This article brings together a range of data sources to chart cohort change in the human capital characteristics of Pakistani immigrants to the United Kingdom over the last fifty years. We demonstrate how restrictions on labor migration and family reunification have transformed characteristics of new arrivals while still maintaining some elements of chain migration patterns. Despite these changes, we note substantial consistency in the sociocultural characteristics of Pakistani-origin U.K. residents across cohorts, specifically in identity, religiosity, and social networks. We reflect on the implications of these patterns of change and continuity.
Policies that admit immigrants based on their education have dramatically reshaped the demographics of the United States and Canada. In the mid-1960s, facing pressures to open their borders to non-Europeans, both countries replaced previous policies of racial and nationality discrimination with new systems of socioeconomic discrimination. These policies explain the growth of Asian immigration from the 1970s onward, as well as the high levels of education among Asian immigrants and their descendants. Refugees and family migrants, however, added socioeconomic diversity. Recent developments in skilled immigrant selection programs will continue to shape Asian American and Asian Canadian demographics in the future.
Calls to disaggregate data on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) overlook heterogeneity in experiences and outcomes within AAPI subgroups. Using national data from the American Community Survey, this study examines socioeconomic differences among Chinese Americans in terms of language identity. The results indicate the most frequently identified home languages among Chinese speakers are Formosan, Mandarin, Cantonese, and simply “Chinese.” The groups differ in representation depending on state residency and citizenship, while Cantonese speakers have the lowest levels of English proficiency and educational attainment. The strongest predictor of each language group is birthplace. The study has implications for serving disadvantaged and overlooked Chinese American subpopulations in the United States.
With the rise in global neoliberalism and right-wing populism, higher education in Canada is at the forefront of the battleground for racial equality, multiculturalism, and diversity efforts. This essay argues for the importance of Asian Canadian Studies (ACS) as a means to combat ongoing manifestations of racism and racialization in the academy. We examine the necessity of ACS as an emancipatory project—its objectives and the challenges it faces. There are currently three existing ACS programs in Canada, and we will focus in particular on the University of British Columbia's Asian Canadian and Asian Migration Studies Program as an illustrative example of how to promote social justice and civil rights in Canadian higher education. The importance of ACS and its effectiveness are discussed in the context of university settings.
There are large South Asian settlements in the larger Vancouver region of British Columbia in Canada and in Northern and Central California (from Yuba City to Fresno) in the United States. While the early migration patterns of Sikhs and Hindus to these two areas were similar, they subsequently diverged and the South Asian settlements in the two regions now exhibit very different profiles. This resource paper summarizes and analyzes the literature on factors shaping the migration, settlement, and incorporation patterns of Asian immigrants in these two regions. I argue that the parallels in early South Asian migration patterns to the North American West Coast were due to similarities in the economic and social profile of these regions, Canadian and U.S. policies toward Asian immigrants, and easy movement between Canada and the United States. The divergence between the two regions took place over time largely as an outcome of changes in regional characteristics (e.g., the development of Silicon Valley), differences in the group characteristics and networks of Sikhs and Hindus, and an increasing divergence in Canadian and U.S. immigration regulations (e.g., differences in family reunification, refugee, and H1-B visa policies). The final section discusses how these settlement patterns have led to differences in the identity formation and sociopolitical incorporation of Sikhs and Hindus in the two regions.
The racial and ethnic landscape in Australia has changed markedly since the beginning of the postwar migration period in which migrants arrived from Europe, and later from Asia in the late 1970s. While Australians with European ancestry have gradually made it into state and federal parliament, there has been less visibility for Australians of Asian descent. This article provides an overview of demographic migration trends and levels of Asian-Australian political representation in state and federal politics, drawing on data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics and parliamentary websites. In doing so, we reflect on why political representation of Asian-Australian populations appears to be lagging so far behind.
Abstract Climate change is an unprecedented issue that shapes the era in which we now live. Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) have a stake in environmental justice because AAPIs are disproportionately impacted by climate change. This essay examines how the climate crisis affects AAPIs, and provides examples of the leadership AAPIs have demonstrated to address climate and social equity concerns. These leadership lessons are relevant to the leadership role that AAPIs can play now and in the future, for 2040 and beyond.
America becomes more ethnically diverse, we must ensure that all students-regardless of race-can reach their full potential.
For nearly half a century, the model minority myth has dominated perceptions of Asian American college students and masked educational disparities among the nearly fifty ethnic groups that comprise the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities.This essay challenges the model minority narrative by presenting the narrative of the missing minority-outlining how this alternative narrative was influenced by the creation of federal AAPI-serving institution legislation in 2008.The authors explore Asian American Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institution recognition, how it has provided a framework to further support AAPI higher education outcomes, and what factors will affect the national narrative in 2040.When Seata Shyon isn't taking care of her siblings, she is working late into the night on homework and college applications, as she plans for her future career as a college student.She is visibly exhausted.Yet even with the dark circles under her eyes, her face betrays a quiet hope and excitement.Like many of her peers at the June Jordan School for Equity, she is working very hard so that she can be the first person in her family to go to college.Born in Samoa, Shyon, 18, and her family moved to Hawaii, before relocating to San Francisco, where they lived in public housing.When her father was incarcerated six years ago, her mother took on two jobs, leaving Shyon with the responsibility of caring for five younger siblings, including an infant (Goossen, 2009, 1).
