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Malaysian Americans

Regions with significant populations
New York City Metropolitan Area, San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles Metropolitan Area
Languages
American English, Malay, Chinese, Tamil and others
Religion
Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism
Related ethnic groups
Asian Americans

Malaysian Americans (Orang Malaysia di Amerika) are Americans of Malaysian ancestry. They consist of people of a variety of ethnic origins, including Malay, Malaysian Chinese, and Malaysian Indian. Permanent residents and students of Malaysian origin should also be included in the definition of Malaysian American as they contribute largely to Malaysian American culture and society. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, three-fourths of the Malaysian American population are foreign-born. Malaysian Americans are growing both in population and in socioeconomic status.

History

Early immigrants

Malaysian immigration to the United States has been relatively unreported throughout history. The first immigrants to the United States were thought to be workers from the Malay Archipelago brought among Chinese and Japanese immigrants to work in fruit plantations in California and Hawai’i. However, they were often grouped together with the broader population of Asian American immigrants, and therefore remained predominantly undocumented. In the mid-19th century, a small number of Malay sailors settled in American port cities, such as Boston. According to military records, four Malays served in the American Civil War, two each in the Confederate States Navy and Union Navy respectively. During the Second World War, a small number of ethnic Chinese Malaysians were brought into the United States. During the 1950s, groups of Malaysians (predominantly ethnic Malays) were sent to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas for counterinsurgency training. When the training ended in the 1960s, some trainees remained in the United States permanently. As Malaysia only gained independence from British colonial administration in 1957, most early Malaysian immigrants would have not identified with their country of origin, but rather with their ethnic identites. This is still a common practice today

The "Malay Race"

Main article: The Malay Race

The term “Malay Race” is not to be confused with ethnic Malays. During the early twentieth century, the term “Malay Race" was used to classify Filipino immigrants in anti-miscegenation laws in the United States. Initial anti-miscegenation laws prohibited the marriage between European Americans and African Americans. Following the influx of Filipino immigrants into the United States, a few states were urged to include the prohibition of marriage between European Americans and Filipinos (designated as the “Malay Race”) as well.

Diaspora of the Malaysian Chinese

While the Malaysian population is ethnically diverse, a large majority of the Malaysian diaspora to the United States (as well as other countries such as Singapore, Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom) have ethnic Chinese origins. Emigration from Malaysia is both a complex and relatively undocumented phenomenon, as there is relatively little data on migration outflow. While much of the Malaysian migration to the United States today is for economic reasons, it also involves race-based affirmative action policies stemming from Malaysia's early post-independence.

Race relations in Malaysia

Main article: Race Relations in Malaysia

Race relations in Malaysia plays a huge role in understanding modern immigration of Malaysians to the United States and the Malaysian diaspora as a whole. The population of Malaysia is made of numerous ethnic groups, where Malays and Bumiputeras (“sons of the soil”) make up the majority of 60.3%, while the Chinese make up 24.6% of the minority and Indians 7.1%.

Since the fifteenth century, immigrant communities of various ethnicities have settled in Malayan territory. Although earlier immigrants primarily originated from the Indonesian Archipelago, the arrival of British colonial rule in the 1860s created an influx of Chinese and Indian workers into Malaya as a source of cheap labor. The British administration employed a divide-and-rule strategy to control the multi-ethnic immigrant society. The population was divided into specific economic activities by ethnicity: the Indians worked in rubber plantations, the rural Malays in agriculture and farming, and the Chinese initially worked in tin-mines before moving towards commercial business. The Europeans became the managers, while the Malay aristocrats were placed in government and political positions of power. Thus forming a racial hierarchy that still exists today, although less conspicuous, resulting in the formation of the Malay elite class and the myth of Malay indigeneity. "The colonial legacies of Malay indigeneity and special rights have had a tremendous impact on the making of the Malaysian nation-state and her constitutional laws".

Formation of the New Economic Policy (NEP)

Main article: Malaysian New Economic Policy

Slightly more than a decade after Malaysia’s independence, the 1969 federal elections increased tensions between the Malay and Chinese ethnic groups, that had already been strained by ethnic income inequality as a result of ethnic division during the British administration. (The Chinese were regarded to possess dominance over the economy as a majority of economic activities in urban areas were controlled by the Chinese, while a greater number of Malays remained in rural areas and were generally poorer.) Racial riots erupted in Kuala Lumpur (then part of the state of Selangor), resulting in a death toll of up to 600, with predominantly Chinese victims.

In 1971, the New Economic Policy (Malay: Dasar Ekonomi Baru (DEB)) was introduced by the National Operation Council as a response to the racial riots in the form of social restructuring and elimination of race identification by economic function, with the aim to reduce poverty, improve income distribution and economic status of all ethnic groups. Nevertheless, the studies have shown that the policy eventually only benefitted middle and upper class Bumiputeras.

Modern Immigration

Main article: Malaysian Diaspora

The Malaysian race riots of 1969 was believed to spark the outflow of Malaysians (especially the Chinese) from Malaysia. From the 1970s, an increase in numbers of Malaysian immigrants was seen in cities like Chicago. Furthermore, the New Economic Policy (NEP) seemed to only favor the Malay middle and upper class (e.g. racial quotas for university admission, scholarships, employment in public sectors, and government bonds), causing many young students and working professionals belonging to minority ethnic groups (predominantly Chinese and to a lesser extent, Indian) to leave in search of better economic opportunities elsewhere. A “second-wave diaspora” of Chinese skilled immigrants was created. A majority of the diaspora emigrated into Singapore, with the remaining moving to Western countries like Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States. From 1980 to 1990, the number of Malaysian immigrants tripled from 10,473 to 33,834, flocking to major cities like Chicago and New York or California, a state with a large Asian American population. To this day thousands of young Malaysians continue to immigrate into the United States in search of better educational and employment opportunities.

