Facts are facts; Asian Americans are, well, complicated

PEW ILLUSTRATION

In the 1970s when the Japanese, Chinese and Filipino students on US campuses coalasced around being Asian American, little did they foresee the hurdles they would encounter in their own fast-changing ethnic communities.

Fast forward to today, because of the population shift from US-born Asians as the majority to a population where recent immigrants are in the majority, the more than two-dozen nationalities and ethnic groups would prefer to do away with the umbrella, all-inclusive term "Asian American" and be seen as separate communities such as Chinese Americans, Indian Americans, Filipino Americans, etc. -- each with unique history, cultures, languages and other characteristics.

        FYI: Read Pew's findings about Asian Americans

When combined, US-born and recent immigrants, the Asian population is nearly 25 million, or 7% of the US population.

An annual survey released in conjunction with Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, the Pew Research Center found that the ethnic and national communities in the Asian American communities with roots in Central, East, South and Southeast Asia, is more complicated, more diverse representing more than two dozen countries of origin.

Unfortunately, the Pew analysis did not include Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders.

The differences between Americanized Asians (those born in the US and those who have lived here for more than 10 years is constantly changing as a constant stream of newcomers arrive on US shores and earlier immigrants become more accustomed to the America's realities such as race relations, family values and political realities.

Recent immigrants are more likely than US-born Asians to describe themselves using specific ethnic labels and are less likely to use some form of "American" when referring to their identities. To them, their country of origin is more central to their identity than identifying as "American."

        RELATED: Asian communities may have outgrown the term "Asian American"

Despite the diffeerences in self-identity, both new immigrants and US-born Asians see commonalities with other Asians. About 60% of Asians say what happens to other Asians affects them, and more than two-thirds believe it's very or extremely important to have a national leader advocating for Asians in the US.

The AAPI populations continues to grow. The 25 million Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders now making up to 7% of the US population. The majority of AAPI is made up the six largest groups with Chinese Americans still  the largest group with 5.5 million making up 22% of the total Asian population.

The next five largest groups are: Indian Americans, 5.2 million (21% of the Asian population); Filipino Americans, 4.6 million (19%); Vietnamese Americans, 2.3 million (9%); Korean Americans, 2.0 million (8%) and Japanese Americans, 1.6 million (7%).

The Pew Research Center created fmore detailed act sheets for the six largest ethnic Asian American communities: Chinese Americans,  Indian Americans, Filipino Americans, Vietnamese Americans, Korean Americans and Japanese Americans.

In the Pew treasure trove of AAPI facts, another interesting trend appears to be happening. Immigration, which made AAPI the fastest growing segment of the US population for the last few decades appears to be slowing down. In several groups, such as Filipino Americans and Hmong Americans, immigrants are no longer are in the majority. Japanese Americans have historically dominated by the US-born. The downward trend, however, can be seen in all groups as AAPI immigrants settle into the US and establish communities, businesses and and feel more economically secure, they establish families. The children of those immigrants join the ranks of the US-born. 

If the trend continues and the AAPI communities become more assimilated, and as the second-generation become more influential and dominant, there might be a shift back to identifying Asian American for the sake of gaining political clout and cultural  prominence.

Nevertheless, as of 2025, immigrants still make up the majority of AAPI. Taking into account the natural birth rate of the combined US-born and immigrant population adding to the AAPI newcomers traveling across the Pacific or as immigrants through a third country, the AAPI community  is still the fastest growing ethnic segment of the US population, surpassing the growth rate of Latino Americans, or Hispanic Americans.

The diversity among AAPI groups is also notably reflected in household income. While overall, AAPI households, immigrant and US-born,  have higher incomes ($105,600) than other Americans ($75,500) the AAPI also have the widest income gap. Indian American households have the hihghest median income ($151,200), Mongolians median household income is only $54,200.

Part of the wide diversity in household income is due to the United States' immigration policies that prefers  highly-educated, high-skill immigrants and -- up until the Trump administration -- was lenient towards refugees. 

Besides income potential, the results also shows up in education attainment. AAPI have the largest percentage of adults, immigrants and US-born, with a bachelor degrees, (57% and 56% respectively) compared to other Americans, US-born (38%)  and immigrants (35%).

RELATED: Despite the wealth of information provided the Pew Research Center, available for the general public, journalists, academics, marketers  and pollsters, the Social Tracking of Asian Americans in the US, (STAATUSindex) a separate survey commissisoned by The Asian American Foundation, found that stereotypes continue to persist as the general image of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders.

The annually updated Pew fact sheet for AAPI goes on to provide useful information on the population centers, political, gender, generational and religion proclivities of the AAPI communities.. 

