A Republican lawmaker in Oklahoma is under fire for referring to Asian-American families as “yellow families” and for saying Black families were doing much better in 1960, during a presentation focused on racial inequality last Wednesday.
According to KFOR, State Senator David Rader made the comments towards the end of policy analyst, David Shade’s presentation in which he shared information about the history of racism in America and how it widened the wealth gap between white families and families of color.
“Well into your presentation did you go to yellow families?. You left yellow families out for quite a while,” Rader said in the video.
“You mean Asian Americans?” Shade asked.
“You use black term, white term, brown term so I was just gonna jump in there with you,” Rader said, attempting to blame Shade for his use of the slur.
“I was just making sure I understood,” Shade said.
“Asian distraction,” Rader replied.
“Asian Americans,” Shane responded
“Because their experience has been totally different than many umm, than many others that have come over,” Rader said.
The term ‘yellow’ originated from ‘Yellow Peril,” a term used to describe Asian immigration to the west in the 19th and 20th century. The working class in America and Europe feared Asians, particularly the Chinese would compete unfairly for their jobs by working for lower wages. Others worried that the Chinese would invade their lands and disrupt Western values, such as democracy, Christianity, and technological innovation. This fear justified western governments passing xenophobic laws that limits Asian immigration to the western world. The Chinese Exclusion Act, legally restricted Chinese immigrants from the US in 1882 for the next 80 years.
Rep. Cyndi Munson, the first Asian American woman to be elected to Oklahoma’s state legislature, said in a tweet that Rader’s comments were “offensive” and “unacceptable.”
“I’m Asian American, not yellow,” she tweeted. “The language used by the Senator is highly offensive and unacceptable. For my fellow colleagues to be so unaware of the words they use & how they might harm people is exactly why we need open & honest dialogue on racism.”
Rader also made other offensive racial remarks during the presentation. He told Shade that black families were better off and “much more intact” in 1960 notably, before the 1964 Civil Rights Act which ended segregation in public places and banned employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex or national origin.
“The data I’ve seen, the black family was much more intact and much more able to be together in 1960 than it was even 30 years later, 40 years later from that point on,” he said.
Rader did not apologize or mentioned his comments in a statement he released after receiving harsh criticism.
“I’ve spent my entire life as a football coach and educator, fostering opportunities for individuals of every race and background. As a legislator, I have continued this important work because I believe each and every person in our state and our country should have an opportunity to pursue the American Dream,” Rader said. “As I’ve done throughout my career, I am committed to eliminating barriers that might make the pursuit of that dream more difficult.”
