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Ong on Census Miscount of Asian Americans

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Paul Ong, head of the Center for Neighborhood Knowledge at UCLA Luskin, spoke to National Public Radio about reports regarding an overcount of Asian Americans in the latest census. A recent analysis found that while national figures reflect an overcount, Asian Americans were actually undercounted in some rural parts of the country. Ong said miscounts should not be ignored because communities may risk losing representation in government, as well as federal funding for public services. “It goes along probably with the ‘model minority’ narrative that somehow there is some statistical result that says that there are no problems among Asian Americans and therefore we don’t need to pay attention to them,” he said. Ong said possible reasons for an overcount include college students being counted once on campus and once at home, and anti-Asian rhetoric that led to more people of Asian descent to check an Asian race box on census forms.

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A Resource to Educate Students on the AAPI Experience

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Karen Umemoto, professor of urban planning, was cited in a Rafu Shimpo article about a $10 million grant that the UCLA Asian American Studies Center received to create resources that teachers across the nation can use to educate students about the experiences of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI). “The textbook will be the most comprehensive, scholar-informed, online history of AAPIs that redefines the American narrative and opens unlimited possibilities for building a just, multiracial and democratic future,” Umemoto said. Coming in 2023, the online platform is designed to educate students about the history of racism toward AAPI communities. It will be adjustable to educators’ teaching styles as chapters can be stand-alone and modules will be customizable for different learning formats.

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Asian American Studies Center to Develop Free Curriculum on AAPI Experience

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The UCLA Asian American Studies Center has received $10 million in state funding to propel the development of a free multimedia learning experience that will help teachers around the country fill a curricular gap about the histories, struggles, cultures and contributions of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. The AAPI Multimedia Textbook will feature an open-access, online platform with customizable chapters using visual, audio and archival artifacts that bring history to life. “The textbook will be the most comprehensive, scholar-informed, online history of AAPIs that redefines the American narrative and opens unlimited possibilities for building a just, multiracial and democratic future,” said Karen Umemoto, professor of urban planning and director of the Asian American Studies Center. The curriculum will support educators at a time when California and other states have made ethnic studies a graduation requirement for some public high schools and colleges. Umemoto was part of an academic advisory committee for the 2022 Social Tracking of Asian Americans in the U.S. Index that found the contributions of Asian Americans continue to be invisible to much of the American public. Fifty-eight percent of Americans were unable to name a prominent Asian American and 42% were unable to name a significant Asian American historical moment more recent than the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II. The AAPI Multimedia Textbook Project will help improve understanding of how AAPIs have influenced and shaped the United States, as well as foster a sense of belonging and acceptance of Asian Americans.

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Ong Highlights Disproportionate Suffering of Asian American Businesses

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Paul Ong, director of the Center for Neighborhood Knowledge at UCLA Luskin, was featured in an NBC News article about challenges facing Asian American communities during the pandemic. One study co-authored by Ong found that Asian-owned businesses were hit the hardest during the pandemic due to halts in customer-facing operations as well as increased racism. To better support lower-income and underrepresented Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, the White House announced an initiative to disaggregate data under the “Asian” umbrella and expand language options for federal programs. Ong noted that some Asian American entrepreneurs are immigrants with a rudimentary command of English that is not sufficient to navigate federal program applications, especially when the information is provided only in English. He said some older business owners were not aware programs like the Paycheck Protection Program existed and could not quickly move their services online. “There seems to be a double whammy,” Ong said.

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Ong’s Research on the Asian American Experience Highlighted

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Center for Neighborhood Knowledge Director Paul Ong was featured in an Equitable Growth article about the economic experiences of Asian Americans. As a part of Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month, the article highlighted scholars doing economic research on AANHPI populations and their experiences in the United States. Ong’s research focuses on people of color and immigrants in the the U.S. labor market, sustainability and equity, the racial wealth gap, and the role of urban structures in the reproduction of inequality. More recently, he has focused on the disproportionate economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Asian Americans, as well as the rise in anti-Asian hate crimes. “The virus’s Asian origin may affect Asian Americans to a greater degree as racial and xenophobic tensions mount,” he explained. “The increase in discrimination against Asian Americans has manifested financially and commercially as customers, employers and co-workers base their economic behavior on discrimination.”

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Ong on Increasing Asian American Representation in Biden Administration

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Director of the Center for Neighborhood Knowledge Paul Ong spoke to NBC News about his hopes for increasing Asian American representation in the Biden administration. The White House announced the creation of a new position, Asian American and Pacific Islander liaison, to ensure that the community’s voice is further represented and heard. Details of the duties and responsibilities of the position have not yet been announced, but Ong said the liaison will be effective only if given direct access to key decision-makers in the administration. In addition, he said, a staff is needed to ensure coverage of vital issues to the AAPI community, including education, civil rights, the economy and housing. “Appointing an AAPI liaison could be one of the much-needed solutions to ensure fair and adequate AAPI participation in the administration, but it is critical that the role is impactful and not window dressing,” he said.

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UCLA Research Center Develops Online Anti-Racism Hub Focusing on Asian Americans

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A new website known as the Movement Hub was developed by the UCLA Center for Neighborhood Knowledge (CNK) to serve as a centralized platform to amplify on-the-ground activism and organizing by Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. The website offers resources for and by AAPI organizations to promote cross-racial unity. “It’s our hope that this site will be a useful tool to raise awareness on the intersectional issues impacting the AAPI community and other communities of color,” said Paul Ong, UCLA Luskin research professor and CNK director. The hub’s resources, developed by CNK Senior Researcher Silvia R. González in conjunction with the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund, will facilitate connections between people’s experiences and data. For example, the hub allows people to report hate crimes against AAPI people and find resources to help victims. From March to early August of 2020, more than 2,500 hate crimes against AAPI people were reported to Stop AAPI Hate, which tracks and responds to incidents of hate, violence, harassment, discrimination, shunning and child bullying involving AAPI people. “Anti-Asian rhetoric in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic has led to violence and hate crimes against our communities, repeating historical racist and xenophobic patterns,” said Bo Thao-Urabe, senior program strategist at the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund, which provided $2 million toward an anti-racism response network in 20 states. “We have to find ways to participate in the global uprising for justice and radical transformation. Our anti-racism response network and the Movement Hub are resources to help AAPI organizations do that.”

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