AAS 345 OL - Contemporary Asian American Issues

UNIT OBJECTIVES

1. Examine Asian American participation in formal politics
2. Consider the role, if any, of Asian American in mainstream politics
   
3. Examine some of the alternative spaces for empowerment

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. This week we are focusing on mainstream politics and Asian Americans. Using the 80-20 Initiative as a starting point, I want you to discuss the following questions: Why was the 80-20 Initiative formed and what is their platform? What is their strategy with regard to political empowerment? Are they successful? Why or why not? Can their strategy be applied or extended to Asian Americans? Why or why not? In discussing the last question, make sure that you consider what you have been learning this semester (eg. Asians as perpetual foreigners, Asian American vs. Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander concerns, internal differences within Asian communities, etc.)
2. For the second part, I want you to draw upon the Asian-Nation.org article on politics and the article by the same author on the 2004 elections. What are challenges and obstacles faced for Asian American participation in politics as described in the readings? What are the lessons that the authors suggest if any? In looking at the Asian-American Politics website, would the'issues' be for an 'Asian American' candidate and voter constituency? Finally, as many commentators note, Asian Americans are generally not well served the formal political process. They are generally not successful in garnering representation, outside of Hawaii, and are not well served by efforts such as redistricting or ethnic bloc voting (what the 80-20 Initiative is trying to do). Therefore, what are some alternatives forms of political empowerment, of political action for Asian Americans outside of the formal political process?

TASKS FOR THIS WEEK

• Prior to class - Do the required readings
• Read discussion questions for this unit - SEE ABOVE
• Wednesday, April 23rd - Participate in discussion 5:00-5:45pm - Join any of the five discussion groups
• Complete the post-discussion online quiz 5:30-6:30pm
  

Pick whichever channel you want but there should be no more than 4-5 students per group. If there are too many people joining, please POLITELY remind to try a different one!

Note: The schedule is a little bit different for this unit. Please note that there is NO pre-discussion quiz. Discussion will begin right at 4:30. Be on time! Instead of a pre-discussion quiz there is a POST-discussion quiz. Unlike previous quizzes, this one is a short essay and is a test of how much, really, you read and participated in discussion for this unit.

READINGS

REQUIRED

• 80-20 Initiative
• Interracial Politics: Asian Americans and Other Communities of Color [Note: You will need to log into the JSTOR database through the CSUN Library and then search for the article in order to have full-text access]
• Asian Americans, Polls, and the 2004 Elections

OPTIONAL

• Jindal Triumphant in Louisiana - Time
• Snapshots of the Asian American Movement: Activism and Activists in the 1960s and 1970s
• The New Face of the Grand Old Party (look at the CA Republican Party and APAs)
• APIA Political Firsts - Asian Pacific Amerian Institute for Congressional Studies (APAIC)

Comments (13)

	1. 04-22-2008 23:00
	80-20 initiative The 80-20 Initiative was formed to represent the cohesive interests of all Asian American. This organization was formed to advocate the beliefs of Asian Americans and to voice the concerns through a strong visual political organization. The idea is to direct 80% of the Asian’s communities’ votes towards political candidates who are endorsed by the 80-30 committee. The strategy is to provide Asian Americans with an effective political voice through a swing bloc vote. If 80% of the AA community vote for a candidate endorsed by the community, greater opportunities and influence can be obtained. The organization has become very successful as illustrated by the growing political power of Asian Americans in many states. The number of Asian Americans registered to vote is increasing and is the actual number of voters. Asian Americans are an emerging cultural and demographic force therefore the strategy of the 80-20 Initiative very effective. As more Asian Americans are entering politics and government as a profession, the interests and beliefs of the Asian American communities are becoming known. Some of the challenges and obstacles facing Asian Americans are cultural such as fear of the public spotlight and fear of politics. There is a tremendous amount of ethnic, economic and political diversity within the Asian community that must be overcome to demonstrate a political influence. Equality in the eyes of the law, law enforcement, courts and public opinion is a constant battle that Asian Americans must undergo. To achieve political power, more Asian Americans must be elected or appointed to political office. Polls have different finding based upon the interpretation and statistical data. In order to obtain significant information from a poll, one must have detailed information on the respondents. Registered Report

Lisa Finkelstein

	2. 04-23-2008 15:20
	80-20 initiative I can't find this article? After i login where do i go to search this article? Registered Report

Khorolgarav Murphy

	3. 04-23-2008 15:50
	80-20 Initiative Website In terms of that reading, just review the website to find out more about what their strategy is. You might look at the sections like FAQ or About Us to get more of an idea of what they do.    Just in case you missed it on the front page, there is an Asian American Studies event on campus today from 5-8pm so I'm going to be busy with that. I will be logged in and will open up the quiz at 5:30 but I won't be able to fully participate as I'll be busy with the event itself.    Congratulations to Sung-Bok Lee, from our class, who will be receiving a Promising Future Teacher award at today's event. Registered Report

Steven Ropp

	4. 04-23-2008 17:21
	blue team Members: Trevor Oishi, Janice Ancheta, Robert Koshak, Lisa Finkelstein and Mariel Reyes    The 80-20 initiative was formed to win equal opportunity for All Asian Americans and to represent the cohesive interests of all Asian American. It seems their strategy is to force politicians and businesses to bend to their will by threatening to raise AA\'s against them. As a group we believed it was successful because of the persuasive 80 percent swing bloc vote. We also felt that the their strategy cannot be applied to all Asian Americans due to the many different ethnicities in the Asian American community i.e. Pacific Islanders or Native Hawaiins. In addition many newer arriving AA’s may not understand politics and so the 80-20 initiative may not fully represent them. As for the second part, we believed that some of the obstacles Asian Americans faced in participation in politics is collectiveness as an Asian American community because Asian Americans are so diverse. Some alternatives for political empowerment for Asian Americans outside of the formal political process would be to rally more and get their voice heard through not only the internet (as the 80-20 initiative is based) but also participating with other minority groups and lowering that whole idea of hierarchy within minority groups. Registered Report

mariel reyes

	5. 04-23-2008 17:33
	blue team anyone else having a problem opening the quiz? Registered Report

Michael Knosp

	6. 04-23-2008 17:35
	blue team Yes Im having trouble with it to Registered Report

Anet Aleksandryan

	7. 04-23-2008 17:39
	blue team Same here, hopefully it opens soon. Registered Report

Trevor Oishi

	8. 04-23-2008 17:43
	Green Team Silvi Suryan, Nathalie Dayaon, Edwin Higgins, Renato Rivas, Sallysmarie Garces:    The 80-20 Initiative aimed to unite 80% of the Asian American community by asking them to vote for one United States Presidential Candidate. This unity will bring equality into the daily lives of the majority of Asians who helped support and elect the Presidential candidate. Their cooperativeness will be the key in electing whichever candidate they decide to support, and it will also be key in ending oppression for many Asian Americans. Registered Report

Silvi Suryan

	9. 04-23-2008 17:43
	Green Team Prof. Ropp I can't log into the quiz. I keep putting in my username and password and it is telling me that it is incorrect. please help Registered Report

silva terterian

	10. 04-23-2008 17:56
	Dilemma The quiz won't open no matter how many times I try. Dr. Ropp please HELP! Registered Report

Silvi Suryan