Miss Texas has a message for Texas' Republican governor

AVERIE BISHOP

Averie Bishop used her Miss Texas platform to advocate for diversity and inclusion.

After giving up her crown as Miss Texas, it didn't take long for the Filipino American beauty queen Averie Bishop took her first steps into the political arena by criticizing Texas' conservative  leaders.

Days after crowning her successor, Ellie Breaux as Miss Texas 2023, Bishop aimed her message of diversity right at Texas Governor Greg Abbott who has campaigned against communities of color and through the Republican-controlled state legislature, make it harder for voters to cast their ballots.

In an opinion article published by MSNBC, Bishop wrote: "I also know that if our politicians continue to shut out, ignore and oppress marginalized and minority Texans, the state will never become the socio-economic and political powerhouse it wants to become."

During Bishop's  reign as Miss Texas last year, she consistently pushed her platform, "Y’all Means All” in all her appearances.

She was the first Asian American to win the title in the 85-year history of this scholarship competition. The winner represented the Lone Star state in the Miss America scholarship competition.

As a college student at Southern Methodist University, she saw the demographic changes in Texas as it became a majority-minority state, where no one ethnic group was in the majority. "I started seeing a new side of my state, a Texas that is home to one of the country’s largest South Asian communities, a thriving Black music industry, generations of Latinx and Chicano cultures, and some of the best Vietnamese food this side of the Pacific." she continued.

"And yet, so many of the leaders of my state are living in denial. Rather than celebrating this diversity and the ways it makes us stronger, they are trying to smother it."

During her year as Miss Texas she has spoken on race, abortion, immigration, voting, same-sex marriage, school shootings and comprehensive sex education, all of which leaned progressive and against the views of the Republican lawmakers, including Abbott.

In June as Bishop was preparing to end her year as Miss Texas, Abbott signed laws banning diversity offices and training at state universities, “sexually explicit” books at public schools, drag shows and gender-affirming care for youths.

In a recent article published in the Washington Post, Bishop, who graduated from Dedman School of Law at Southern Methodist University, school plans to join a law office to launch her career. At some point, Bishop told the Post, she might run for elective office.

In her MSNBC oped, the 27-year old Bishop concluded: "I became Miss Texas to advocate for the people of color, immigrants and LGTBQ people who hold up every community from Galveston to Waco. Now more than ever, it is crucial to hold our leaders and institutions accountable. And I think most Texans agree with me."

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow @DioknoEd on Twitter or at his blog Views From the Edge.

AANHPI Heritage Month: Asian Americans now the largest ethnic group in the SF Bay Area

WIKI COMMONS

San Francisco's Chinese New Year Parade is one of the most popular celebrations in the Bay Area.

Since the California Gold Rush of 1849, the San Francisco Bay Area has always been a favorite destination of immigrants from Asia, so much so that Asian Americans are now the majority in the region.

Of the 7.5 million Bay Area residents, Asian Americans make up 33.1% of the population, narrowly edging out Whites, who are 32.9% of the residents.

This is a dramatic change compared to the 2010 Census, when Whites made up 40.3% in the Bay Area and 25.5% were of Asian descent.

Maps created by the SF Chronicle show clusters of AANHPI communities throughout the Bay Area with large concentrations in San Francisco, Daly City, Fremont, Oakland, San Jose and Vallejo.

Overall, the Asian American population in the Bay Area’s nine counties grew by about 30% since 2010. Though the growth in the past decade was highest in Contra Costa County at 44%, data showed Santa Clara County had the largest numerical share of Asian Americans in the Bay Area in 2020 with about a 200,000 growth.

Much of the growth in the Asian American community is due to immigration, say demographers, demonstrating that the Bay Area is still a favorite entry point for immigrants from all over Asia.

 (Image via Bay Area Equity Atlas)

Fremont is among the largest Asian-majority cities in the continental US, Fremont, he said, is among the largest Asian-majority cities in the continental US, James Lai, ethnic studies professor at Santa Clara University, told the SF Chronicle.

Dublin, according to the 2020 Census data, is the Bay Area's fastest growing city, and most of that increase was driven by the growth of Asian American population. These places provide a “sense of community” that pulls people there, Lai said.

“What we’re seeing is direct migration of Asian immigrants not just to big cities but to suburbs,” Lai told the Chronicle. “You want your family to have access to your community, network, a way for you to find your livelihood, your children to find schools, churches and restaurants.”

ASIAN ART MUSEUM

The Asian Art Museum observes Filipino American History Month in October.

The demographic changes in the Bay Area is reflective of what's happening in California where AANHPI make up about 16.5% of the population, an increase of 25% from 2010—the largest percent increase of any major racial or ethnic group in the state.

