Moung Kyaw, class of 1868, left his home nation of Burma for Hamilton, New York, to study at the then Madison University. Colgate’s connections to Burma ran deep, dating back to the departure of Jonathan Wade, inaugural class of 1822, and his wife Deborah on a mission trip to Burma some 45 years earlier.
Colgate University is a private liberal arts college in Hamilton, New York. The college was founded in 1819 as the Baptist Education Society of the State of New York and operated under that name until 1823, when it was renamed Hamilton Theological and Literary Institution, often called Hamilton College (1823–1846), then Madison College (1846–1890), and its present name since 1890. Colgate now enrolls nearly 3,000 students in 56 undergraduate majors that culminate in a Bachelor of Arts degree.[8] It is part of the Patriot League athletic conference.
Contents
1 History
1.1 Coeducation
1.2 President Cutten's controversial legacies
2 Campus
2.1 Outreach
2.2 Longyear Museum of Anthropology
2.3 Picker Art Gallery
2.3.1 Exhibitions
3 Academics
3.1 Admissions
3.2 Rankings
4 Administration
4.1 Board of Trustees
5 Student life
5.1 Housing and student life facilities
5.2 Fraternities and sororities
5.3 Student groups
5.4 Media
6 Traditions
7 Athletics
7.1 Outdoor education
8 Alumni
9 References
10 External links
History
The Colgate University campus in Hamilton, NY
In 1817, the Baptist Education Society of the State of New York was founded by thirteen men (six clergymen and seven laymen). Two years later, in 1819, the state granted the school's charter, and the school opened a year later, in 1820.[9] The first classes were held in a building in the town of Hamilton. Three years later, in 1823, the Baptist Theological Seminary at New York City incorporated with the Baptist Education Society and subsequently changed its name to the Hamilton Literary & Theological Institution.[10] Among the trustees was William Colgate, founder of the Colgate Company.[10]
In 1826, the school's trustees bought farmland that later became the focal point of the campus, known as 'The Hill'. One year later, the current students and faculty of the school built West Hall, by using stone taken from a quarry found on the land. Originally called West Edifice before being renamed to West Hall, it is the oldest structure on campus.[11] On March 26, 1846, the State of New York granted a college charter to Hamilton's Collegiate Department; in the two years prior to that, at the request of Hamilton Trustees, degrees of forty-five Bachelor's students and at least one Master's candidate were awarded by Columbian College in Washington, D.C. (now the George Washington University), a fellow Baptist institution.[12] In 1846, the school changed its name to Madison University.[9] In 1850, the Baptist Education Society planned to move the university to Rochester, but was halted by legal action. Dissenting trustees, faculty, and students founded the University of Rochester.[13]
In 1890, Madison University changed its name to Colgate University in recognition of the family and its gifts to the school.[14] James B. Colgate, one of William Colgate's sons, established a $1 million endowment called the Dodge Memorial Fund.[10][14] In 1912 Colgate Academy, a preparatory school and high school that had operated in Hamilton since the early 1800s, was closed and its facility became Colgate University's administration building.[15] The theological side of Colgate merged with the Rochester Theological Seminary in 1928 to become the Colgate Rochester Divinity School, leaving Colgate to become non-denominational.
During World War II, Colgate University was one of 131 colleges and universities nationally that took part in the V-12 Navy College Training Program which offered students a path to a Navy commission.[16]
Coeducation
From its inception the institution was an all-male institution, but started to see female students attend in a limited capacity as early as the mid-1800s when Emily Taylor, daughter of then-president Stephen W. Taylor (1851–56), attended her father’s moral philosophy class.[17]
The institution’s first full-time female student was Mabel Dart (later Colegrove), who participated in classes from 1878–1882. At the time, university officials deemed it best that a female student not be embarrassed by graduating from an all-male college, and made arrangements for Dart to officially receive her degree from all-female Vassar College.[18]
In ensuing years, additional female students participated in courses, including faculty spouses and the wives of enrolled veterans in the post-WWII era.[17] Colgate became fully coeducational in 1970.[19]
President Cutten's controversial legacies
The national monument at Ellis Island displays a statement by Colgate's eighth President, George Barton Cutten, which has been criticized for its jingoistic anti-immigration sentiment. He warned, "The danger [that] the 'melting pot' brings to the nation is the breeding out of the higher divisions of the white race."[20]
While Cutten's legacy has been marred by the espousal of racist beliefs, the contributions he made to developing the prestige and facilities of Colgate were significant. Student protests in 2006 around campus facilities bearing Cutter's name[21] became emblematic of the division surrounding how modern American universities should broker their own history with racism,[22] foreshadowing future controversies in the mid-2010s at universities such as Yale University[23] and Harvard University.[24] Colgate removed the Cutten name from a residential complex located between Whitnall Field and Huntington Gym in 2017. Each of the four houses that compose the building — Brigham, Shepardson, Read, and Whitnall — is now known by its existing name and street address, 113 Broad Street.[25]
Campus
Memorial Chapel is the anchor of the Colgate University Academic Quad
Case Library and Geyer Center for Information Technology
Colgate University is located in the rural village of Hamilton Village, Hamilton, New York. The campus itself is situated on 575 acres (2.33 km2) of land.[26] The university owns an additional 1,100 acres (4.5 km2) of undeveloped forested lands.[27]
Colgate's first building, West Hall, was built by students and faculty from stones from Colgate's own rock quarry. Nearly all the buildings on campus are built of stone, and newer buildings are built with materials that fit the style.[28] Old Biology Hall was built in 1884 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.[29] The principal campus plan was created by Ernest W. Bowditch in 1891–1893, drawing on earlier recommendations by Frederick Law Olmsted.[30][31]
Probably the most distinctive building on campus is Colgate Memorial Chapel, which was built in 1918 and is used for lectures, performances, concerts, and religious services.[32]
Most of the campus's heat is generated from a wood boiler which burns wood chips, a renewable resource.[33] Almost all of Colgate's electricity comes from a hydroelectric dam at Niagara Falls; the rest comes from nuclear sources.[34] The campus also has a Green Bikes program with over two dozen bikes that are loaned out in an effort to encourage students to rely less on cars.[35] Colgate Dining Services currently provides organic rice, beans, and other dry foods, and is working to offer more local foods options.[36] Dining Services take-out containers are also made from natural materials, and are compostable.[37] "On August 13, Colgate received a perfect sustainability score from the Princeton Review. As a result, it was recognized as one of only 24 schools (out of 861 evaluated) to make their Green Honor Roll.[38]
Outreach
Colgate founded the Upstate Institute in 2003. The Institute was created to connect the Colgate community to its surrounding region, as well as to give back and help economically and socially sustain the area. Currently, they do research on counties in the area, as well as support outreach and volunteer organizations.[39]
Colgate was an initial sponsor of Partnership for Community Development,[40] a local nonprofit organization which seeks to support the community through revitalization of buildings and small business development.[41]
Longyear Museum of Anthropology
The Longyear Museum of Anthropology is part of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Colgate University. Carol Ann Lorenz is the Senior Curator and Jordan Kerber is the Curator of Archaeological Collections.
