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Asian-American Youths' Struggles Belie Stereotype
OAKLAND - Breaking stereotypes that paint Asian-American kids strictly as straight-A students, a new report on East Bay youths finds that some Asian teens have among the highest juvenile arrest rates in their areas and are failing to meet school standards.
In particular, Southeast Asian and Pacific Islander youths are struggling to thrive in neighborhoods such as Oakland plagued by problems such as juvenile crime and rising school dropout rates, according to the National Council on Crime and Delinquency, a nonprofit research group. It unveiled its report Wednesday at an Oakland High School news conference.
For example, Samoans had the second-highest juvenile arrest rate in Oakland at 8 percent, second to African-Americans, the report found. Oakland's 807 Laotian and 122 Korean juveniles tied for third in juvenile arrest rates at 7 percent.
In 2002, Pacific Islander students at Oakland Unified School District high schools ranked far below their peers in standardized reading, language, science and social science tests, the study found.
"To the average person, crime, drug dealing and high school dropouts do not bring to mind the image of Asian-American youth," said Mary Lai, a research associate with the crime and delinquency council. "Yet Asian and Pacific Islander students are not meeting national standardized test scores for all subject areas."
Asian-American youths have the same challenges all kids face growing up in impoverished areas of East Bay cities, said Oakland City Councilman Danny Wan.
"The faces of youth violence and its victims are just as diverse as Oakland itself, although you'd never know it by watching TV or media accounts," Wan said.
Richmond's large Laotian community has been confronting similar problems among its own young people after the fatal shooting of a 15-year-old girl, Chan Boonkeut, in October in what police say was a gang-related incident in which she was not the target.
At a Nov. 15 community meeting in Richmond, many Laotian parents said their weak grasp of English and busy work schedules prevented them from keeping their children out of trouble and up on schoolwork. "I'm worried about my children," said San Pablo mother Khamsaeng Keosaeng. "I'm concerned my son might not graduate from high school at all. His grades are only so-so."
Wednesday's study, which examined only Oakland juveniles, found that indicators of school performance and criminal behavior varied wildly among different Asian groups.
Youths from groups with longer immigration histories, such as Chinese and Filipinos, had lower juvenile arrest rates than those of more recent immigrant groups, such as Samoans and Cambodians.
"With Southeast Asians groups, they've suffered extraordinary circumstances," said Isami Arifuku, research coordinator with the Asian/Pacific Islander Youth Violence Prevention Center, which is part of the crime and delinquency council.
"They've suffered trauma and genocide," Arifuku said. "They are refugees."
The report recommends school districts, cities and police departments offer services in different languages to help immigrant parents understand what teachers and police officers tell them about their children. It also recommends establishing Asian youth centers in East Bay schools.
Oakland High School sophomore Glenna Kong said the model-minority stereotypes Asians must deal with have prevented many community leaders from seeing the struggles Asian youth are having.
"People should take a look and see inside at what's going on with young people," Kong said. "They would see many Asians are failing."
— Jack Chang
Asian-American youths' struggles belie stereotype
Contra Costa Times
2003-11-24
http://www.bayarea.com/mld/cctimes/living/education/7337387.htm
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