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.
China has not been a top-tier issue for much of the second Trump administration. Instead, Trump has focused considerable energy on Ukraine, Israel, Iran, and defending America’s borders. At home, Trump has been busy passing an overhaul to America’s tax system, deporting unlawful immigrants, and targeting his political enemies. More recently, he has been consumed by the fallout of a political scandal involving his past relationship with a disgraced sex offender. When the administration has focused on China, there has not been a consistent throughline in its approach or its public statements. This lack of overarching narrative likely reflects a combination
US President Donald Trump’s alleged request that Taiwanese President William Lai (賴清德) not stop in New York while traveling to three of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies, after his administration also rescheduled a visit to Washington by the minister of national defense, sets an unwise precedent and risks locking the US into a trajectory of either direct conflict with the People’s Republic of China (PRC) or capitulation to it over Taiwan. Taiwanese authorities have said that no plans to request a stopover in the US had been submitted to Washington, but Trump shared a direct call with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平)
Heavy rains over the past week have overwhelmed southern and central Taiwan, with flooding, landslides, road closures, damage to property and the evacuations of thousands of people. Schools and offices were closed in some areas due to the deluge throughout the week. The heavy downpours brought by the southwest monsoon are a second blow to a region still recovering from last month’s Typhoon Danas. Strong winds and significant rain from the storm inflicted more than NT$2.6 billion (US$86.6 million) in agricultural losses, and damaged more than 23,000 roofs and a record high of nearly 2,500 utility poles, causing power outages. As
The greatest pressure Taiwan has faced in negotiations stems from its continuously growing trade surplus with the US. Taiwan’s trade surplus with the US reached an unprecedented high last year, surging by 54.6 percent from the previous year and placing it among the top six countries with which the US has a trade deficit. The figures became Washington’s primary reason for adopting its firm stance and demanding substantial concessions from Taipei, which put Taiwan at somewhat of a disadvantage at the negotiating table. Taiwan’s most crucial bargaining chip is undoubtedly its key position in the global semiconductor supply chain, which led
RSS