91��ɫ

*The following piece was originally published in
on 15 April 2021.

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Anti-Asian racism has been . It is deeply rooted in the historical formation of Canada through the , , the Electoral Franchise Act, which , and . It is embedded within the minds of Canadians.

In a recent interview, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau attributed the rise of anti-Asian racism during COVID-19 partly to “.” By citing the pandemic and China’s foreign policy as causes of anti-Asian attacks, Trudeau is reinforcing this racist bias rather than fighting against it.

Contemporary anti-Asian racism stems from a history of systemic racism and racial profiling. It can be traced back to the “yellow peril” discourse that depicts Asians as a threat.

The pandemic serves as an opportunity for established, underlying currents of anti-Asian, and other forms of racism, to surface.

Anti-Asian racism affects us as Asian Canadians in our daily lives and in our careers. It is for this reason that we, a group of Asian Canadian scholars, have recently come together to discuss the structural roots of anti-Asian racism and the road ahead.

Settler colonialism

Canada is a . This means the country was built on and still operates under colonial rule — settler colonialism is a process of foreign intrusion and domination where .

This process involves by the state to make Canada “white.” It also involves immigrant exploitation and racial exclusion to keep Canada “white.”

Despite Asians (for example, early Chinese immigrants) it became a nation, Asian people have never been fully accepted as Canadians.

Instead, from as early as the era of , which relied on the cheap labour of Chinese workers, Asians have been a vulnerable labour force whose existence was purposefully controlled at the border.

A look at history

Limiting Asian immigration began in 1885 with the imposition of . The Komagata Maru incident, that , illustrates the agenda to build Canada as “a white man’s country.”

Between 1895 and 1950, there were more than in Canada. They were created to assure white domination.

Today, Canada’s immigration policies continue to exploit Asian Canadians and immigrants all under the interests of white (re)settlement by forcing migrants to settle in particular parts of the country. Years ago, special were enacted to attract selected, privileged groups such as wealthy migrants and those with foreign capital investment.

The racialized temporary migrant labour programs such as migrant (predominantly Filipina women), admit migrant workers into the country to perform labour deemed unattractive, yet necessary, for the well-being of Canadians. These migrant workers when they switch jobs, even after receiving legal permanent resident status.

The limits of multiculturalism

The policy and practice of has largely failed to address widespread racial and ethnic disparities in Canada. Thus far, it has only served to maintain the status quo, of the dominant group.

After half a century of this policy being in place, racialized people are still invisible in many of Canada’s institutions. As education scholar Carl E. James has noted .

Canada’s “management” of ethno-cultural diversity through multiculturalism has against these communities. Instead, despite its pretence, Canadian multiculturalism provides a tacit basis for discrimination and racial violence.

Promoting multiculturalism as Canada’s national identity has allowed Canadians to ignore the harsh lived reality of many minorities, and to refute the claim that racism is alive and well in Canada. Denying to fester and persist.

This contributes not only to the rise of anti-Asian racism during COVID-19, but also to the fact that racism against Asians isn’t part of the discussion. Canada’s recent failed to mention long standing racial violence against Asians at all.

cultural difference, multiculturalism serves as an institutional mechanism that protects whites from social interaction with visible minorities. It has contributed to the and ethno-cultural enclaves. Anti-Asian racism is integrally tied to the fact that Asian Canadians continue to be in Canada.

By portraying Asians , independent, intelligent and economically prosperous, the model minority stereotype was created to support the view that systemic racism against Asians does not exist since they have “succeeded” in Canada.

This myth denies the socio-economic, political and educational challenges faced by many working-class Asian Canadians. It also ignores the Canadian population – which in reality, is made up of a multitude of ethnicities, cultures, languages, class and immigration experiences.

Road ahead

Anti-Asian racism is more widespread than we think. Solutions cannot be limited to educating people about Asian history in Canada and globally, or to the harms of anti-Asian racism. We need greater visibility of Asians and members of all racialized groups across sectors, as decision-makers and we must recognize their contributions throughout history and to contemporary society.

To fight anti-Asian racism means to . We must come together to do so and not forget what got us here.

Authors:

Cary Wu
Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology, 91��ɫ, Canada

Abidin Kusno
Professor, Faculty of Environmental Studies, 91��ɫ, Canada

Ann H. Kim
Associate Professor, Sociology, 91��ɫ, Canada

Carol Liao
Associate Professor, Allard School of Law, University of British Columbia

Dennis Kao
Associate Professor of Social Work, Carleton University

Guida Man
Associate Professor, Sociology, 91��ɫ, Canada

Hae Yeon Choo
Associate Professor of Sociology, University of Toronto

Jing Zhao
Research Associate, 91��ɫ Centre for Asian Research, University of British Columbia

Min Zhou
Associate Professor, Sociology, University of Victoria

Muyang Li
Assistant Professor, Sociology, 91��ɫ, Canada

S. Harris Ali
Professor, Sociology, 91��ɫ, Canada

Sibo Chen
Assistant Professor, School of Professional Communication, Ryerson University

Sida Liu
Associate Professor, Sociology, University of Toronto

Weiguo Zhang
Associate Professor, Sociology, University of Toronto

Zhifan Luo
Research Associate at 91��ɫ Centre for Asian Research, University at Albany, State University of New 91��ɫ