American Asian or Asian American?

I have always been proud and grateful having been born as an American. Growing up in Southern California, I never gave ethnic diversity a second thought; kids of all races were like me and other cultures merely felt like an extension of my own. After moving to a small corner of Southern California that was predominantly Asian, and again when seeing the various ethnic clubs in college, I began to question the extent and effects of ethnic diversity. What I hope to discuss here is first, what being an Asian American means to me, and second, what disconcerting aspects I have noticed in other Asian American’s perceptions.Truthfully, the ethnic category of Asian American that I fall under mean fairly little to me. I think of myself as a Chinese American instead. Asia is such a large and diverse region in itself that saying I’m Asian just implies that I have black hair. As such, I am very confused if not annoyed when Asian American teens boast and throw around terms such as “Asian Pride,” which are usually further emphasized with incorrect spelling and a mix of upper and lowercased letters. Are these kids saying that they are grateful that their parents escaped the jungles of Vietnam or are do they have a great secret family recipe for Sushi?

What that says to me is that their notion of who they are and where they come from is very vague.