The Longyear Museum exhibition gallery is centrally located in Alumni Hall on campus.[42] The museum has approximately 20,000 archaeological artifacts from North, Central, and South America as well as artworks from Africa, Native North America, Asia, and Oceania. Prior to the construction of the gallery, objects were exhibited in display cases in the department of Social Relations.
Professor of anthropology and archaeologist John M. Longyear III, who retired from Colgate University in 1978, suggested a Museum where students could study and interact with the collection.
Today, the Museum hosts about four exhibitions per academic year, some of which are partly curated by students. Academic classes also work in conjunction with the Longyear. As a group, students in these classes research and curate exhibitions from the Museum's collection, or create virtual exhibitions. During the summer months, students can apply for research grants to work directly with the permanent collection. In some cases, student work will result in an exhibition featuring the researched objects. Access to the collection is available to students who enroll in an independent study class and receive course credit for working with the museum.
Picker Art Gallery
The Picker Art Gallery is the fine arts museum that is housed in the Dana Arts Center at Colgate University in Hamilton, New York. It was named after Evelyn Picker, class of '36 and trustee emeritus, and opened in 1969.[43] The Museum houses an impressive 11,000-some art objects in its permanent collections. Highlights include old master paintings from Europe, woodblock prints from China and Japan, and a series of original photographs from famed Soviet wartime photographer Yevgeny Khaldei.[44] The Picker has also hosted exhibitions from artists across the world and collections from other museums in the US.
Currently, there are plans to move the Picker collection to a new facility, which Colgate University has named the Center for Art and Culture.[45] This center, which was designed and centered with the community at large in mind, includes plans for “exhibition space, seminar rooms, project space, and archive space,” along with office space, reception area, amnemities, and a space for public functions. The same building plans to house Longyear Museum of Anthropology.
Exhibitions
The Picker Art Museum recently launched an online campaign to display works as a digital exhibition, their first being “Selected Old Masters From the Picker Art Gallery.”[46] Other than this online gallery, all exhibition and educational programs have been temporarily ceased due to the university's thorough assessment of the works in anticipation for the move to the new Center for Arts and Culture.
Academics
A classroom in Colgate University's Lathrop Hall
Colgate offers 56 undergraduate majors[47] leading to a Bachelor of Arts degree, all of which are registered officially with the New York State Department of Education. The university also has a small Master of Arts in Teaching degree program, which graduates 3–7 students each year.[48]
In addition to regular campus courses, the university offers 22[49] semester-long off-campus study groups each year, including programs in Australia, China, Japan, India, several Western European countries, Washington, D.C., and the National Institutes of Health. Approximately two-thirds of Colgate undergraduates study abroad, which is a high proportion compared to other colleges and universities in the United States. About 95% of seniors graduate and most alumni proceed to graduate schools in law, administration, engineering, medicine, the arts and the sciences, as well as to financial, administrative or scientific occupations. In partnership similar to that of Haverford and Swarthmore, Colgate students are also able to enroll in classes at Hamilton College, another nearby selective liberal arts school.
