything Everywhere All At Once and in TV shows like American Born Chinese (albeit not the American part), yet representation for so many API groups is still lacking. We have made incredible strides in representation over the past few decades, but if I’ve learned anything from my first week at CLA, it’s that there is still a long way to go to truly access and use the power of that representation.
The views and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author and do not reflect the views or positions of CAUSE or the CAUSE network.
Written by Angel Yuan, Leadership Academy 2023 Intern.
The CAUSE Leadership Academy (CLA) for students is a nine-week, paid, internship program that prepares college undergraduates to lead and advocate for the Asian Pacific Islander community on their campuses and beyond.