College - Author 1

College of Liberal Arts

Department - Author 1

History Department

Degree Name - Author 1

BA in History

Date

3-2019

Primary Advisor

Andrew Morris

Abstract/Summary

Asian Americans have been long overlooked in the United States for their contributions and have been restricted by ever-changing stereotypes and perceptions. Within the Asian American community, the incarcerated population and former criminals have been hidden because of cultural stigmas and missing statistics. In the 1980s, a large population of Asian American youth were becoming involved in criminal activity because of difficulty adapting to life in the United States after arriving at a young age. Gang membership and racial profiling increased the chances that Asian Americans would be arrested, although Asian Americans are less likely to be sentenced to prison time and often are given shorter sentences compared to members of other ethnic minority groups. At the same time, Asian American juveniles were more likely to be sentenced as adults despite being underage and were also more likely to be sentenced to life for their crimes. After serving time, some Asians still find themselves back in a detention center because of removal orders. Southeast Asian Americans are more likely to find themselves deported to a country that they had previously escaped from before arriving to the United States as refugees. While some juvenile crime laws have been recently repealed or modified, there have been more deportations from the current government administration.

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