Admissions
For the class of 2022 (entering fall 2018), 9,716 students applied, 2,422 (24.9%) were admitted, and 815 matriculated.[50] Enrolled students had an average high school GPA of 3.72, with 79.4% reporting a GPA of 3.50 and higher.[50] The middle 50% SAT range was 650-730 for reading and writing, 670-780 for math, while the ACT Composite range was 31-34.[50]
Rankings
University rankings
National
Forbes[51] 46
THE/WSJ[52] 48
Liberal arts colleges
U.S. News & World Report[53] 20
Washington Monthly[54] 22
In its 2020 edition, U.S. News & World Report ranked Colgate tied as the 17th-best liberal arts college in the country, 17th "Best Value School", and tied for 35th "Best Undergraduate Teaching".[55] The university's campus was ranked as the most beautiful by The Princeton Review in their 2010 edition.[56] In July 2008, Colgate was named fifth on Forbes' list of Top Colleges for Getting Rich, the only non-Ivy League college in the top 5.[57] Colgate is listed as one of America's 25 "New Ivies" by Newsweek magazine.[58] It is also on the list of "100 best campuses for LGBT students."[59] Colgate has been ranked third by The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education for its success in integrating African-American students.[60]
In 2014, Colgate was ranked the top college in the United States by Payscale and CollegeNet's Social Mobility Index college rankings.[61] It is also listed as one of 30 Hidden Ivies and as one of Newsweek's "New Ivies".[58] In 2014, Princeton Review ranked Colgate as the Most Beautiful Campus in America.[62]
Administration
On July 1, 2016 Brian Casey began serving as Colgate's 17th president.[63]
Board of Trustees
Colgate is governed by a Board of Trustees that is composed of 35 members: 31 alumni of the university, three parents of students, and the current president.[64] As of the end of fiscal year 2019, Colgate's endowment was $959.8 million.[65]
Student life
Housing and student life facilities
East and West Halls, the oldest residential halls of the university
Colgate has ten residence halls located on its central campus, which is often referred to as "up the hill." Located near the academic buildings, freshmen live in six of these halls,[66] whereas sophomores live in the other three, or in townhouses or one house on Broad Street.[67] Juniors and seniors live down the hill in a number of residences, such as theme houses on Broad Street, apartment complexes or in "townhouses" located further away from campus.[68] Themed houses are available for students who want to explore their interests. The Creative Arts house is geared towards creative students; Asia House is for students with interests in Asian culture. Although the university provides housing for students all four years, students can apply for off-campus housing, of which only 250 are granted the privilege through a lottery.[69] Students involved in Greek life have the option of living in their organization's house, though they cannot do so until their junior year.[70]
Colgate has three dining facilities on campus that are run by Colgate Dining Services, which in turn is run by Chartwells.[71] There is also a cafe located in Case Library that serves coffee.[72]
The O'Connor Campus Center, commonly referred to as the Coop, serves as the center for student life and programming. Renovations on it were completed in 2004,[73] and it now houses the offices for student organizations, a cafeteria, post office, printing center, a computer facility,[74] as well as the new Blackmore Media Center, home to WRCU, Colgate's radio station.[75]
Fraternities and sororities
Since the first chartered chapter in 1856, fraternities and sororities have been part of a long-standing tradition at Colgate University.[76]
About forty-five percent of sophomores, juniors and seniors belong to fraternities or sororities at Colgate.[77] Students are not allowed to pledge until the fall semester of their sophomore year.[77] As of 2014, there are five fraternities (Beta Theta Pi, Delta Upsilon, Theta Chi, Phi Delta Theta, and Phi Kappa Tau) and three sororities (Gamma Phi Beta, Delta Delta Delta, and Kappa Kappa Gamma) that are active on campus.[77]
Following a number of incidents related to fraternities and sororities on campus, in 2005, the university decided to purchase the Greek houses.[78] All but one of them agreed to sell their houses. The hold-out, Delta Kappa Epsilon, was subsequently derecognized.[79] Students were forbidden from living in the house (which is now school-owned housing) or participating in the fraternity's activities. Delta Kappa Epsilon no longer has affiliation with the school.
Student groups
Colgate has close to 200 student groups and organizations.[80] The groups cover a wide array of interests, including academic organizations, personal interests, student government, honor societies, and cultural and religious organizations. Among its more notable groups are the a cappella groups The Colgate Thirteen and The Swinging 'Gates, the Jewish philanthropic and social group the Blue Diamond Society, the improv group Charred Goosebeak (which was founded by the members of Broken Lizard) and an open collegiate level Club Figure Skating team.
Media
WRCU is Colgate University's student-operated radio station, broadcasting throughout central New York on 90.1 FM, and the station was re-modeled in 2010. Colgate's student run TV station, CUTV, broadcasts on the university's local cable system and provides a mix of student-created content and first-run movies 24 hours a day. The Colgate Maroon-News, is the oldest college weekly in America. The first student newspaper was the Hamilton Student,[81] launched on November 2, 1846. The Monthly Rag, the college's satirical newspaper, was founded in 2007. Its slogan is, "written by 13 writers with 13 stories after 13 beers". The Colgate Scene is the quarterly alumni publication.
Traditions
The "Willow Path"
The number 13 is considered to be lucky at Colgate.[9] It is said that Colgate was founded by thirteen men with thirteen dollars, thirteen prayers and thirteen articles. This tradition is expressed in many ways. Colgate's address is 13 Oak Drive, and its zip code is 13346, which begins with 13 and ends with three digits that sum to 13.[82] Konosioni, a senior honor society, is composed of thirteen men and thirteen women.[83] Alumni wear Colgate apparel on every Friday the 13th, which is designated as Colgate Day.[82]
In 1936, the Colgate swim team made its first trip to Fort Lauderdale, Florida for spring break training at the Casino Pool. This became a regular tradition for Colgate that caught on with other schools across the country, and proved to be the genesis of the college spring break trip.[84]
Athletics
Official athletics logo
Main article: Colgate Raiders
See also: Colgate Raiders men's basketball, Colgate Raiders football, Colgate Raiders men's ice hockey, Colgate Raiders women's ice hockey, and Colgate Raiders men's lacrosse
Approximately 25% of students are involved in a varsity sport, and 80% of students are involved in some form of varsity, club, or intramural athletics.[85] There are 25 varsity teams, over 30 club sports teams, and 18 different intramural sports.[86] Colgate is part of NCAA Division I for all varsity sports.
The football program competes within the Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS). The athletic teams are nicknamed the "Raiders," and the traditional team colors are maroon and white, with a more recent addition of gray in the 1970s. Maroon replaced orange as the school's primary color on March 24, 1900.[87] Colgate is a member of the Patriot League for all varsity sports except for hockey, in which both its men's and women's teams are members of ECAC Hockey.