This resource paper analyzes the growth of the Asian American (AA) population over the next quarter century based on projections from the U.S. Census Bureau and supplementary estimates by the authors.The number of Asian Americans will increase from 20.5 million in 2015 to 35.7 million in 2040, making them the fastest-growing racial population in the nation.Like the nation as a whole, the AA population will age over the next quarter century, with youth declining from a quarter to a little more than a fifth of the AA population and the elderly increasing from a tenth to about a sixth.Immigrants will continue to be a majority of Asian Americans, but their share will decline from two-thirds to one half.After 2040, U.S.-born AAs (those who are Asian alone and from mixedrace backgrounds) will comprise a majority of the population.Another significant change will be the growth of multiracial Asian Americans, increasing from a tenth of the population 1990 to a sixth in 2040.
Dramatic shifts in the demographic makeup of the U.S. population in 2040 will pose new challenges and opportunities for policy makers, researchers, and community members working to address health and health care inequities.Traditional approaches utilizing a health disparities framework may not be enough to address the health needs of an increasingly diverse and multiracial population of Asian Americans and Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders (NHPIs).This article provides an overview of the current and projected health and health care needs of Asian Americans and NHPIs in 2040, and proposes new policy solutions and frameworks for addressing these complex needs.
The purpose of this essay is to explore the current and future potential for engaging Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) in the labor movement by 2040.Because of the limitations of the data and the scope of the projections, we initially analyze Asian American participation in the labor market, so we can later discuss our vision and trajectory for engaging AAPI workers in the labor movement by 2040.
Do Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) have a stake in the immigration reform discussion? What types of immigration laws and policies would best serve our community's diverse interests? This article first looks at how AAPIs continue to be impacted by federal immigration laws. Second, it identifies specific immigration policies that need reform and suggests some potential creative policy solutions. Finally, it offers ideas for how—and why—AAPIs can continue to engage in the fight for immigration reform. Immigration is the most controversial, yet least understood issue in America. Jose Antonio Vargas, Filipino American journalist and immigrant (Kandil, 2014)
This essay examines economic inequality and poverty among Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) and their participation in safety-net programs.Income and wealth disparities have increased dramatically over the last few decades, reaching levels not seen since the 1920s.One of the consequences has been an inability to ameliorate poverty, particularly among children.While Asian Americans have been depicted as outperforming all other racial groups, they have not surpassed non-Hispanic whites after accounting for regional differences in the cost of living.Moreover, a relatively large proportion of AAPIs is at the bottom end of the economic ladder.Many impoverished AAPIs rely on antipoverty programs to survive, but most still struggle because of a frayed safety net.Many experts believe that inequality will persist or worsen; consequently, it is likely that the absolute number of poor AA-PIs will grow over the next quarter century.Addressing the problems of societal inequality and AAPI poverty will require political action to rectify underlying structural and institutional flaws, and a renewed commitment to ensuring all have a decent standard of living.
Throughout the United States ten thousand people turn sixty-five years old every day (AARP, 2015a). By 2040, one in five U.S. residents will be sixty-five years or older, outnumbering children fifteen and younger for the first time in our nation's history (AARP, 2015a; Congressional Budget Office, 2013; U.S. Census Bureau, 2014). Between 2015 and 2040, Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) older adults are the fastest-growing aging group. There are four strategies to strengthen the economic and health security of AAPI older adults nationwide by 2040: (1) disaggregate data to understand variations between AAPI subpopulations; (2) provide accessible services that are culturally and linguistically appropriate; (3) adapt mainstream solutions for financial security; and (4) innovate long-term services and support.
This resource paper analyzes the growth of the Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander (NHOPI) population over the next quarter century based on projections from the U.S. Census Bureau and supplementary estimates by the authors. Overall, this population will increase from about 1.5 million in 2015 to nearly 2.3 million in 2040, about three times greater than the increase for the total U.S. population. Most NHOPIs are indigenous, but immigrants comprise about a fifth of the population. This group is relatively young, but median age will increase over time. Youth comprised about a third of the population in 2015 and over a quarter in 2014. The elderly share will nearly double to about one in eight by 2040. NHOPIs are more likely to be multiracial than any other racial group, and NHOPIs of mixed-race will comprise over half the population a quarter century from now.
The political power of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AA-PIs) has increased steadily in the United States.By 2040, one in ten Americans will be AAPI, and the number of Asian Americans registered to vote will have doubled (Ong, Ong, and Ong, 2016).This section examines the growing AAPI electorate and projects a trajectory for AAPI civic engagement and political participation from now until 2040.By looking at trends and projections for citizenship, voter registration, voter turnout, elected officials, and political infrastructure, the authors illustrate that AAPI political empowerment will have even a greater influence on the future of American politics.
Abstract This article presents the work of AARP and the economic security of the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community fifty years and older. The authors recognize the lack of existing AAPI data, but with the results from a recent AARP study the article lends a nuanced perspective of economic security for two specific ethnic groups: Chinese Americans and Filipino Americans. The use of AARP's survey fills a gap in existing data sets. With this study, it's evident that AAPIs are not all economically secure, and more disaggregated data is needed to further understand their current state of finances, and needs and wants, in order to contribute to a higher quality of life for aging AAPIs.
Abstract This article examines the impact of the MyPath Savings pilot on 274 economically disadvantaged youth participating in a youth development and employment program in San Francisco, California, with a subsample analysis of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) participants. MyPath Savings targets youth earning their first paycheck to promote savings and connect youth with mainstream financial products. AAPI youth experienced significant increases in financial knowledge, financial self-efficacy, and the frequency with which positive financial behaviors were carried out. AAPI participants also saved an average of $566 through MyPath Savings. Gains in financial capability were mostly independent of the youths' race, gender, household income, and public benefits receipt.
