Asian invasion

Minorities have always been overlooked in the United States. African American fought for their rights for decades and finally succeed in the 1960s. Other minorities continued to fight for their place in the mainstream American society. Although the law forbids discrimination against race, racism still exists in people's minds. Asian-Americans are among one of these minorities. For the longest time, Asians have been thought of as nerds, geeks, anti-socialists, etc. We have strived to change this stereotype. In addition, we want to spread Asian American culture to mainstream society. Sadly, the reality of mainstream society did not accept Asians because we simply appeared to not be "good enough." However recently, it seems that all this is about to change.

In early 2010, the song 'Like a G6' by Far East Movement became a popular hit in United States. Every single person knew that song and it was a "must-play" song at every high school dance. What people didn't know was that Far East Movement was an Asian American group that consisted of four Asians who all grew up in the United States and they have been recording music since 2003. In 2010, they final made an impression. In the same year, Far East Movement signed a major record deal with Cherrytree Records, which is part of the famous Interscope Records. In October, they debuted their first album 'Free Wired', which took number 24 on Billboard 200. In the following month, the song 'Like A G6' took number one spot on Billboard 100. This was not only a big step for Far East Movement but also a big step for the Asian American community; it is an indication that Asian Americans are finally being accepted into mainstream society and that Asians Americans can do just as well as caucasians. In their first album, they had the opportunity to work with Ryan Tedder, Keri Hilson, Lil Jon, Snoop Dogg, and Bruno Mars. In their newest album, they continued to work with famous artists, including Justin Bieber, LMFAO, Pitbull, Cassie, and many other artists.

In early 2012, an American born Asian Jeremy Lin showed America that Asians can play basketball too. In a 107-93 win over Washington Wizards, Jeremy scored 23 points and had 10 assists in that game. On February 10, Jeremy scored 38 points and seven assists against the LA Lakers, which set a new career-high and beat Kobe Bryant, who had 34 points. On February 11, Jeremy scored 20 points and had 8 assists in a narrow 100-98 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves. On February 14, with less than a second remaining, Lin scored a game-winning three-pointer against the Toronto Raptors. The basket so amazed the Lakers, watching on TV, that veteran player Metta World Peace ran by reporters shouting "Linsanity! Linsanity!" and waving his hands above his head. Lin became the first NBA player to score at least 20 points and have seven assists in each of his first five starts. There are so many more accomplishments about Jeremy Lin that I can be said but the point is that Jeremy changed the impression of Asians not only in the NBA, but also in America. "Linsanity" also sparked more Asians to play basketball and confidently compete with other Americans. He contributed to the Asian American Movement and also strengthened Asian Americans' confidence in the American society.

The last group of people I want to talk about are not prominent in the mainstream society, but they have been working hard in the Asian American community to bring Asian American culture into mainstream society as well; they are what I like to call the "Social Media Artists." These artists use social media such as Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, and many other websites to publish and spread their work. One of these artists is the company Wong Fu Production. This company consists of only three Asian Americans and they produce short films targeted towards Asian-Americans in the United States. Many of their work reflect the lives and the situations faced by Asian-Americans, such as being known for a "Nice Guy", made fun of for poses when taking pictures, and many other cultural symbols. Their work has been featured in the LA Asian Pacific Film Festival, San Diego Film Festival, Cannes Film Festival, and many others. In addition, WFP started an annual concert with Far East Movement called International Secret Agents. This concert is held every year in the United States, where they invite talented Asian American Artists such as Quest Crew, Poreotics, Ryan Higa, Kevjumba, Jay Park, Kina Grannis, David Choi, and WFP, Far East Movement themselves, to perform and simultaneously celebrate Asian American Culture. They also try to bring the Asian American community together and encourage them to fit into mainstream society. There are also many artists like WFP who promote Asian American culture via social media, and they include: David So, Clara Chung, Michelle Phan, Jason Chen, Arden Cho, Just Kidding Films, Jayesslee, JRA, Cathy Nguyen, Peter Chao, and many others.

Asians have always put to the sides in America, but due to the Asian American Movement, we have more confidence in who we are, and therefore we are not afraid to express our culture. We are more confident than ever, and proud that we are Asian because we can do just as well if not better than other Americans. So beware America, for the Asian Invasion!