Graduation Year

2021

Date of Submission

4-2021

Document Type

Campus Only Senior Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Department

Philosophy

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Rima Basu

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2021 Anne Jang

Abstract

Asian-American women have historically been the victims of a distinct type of racism that is based on gender and race, both of which have been the targets of oppression and stereotypes. This thesis outlines the history of racism against people of Asian descent and then, it describes Miranda Fricker’s stance on testimonial injustice and explores where her argument is lacking in covering the experiences of Asian American people. Specifically, the thesis explains how testimonial injustice is intertwined with the Model Minority Myth, a term used to describe how Asian Americans are perceived to be able to achieve a higher level of socioeconomic success, relative to the rest of the population, exceeding that of other minority groups, thus serving as a “model” as well as yellow fever. The term yellow fever refers to the racial preference for Asian women that equips the portrayal and embodiment of racialized stereotypes that objectify them. Finally, I approach gaslighting, which can be boiled down to the psychological manipulation of someone into questioning some part of their identity or sanity. Gaslighting impacts Asian-American women differently from non-Asian women and Asian men. I propose an account of why their experiences differ and argue that this is due to the intersection of yellow fever and the Model Minority Myth. I call out the effects of gaslighting and how these two stereotypes, which both may seem innocuous initially, are actually the main culprits in how Asian American women are ultimately harmed by testimonial injustices in day-to-day life.

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