California is home to one-third of the nation's AANHPI population of 24 million, based on the latest data from the US Census.

It is important to stress that California’s AANHPI residents are not a monolith. Though they may share a common origin from a very broad region of the world, they can be as different from each other as much as the state’s non-AANHPI residents. Diversity, however, doesn't dilute their growing influence whose story will play a key role in shaping the Bay Area's and California's future.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow @DioknoEd on Twitter or at his blog Views From the Edge.

Another SCOTUS target? AANHPI rally around Harvard's admissions policy using affirmative action

 

Asian Americans join other students of color in their support for Harvard's admission policies.

Harvard University and its supporters, girding themselves for the possible dismantling of affirmative action, filed a host of friend of the court briefs Monday. 

With Asan Americans reportedly alleging that Harvard discriminated against them in its admissions process, it is noteworthy that some of the strongest arguments on behalf of affirmative action came from Asian American groups and individuals.

Faced with an ultra conservative Supreme Court that through its reversal on Roe v. Wade demonstrated it has no respect for legal precedent, the Ivy League school , business, educators and legal organizations filed friends of the court briefs supporting the need for diversity in higher education and in the real world. The Supreme Court is expected to rule on the Harvard case in ints next session which begins Oct. 1.

The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, filed a brief on behalf of itself and 121 other Asian groups or individuals) that said, “The notion that race-conscious admissions policies discriminate against Asian Americans relies on and perpetuates harmful stereotypes against Asian Americans. The Asian American community is vast and varied, including first-generation college students and children whose parents’ professions secured their immigration; children of working-class refugees and multigenerational Americans; speakers of over 300 languages; aspiring entrepreneurs, artists, teachers and more.”

Margaret Fung, AALDEF executive director, said: “Significantly, not a single Asian American applicant offered testimony claiming to be a victim of discrimination. Harvard’s individualized admissions process, which takes race into account, actually helps to dispel the harmful ‘model minority’ myth by recognizing the vast ethnic, language, and socioeconomic diversity within the Asian American community.”

Despite some attempts by nonAsian media to paint a deep divide among AANHPI, a number of polls, including a survey by AAPIData showed that Asian Americans overwhelmingly support affirmative action, three-to-one.

Asian Americans Advancing Justice (Advancing Justice) filed two amicus briefs Monday before the U.S. Supreme Court in SFFA v. Harvard, affirming its longstanding support for race-conscious admissions in higher education.

“For centuries, communities of color, including Asian Americans, have struggled against racial discrimination and faced systemic barriers to education, employment, and immigration, among other challenges,” said John C. Yang, President and Executive Director of Advancing Justice – AAJC. “Race, ethnicity, and our lived experiences are integral parts of our personal story and collective history. Holistic admissions ensures all students have the opportunity to share their whole story in addition to their academic achievements.”

The amicus brief affirms that Harvard and UNC’s race-conscious admissions programs do not discriminate against AAPI students, but rather expand their access to higher education. The brief also highlights the educational benefits of racial diversity for AAPI communities and asserts that eliminating the consideration of race in admissions programs will harm AAPI and other students of color.

“Our communities know better than to give into extremist strategist Edward Blum’s years-long mission to deny Black, Latinx, Asian American, and other communities of color equal voting rights and educational opportunities,” said Aarti Kohli, Executive Director of Advancing Justice - Asian Law Caucus. “As a parent, my children have had more chances to grow and thrive because of affirmative action, diversity, and anti-discrimination programs in our education systems. As a civil rights lawyer, there’s no question these attacks on the constitutionality of race conscious programs are a thinly veiled strategy to limit educational opportunities for all students of color.”

Students for Fair Admissions headed by anti-affirmative action activist Edward Blum filed the complaint against Harvard in 2014. The lower courts have ruled in favor of Harvard.'s admission policies. 

Blum hopes the current  conservative majority in the Supreme Court will overturn the concept of affirmative action which has survived four earlier SCOTUS cases. The conservative majority of Justices demonstrated they have no problem overturning long-standing precedent when  in June they ruled, 6-3, against Roe v. Wade, which gave women the right to abortion.

Harvard also got a big boost when big tech companies led by Apple and Google filed a brief asked the Supreme Court not to do away with affirmative action, saying the companies seek racial diversity when hiring employees.

They were among roughly 70 companies in the technology, finance and health care industries staking a claim in one of the high court’s most watched cases during its next term.

"Diverse workforces improve … business performance — and thus strengthen the American and global economies. [The companies] seek employees who have been educated at universities with exposure to a broad array of life experiences and viewpoints, and who can bring diverse perspectives and experiences to the workplace,” the 47-page brief read.

