Asian Americans: Don’t Forget Vincent Chin
In the early1980s, the US auto industry was suffering from a depression. Americans, mostly whites, faulted emerging Asian auto industries for the depression. Despite the fact that they were Americans, Asian Americans became targets of racial hate crimes. During his bachelor party in June 19, 1982, Vincent Chin was confronted by Ronald Ebens and his stepson, Michael Nitz, who got laid off from his auto industry job. Mistaking Chin for Japanese, Ebens taunted Chin, blaming him for the decline in the US auto industry. Chin and Ebens started fighting, with Nitz joining in on the fray. The fight was eventually broken up and Chin left the party. Outside, Ebens, who brought a bat with him, and Nitz caught up to Chin and one of his friends. Chin and his friends fled; although his friend got away, Chin was caught by Ebens and Nitz. Nitz held Chin as Ebens strike Chin several times with a baseball bat, including a shot to the head. Vincent Chin die several days later on June 23 in a coma due to head injuries suffered in the attack.
Anti-Asian hate crimes in America like the murder of Vincent Chin are common in the past. Since Asians came to America as farm laborers, they were discriminated against by white Americans. Fearing that the advent of Asians in America will bring the lost of jobs because Asian laborers offered lower-paying wages, the white working class, using protests and riots, petitioned the US government to passed Anti-Asian legislations like the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882.
During the trial for the murder of Vincent Chin On March 16, 1983, both Ronald Ebens and Michael Nitz plead guilty to manslaughter. As the result of the plea bargain, Ebens and Nitz only got three years probation in addition to $3,000 in fines and $780 in court fees. For killing a man, Ebens and Nitz got no jail time.
Angered by the sentence, the Asian American community “staged rallies, organized demonstrations, and launched a massive letter-writing campaignâÂ?¦they wrote to politicians, the press, and the U.S. Department of Justice demanding that the two men be charged with violating Chin’s civil rights,” Alethea Yip writes. It was one of the first times the Asian American community voice was heard by other Americans. Viewed as the “model minority,” Asian Americans were often stereotyped as being quiet and passive. It was also one of the first times that Asian Americans from different ethnicities (Chinese, Japanese, Koreans, Filipinos, etc.) joined together in the Pan-Asian movement to fight for the justice of Vincent Chin.
Due to the large support from the Asian American community, Ronald Ebens and Michael Nitz faced a second trial starting on June 13, 1984. This time, the charges are for civil rights violation and conspiracy. Nitz were cleared of both charges; Ebens was cleared of conspiracy, but was found guilty for the violation of Vincent Chin’s civil rights. However, Ebens was cleared of the charge because one of the prosecuting attorneys was accused of coaching the prosecution witnesses.
Frustrated, The Asian American community pressured the U.S. Department of Justice for trial. Once again, on April 21, 1987, Ebens and Nitz went on trail for civil rights violation and conspiracy. This time, however, the trail was moved to Cincinnati, a city that had little exposure with Asians, due to the huge publicity surrounding the case. The jury cleared both men of conspiracy and civil rights violation. Upset with the results that the killers of her son won’t get any jail time, Lily Chin filed and won a civil suit against Ebens. Instead of paying the Chin’s estate $1.5 million in a settlement, Robert Ebens fled with his money.
For the death of Vincent Chin, Robert Ebens and Michael Nitz never spent a day in jail. Not to mention that Vincent Chin’s mother, Lily, never got the $1.5 million settlement. For Vincent Chin and his family, justice was never served. However, the death and the subsequent trials of Vincent Chin proved to be turning-point in Asian American history as many new groups were formed to protect Asian Americans from hate crimes.
But there is still so much more that needs to be done. Today, Asian Americans are the most discriminated racial group in workplaces and schoolyards. Amy Joyce reports that, in the workplace, “31 percent of Asians surveyed reported incidents of discrimination, the largest percentage of any racial or ethnic group.” Erin Texeria describes that, in the classroom, “Asian students say they’re often beaten, threatened and called ethnic slurs by other young people, and school safety data suggest that the problem may be worsening” The problem weren’t limited to grade school either.”On the University of Michigan campus,” Tom Watkins reports, “a Chinese student had insults hurled at him and then was urinated on for the ‘crime’ of being Chinese.” This crime, like the murder of Vincent Chin, was instigated because of economic reasons. Economics generate most racial hatred in the US. Justly or unjustly, Americans tend to blame others for their problems without looking into the mirror first.
Unfortunately the American mainstream media perpetuated the hatred toward Asians. Asians are usually underrepresented and, if they are represented at all, usually misrepresented. The media stereotypes Asian males as impotent, passive and geeky while showing Asian females as submissive and exotic. In addition, Hollywood typically sees Asians as “forever foreigners” and “strangers from a different shore;” Asians in movies can never be Americans.
The 1989 Oscar-nominated documentary, “Who killed Vincent Chin?” by Christine Choy and Renee Tajima, along with Asian Americans and ethnic studies, cemented the story of Vincent Chin for future generations. However, Anti-Asian sentiments still exist. Statistic showed Asians as the most discriminated racial group in schools and jobs. With rising Asian economies and the flailing US economy, Anti-Asian sentiments will continue to grow. As Asian American communities continue to expand, Asian Americans must remember the Vincent Chin incident, for his death signifies the strength and struggle of the Pan-Asian American community of the past, present and future.
Bibliography
Ho, Christine. “The Model Minority Awakened: The Murder of Vincent Chin.”[ http://us_asians.tripod.com/articles-vincentchin.html].
Joyce, Amy. “The Bias Breakdown: Asians and Blacks Lead in Perceived Discrimination at Work.” [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/08/AR2005120802037.html]. December 9, 2005.
Texeria, Erin. “Asian-American students suffer beatingsacross country: Teens seen as.” [http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4155/is_20051114/ai_n15912108/print]. Nov 14, 2005.
Watkins, Tom. “We must engage with China, not blame them for our woes.” [http://www.hometownlife.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060330/OPINION01/603300731/1210/NEWS21&template=printart]. Mar 30, 2006.
Yip, Alethea. “Remembering Vincent Chin: Fifteen years later, a murder in Detroit remains a turning point in the APA movement.” [http://www.asianweek.com/061397/feature.html]. June 5-13, 1997.
