Food is essential to how people socialize and relate to one another. Nowadays, social media platforms like Instagram and Tik Tok contain anecdotes about how Asian-American children have experienced racism with their food being called stinky or made from dogs. For this article, I interviewed Vietnamese educator Tien Thuy about the struggles of maintaining cultural pride through the food she eats.
How has Xenophobia Increased During the COVID-19 Era?
Tien Thuy is an educator and part-time social media content creator who goes by @tienth89 on Tik Tok. Many of her videos feature various types of Asian cuisine available in Southern California.
During the pandemic, Asian establishments received many hate crimes, including break-ins and vandalism. Asian restaurants were closing down for business either temporarily or permanently at 61% compared to other non-Asian restaurants. STOP AAPI Hate also reports that 11,500 incidents of anti-Asian discrimination have occurred in the last two years, with 27% of those occurring within businesses.
The stigmatization of Asian food and Asian establishments has been exacerbated as there was an increase in the perception that Asian food is unhealthy or unethical. With Covid-19 running rampant, misinformed masses believed that Asian food was an inherent disease carrier with dishes like “bat soup.”
In reality, Asian cuisine often comes with many benefits as health is a central concern of Chinese cooking; however, racist assumptions lump the Asian diaspora together and ignore the complexities of its food and people.
Thuy notes that since starting her Tik Tok page in 2021, she has experienced increased hate because of her identity as an Asian woman. She notes how people in her comment sections would call her food weird-looking or gross despite her intention to create a safe and welcoming space on social media that combats the isolation experienced during the pandemic.
How is Asian Food Important for Cultural Upbringing?
Thuy utilizes her Tik Tok page as a vessel to genuinely express her love and connection to Vietnamese culture through food.
Thuy immigrated to the United States when she was five years old with little that her family could call theirs. The lack of physical and cultural connections to America made her family feel isolated.
Despite adversity, Thuy highlights that “our treasure is our food” regarding the immigrant experience.
Food provides the roots to one’s culture that one might not get if they move to a faraway place. The lessons about racism and the stigma Thuy learned throughout her education became her motivation to want to talk more about racial discrimination based on food to educate others.
The food landscape in many parts of America has popularized various types of Vietnamese Food. Among these dishes is the quintessential Phở that many think about when people talk about Vietnamese food. One lesser-known dish that Thuy wishes to share with readers is Bánh bột lọc, which are chewy tapioca dumplings that originate from Huế, Vietnam.
Thuy takes pride in sharing this dish from central Vietnam because it expresses a love for her culture. It also diversifies the view of Vietnam beyond the American perception as explicitly Northern or Southern regions from the Vietnam War.
What Are the Steps We Can Take to De-Stigmatize Asian Food?
Oppression through the stigmatization of food plays a vital role in the upbringing of many Asian immigrants and Asian Americans alike. Many have been shamed for their cultures and are forced to assimilate. It is a beautiful notion to be able to preserve one’s culture of origin through something as universal as food.
A PBS article notes that there has been a steeper decline in activity among Asian-American-owned small businesses since the pandemic (26%), as opposed to the 22% decline nationwide in 2020. The false perceptions of Asian food as the leading cause of COVID-19 have increased the violent xenophobic acts towards Asian people and Asian-owned establishments.
How does one move past the hateful comments that label Asian people savage dog eaters? Thuy believes in two solutions: educate or rise above uneducated opinions about Asian food.
One is to turn the hateful comment into a learning opportunity as many people can unlearn their racist perceptions. The other is to find something else to focus on, like work or social life, because some people will not change their opinion in the face of new information.
Ultimately, creating spaces that allow marginalized people to feel safe and appreciated away from the difficulties white supremacy presents can work wonders in combating hate and isolation.
