 |
| During WWII Japanese Americans were rounded up and incarcerated in desolate camps. |
Asian American members of Congress were quick to respond, mincing no words:
"“These comments invoke centuries-old racist tropes that cast Chinese Americans as perpetual foreigners and question their loyalty to the United States," they stated. "Such rhetoric fuels discrimination and violence against Chinese Americans and those perceived to be Chinese, and contributes to a climate in which one in five Americans are currently concerned about Chinese Americans posing a threat to US society."
During an episode of Timcast IRL, co-host Ian Crossland was not subtle when brainstorming a hypothetical military conflict between the United States and China.
While another panelist, Kevin Smith, pushed back slightly, his objection wasn't rooted in basic human rights or constitutional protections. Instead, Smith merely questioned the logistics of modern-day concentration camps, arguing that social media and public protests would make replicating World War II-era internment too difficult to pull off in the 21st century.
The casual mainstreaming of wartime incarceration has drawn fierce, immediate condemnation from Asian American lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
The Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) issued a blistering joint response led by Reps. Grace Meng, Ted Lieu, and Judy Chu, blasting the podcast's rhetoric as both dangerous and xenophobic.
During an episode of Timcast IRL, co-host Ian Crossland was not subtle when brainstorming a hypothetical military conflict between the United States and China.
"Do (you) think we should intern all the Chinese Americans we can find?" Crossland asked his fellow commentators. He then answered his own question: "Because it kind of seems like we should."
 |
| Ian Crossland during one of his podcasts. |
While another panelist, Kevin Smith, pushed back slightly, his objection wasn't rooted in basic human rights or constitutional protections. Instead, Smith merely questioned the logistics of modern-day concentration camps, arguing that social media and public protests would make replicating World War II-era internment too difficult to pull off in the 21st century.
Blistering response
The casual mainstreaming of wartime incarceration has drawn fierce, immediate condemnation from Asian American lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
The Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) issued a blistering joint response led by Reps. Grace Meng, Ted Lieu, and Judy Chu, blasting the podcast's rhetoric as both dangerous and xenophobic.
 |
| Congressmembers Grace Meng, Ted Lieu and Judy Chu. |
Lawmakers drew a direct line from Crossland's remarks to the dark legacy of Executive Order 9066, which led to the forced relocation and imprisonment of over 120,000 Japanese Americans during World War II.
“To call for a return to one of the darkest chapters in US history — the incarceration of more than 120,000 American citizens of Japanese descent during World War II —is dangerous and unacceptable," the Congressional statement continued. This kind of rhetoric has no place in our country and we condemn it in the strongest possible terms.”
“To call for a return to one of the darkest chapters in US history — the incarceration of more than 120,000 American citizens of Japanese descent during World War II —is dangerous and unacceptable," the Congressional statement continued. This kind of rhetoric has no place in our country and we condemn it in the strongest possible terms.”
View from the edge
These comments invoke centuries-old racist tropes that cast Chinese Americans as perpetual foreigners and question their loyalty to the United States. Such rhetoric fuels discrimination and violence against Chinese Americans and those perceived to be Chinese.
It contributes to a climate in which one in five Americans are currently concerned about Chinese Americans posing a threat to US society, according to a survey by The Asian American Foundation.
This casual revival of mass incarceration rhetoric isn’t happening in a vacuum—it is the direct product of an ecosystem that profits off xenophobic fearmongering and extreme outrage among MAGA believers fueled by a regime that is using White fear as a recruitment strategy.
This casual revival of mass incarceration rhetoric isn’t happening in a vacuum—it is the direct product of an ecosystem that profits off xenophobic fearmongering and extreme outrage among MAGA believers fueled by a regime that is using White fear as a recruitment strategy.
By framing the systemic violation of constitutional rights as a mere policy debate, media figures normalized hate under the guise of geopolitical strategy.
As the Asian American lawmakers rightly noted, silence in the face of such rhetoric is complicity; confronting and exposing these modern-day echo chambers is essential to ensuring that one of the darkest chapters of American history is never repeated.
For those who don't believe this could never happen, factual history tells us it did happen to the Japanese Americans and US residents. These same naysayers are the same people who thought that Americans would never vote in TV host, failed businessman, sexual predator and convicted felon Donald Trump.
EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news, views and chismis from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X, BlueSky or at the blog Views From the Edge. If you find this perspective interesting, please repost.
No comments:
Post a Comment