Asian American Politics: Race, Identity, and Political Behavior

Session Submission Type: Full Paper Panel

Session Description

Asian Americans, the fastest-growing racial group in the US, are exerting a growing influence on American politics, urging scholars to examine their political behavior and ethno-racial identities. At the same time, the rise of anti-Asian hate crimes during the pandemic calls for renewed attention to deep-seated anti-Asian racism and its political consequences. This panel brings together both junior and senior scholars whose works explore Asian American political behavior, ethno-racial identities, and the political implications of growing anti-Asian sentiment in the United States. In their paper, Jae Yeon Kim, Joan Cho, D.G. Kim, and Taeku Lee explore the complex underpinnings of pan-Asian racial identity, testing whether Asian Americans’ differing perceptions of China and home country politics, despite their shared marginalized status, undermine feelings of group consciousness. Utilizing a qualitative case study, Yat To (“Bosco”) Yeung also explores in depth the configuration of Asian American racial and national origin identities. In their paper, Jessica Geiger, Shawn Matiossian, and Tyler Reny examine how the embrace of social hierarchies, marked by sexism and anti-immigrant sentiment, motivates support for Trump and other political preferences and behaviors of non-White Americans including Asian Americans. Using both cross-sectional and panel analyses, Nathan Kar Ming Chan and Vivien Leung empirically demonstrate the role anti-Asian views played in shaping support for Trump and the Republican Party in 2020. Finally, Jeong Hyun Kim further explores the political consequences of anti-China rhetoric, finding that anti-China rhetoric by co-partisan elites significantly increases white voters’ negative attitudes toward Asians and Asian Americans. Taken together, the panel presents latest works that deepen our understanding of Asian American politics with diverse theoretical perspectives, empirical data, and methods.

Sub Unit

• Related Groups / Asian Pacific American Caucus

Chair

• Janelle Wong

Discussants

• Taeku Lee Harvard University

• Natalie Masuoka University of California, Los Angeles

Individual Presentations

• Perceived Discrimination and Racial Identity among Asian Americans - Jae Yeon Kim, Johns Hopkins University; Joan E. Cho, Wesleyan University; D.G. Kim, Harvard University; Taeku Lee, Harvard University

• Status Hierarchy and Non-white Support for Trump - Jessica Geiger, Claremont Graduate University; Shawn Matiossian, Claremont Graduate University; Tyler Thomas Reny, Claremont Graduate University

• The Activation of Anti-Asian Attitudes on Mass Public Opinion - Nathan Kar Ming Chan, Loyola Marymount University; Vivien Leung, Santa Clara University

• Anti-China Rhetoric, Candidate Evaluation, and Attitudes toward AAPI - Jeong Hyun Kim, Yonsei University