Starting in 1932, Colgate athletics teams were called the "Red Raiders" in reference to the new maroon uniforms of that season's "undefeated, untied, unscored upon, and uninvited" football team, which was the first to use the moniker.[88] Apocryphal explanations for the name include the team's ability to defeat its much larger rival, the Cornell University Big Red, or that a rainstorm caused one Colgate football team's maroon jerseys to blend into a reddish color.[89] Regardless, after the adoption of a Native American mascot, the school debated changing the name and mascot in the 1970s out of sensitivity to Native Americans. At that time the nickname was retained, but the mascot was changed to a hand holding a torch.[89] In 2001, the administration acknowledged concerns that the adjective "Red" still had an Native American implication, and the school shortened the nickname to the "Raiders" starting in the 2001–02 school year.[90] A new mascot was introduced in 2006.
Colgate University's football team was selected to share the 1932 national championship by Parke H. Davis in 1933[91] and appeared in the Associated Press top-level polls in 1942 and 1977. The 1932 team was "unbeaten, untied, unscored upon, and uninvited", as it registered shutouts against all nine opponents, but was not invited to the 1933 Rose Bowl.[92] Colgate began playing in NCAA Division I-AA, now known as Division I FCS, in 1982, and made the Division I-AA (now FCS) football playoffs in 1982, 1983, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2003, 2005, 2008, 2012, 2015 and, most recently, 2018.[93]
In the 2003 season, the Raiders made it to the NCAA I-AA championship game in football for the first time, where they lost to the University of Delaware. At the end of the season, their record was 15–1.[94] At the time, they had the longest winning streak in all of Division I football, including one win over a Division I-A (now Division I FBS) team, Buffalo.[95]
Cornell is a common rival in all sports; hockey games against Cornell are major events on campus, with students lining up for hours before the game in order to secure tickets.[96] Colgate's teams (with the exception of football, golf, and men's hockey) also compete annually against Syracuse University. Cornell and Syracuse are both within two hours of Colgate's campus. Colgate and Syracuse were once bitter rivals in football (there are some old traditions related to their games),[97] but a variety of factors, including the splitting of Division I football into Division I FBS and Division I FCS in the late 1970s, helped end the annual game, with some exceptions (such as 2010) over the years. Their men's lacrosse rivalry remains fierce.[98]
Outdoor education
Colgate makes use of its rural location by having a full outdoor education program. A base camp is located on campus and allows students to rent equipment for skiing, camping, and other outdoor events.[99] Each year, twelve to fifteen students are selected to become staffers for Outdoor Education. The training takes more than six months and includes a Wilderness First Responder certification.[100] Incoming first-year students are offered a week-long trip called Wilderness Adventure, where they spend a week backpacking, canoeing, kayaking, tree climbing, caving or rock climbing in the Adirondacks.[101]
Alumni
Main article: List of Colgate University people
Colgate has more than 34,000 living alumni.[102] As of 2016, Colgate alumni have a median starting salary of $53,700 and have a median mid-career salary of $119,000.[103] Forbes ranks Colgate 16th in colleges that produce the highest-earning graduates.[104] Among small schools, Colgate is the tenth-largest producer of alumni who go onto the Peace Corps.[105]
Some of the most notable alumni from the List of Colgate University people include:
Name Class Year Notability
Adam Clayton Powell Jr. 1930 New York congressman and civil rights leader
Charles Evans Hughes (attended 1876–78)[106] Chief Justice, U.S. Supreme Court, 1930–1941
Adonal Foyle 1998 Former NBA player with Golden State Warriors, Orlando Magic, and Memphis Grizzlies
Andy Rooney 1942 CBS-TV: 60 Minut
Asian Americans are Americans of Asian ancestry. The term refers to a panethnic group that includes diverse populations, which have origins in East Asia, South Asia, or Southeast Asia, as defined by the United States Census Bureau.[3] This includes people who indicate their race(s) on the census as "Asian" or reported entries such as "Chinese, Filipino, Indian, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, and Other Asian".[4] In modern times, this term excludes Americans with ancestry from other parts of Asia, such as West Asia, who are now considered Middle Eastern Americans and thus, are White Americans.[5][6] In 2018, Asian Americans comprised 5.4% of the U.S. population; including multiracial Asian Americans, that percentage increases to 6.5%.[1]
Although migrants from Asia have been in parts of the contemporary United States since the 17th century, large-scale immigration did not begin until the mid-19th century. Nativist immigration laws during the 1880s–1920s excluded various Asian groups, eventually prohibiting almost all Asian immigration to the continental United States. After immigration laws were reformed during the 1940s–60s, abolishing national origins quotas, Asian immigration increased rapidly. Analyses of the 2010 census have shown that Asian Americans are the fastest growing racial or ethnic minority in the United States.[7]
Contents
1 Terminology
1.1 Census definition
1.2 Debates
2 Demographics
2.1 Language
2.2 Religion
2.2.1 Religious Trends
3 History
3.1 Early immigration
3.2 Exclusion era
3.3 Postwar immigration
3.4 Asian American movement
4 Notable contributions
4.1 Arts and entertainment
4.2 Business
4.3 Government and politics
4.4 Journalism
4.5 Military
4.6 Science and technology
4.7 Sports
5 Cultural influence
5.1 Health and medicine
5.2 Education
6 Social and political issues
6.1 Media portrayal
6.2 Bamboo ceiling
6.3 Illegal immigration
6.4 Race-based violence
6.5 Racial stereotypes
6.5.1 Model minority
6.6 Social and economic disparities among Asian Americans
7 See also
8 Footnotes
9 References
10 Further reading
11 External links
Terminology
As with other racial and ethnicity-based terms, formal and common usage have changed markedly through the short history of this term. Prior to the late 1960s, people of Asian ancestry were usually referred to as Oriental, Asiatic, and Mongoloid.[8][9] Additionally, the American definition of 'Asian' originally included West Asian ethnic groups, particularly Jewish Americans, Armenian Americans, Assyrian Americans, Iranian Americans, Kurdish Americans, and Arab Americans, although these groups are now considered Middle Eastern American.[10][6][11] The term Asian American was coined by historian Yuji Ichioka in 1968 during the founding of the Asian American Political Alliance,[12][13] and he is also credited with popularizing the term, which he meant to be used to frame a new "inter-ethnic-pan-Asian American self-defining political group".[8][14] Changing patterns of immigration and an extensive period of exclusion of Asian immigrants have resulted in demographic changes that have in turn affected the formal and common understandings of what defines Asian American. For example, since the removal of restrictive "national origins" quotas in 1965, the Asian-American population has diversified greatly to include more of the peoples with ancestry from various parts of Asia.[15]
