Many Taiwanese were outraged in late April when the Pew Research Center demographic report on Asians in the US categorized them as part of the larger Chinese population. However, in a rare victory against China’s increasingly aggressive campaign to erase Taiwanese identity from the international sphere, the Washington-based think tank rectified the report earlier this month to show separate numbers for people who identify as originating in the two countries.
There is still a row in the chart that shows combined Chinese and Taiwanese totals, and the text still lumps the two peoples as “Chinese-origin Asians.” Nonetheless, the change is a positive development, as Pew responded to the backlash and further released a report by senior demographer Jeffrey Passel explaining the complexities behind counting Taiwanese in the US.
Passel’s report estimates that the Taiwanese population in the US ranged from 195,000 to 697,000 in 2019, using “different measures of Taiwanese identity from the US Census Bureau.” It says the census’ “race” question should have been the best indicator, but the problem remains that “Taiwanese” is not provided as a specific choice, something that Taiwanese-American groups have been requesting for decades. With this request repeatedly denied, they launched a vigorous “Write-in Taiwanese” campaign leading up to last year’s US census.
In addition, some people who identify as having Taiwanese ancestry do not list “Taiwanese” as their race, while others who were born in Taiwan identify as neither.
Yes, it is true that not all people — even in Taiwan — identify solely as Taiwanese, and the complications Passel brings up are interesting regarding identity politics. However, even going by the lowest estimates, there are still nearly 200,000 people who identify as Taiwanese by race, meaning they do exist and there is no reason to lump them in with Chinese.
The report does not mention at all the political and cultural factors or why Pew made its decision in the first place. Nor does it address the backlash or that so many were offended by the designation. Unfortunately, that is probably still too politically sensitive at this point.
However, for Taiwanese Americans fighting for the right to their identity, this is a step forward to being counted in the US demographics. With Pew not providing context, it was up to these groups to explain their long-simmering frustration to the press and further publicize the issue. And the media are listening, as an NBC article published on Saturday covers the issue in depth.
This has been much harder in other countries: Last month, Taiwanese in Norway who were forcefully registered as Chinese took their case to the UN after being rejected by the Norwegian courts and the European Court of Human Rights. There is obviously something wrong when an esteemed human rights court does not find Taiwanese being forced to identify as Chinese, a country that constantly threatens Taiwan, “a violation of the rights and freedoms set out in the Convention or the Protocols thereto.”
Until recently, this seemed to be an insurmountable battle as the whole world bowed to Chinese demands and turned a blind eye to its bullying. However, as Beijing’s global reputation takes a dive, more countries appear to be willing to stand up to it — especially with Taiwan’s increased visibility over the past two years.
Pew’s rectification might just be a small change, but given the circumstances, every bit of change counts.
In their recent op-ed “Trump Should Rein In Taiwan” in Foreign Policy magazine, Christopher Chivvis and Stephen Wertheim argued that the US should pressure President William Lai (賴清德) to “tone it down” to de-escalate tensions in the Taiwan Strait — as if Taiwan’s words are more of a threat to peace than Beijing’s actions. It is an old argument dressed up in new concern: that Washington must rein in Taipei to avoid war. However, this narrative gets it backward. Taiwan is not the problem; China is. Calls for a so-called “grand bargain” with Beijing — where the US pressures Taiwan into concessions
The term “assassin’s mace” originates from Chinese folklore, describing a concealed weapon used by a weaker hero to defeat a stronger adversary with an unexpected strike. In more general military parlance, the concept refers to an asymmetric capability that targets a critical vulnerability of an adversary. China has found its modern equivalent of the assassin’s mace with its high-altitude electromagnetic pulse (HEMP) weapons, which are nuclear warheads detonated at a high altitude, emitting intense electromagnetic radiation capable of disabling and destroying electronics. An assassin’s mace weapon possesses two essential characteristics: strategic surprise and the ability to neutralize a core dependency.
Chinese President and Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Chairman Xi Jinping (習近平) said in a politburo speech late last month that his party must protect the “bottom line” to prevent systemic threats. The tone of his address was grave, revealing deep anxieties about China’s current state of affairs. Essentially, what he worries most about is systemic threats to China’s normal development as a country. The US-China trade war has turned white hot: China’s export orders have plummeted, Chinese firms and enterprises are shutting up shop, and local debt risks are mounting daily, causing China’s economy to flag externally and hemorrhage internally. China’s
US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) were born under the sign of Gemini. Geminis are known for their intelligence, creativity, adaptability and flexibility. It is unlikely, then, that the trade conflict between the US and China would escalate into a catastrophic collision. It is more probable that both sides would seek a way to de-escalate, paving the way for a Trump-Xi summit that allows the global economy some breathing room. Practically speaking, China and the US have vulnerabilities, and a prolonged trade war would be damaging for both. In the US, the electoral system means that public opinion
RSS