Some of the other major companies that signed onto the brief include Airbnb, American Airlines, American Express, Dell Technologies, Johnson & Johnson, Mattel, PayPal, Meta Platforms, Starbucks, The Hershey Company, The Kraft Heinz Company, Uber, United Airlines and Walgreens Boots Alliance.

Harvard's defenders included a host of other universities who point to the 1978 case of Regents of University of California v Bakke, where the high court ruled that racial quotas were unlawful, but consideration of race as one part of an admissions factor is constitutional.

The president of the University of California system and chancellors of UC’s 10 campuses said their system was an example of what the court should avoid.

“For the past 25 years, UC has served as just such a laborator(y) for experimentation,” the brief said. “After Proposition 209 (which banned affirmative action) barred consideration of race in admissions decisions at public universities in California, freshmen enrollees from underrepresented minority groups dropped precipitously at UC, and dropped by 50% or more at UC’s most selective campuses. Since then, UC has implemented numerous and wide-ranging race-neutral measures designed to increase diversity of all sorts, including racial diversity … Those programs have enabled UC to make significant gains in its system-wide diversity. 

"Yet despite its extensive efforts, UC struggles to enroll a student body that is sufficiently racially diverse to attain the educational benefits of diversity. The short-fall is especially apparent at UC’s most selective campuses, where African American, Native American, and Latinx students are underrepresented and widely report struggling with feelings of racial isolation.”

Hoping to sway the six Catholic Supreme Court Justices, Georgetown University filed a brief as part of a joint effort with 56 Catholic institutions, including the University of Notre Dame, the College of the Holy Cross, DePaul University and Villanova University. Their brief affirms that the right to consider racial diversity in a holistic admissions process to build a diverse student body and learning environment is essential to their academic and religious missions. Achieving racial diversity in admissions, the brief asserts, is “inextricably intertwined” with Catholic universities and colleges’ religious foundations.

The brief also argues that this right is rooted in the First Amendment’s Free Speech and Free Exercise Clause, particularly for Catholic higher education institutions, whose ability to have discretion in how they choose students is critical to their religious missions. 

Harvard's own student and alumni amici attested to how a diverse campus benefits all students, including addressing racial isolation and increasing cross-racial understanding and cultural competency that better prepared them for their professional careers. 

Asian American amici, some who testified in court, also affirmed benefiting from race-conscious admissions policies at Harvard, which provided them the opportunity to share their whole story, including their race and ethnicity, background, and diverse experiences. Asian American students which the Students for Fair Admissions purport to represent offered no in-person testimony.

“Absolute neutrality has never been a universal constitutional principle,” Harvard argued in its own behalf, saying that the framers of the Constitution’s 14th Amendment saw race-conscious measures as necessary to ensure Black people’s “equal participation in society” following the Civil War.

Harvard’s website cites Asian American student acceptance at 25.9% and African American students at 15.9% out of 2,320 total. Lower courts have ruled in favor of Harvard and UNC, but the university remains steadfast in its mission to diversify its student body.

“Harvard has repeatedly studied and continues to evaluate the importance of student-body diversity to its educational objectives and whether a race-conscious admissions process remains necessary to achieve them,” Harvard's brief said. “But as the district court observed, ‘we are not there yet.’”

“No alternative is presently workable,” states Harvard. “Until that changes, Harvard must be allowed to consider race as one of many characteristics in admissions to achieve the compelling benefits of student-body diversity.”

The Advancing Justice brief affirms that Harvard and UNC’s race-conscious admissions programs do not discriminate against AAPI students, but rather expand their access to higher education. The brief also highlights the educational benefits of racial diversity for AAPI communities and asserts that eliminating the consideration of race in admissions programs will harm AAPI and other students of color. 

“For too long, the model minority myth has propagated a false premise that AAPIs don’t benefit from race conscious admissions practices,” said Connie Chung Jose, CEO, Asian Americans Advancing Justice Southern California (AJSOCAL). “The reality is that our communities also face discrimination and barriers to opportunities that race conscious admissions can address. And for AAPI students and other students of color, having a racially diverse student body is not only important to their educational experience, but often necessary to fully articulate the hurdles, achievements, and personal development experiences intrinsic to college admissions evaluations.”

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow @DioknoEd on Twitter.

‘The Cleaning Lady’ offers a look at the hidden side of Asian America

Elodie Yung leads a diverse cast in 'The Cleaning Lady.'

American audiences will get a glimpse of Asian America rarely seen on television with today's  (Jan. 3) debut of a new drama, The Cleaning Lady.