Today, "Asian American" is the accepted term for most formal purposes, such as government and academic research, although it is often shortened to Asian in common usage.[16] The most commonly used definition of Asian American is the U.S. Census Bureau definition, which includes all people with origins in the Far East, Southeast Asia, and the Indian subcontinent.[4] This is chiefly because the census definitions determine many governmental classifications, notably for equal opportunity programs and measurements.[17]
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, "Asian person" in the United States is most often thought of as a person of East Asian descent.[18][19] In vernacular usage, "Asian" is usually used to refer to those of East Asian descent or anyone else of Asian descent with epicanthic eyefolds.[20] This differs from the U.S. Census definition[4][21] and the Asian American Studies departments in many universities consider all those of East, South or Southeast Asian descent to be "Asian".[22]
Census definition
In the US Census, people with origins or ancestry in the Far East, Southeast Asia, and the Indian subcontinent are classified as part of the Asian race;[23] while those with origins or ancestry in Central Asia (Kazakhs, Uzbeks, Turkmens, Tajiks, Kyrgyz, etc.), Western Asia (diaspora Jews, Turks, Persians, Kurds, Assyrians, Asian Arabs, etc.), and the Caucasus (Georgians, Armenians, Azeris, etc.) are classified as "white" or "Middle Eastern".[5][24] As such, "Asian" and "African" ancestry are seen as racial categories only for the purpose of the Census, with the definition referring to ancestry from parts of the Asian and African continents outside of West Asia, North Africa, and Central Asia.
In 1980 and before, Census forms listed particular Asian ancestries as separate groups, along with white and black or negro.[25] Asian Americans had also been classified as "other".[26] In 1977, the federal Office of Management and Budget issued a directive requiring government agencies to maintain statistics on racial groups, including on "Asian or Pacific Islander".[27] By the 1990 census, "Asian or Pacific Islander (API)" was included as an explicit category, although respondents had to select one particular ancestry as a subcategory.[28] Beginning with the 2000 census, two separate categories were used: "Asian American" and "Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander".[29]
Debates
See also: Racial classification of Indian Americans
The definition of Asian American has variations that derive from the use of the word American in different contexts. Immigration status, citizenship (by birthright and by naturalization), acculturation, and language ability are some variables that are used to define American for various purposes and may vary in formal and everyday usage.[30] For example, restricting American to include only U.S. citizens conflicts with discussions of Asian American businesses, which generally refer both to citizen and non-citizen owners.[31]
In a PBS interview from 2004, a panel of Asian American writers discussed how some groups include people of Middle Eastern descent in the Asian American category.[32] Asian American author Stewart Ikeda has noted, "The definition of 'Asian American' also frequently depends on who's asking, who's defining, in what context, and why... the possible definitions of 'Asian-Pacific American' are many, complex, and shifting... some scholars in Asian American Studies conferences suggest that Russians, Iranians, and Israelis all might fit the field's subject of study."[33] Jeff Yang, of The Wall Street Journal, writes that the panethnic definition of Asian American is a unique American construct, and as an identity is "in beta".[34] The majority of Asian Americans feel ambivalence about the term "Asian American" as a term by which to identify themselves.[35] Pyong Gap Min, a sociologist and Professor of Sociology at Queens College, has stated the term is merely political, used by Asian-American activists and further reinforced by the government. Beyond that, he feels that many of the diverse Asian people do not have commonalities in "culture, physical characteristics, or pre-migrant historical experiences".[36]
Scholars have grappled with the accuracy, correctness, and usefulness of the term Asian American. The term "Asian" in Asian American most often comes under fire for encompassing a huge number of people with ancestry from (or who have immigrated from) a wide range of culturally diverse countries and traditions. As well as having a limited meaning that excludes many people with heritage from (or who've immigrated from) Asian countries beyond the US census definition.[17] In contrast, leading social sciences and humanities scholars of race and Asian American identity point out that because of the racial constructions in the United States, including the social attitudes toward race and those of Asian ancestry, Asian Americans have a "shared racial experience."[37] Because of this shared experience, the term Asian American is argued as still being a useful panethnic category because of the similarity of some experiences among Asian Americans, including stereotypes specific to people in this category.[37]
Demographics
Main article: Demographics of Asian Americans
Asian American population percentage by state in 2010
Percentage Asian American by county, 2010 Census
The demographics of Asian Americans describe a heterogeneous group of people in the United States who can trace their ancestry to one or more countries in Asia.[38] Because they compose 6% of the entire U.S. population, the diversity of the group is often disregarded in media and news discussions of "Asians" or of "Asian Americans."[39] While there are some commonalities across ethnic subgroups, there are significant differences among different Asian ethnicities that are related to each group's history.[40] The Asian American population is greatly urbanized, with nearly three-quarters of them living in metropolitan areas with population greater than 2.5 million.[41] As of July 2015, California had the largest population of Asian Americans of any state, and Hawaii was the only state where Asian Americans were the majority of the population.[42]
The demographics of Asian Americans can further be subdivided into, as listed in alphabetical order:
East Asian Americans, including Chinese Americans, Japanese Americans, Korean Americans, Mongolian Americans, Ryukyuan Americans, Taiwanese Americans, and Tibetan Americans.
