Invisible no more: the intersectionality of Asian American immigrants experiences

ABSTRACT

Violence against individuals of Asian ancestry is frequently overlooked and dismissed as a personal issue. This conceptual paper aims to critically analyze the roots of anti-Asian violence as a sociopolitical problem and investigate the systematic oppression that leads to the invisibility of Asian American experiences. To begin, we introduce two conventional paradigms that function as forms of systemic oppression, contributing to the marginalization of Asian American immigrants. Subsequently, we present the concept of intersectionality as an alternative paradigm for understanding the diverse experiences within the Asian American community. Furthermore, we offer suggestions for the training of social workers to better equip them to assist Asian American individuals and families who find themselves caught between the Black/White and Native/Alien binaries.

KEYWORDS:

• Asian Americans
• anti-Asian violence
• Black/White binary
• native/alien binary
• intersectionality
• xenophobia

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).