The Oriental Contingent summary

Discrimination against Asian Americans and their Struggle to find Identity In Diana’s article “The Oriental Contingent,” Connie gets overwhelmingly surprised when she meets Lisa. It is at the exact point when Connie gets to look at Lisa Mallory’s face that the feeling of surprise and confusion gets into her because Lisa had a Chinese face (Diana, 1989 pg. From the onset of the events leading up to the meeting of these two ladies, it is already evident that the Asian American issue is a problem because if it were not then Connie should not any reservations about how Lisa physically appears. By virtue of her being astonished indicates that the Asian American presence in the United States is a strange happening.

The implication is that these group of people is still being treated like they are different and perhaps haven’t found their real identity that the public can relate to. This dates back in the years of war when the Americans and Japanese were not on good terms with each other. Merging Connie’s opinion on being American and her initial surprise feeling after meeting Lisa can easily lead to the conclusion that it is even difficult for the Asian Americans to express themselves freely even when they have not been provoked or disrespected regarding their identity. Just like in the case of Lisa and Connie where several incidences of discrimination are witnessed, Jean the writer of the book “Asian American Studies Now: A Critical Reader,” has a critical evidence that manifests the mistreatment of the Asian Americans.

He explains that under the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act, the United States had blocked the entry of any Chinese workers in America. This action at the time was purely on the grounds of politics that involved race and class (Jean, 2010 pg. She encounters an incident where a drunk lady point at her and says, “I don’t care if you are Jap-pan the Philip peens or Ha-wah-Yeh, you’re on my turf. ” Such an experience indicates that in as much as the Asian Americans are in the United States, their stay there is not probably appreciated by everyone (Helen, 2010 pg. Discrimination is clearly evident from such an incident and this explains the struggles the Asian American community undergoes to try and find an identity that will be fully recognized by other people without question.

Helen further illustrates that the identity of an Asian American is not even recognized in basic and common gathering points like dining places. He walks into Stanley’s restaurant with the hope of finding Chinese food. The problems of identity are also manifested. These are events that take place in the daily lives of Asian American people. Discovering the identity for the Asian Americans is an uphill task that they keep working on to better their lives. Robert Chang, an Asian by origin explains in his work that identity is crucial and only becomes an issue when there is a crisis. This has been witnessed in the Helen scenario discussed earlier in this paper. Works Cited Chang, Diana. "The Oriental Contingent.