With Asian Americans playing key roles in the series' creation, writer, executive producers and actors, the drama will feature complex, 3-dimensional characters, who don't fit the model minority mold and beyond the supporting friend, nerd and martial artist stereotypes usually portrayed in U.S. media.

Miranda Kwok (The 100) adapted the story from an Argentine series. Instead of having the characters be East Asian, which most Americans associate with when they picture Asian people, Kwok chose to have her characters come from the Philippines, broadening the image of what an Asian looks like. 

“I was inspired to create a show with a Southeast Asian female lead, which is something we’ve never seen on prime time television,” stated Kwok during a discussion at the advance community screening of The Cleaning Lady.

“What excited me about the show is that I wanted to do a female ‘Breaking Bad’ type story, but have the point of view from an undocumented person,” says Kwok, who is also the creator and writer. 

Kwok also noted that she “wanted to explore the story of an undocumented immigrant and show how she can defy all the odds that were against her, find her strength and faces those challenges.”

Eloidie Yung will play the central character, Thony De La Rosa, a whip-smart Cambodian, who is a doctor from the Philippines. She comes to the U.S. for a medical treatment to save her son, Luca, (portrayed by Sebastien and Valentino LaSalle) but when the system fails and pushes her into become an undocumented American. She uses her cunning and intelligence to fight back, breaking the law for all the right reasons.

Yung replaced Shannyn Sossamon, a Filipino American actress who was originally cast as the lead character. Casting Yung, who is Cambodian French, created another problem. Rather than facing the sure-as-fire controversy if Yung continued to play a Filipino, the creators tailored the storyline to reflect Yung's own ethnicity. So the central character Reyna became Thony.

“My dad came from another country and had to make his own place in France, so I could very much relate to that. I was so glad I could be seen for the first time for really who I am as a whole person, with my origins, my background, and also just what I could bring as an actor,” Yung said during a Fox TCA panel, when the series trailer was released. “It was such a strong part, and draining, but beautiful to have.”

To underscore the Filipino factor, the music of FilAm rapper Ruby Ibarra will be used in the series. The Bay Area artist, known for her Filipino American themes in her original lyrics, wrote several new cuts especially for The Cleaning Lady.

There will be plenty of Filipino cultural references as the De La Rosa family maneuvers it's way through the hidden world of the undocumented. Thony's Filipino husband, Marco De La Rosa, will be played by Ivan Shaw, who was born in Taiwan.

Marco's sister Fiona is also undocumented and is Thony's best friend and roommate. “It is completely groundbreaking in terms of the show and it’s diversity," says Martha Millan, a Filipino Aussie actor. "Being a part of this is incredible! Phenomenal!’’

Sabastien LaSalle, who plays Thony's son, Fiona's children played by Shawn Lew and Faith Bryant are also Asian American actors.

Additionally the series will feature other actors of Asian descent as the plot moves forward, including Filipino American Lou Diamond Philipps and his real-life daughter Gracie, who will play father and daughter in the series story.

Shay Mitchell, (Pretty Little Liars) who like Kwok, is from Canada is also executive producing.

The series premieres as the U.S. is experiencing a surge of anti-Asian hate, a move to ensure Asian American history is taught in the nation's public schools, a rise in political activism and a debate over U.S. immigration policies.

Kwok wants The Cleaning Lady “to tell a more timely story as to what is going on today. I wanted to layer in a lot of issues through the story.”

The Cleaning Lady airs on Fox at 9 p.m., Mondays or streamed on Hulu.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AAPI perspective, follow me on Twitter @DioknoEd.

Barbie apologizes for its oversight on omitting an Olympic Asian doll, but its more complicated than that

Toymaker Mattel says the skateboarder Barbie, upper right, was supposed to be Asian.

OPINION

If you're going to use racial diversity as a selling point for your product, you better well not forget Asians. That's what chagrined toymaker Mattel found out with its five-doll collection of Olympic Barbies.

After recently relaunching the promotion of Olympic Barbie dolls first introduced earlier this year, the company received a social media backlash criticizing the company for not including a Barbie who appeared to be Asian.

The apparent oversight was heightened because the Olympics was being held in Japan and several Asian Americans won gold medals in their events.

“Our intention to represent the Asian community with the Skateboarder doll has failed and we fully welcome and acknowledge the comments,” a spokesperson said in a press release.

Mattel said their skateboard doll was meant to represent the Asian American community, but some Twitter users said they didn’t think the Barbie looked Asian.

Each of the five dolls in the collection reflects the five new sports that have been added to the Olympics: softball, sport climbing, karate, surfing and skateboarding.