South Asian Americans, including Bangladeshi Americans, Bhutanese Americans, Indian Americans (including Indo-Caribbean Americans and Indo-Fijian Americans), Maldivian Americans, Nepalese Americans, Pakistani Americans, and Sri Lankan Americans
Southeast Asian Americans, including Burmese Americans, Cambodian Americans, Filipino Americans, Hmong Americans, Indonesian Americans, Laotian Americans, Malaysian Americans, Mien Americans, Singaporean Americans, Thai Americans, and Vietnamese Americans.
This grouping is by county of origin before immigration to the United States, and not necessarily by race, as for example Singaporean Americans may be of East Asian descent.
Asian Americans include multiracial or mixed race persons with origins or ancestry in both the above groups and another race, or multiple of the above groups.
Language
In 2010, there were 2.8 million people (5 and older) who spoke one of the Chinese languages at home;[43] after the Spanish language, it is the third most common language in the United States.[43] Other sizeable Asian languages are Tagalog, Vietnamese, and Korean, with all three having more than 1 million speakers in the United States.[43]
In 2012, Alaska, California, Hawaii, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Texas and Washington were publishing election material in Asian languages in accordance with the Voting Rights Act;[44] these languages include Tagalog, Mandarin Chinese, Vietnamese, Spanish,[45] Hindi and Bengali.[44] Election materials were also available in Gujarati, Japanese, Khmer, Korean, and Thai.[46] A 2013 poll found that 48 percent of Asian Americans considered media in their native language as their primary news source.[47]
The 2000 Census found the more prominent languages of the Asian American community to include the Chinese languages (Cantonese, Taishanese, and Hokkien), Tagalog, Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese, Hindi, Urdu, and Gujarati.[48] In 2008, the Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Tagalog, and Vietnamese languages are all used in elections in Alaska, California, Hawaii, Illinois, New York, Texas, and Washington state.[49]
Religion
A 2012 Pew Research Center study found the following breakdown of religious identity among Asian Americans:[50]
42% Christian
26% Unaffiliated with any religion
14% Buddhist
10% Hindu
4% Muslim
2% other religion
1% Sikh
Religious Trends
The percentage of Christians among Asian Americans has declined sharply since the 1990s, chiefly due to largescale immigration from countries in which Christianity is a minority religion (China and India in particular). In 1990, 63% of the Asian Americans identified as Christians, while in 2001 only 43% did.[51] This development has been accompanied by a rise in traditional Asian religions, with the people identifying with them doubling during the same decade.[52]
History
Main article: History of Asian Americans
See also: Asian immigration to the United States
Early immigration
Five images of the Filipino settlement at Saint Malo, Louisiana
As Asian Americans originate from many different countries, each population has its own unique immigration history.[53]
Filipinos have been in the territories that would become the United States since the 16th century.[54] In 1635, an "East Indian" is listed in Jamestown, Virginia;[55] preceding wider settlement of Indian immigrants on the East Coast in the 1790s and the West Coast in the 1800s.[56] In 1763, Filipinos established the small settlement of Saint Malo, Louisiana, after fleeing mistreatment aboard Spanish ships.[57] Since there were no Filipino women with them, these 'Manilamen', as they were known, married Cajun and Native American women.[58] The first Japanese person to come to the United States, and stay any significant period of time was Nakahama Manjirō who reached the East Coast in 1841, and Joseph Heco became the first Japanese American naturalized US citizen in 1858.[59]
Chinese sailors first came to Hawaii in 1789,[60] a few years after Captain James Cook came upon the island. Many settled and married Hawaiian women. Most Chinese, Korean and Japanese immigrants in Hawaii arrived in the 19th century as laborers to work on sugar plantations.[61] There were thousands of Asians in Hawaii when it was annexed to the United States in 1898.[62] Later, Filipinos also came to work as laborers, attracted by the job opportunities, although they were limited.[63] Okinawans would start migrating to Hawaii in 1900.[64]
Large-scale migration from Asia to the United States began when Chinese immigrants arrived on the West Coast in the mid-19th century.[65] Forming part of the California gold rush, these early Chinese immigrants participated intensively in the mining business and later in the construction of the transcontinental railroad. By 1852, the number of Chinese immigrants in San Francisco had jumped to more than 20,000. A wave of Japanese immigration to the United States began after the Meiji Restoration in 1868.[66] In 1898, all Filipinos in the Philippine Islands became American nationals when the United States took over colonial rule of the islands from Spain following the latter's defeat in the Spanish–American War.[67]
Exclusion era