Demography

According to answers provided to an open-ended question included in the 2010 United States Census, 26,179 people said that their ancestry or ethnic origin was Malaysian. While there is no data on the population of specific ethnic groups, the 2011 World Bank report on Malaysia’s brain drain reported that the Malaysian diaspora is “ethnically skewed”, where a majority are educated middle to upper-class ethnic Chinese Malaysians. California is home to the largest population of Malaysian Americans (still very small in comparison to more established Asian American communities), with smaller communities located in New York, Illinois, Texas, Virginia and Hawai’i.

A large portion of identified Malaysian Americans are first-generation immigrants, generally made of college students and young working professionals. According to the U.S. Embassy in Malaysia, over 5,900 Malaysians are currently in American higher education institutions. In 2010, Malaysian immigrants were ranked 5th in the proportion of college graduate persons in the United States against other immigrant groups (behind Indian, Taiwanese, Egyptian and Nigerian immigrant groups), with 59.5 percent.

Unfortunately, official statistics do not accurately reflect the demographics of the Malaysian American population. The U.S. Census often places Malaysian Americans into the “Other Asian” category due to their small numbers and statistics provided by Malaysian American community organizations such as the Washington D.C.-based Malaysia-America Society, often only include middle to high income groups, leaving out those of lower socioeconomic status. Moreover, as many Chinese Malaysian immigrants are able to speak Chinese (Mandarin or other dialects), they may tend to settle in more prominent Chinese American communities and contribute to the population of Chinese Americans on the official census. Many foreign-born Malaysian Americans also do not have American citizenship as Malaysia prohibits dual citizenship.

The Malaysian American Identity

Only in recent years has Malaysian heritage been recognized as earlier immigrants and second-generation Malaysian Americans tended to only identify with their ethnicity or simply as Asian American.

Integration into American Society

Compared to other Southeast Asian immigrant groups that have fled to the United States as a result of war, conflict, natural disaster or life-threatening religious persecution, most Malaysian immigrants resettle in the United States for economic reasons, meaning the majority of them are well-educated. Since Malaysia was once a British colony, the English language is taught in schools and commonly used as a working language by professionals. Many Malaysians are also exposed and very familiar with Western popular culture. As a result, integration into American society may come easier to Malaysian first generation immigrants compared to their other Asian counterparts. It is also common for ethnic Chinese Malaysians to settle within established Chinese American communities, such as Chinatowns, due to their ethnic heritage and ability to speak Chinese (Mandarin and other dialects). Ethnic Chinese and Indian Malaysian immigrants physically bear resemblance to more prominent Asian American groups such as Chinese and Indian Americans, making it easier to blend in.

Most Malaysians immigrate to the United States in search of the “American Dream”, having admired the freedom and democracy offered in the States. While they remain aware of long-standing racial issues in the United States, many believe they are still better off without the legal form of discrimination in Malaysia and appreciate the economic opportunities the U.S. has to offer. It is also important to keep in mind that the socioeconomic status of most Malaysian immigrants is generally higher than their Southeast Asian counterparts, so their views on life in America tend to be more positive.

Communities and Groups

There are three Malaysian government offices in the U.S. whose goal is to assist and supervise Malaysian students.[5] One of them is the Malaysian Student Department (MSD) in Evanston, Illinois, which covers the midwestern part of the U.S. MSD sponsors several events each year for students in the region, including the celebration of Malaysian independence, the Midwest Games (a three-day sporting competition), and Ambassador Award Night, whose function is recognizing the academic achievements of Malaysian students.[5]

Malaysian Americans have created several community associations in the U.S. The Malaysian American Society was founded in 1967 to promote cultural exchanges between Malaysia and the U.S.[6] Other community organizations include the Malaysian Association of Georgia[7] and the Malaysian Association of Southern California.[8]

Malaysian Americans also have established several educational associations. The Malaysian Students Association at the University of Michigan fosters friendships among Malaysian students.[6] The objective of the Malaysian Student Association of St. Louis, Missouri is to maintain close relationships among students after their college graduation.[6] The Malaysian Students Association at The Ohio State University is an organization that represents the Malaysian student community while promoting Malaysia's unique cultural identity at Ohio State.[9] Other educational associations include the University of California-Berkeley Alumni Club of Malaysia[6] and the Harvard Club of Malaysia[6] plus associations at the Illinois Institute of Technology[5] and the University of Chicago.[5]

The Malaysia Association of America, based in the area of the Chinatown, Flushing in New York City, was credited by the Consul General of Malaysia in New York for getting the New York State Assembly to declare August 31, 2008, to be "Malaysian American Day".[10]

Further Reading

The Chinese Diaspora: Space, Place, Mobility, and Identity By Laurence J. C. Ma, Carolyn L. Cartier

Dismantling Diasporas: Rethinking the Geographies of Diasporic Identity By Anastasia Christou, Elizabeth Mavroudi