This horrible WSJ headline is anti-Asian racism at the worst possible time

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Anti-Asian racism has increased in recent years, partly due to COVID-19 but also due to racist media and reports blaming all Asians for the actions of the Chinese government. Some publications have sought to combat this by being aware of their own contributions to anti-Asian racism. Others, of course, are slow to reflect and correct themselves, as evidenced by a recent opinion piece in The Wall Street Journal titled Are There Too Many Asians?

Yes really.

First, there are a few things I want to say, before we dive deeper:

A: The title of this article would be terrible at the best of times, but it’s particularly despicable because it was published days after the tragic Lunar New Year shootings in Monterey Park that killed 11 people and injured 9. shooting targeted a local ballroom dance studio that was also a community center for Asian immigrants. (Note: the shooter was Asian, but not someone who frequented the studio and was apparently looking for his wife.)

Two: Asia is literally one of the largest and most populous continents, but Americans also include East Asians, South Asians, Pacific Islanders, and Middle Easterners. in the nebulous category of Asians. If you’re going to criticize us, do it right.

Three: The article talks about the falling birth rate in China, so the titles don’t even match the content of the article.

The writer

The author of the article, William McGurn, is a former speechwriter to President George W. Bush and is now the editor of the Wall Street Journal, which I guess explains how this article passed the editor: He is the editor. (Seriously, don’t edit your own, kids.) He’s also written several anti-Asian articles before; even his articles on anti-Asian racism seem to be laced with anti-Asian sentiment. Despite this, McGurn continues to market himself as an authority on China, having written a book on Hong Kong.

Personally, I find the most disconcerting fact in all of this is that McGurn and his wife have adopted three Chinese daughters. Some would say that gives him the right to speak about China, especially when he criticizes its one-child policy which has led to the abandonment of little girls. But I think that should also make him more careful about what he says.

Some parents on social media have noted how white families of POC children (whether through adoption or from interracial families) can frequently use their family members as “free passes” for their behavior. You know the tired statement: I can’t be racist, I have a black/Asian/Latinx child.

I can’t testify to whether this is the case for McGurn and his family, but I will say that his continued anti-Asian racism seems to have gone largely unchallenged thus far.

backlash

Fortunately, the outcry was swift and powerful. Asian Americans like epidemiologist and health economist Eric Feigl-Ding and TikToker @etchaskej all criticized the article for both timing and content. Although many noted that this was just one drop in a long bucket overflowing with anti-Asian sentiment that many were forced to swallow.

The challenge facing the Asian American community is always the feeling that there is a ceiling on our welcome. Throughout history there have been questions about how many Asians are too many Asians in the US (and beyond) – as this @WSJ article shows. pic.twitter.com/KxRFPBVnHb

— Raymond Chang (@tweetraychang) January 24, 2023

The title has since been changed to the slightly less racist China and the demographic bomb that wasn’t, though some activists see it more as an attempt to bury their misdeeds than admit them. I doubt McGurn or the Wall Street Journal will do better in the future. But we certainly can.

If you want to learn more about the victims of the Monterey Park shooting and/or anti-Asian racism, I suggest you follow @etchaskej on TikTok. He made videos about each of the community members who lost their lives and shared resources to help victims and their families.

(featured image: Eze Amos/Getty Images)

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