Under United States law during this period, particularly the Naturalization Act of 1790, only "free white persons" were eligible to naturalize as American citizens. Ineligibility for citizenship prevented Asian immigrants from accessing a variety of rights, such as voting.[68] Bhicaji Balsara became the first known Indian-born person to gain naturalized U.S. citizenship.[69] Balsara's naturalization was not the norm but an exception; in a pair of cases, Ozawa v. United States (1922) and United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind (1923), the Supreme Court upheld the racial qualification for citizenship and ruled that Asians were not "white persons". Second-generation Asian Americans, however, could become U.S. citizens due to the birthright citizenship clause of the Fourteenth Amendment; this guarantee was confirmed as applying regardless of race or ancestry by the Supreme Court in United States v. Wong Kim Ark (1898).[70]
From the 1880s to the 1920s, the United States passed laws inaugurating an era of exclusion of Asian immigrants. Although the exact number of Asian immigrants was small compared to that of immigrants from other regions, much of it was concentrated in the West, and the increase caused some nativist sentiment which was known as the "yellow peril". Congress passed restrictive legislation which prohibited nearly all Chinese immigration to the United States in the 1880s.[71] Japanese immigration was sharply curtailed by a diplomatic agreement in 1907. The Asiatic Barred Zone Act in 1917 further barred immigration from nearly all of Asia, the "Asiatic Zone".[72] The Immigration Act of 1924 provided that no "alien ineligible for citizenship" could be admitted as an immigrant to the United States, consolidating the prohibition of Asian immigration.[73]
Postwar immigration
World War II-era legislation and judicial rulings gradually increased the ability of Asian Americans to immigrate and become naturalized citizens. Immigration rapidly increased following the enactment of the Immigration and Nationality Act Amendments of 1965 as well as the influx of refugees from conflicts occurring in Southeast Asia such as the Vietnam War. Asian American immigrants have a significant percentage of individuals who have already achieved professional status, a first among immigration groups.[74]
The number of Asian immigrants to the United States "grew from 491,000 in 1960 to about 12.8 million in 2014, representing a 2,597 percent increase."[75] Asian Americans were the fastest-growing racial group between 2000 and 2010.[53][76] By 2012, more immigrants came from Asia than from Latin America.[77] In 2015, Pew Research Center found that from 2010 to 2015 more immigrants came from Asia than from Latin America, and that since 1965; Asians have made up a quarter of all immigrants to the United States.[78]
Asians have made up an increasing proportion of the foreign-born Americans: "In 1960, Asians represented 5 percent of the U.S. foreign-born population; by 2014, their share grew to 30 percent of the nation's 42.4 million immigrants."[75] As of 2016, "Asia is the second-largest region of birth (after Latin America) of U.S. immigrants."[75] In 2013, China surpassed Mexico as the top single country of origin for immigrants to the U.S.[79] Asian immigrants "are more likely than the overall foreign-born population to be naturalized citizens"; in 2014, 59% of Asian immigrants had U.S. citizenship, compared to 47% of all immigrants.[75] Postwar Asian immigration to the U.S. has been diverse: in 2014, 31% of Asian immigrants to the U.S. were from East Asia (predominately China and Korea); 27.7% were from South Asia (predominately India); 32.6% were from Southeastern Asia (predominately the Philippines and Vietnam) and 8.3% were from Western Asia.[75]
Asian American movement
Main article: Asian American movement
Prior to the 1960s, Asian immigrants and their descendants had organized and agitated for social or political purposes according to their particular ethnicity: Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, Korean, or Asian Indian. The Asian American movement (a term coined by historian and activist Yuji Ichioka) gathered all those groups into a coalition, recognizing that they shared common problems with racial discrimination and common opposition to American imperialism, particularly in Asia. The movement developed during the 1960s, inspired in part by the Civil Rights Movement and the protests against the Vietnam War. "Drawing influences from the Black Power and antiwar movements, the Asian American movement forged a coalitional politics that united Asians of varying ethnicities and declared solidarity with other Third World people in the United States and abroad. Segments of the movement struggled for community control of education, provided social services and defended affordable housing in Asian ghettoes, organized exploited workers, protested against U.S. imperialism, and built new multiethnic cultural institutions."[80] William Wei described the movement as "rooted in a past history of oppression and a present struggle for liberation."[81] The movement as such was most active during the 1960s and 1970s.[80]
Increasingly Asian American students demanded university-level research and teaching into Asian history and the interaction with the United States. They supported multiculturalism but opposed affirmative action that amounted to an Asian quota on their admission.[82][83][84]
Notable contributions
For a more comprehensive list, see List of Asian Americans.
