Counterfeit

Counterfeit plays on assumptions about Asian Americans that are prevalent in conversations about communities of color in the US. The term Asian American, a label that emerged in the late 1960s, groups together several distinct cultures and ethnicities, including Americans who trace their descent to East Asian countries like China and Japan, Southeast Asian countries like Thailand and the Philippines, South Asian countries like India and Pakistan, and the South Pacific Islands.

Asian Americans are sometimes referred to as a “model minority” because they are perceived, individually and collectively, as intelligent, well educated, and especially gifted in math and science. They are presumed to be law-abiding, prosperous, self-sufficient. Though these traits seem positive, they are racist stereotypes. As Connie Hanzhang Jin reports for NPR, the myths of the “model minority” are harmful as well as untrue. The perceptions disguise the divisions among different Asian groups in culture, educational achievement, and financial security (Hanzhang Jin, Connie. “6 Charts That Dismantle the Trope of Asian Americans as a Model Minority.” NPR, 25 May 2021). American Psychologist reports that because of the “model minority” myth, Asian Americans are assumed to escape the burdens of racism or systematic discrimination that most visibly confront other communities of color, including Black and Latin Americans (“