| Chapter 2: | Asian American Identity: A Review |
Specifically, the Census 2000 report revealed that 69 percent of all Asians were foreign born (Census Bureau; Reeves & Bennett, 2004), which highlights the fact that many individuals of Asian descent can directly trace their roots to Asia (Okazaki & Hall, 2002), allowing them to maintain cultural traditions and closer ties to the home country.
However, within the 69 percent of foreign-born Asians, only 40 percent of Japanese living in the United States was foreign born versus about 75 percent of East Indians, Vietnamese, Koreans, Pakistanis, and Thai, respectively (Census Bureau; Reeves & Bennett, 2004). These statistics suggest that Japanese immigration has decreased over the years, and that as the population currently residing in the United States ages (median age in 2000 was 42.6 years), the numbers may continue to decline. In contrast, within the other groups that consist of 75 percent foreign-born individuals, population trends suggest that these groups will continue to grow exponentially in the coming years as more individuals settle in the United States and start families.
More specific statistics regarding Asians living in the United States (according to Census 2000) report that the largest proportions of Asian Americans in the U.S. population in the year 2000 were of Chinese ancestry (2.7 million), followed by 2.4 million Filipino, 1.9 million Asian Indian, 1.2 Vietnamese, and 1.1 million Korean. As these five groups represent 80 percent of the Asian American population, I have included a brief review of the immigration histories of these groups (see Appendix A) along with some contemporary issues to consider when studying racial/ethnic-specific identity in Asian Americans. Whereas tracing detailed patterns of movement and adaptation is beyond the scope of this book, an emphasis will be placed on noting the major historical and social forces that have affected the immigration patterns of these five Asian ethnic-specific groups. Presently, I note some important characteristics of the two largest Asian ethnic-specific groups represented in the present study: Chinese and East Indians.