Arts and entertainment
Main article: Asian Americans in arts and entertainment
See also: Asian American literature
See also: American television series with Asian leads
Asian Americans have been involved in the entertainment industry since the first half of the 19th century, when Chang and Eng Bunker (the original "Siamese Twins") became naturalized citizens.[85] Throughout the 20th century, acting roles in television, film, and theater were relatively few, and many available roles were for narrow, stereotypical characters. More recently, young Asian American comedians and film-makers have found an outlet on YouTube allowing them to gain a strong and loyal fanbase among their fellow Asian Americans.[86] There have been several Asian American-centric television shows in American media, beginning with Mr. T and Tina in 1976, and as recent as Fresh Off the Boat in 2015.[87]
Business
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When Asian Americans were largely excluded from labor markets in the 19th century, they started their own businesses. They have started convenience and grocery stores, professional offices such as medical and law practices, laundries, restaurants, beauty-related ventures, hi-tech companies, and many other kinds of enterprises, becoming very successful and influential in American society. They have dramatically expanded their involvement across the American economy. Asian Americans have been disproportionately successful in the hi-tech sectors of California's Silicon Valley, as evidenced by the Goldsea 100 Compilation of America's Most Successful Asian Entrepreneurs.[88]
Compared to their population base, Asian Americans today are well represented in the professional sector and tend to earn higher wages.[89] The Goldsea compilation of Notable Asian American Professionals show that many have come to occupy high positions at leading U.S. corporations, including a disproportionately large number as Chief Marketing Officers.[90]
Asian Americans have made major contributions to the American economy. In 2012, there were just under 486,000 Asian American-owned businesses in the U.S., which together employed more than 3.6 million workers, generating $707.6 billion in total receipts and sales, with annual payrolls of $112 billion. In 2015, Asian American and Pacific Islander households had $455.6 billion in spending power (comparable to the annual revenue of Walmart) and made tax contributions of $184.0 billion.[91]
Fashion designer and mogul Vera Wang, who is famous for designing dresses for high-profile celebrities, started a clothing company, named after herself, which now offers a broad range of luxury fashion products. An Wang founded Wang Laboratories in June 1951. Amar Bose founded the Bose Corporation in 1964. Charles Wang founded Computer Associates, later became its CEO and chairman. Two brothers, David Khym and Kenny Khym founded hip hop fashion giant Southpole (clothing) in 1991. Jen-Hsun Huang co-founded the NVIDIA corporation in 1993. Jerry Yang co-founded Yahoo! Inc. in 1994 and became its CEO later. Andrea Jung serves as Chairman and CEO of Avon Products. Vinod Khosla was a founding CEO of Sun Microsystems and is a general partner of the prominent venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. Steve Chen and Jawed Karim were co-creators of YouTube, and were beneficiaries of Google's $1.65 billion acquisition of that company in 2006. In addition to contributing greatly to other fields, Asian Americans have made considerable contributions in science and technology in the United States, in such prominent innovative R&D regions as Silicon Valley and The Triangle.
Government and politics
Main article: Asian Americans in government and politics
See also: Foreign relations of the United States § East Asia, Foreign relations of the United States § South Asia, and Foreign relations of the United States § Southeast Asia
Asian Americans have a high level of political incorporation in terms of their actual voting population. Since 1907, Asian Americans have been active at the national level and have had multiple officeholders at local, state, and national levels. As more Asian Americans have been elected to public office, they have had a growing impact on foreign relations of the United States, immigration, international trade, and other topics.[92] The first Asian American to be elected to the United States Congress was Dalip Singh Saund in 1957.
The highest ranked Asian American to serve in the United States Congress was Senator and President pro tempore Daniel Inouye, who died in office in 2012. There are several active Asian Americans in the United States Congress. With higher proportions and densities of Asian American populations, Hawaii has most consistently sent Asian Americans to the Senate, and Hawaii and California have most consistently sent Asian Americans to the House of Representatives.
The first Asian American member of the U.S. cabinet was Norman Mineta, who served as Secretary of Commerce and then Secretary of Transportation in the George W. Bush administration. The highest ranked Asian American by order of precedence currently in office is Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao, who previously served as U.S. Secretary of Labor.
There have been roughly "about a half-dozen viable Asian-American candidates" to ever run for president of the United States.[93] Senator Hiram Fong of Hawaii, the child of Chinese immigrants, was a "favorite son" candidate at the Republican National Conventions of 1964 and 1968.[94][95] In 1972, Representative Patsy T. Mink of Hawaii, a Japanese American, unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination for president.[96] Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, the son of Indian immigrants, unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for president in 2016.[97] Entrepreneur and nonprofit founder Andrew Yang, the son of Taiwanese immigrants, unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination for president in 2020.[93]
Journalism
Connie Chung was one of the first Asian American national correspondents for a major TV news network, reporting for CBS in 1971. She later co-anchored the CBS Evening News from 1993 to 1995, becoming the first Asian American national news anchor.[98] At ABC, Ken Kashiwahara began reporting nationally in 1974. In 1989, Emil Guillermo, a Filipino American born reporter from San Francisco, became the first Asian American male to co-host a national news show when he was senior host at National Public Radio's All Things Considered. In 1990, Sheryl WuDunn, a foreign correspondent in the Beijing Bureau of The New York Times, became the first Asian American to win a Pulitzer Prize. Ann Curry joined NBC News as a reporter in 1990, later becoming prominently associated with The Today Show in 1997. Carol Lin is perhaps best known for being the first to break the news of 9-11 on CNN. Dr. Sanjay Gupta is currently CNN's chief health correspondent. Lisa Ling, a former co-host on The View, now provides special reports for CNN and The Oprah Winfrey Show, as well as hosting National Geographic Channel's Explorer. Fareed Zakaria, a naturalized Indian-born immigrant, is a prominent journalist and author specializing in international affairs. He is the editor-at-large of Time magazine, and the host of Fareed Zakaria GPS on CNN. Juju Chang, James Hatori, John Yang, Veronica De La Cruz, Michelle Malkin, Betty Nguyen, and Julie Chen have become familiar faces on television news. John Yang won a Peabody Award. Alex Tizon, a Seattle Times staff writer, won a Pulitzer Prize in 1997.
Military
Main article: Military history of Asian Americans
See also: Notable Asian Americans in the military
Since the War of 1812 Asian Americans have served and fought on behalf of the United States. Serving in both segregated and non-segregated units until the desegregation of the US Military in 1948, 31 have been awarded the nation's highest award for combat valor, the Medal of Honor. Twenty-one of these were conferred upon members of the mostly Japanese American 100th Infantry Battalion of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team of World War II, the most highly decorated unit of its size in the history of the United States Armed Forces.[99][100] The highest ranked Asian American military official was Secretary of Veteran Affairs, four-star general and Army Chief of Staf