Critics point to the achievements of Asian American Olympians this year, including American gymnast Hmong Suni Lee, who was the first Asian American to win gold in the all-around gymnastics, and the Filipino American fencer Lee Kiefer, who was the first Asian American woman to win a gold medal in overall fencing and Michael Norman, who won gold as a member of the 4x400 track relay team.

RELATED:

• Barbie introduces doll of Filipino American doctor
• Tennis star Naomi Osaka gets a Barbie lookalike

Mattel has already created Barbies to honor specific Asian athletes. A doll depicting snowboarder Chloe Kim, who won gold in snowboarding at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea, was released right after the Games. And a few weeks before the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics, Mattel released a doll inspired by tennis player Naomi Osaka.

Even earlier, a Barbie was created in the likeness of skateboarder Sky Brown, a Japanese American who won a Bronze medal for Great Britain.

“In the future, we will work to find more ways to defend all performances and celebrate the incredible achievements of all Olympic athletes, who show us that anything is possible,” said a spokesperson for Mattel.

Asian enough? From left: Kee Kiefer, Paige McPherson, Ericka Sullivan and Michael Norman

OK, the following is my take: I'm avoiding this golden opportunity to jump on the anti-big corporation bandwagon to blast giant toymaker Mattel. Perhaps the skateboarder doll included in the Olympic collection did not look Asian -- enough.

There are Asian American Olympic athletes of mixed race that some would say could pass for Whites or Black. Tai kwon do competitor Paige McPherson, sprinter Michael Norman, swimmer Ericka Sullivan, surfer Carissa Moore and even Kiefer, though they identify Asian American, don't look like your prototypical (East) Asian, the default image of Asians held by the rest of the U.S.

But for some people who prefer racial , the ambiguity provided by people who claim more than one racial heritage is not good enough even though multiracial people are the fastest growing racial and ethnic category, according to the U.S. Census. The multiracial population has grown considerably since 2010. It was measured at 9 million people in 2010 and is now 33.8 million people in 2020, a 276% increase.

Our definition and our perception of who is Asian, or what an Asian "looks" like, needs to take into account the diversity and complexity of our communities to make room for people who might look like Skateboarder Barbie, who, I'm sure, continually get asked:  "Where are you from?" and "What are you?"

AAPI still not over being snubbed for Biden's cabinet.

Asian Americans will not be at the table when President Joe Biden's Cabinet meets

OPINION

President Joe Biden's executive memo condemning the hate and racism being aimed at Asian and Pacific Islander Americans has done little to sooth the hurt for not getting an AAPI named to a single Cabinet Secretary.

“The brazen exclusion" of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders "abandons and erases the AAPI community,” said Madalene Mielke, president and CEO of the Asian Pacific American Institute of Congressional Studies.

“It’s insulting and frustrating,” Mielke, told USA Today. “Part of the reason Asian Americans vote is that they’re looking for people who can represent them. And it stings, because it looks like we’re regressing.”

“Yes, I am profoundly disappointed also that there is not a member of the AAPI community at the Cabinet secretary level,” said Sen. Tammy Duckworth in a statement. “And I think that for a Cabinet that is so historically diverse, to not have someone of AAPI descent at the Cabinet level is a real missed opportunity.

“I think it sends two messages,” said the Illinois Congressmember. “One, that you’re not important to us, you’re not diverse enough, you’re not important to us. And the other is that you can be taken for granted.

“AAPIs have 4% of the vote in many, many states — that’s the margin of victory in many, many states … it just says that potentially we’re taking AAPIs for granted,” she added. “And I’m just going to make sure we send a message that we will not take AAPIs for granted. That the AAPI community is just as important to this nation as those of other community groups and that AAPIs are Americans just like everyone else.”

Duckworth‘s comments came the same day Biden signed a memorandum condemning racism and xenophobia against AAPIs spurred by the coronavirus pandemic.

AAPI voters cast their ballots for Biden in overwhelming numbers and acted as swing voters in some districts and states so criticizing Biden is not something that comes easy for some.

“As much as I view myself as a friendly ally of this president," said Rep. Mark Takano. "I think he’s erred in [that] he has chosen to exclude Asian Americans from his 15 Cabinet secretaries."

Settling for the crumbs is something AAPI is all too familiar with. The danger is if AAPI voters who became more engaged in the November election or in Georgia's runoff vote for Senate feel that their effort was for naught, they may begin to wonder if their political involvement is worth the effort.

Former Congressmember Dan Honda emphasized that the people Biden chose were well qualified and that his Cabinet is one of the more diverse, but without an AAPI Secretary, it doesn't "look like America," a boast Biden promised during the campaign.

