Anti-Black Racism and Asian American Local Educational Activism: A Critical Race Discourse Analysis

Abstract

In this critical race discourse analysis of legal documents and correspondence, we discuss how a small number of highly organized and visible groups of Asian American parent activists oppose admissions policy reforms intended to diversify student enrollment to specialized high schools. We identify two narratives deployed by this vocal minority: anti-Asian discrimination and Asian American exceptionalism. These narratives prioritize the historical and interpersonal racialized experiences of Asian Americans over institutionalized racial inequality experienced by Black students, namely, residential housing and school segregation. By valorizing Asian American exceptionalism and meritocracy, these claims relegate racism as a historical problem, mirroring ideologies of white supremacy and anti-Blackness while reconstituting anti-racism.