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X or at the blog Views From the Edge.

 

Whither Asian Americans? United States politics strongly divided along lines of race and education

DEMOCRATIC ASIANS OF VIRGINIA

Since 2016, Asian Americans have leaned towards Democratic candidates.

The divisions within America that have been on display the last week will likely be even more evident in November when the nation's electorate votes for president between the Republicans' Donald Trump and the presumptive Democratic nominee, former Vice President Joe Biden.

A portrait of the demographic, geographic and religious breakdowns within each party reveals changes within America's two major parties that could drive them further apart, according to a new survey from the Pew Research Center.

Adding to the fears of white supremacists, over the last few decades, the American electorate and both of the two major parties have become less white. 

As more people take to streets to express their angst and anger at the death of George Floyd at the hands of four Minneapolis police officers, the unwillingness of white supremacists to live in a society where they no longer hold the position of power could threaten the the stability of the nation.

Refining the parties' bases further, the groups that the Pew report identifies as the strongest for each side are nearly polar opposites: If we were to use broad strokes and paint a picture of the Trump supporter, he would be an older white man with a high school degree living in a rural part of the country, probably the South.

In contrast, the "typical" Democrat would be a young woman (could very well be a woman  of color), with some college education and living in the urban centers either on the West Coast or Northeast.

In surveys conducted in 1996, 85% of registered voters were whites who are not of Hispanic descent. In the 2018 and 2019 data, that figure stands at 69%. 

It has also dropped in both parties, but by a larger share among Democrats (from 76% to 59%) than among Republicans (from 94% to 81%). That is not due to fewer Democratic voters but more than likely because of the concerted effort to register voters of color.

Asian Americans included in the survey data have become increasingly Democratic in recent years, though, and now 72% consider themselves Democrats or Democratic-leaning independents vs. just 17% who say they are Republicans or Republican-leaners. The survey data, however, can only reflect the views of English-speaking Asian Americans because the surveys were not administered in other Asian languages.

Asian Americans are the fastest-growing segment of eligible voters out of the major racial and ethnic groups in the United States. More than 11 million will be able to vote this year, making up nearly 5% of the nation’s eligible voters, Pew reported in an earlier survey.

Even as the racial makeup of the electorate has changed, overall partisan leanings among whites, blacks and Latinos have held roughly steady in the last few years. In the most recent data, Republicans outpace Democrats among whites 53% to 42%, while Democrats hold a massive advantage among blacks (83% Democratic vs. 10% Republican) and a smaller but still substantial edge among Latinos (63% to 29%). 

Democrats hold an 80-point advantage in partisan affiliation among black women, Republicans have a 32-point edge in affiliation among white non-college men. Republicans have a 61-point lead in identification among white evangelicals, while Democrats have a 43-point lead among the religiously unaffiliated. And Democrats have a 49-point advantage among urban Northeasterners, while Republicans have a 27-point lead among rural Southerners.

Other findings of the Pew analysis:

• Education and race. Just as the nation has become more racially and ethnically diverse, it also has become better educated. Still, just 36% of registered voters have a four-year college degree or more while a sizable majority (64%) has not completed college. Democrats increasingly dominate in party identification among white college graduates and maintain wide and long-standing advantages among black, Hispanic and Asian American voters. Republicans increasingly dominate in party affiliation among white non-college voters, who continue to make up a majority (57%) of all GOP voters.

• The gender gap in party identification is as large as at any point in the past two decades: 56% of women align with the Democratic Party, compared with 42% of men. Gender differences are evident across subgroups: For example, women who have not completed college are 11 percentage points more likely than men to identify as Democrats or lean Democratic (51% to 40%). The gap is even wider among those who have at least a four-year degree (65% of women, 48% of men).

• Age and generations. The electorate is slowly aging: A 52% majority of registered voters are ages 50 and older; in both 1996 and 2004, majorities of voters were younger than 50. Two decades ago, about four-in-ten voters in both parties were 50 and older; today, these voters make up a majority of Republicans (56%) and half of Democrats. Looking at the electorate through a generational lens, Millennials (ages 24 to 39 in 2020) are more Democratic leaning than older generations.

• Religious affiliation. As the share of Christians in the population has declined, this is reflected differently in the composition of the partisan coalitions. Today, Christians make up about half of Democratic voters (52%); in 2008, about three-quarters of Democrats (73%) were Christians. The share of Democratic voters who are religiously unaffiliated has approximately doubled over this period (from 18% to 38%). The changes among Republicans have been far more modest: Christians constitute 79% of Republican voters, down from 87% in 2008.