Critics say that picking Neera Tanden to head the Office of Management and Budget and Katherine Tai for the U.S. Trade Representative post are fine selections, their positions don't carry the weight as a Cabinet Secretary.

The only hope for AAPI may fall Vice President Kamala Harris shoulders to make sure that the AAPI voice is heard during the Cabinet meetings.

“When we’re out of the picture, then we’re not part of America,” said  Honda. “And then all we’re good for is photos and contributions of votes, but not for a seat at America’s table.”

EDITOR'S NOTE; A word of caution. This is an opinion piece. Readers should consult several sources of news to form their own opinion.

Sunday Read: University of California admissions for Asian American make up over a third of first-year students

University of California  Irvine is a favoritecampus for Asian American students.

The highly touted University of California system, the largest in the United States, is admitting one of its most diverse classes of freshmen and transfer students with Asian Americans and Latinx students leading the way.

Asian American first-year students make up 35% of the students offered admisstion -- about the same as last year -- even though that ethnic group makes up only 7% of the state's population.

However, for the first time, Chicanx/Latinx students now comprise the largest ethnic group of admitted freshmen, making up 36% of admitted freshmen, up from 34% last year.

“This has been an incredibly challenging time as many students have been making their college decision in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said UC President Janet Napolitano. “UC continues to see increased admissions of underrepresented students as we seek to educate a diverse student body of future leaders. The incoming class will be one of our most talented and diverse yet, and UC is proud to invite them to join us.”

The proportion of African American students inched higher from 4.8% to 5% and American Indian students remained at 0.5%. White students decreased by a percentage point to 21% of admitted freshmen.

Overall, offers to California freshmen from underrepresented groups increased by 4,678 for a total of 33,225, an increase of 16% from last year.

Total admission of California Community College (CCC) students posted a high-water mark for 2020. Admitted CCC transfer students from underrepresented groups increased by 756 for a total of 9,640, an increase of 9% over last year. The racial/ethnic makeup remained similar to last year, with Chicanx/Latinx students comprising the largest proportion of California Community College transfers at 32%, up slightly from 31% last year. White community college transfer students dropped to 29% of admitted students (from 31%), and Asian Americans increased slightly to 29% from 28 percent last year. Admission of African American transfer students moved up slightly, to 5.6% from 5.5% last year and American Indian students stayed at 0.7% of admitted students.

Offers to California freshmen from underrepresented groups increased by 4,678 for a total of 33,225, an increase of 16% from last year. In a first in UC history, Chicanx/Latinx students now comprise the largest ethnic group of admitted freshmen, making up 36% of admitted freshmen, up from 34% last year. Asian American students remained at 35% and white students decreased by a percentage point to 21% of admitted freshmen. The proportion of African American students inched higher from 4.8% to 5% and American Indian students remained at 0.5%.

The University also saw an increase in admission of low-income and first-generation-to-college students this year. The proportion of California freshmen who would be the first in their families to earn a four-year college degree increased to 45% (35,058), up from 44% (30,856) in 2019, while the proportion of low-income students grew to 44% (30,865), up from 40% (26,913).

Sather Gate is one of the main entrances to UC Berkeley.

Total admission of California Community College (CCC) students posted a high-water mark for 2020. Admitted CCC transfer students from underrepresented groups increased by 756 for a total of 9,640, an increase of 9 percent over last year. 

The racial/ethnic makeup of state community college transfers remained similar to last year, with Chicanx/Latinx students making up the largest proportion at 32 percent, up slightly from 31 percent last year. White community college transfer students dropped to 29 percent of admitted students (from 31 percent), and Asian Americans increased slightly to 29 percent from 28 percent last year. Admission of African American transfer students moved up slightly, to 5.6 percent from 5.5 percent last year and American Indian students stayed at 0.7 percent of admitted students.

It will be late summer before UC officials know how many students who accepted admission offers will enroll. For now, it looks promising, with officials anticipating no more than a minor drop in anticipated new student enrollment.

Young Americans more diverse than older generations

White supremacists, already spooked by a demographic future where they are not in the majority, probably won't like this bit of news from the Census.

For the first time, people of color were a majority of people under age 16 in 2019, a sign that for this generation, the future is already here. The demographic shift is expected to grow over the coming decades, according to figures released by the U.S. Census Bureau on Thursday.

“We are browning from bottom up in our age structure,” William Frey, a senior fellow at The Brookings Institution, told the Associated Press. “This is going to be a diversified century for the United States, and it’s beginning with this youngest generation.”

