Abstract: Internalized Racism
In my third project for Living Multilingualism, I discuss the pertinent topic of internalized racism. The primary focus of my discussion revolves around the effects of the stigmatization by western media of cultural indicators on first generation and ESL students’ perceptions of themselves. My argument largely references Asian American experiences, as the primary point of reference is my own experiences with struggling with internalized racist attitudes toward Chinese culture. I conclude my essay by pointing to general, plausible solutions to extinguishing the stigmatization of cultural markers by means of creating an alternative perspective of Asian Americans so that audiences will view false stereotypes differently. I pose that this way American audiences will see the falseness of societal misperceptions of certain first generation Americans. I also point to further discussions of future research on the effects of the perceived superiority of the English language and western culture on native English speakers’ perceptions of themselves.