The (Un)Making of a ‘Model Minority’

The (Un)Making of a ‘Model Minority’

An odd racial pecking order puts Indian Americans in a curious place -- outside of whiteness, but distinct from other people of color. How’d that come to be? And is it changing?

We explore these questions by revisiting a story from Arun Venugopal, senior reporter with WNYC’s Race & Justice Unit, about how a Kansan community grappled with one of the first widely reported hate crimes following the 2016 election. Then he joins us to check in on that community today and walk through the history of the “model minority” myth -- and how perceptions may or may not be about to change, yet again.

Most recently, Venugopal penned “The Truth Behind Indian American Exceptionalism” for the January/February 2021 issue of The Atlantic.

COMPANION LISTENING:

White Like Me” (10/20/2016)

A history of what it means -- and has meant -- to be white in the United States of America, and what that meant for the 2016 election.

A Secret Meeting in South Bend” (6/18/2020)

How a group of Black families in the mid 20th Century carved out a neighborhood for themselves, and tried to make their American Dreams real, despite the terrorism of Jim Crow.

“The United States of Anxiety” airs live on Sunday evenings at 6pm ET. The podcast episodes are lightly edited from our live broadcasts. To catch all the action, tune into the show on Sunday nights via the stream on WNYC.org/anxiety or tell your smart speakers to play WNYC.

Tell us what you think. We're @noteswithkai on Instagram and X (Twitter). Email us at notes@wnyc.org. Send us a voice message by recording yourself on your phone and emailing us, or record one here.

Notes from America airs live on Sundays at 6 p.m. ET. The podcast episodes are lightly edited from our live broadcasts.

Episoder(424)

Revisiting Caught: 'I Just Want You to Come Home'

Revisiting Caught: 'I Just Want You to Come Home'

The United States locks up more people - and more children - than any country in the world. Two years ago, Caught delved into the experiences of youth whose worst decisions led them to be entrapped wi...

30 Jul 202028min

The Laws of Soil and Blood

The Laws of Soil and Blood

Being Black in Italy means you’re likely NOT born a citizen. Until the Civil War, the same was true for Black people in the United States. Citizenship was reserved for white people only. These histori...

17 Jul 202039min

Zoned for Resistance

Zoned for Resistance

As Covid-19 first spread through Chicago, the residents of Little Village faced another imminent crisis — the hastily-approved demolition of an old coal-fired power plant that left the neighborhood sh...

10 Jul 202041min

Juneteenth, an Unfinished Business

Juneteenth, an Unfinished Business

Juneteenth marks a triumphant moment for not just Black Americans, but all people who have sought liberation globally. On June 19th, Kai Wright hosted a special episode of “The Brian Lehrer Show” with...

26 Jun 202044min

Rage, Grief, Joy

Rage, Grief, Joy

After months of fear and mourning amid a global pandemic, we’re now in the streets. This week, we talk about catharsis and the ways we gather to fight, to grieve and to show up for each other. We hear...

18 Jun 202033min

'Community' Is a Verb. And It’s Hard

'Community' Is a Verb. And It’s Hard

As the nation faces the dual brunts of the pandemic and the on-going brutality against black bodies, people more than ever are finding ways to “do the work” in their communities. This week our reporte...

12 Jun 202028min

Keeping Released Prisoners Safe and Sane

Keeping Released Prisoners Safe and Sane

It’s hard enough when there’s no pandemic to keep mentally ill inmates from falling through the holes in a patchwork system. Now it’s harder than ever. A huge number of people who are locked up in thi...

4 Jun 202041min

'I Did Not Watch the Video'

'I Did Not Watch the Video'

The week Ida B. Wells’ reporting on lynching received a Pulitzer Prize, a video of 25 year-old Ahmaud Arbery being chased and killed began to circulate on social media. It was one of the few news stor...

21 Mai 202030min

Populært innen Politikk og nyheter

giver-og-gjengen-vg
aftenpodden
aftenpodden-usa
stopp-verden
popradet
forklart
lydartikler-fra-aftenposten
rss-ness
nokon-ma-ga
det-store-bildet
dine-penger-pengeradet
rss-gukild-johaug
hanna-de-heldige
aftenbla-bla
fotballpodden-2
rss-dannet-uten-piano
rss-utenrikskomiteen-med-bogen-og-grasvik
e24-podden
bt-dokumentar-2
rss-garne-damer