It's not a new trend but the numbers mark a turning point that demographers have been predicting for decades. In 25 years, when today's young people, Gen Z and Gen Z+, will be 26 to 51 years old, the white population in the U.S. will no longer be in the majority but will still be the largest ethnic group in the nation. 

As the white population has gotten smaller, the ranks of people of color, swollen by immigrants from Asia and Latin America, is getting larger.

Of the racial groups, Asians had the biggest growth since the last Census in 2010. The Asian population has grown almost 30%, spurred by migration from Asia. India and China are the biggest contributors to the immigration rate.

Hopefully, younger generations having grown up in a  society in which diversity is a common thing in everyday life, will have a better handle on how to treat race than the generations that preceded them.

Asian American college students remain the largest ethnic group in UC admissions

A recent graduation ceremony at UC Berkeley where Asians represent the largest ethnic group on campus.

ASAM NEWS

The Los Angeles Times is reporting that the University of California is welcoming its largest and most diverse class of freshmen in Fall 2019.
“The composition of the freshman class is similar to that of last year,” according to an official statement released by the UC, with Asian American students remaining the largest ethnic group to be admitted systemwide at 35 percent, followed by Latinos at 34 percent, Caucasians at 22 percent, and African Americans at 5 percent.

This year, the system also admitted 991 more students from underrepresented groups, with 44 percent of first-generation college students and 40 percent of low-income students making up the incoming Fall class.

According to new data , the system admitted 108,178 freshmen from a pool of 176,695 applicants and 28,752 transfers out of 41,282 applicants. In addition, Californian freshmen took 71,665 of those seats as well as 26,700 Californian transfer students. Compared to last year’s record, there was about 500 more freshman admissions and around 200 more transfer admissions. According to the official statement by the UC, this year the universities are expecting the largest class from California Community Colleges.

“Yet another year of record-setting admissions underscores the tremendous interest in the world-class education at UC,” UC President Janet Napolitano said in the statement. “The best and the brightest young minds continue to make UC their university of choice.”

The LA Times further reported that the nine UC campuses experienced a steep budget cut at the same time when incoming freshmen and transfer applications doubled. Nonetheless, UC continues to increase their admission despite the budget cuts, planning to add additional 4,860 students in the next two years.

UC Admissions data for Californian Freshman can be viewed here, for Californian Transfers can be viewed here.The data tables also include campus-specific information for both freshmen and transfers.

__________________________________________________________________

REPORT: Asian Americans slowly move into Facebook senior leadership

FACEBOOK

Although Facebook has shown slight improvement in its goals to diversify its workforce, the social media giant admitted it had a long way to go, according to its sixth annual diversity report released Tuesday (July 16).

"Since 2014, when our strategic efforts began, we've made some progress increasing the number of people from traditionally underrepresented groups employed at Facebook but we recognize that we need to do more," the report says.

Asian Americans in senior management improved from 21.6% in 2018 to 24.9%, a vast improvement since diversity statistics have been gathered for the social media company in 2014 when Asian Americans made up only 19% of its leadership team.

However, looking at the overall US workforce where Asian Americans make up 43% of workers they are still underrepresented in leadership roles when you take into account that the total Asian workforce in the US actually increased from 35% to 44% from 2014 to 2019.

SCREEN CAPTURE / BLOOMBERG NEWS

In general, the high-tech industry has come under criticism for its lack of diversity in its workforce and the perceived bamboo ceiling hampering Asian American advancement. As a result, some companies like Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Apple and Yahoo have begun programs to increase the diversity of its employees with varying degrees of success.

The situation with Asian Americans slow move into the board rooms at Facebook is an industry-wide problem. There is a perception that Asian Americans - men and women - lack the leadership qualities to be effective managers.

It's difficult to gauge the progress made without the actual number of positions Facebook is talking about considering the company has experienced tremendous growth in five years.

The report reveals that the company, globally, is 63.1 percent male and 36.9 percent female, only slightly changed from the 63.7 percent male and 36.3 percent female workforce that it reported last year. In technical roles, that changes to 77 percent male and 23 percent female, whereas last year, it was 78.4 percent and 21.6 percent. Among senior leadership, it's 67.4 percent male, down from 70 percent last year.

As for ethnicity data, Facebook only breaks out its stats for the US.  Facebook says, its US workforce is 44.2 percent white, 43 percent Asian, 5.2 percent Hispanic, and 3.8 percent Black, with 3.1 percent of its employees reporting being from two or more backgrounds, and 0.7 percent marked down as "other."

By comparison, last year, Facebook said that its US workforce was 46.6 percent white, 41.4 percent Asian, 4.9 percent Hispanic, and 3.5 percent Black, with 3 percent reporting two or more, and 0.6 percent reporting as "other."

