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.
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