ABSTRACT
This chapter utilizes "Asian Pacific American" to include Americans of East Asian, Southeast Asian, South Asian, and Pacific Island ancestry, and "Asian American" to refer to persons of East Asian ancestry and not to the other groups. The late 1700s was the first period of Asian Pacific immigration to America, although the total number of immigrants was small. The Immigration Act of 1965 repealed the restrictions of the 1924 Asian Exclusion Act. Immigrants from all countries were allowed into the United States if they had valuable occupational skills, were being reunified with family members, or were vulnerable to political or religious persecution. The Asian Pacific American diversity in Hawaii is a result of labor force issues. The largest act of discrimination by the United States government against any Asian Pacific American group occurred against Japanese Americans during World War Two. The chapter also reviews the model minority myth in greater detail.