"Since 2014, when our strategic efforts began, we've made some progress increasing the number of people from traditionally underrepresented groups employed at Facebook but we recognize that we need to do more," Facebook says in its report.

The report reveals that the company, globally, is 63.1 percent male and 36.9 percent female, only slightly changed from the 63.7 percent male and 36.3 percent female workforce that it reported last year. In technical roles, that changes to 77 percent male and 23 percent female, whereas last year, it was 78.4 percent and 21.6 percent. Among senior leadership, it's 67.4 percent male, down from 70 percent last year.

As for ethnicity data, Facebook only breaks out its stats for the US. Across its American operations, Facebook says, its workforce is 44.2 percent white, 43 percent Asian, 5.2 percent Hispanic, and 3.8 percent Black, with 3.1 percent of its employees reporting being from two or more backgrounds, and 0.7 percent marked down as "other."

By comparison, last year, Facebook said that its US workforce was 46.6 percent white, 41.4 percent Asian, 4.9 percent Hispanic, and 3.5 percent Black, with 3 percent reporting two or more, and 0.6 percent reporting as "other."

A majority of the Asian Americans employeed by Facebook are concentrated in the technical fields where they make up over 51% of the workforce. They are least represented in marketing and business operations where they compose 24.7% of the workforce.

Asian Americans make up 43% of Facebook's US workforce.

Asian Americans make up almost 25% of Facebook's American senior management team.

Despite these relatively small changes, Facebook touts that it's been moving in the right direction, with more women and people from underrepresented groups joining its technical organizations, and more women joining the ranks of leadership by being promoted from within.

"Today, there are more people of diverse backgrounds and experiences, more people of color, more women in both technical and business roles, and more underrepresented people in leadership here," wrote Maxine Williams, Facebook's Global Diversity Officer in a blog.

"Most notably, we’ve achieved higher representation of women in leadership by focusing on hiring and growing female leaders within the company. Over the last several years, the majority of new female leaders were internally promoted. Also, since 2014, we have increased the number of Black women at Facebook by 25X and the number of Black men by 10X. And importantly, even as we have grown, we have worked very hard on making Facebook a more welcoming, respectful workplace."

Recognizing the difficulties in having its workforce more representative of the US, Facebook has nevertheless set lofty goals for itself.

"We envision a company where in the next five years, at least 50% of our workforce will be women, people who are Black, Hispanic, Native American, Pacific Islanders, people with two or more ethnicities, people with disabilities, and veterans," continued Williams in her blog. "In doing this, we aim to double our number of women globally and Black and Hispanic employees in the US. It will be a company that reflects and better serves the people on our platforms, services and products. It will be a more welcoming community advancing our mission and living up to the responsibility that comes with it."

____________________________________________________________________

Harvard's admission policies on trial; anti-Asian bias claimed

HARVARD

ASAM NEWS

A LAWSUIT designed to alter the admittance policies at the nation’s elite universities will be heard beginning today (Monday, Oct. 15) in Massachusetts.
The discrimination case backed by the Trump administration puts Asian Americans at the center of the case, alleging that Harvard’s policies put Asian American applicants at a disadvantage.

RELATED: A closer look at affirmative action and Asian Americans

The case has many Asian American parents talking.

“They’ve heard about this lawsuit or they’ve heard through the grapevine that it’s harder to get admitted if they’re Asian,” said college counselor Alyson Tom to PRI. “I have some families that strongly believe that Asian American families are discriminated against in highly selective admissions. And I have other families who are not concerned about that and have faith in the system. It runs the full spectrum.”

The case, however it is decided, is expected to head to the U.S. Supreme Court, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education. The court took a decided turn to the right with the addition of Brett Kavanaugh to the bench this month.

The Chronicle also reported that Harvard has a “dean’s interest list” that includes a list of applicants from donor families. There’s also a “Z list” that allegedly includes applicants from well connected families who would otherwise not be admitted.

“Obviously there are some factors that seem to be against Asians or at least make it tougher for them to get into these universities,” says parent Sanjay Dave to PRI.

Since 2016, the percentage of Harvard admits who are Asian American has risen from 17 percent to 22.9 percent.

According to a 2018 survey by AAPI Data, 58 percent of all Asian Americans support affirmative action.

Seventeen-year old Becca, who asked PRI not to use her full name, sees the benefits of affirmative action in her classroom.

“A lot of the classes I’m in, we have people of all different backgrounds,” she says. “When we have discussions about literature or historic events, a lot of these people can bring in stories about their own grandparents who have lived through a war in Asia or Europe.”

She says using affirmative action to achieve that is worthwhile.

_______________________________________________________________________________