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ENDNotES
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,908367-1,00.html
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,908367-1,00.html
Blanchard,Olivier(2000).Macroeconomics (2nded.).PrenticeHall.pp.G8.ISBN013013306X.
http://www.autolife.umd.umich.edu/Labor/L_Overview/L_Overview8.htm
http://web.mit.edu/21h.153j/www/chrono.html
http://www.asian-nation.org/population.shtml
http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2001/demoprofile.html
http://www.asianweek.com/061397/feature.html
Weingarten,Paul(July31,1983),“DeadlyEncounter,”Chicago Tribune
HelenZia(2000).Asian American Dreams.Farrar,Straus&Giroux.ISBN0-374-14774-4.
http://www.asianweek.com/061397/feature.html
IrisChang.The Chinese in America: A Narrative History.Viking,2003.0-670-03123-2.p.320
http://www.asianweek.com/061397/feature.html
http://www.detnews.com/article/20090610/METRO/906100323/1410/METRO01/Anniversary-near-for-1982Vincent-Chin-beating-death
http://www.heroism.org/class/1950/heroes/saund.htm
http://www.aamovement.net/history/eastwind/11/veracruz.html
http://www.aasc.ucla.edu/archives/passingitonpress.htm
http://www.speakoutnow.org/userdata_display.php?modin=50&uid=177
http://apa.si.edu/Curriculum%20Guide-Final/angelabio.htm
http://www.searac.org
ThisresearchguidewaswrittenandproducedbyAsianPacificAmericansforProgress,thenationalnetworkof progressive
AsianAmericans,PacificIslandersandallies.Formoreinformationontheorganization,pleasegotowww.apaforprogress.org
Thankstothegeneroussupportof theWallaceAlexanderGerbodeFoundationandthemanysupportersof APAP.
RESEARCH GUIDE
Asian Pacific Americans for Progress is a national network of progressive Asian Americans,
Pacific islanders and allies. for more information or to order additional copies of this research
guide, please go to apaforprogress.org
Presented by
AsiAn PAcific AmericAns
for Progress
in association with
Q & A films and
Tony lAm films
www.apaforprogress.org
VINCENT WHO? RESEARCH GUIDE byJulinaGuo&RyanBaxter
oVERVIEW
THE VINCENT WHO? RESEARCH GUIDE aims to enhance viewer participation and
understanding following showings of Vincent Who? (40 minutes), a documentary
filmthatexaminesthehistoricVincentChinmurdercaseandthecurrentstateof Asian American empowerment. This guide provides background information on
thecaseandbiosof prominentAsianAmericancivilrightsleaders,aswellasaset
of questionsandactivitiesdesignedtopromptdiscussion.
oBJECtIVES: Duringthediscussionof Vincent Who?,viewerswill:





Considerthecurrentstateandprogressof AsianAmericanempowerment.
Interpretthefilmandofferopinionsonfurthersocialchangeneeded.
ReflectonhowtheymayhavebeeninfluencedbyVincentChin’smurder.
CompareandanalyzeVincentChin’smurdertootherprominenthatecrimes.
Feelasenseof civicengagementandtheimportanceof beinginvolved
ANGELA E. oH:A NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED socialandpoliticalactivist,Ohreceiveda
jurisdoctorfromKingHallatUCDavisSchoolof Law.Followingthe1992riotsin
LosAngeles,shewaselectedtothespecialcounseltotheassemblyspecialcommittee
ontheLosAngelescrisis.In1997,formerPresidentBillClintonappointedOhto
thePresident’sInitiativeonRace.ThepositionallowedOhtoadvisethePresidenton
theeffectsof racismintheU.S.Ohhasservicedhercommunityasamemberof the
FederaljudicialnominationscommitteefortheCentralDistrictof California,aswell
asmanyotherindispensiblerolesincommunityandlegalorganizations.Sheisalso
theauthorof Open: One Woman’s Journey,acollectionof essayspublishedin2002.19
DoUA tHoR:AFTER IMMIGRATING TO DETROIT IN 1979,Thorandherfamilybecame
refugeesforhavingsupportedtheU.S.duringtheVietnamWar.Shecurrentlyserves
astheExecutiveDirectorof theSoutheastAsiaResourceActionCenter(SEARAC),
an organization which advocates the interests of the Cambodian, Laotian, and
VietnameseAmericanpopulation.Thorisalsoontheboardsof Asian&Pacific
Islander American Vote (APIA Vote) and of the Asian Pacific Islander American
ScholarshipFund(APIASF).Sheisamemberof theNielsenMediaResearchAsian
PacificAmericanAdvisoryCouncilandwaspreviouslyaNewVoicesFellowwith
HmongNationalDevelopment,Inc.(HND).20
HAMID KHAN
A NATIVE OF PAKISTAN, Khan had a keen mind for politics as a young boy and
carried this passion to the U.S. at the age of 21. For almost two decades, Khan
flewairplanesandlaterbecameaUPS commercialpilotbeforefocusingprimarily
on advocacy. In 1994, Khan became the Executive Director of the South Asian
Network, a nonprofit organization dedicated to serve the needs of people from
India,Pakistan,Bangladesh,Nepal,andSriLanka.Inaddition,Khanalsohostsa
weeklyradioshowtitled“BeneaththeSurface,”aninformativesegmentonSouth
Asianissuesthathasfeaturedprominentguestspeakers.Khan’seffortshavehelped
to decrease discrimination against Muslims following September 11th, campaign
fortherightsof SouthAsiantaxidrivers,andadvocateforimmigrationreform.
BACKGRoUND
tHE ECoNoMY: THE EARLY 1980S saw tough times in America. There was an
ongoingrecessionattributedtoformerpresidentRichardNixon’seconomicpolicies
intheearly1970sandthelingeringeffectsof the1973and1979oilcrises,1aswellas
ageneralshortageof rawmaterials,asevidencedatgasstationsaroundthecountry.2
The result was an economy faced with inflation during a period of stagnation, a
conditionknownasstagflation.3
ThisatmospherebroughtseriouschallengestotheU.S.autoindustry.Thesmaller
andcheapercars,manufacturedbycompaniesfromJapanandEurope,provedtobe
farmorecosteffectiveandappealing,duringthesegascrisesandnearlybankrupted
the major American corporations. Additionally, the ever-growing automation of productionreplacedmanyautomotiveworkersduringtherecession,causingworker
discontenttorisedrastically.4
2
7
CIVIL RIGHtS LEADERS (A BRIEF SELECtIoN. Not ALL APPEAR IN tHE FILM.)
THE FIRST U.S. CONGRESSMAN BORN IN ASIA, Saund was
a native of India who earned his Masters and Ph.D. degrees at the University of California.Saundworkedfirstasalettucefarmerandthroughouthislifetransitioned
intoabusiness,ajudge,andfinallyamemberof theHouseof Representativesin
1957.Inthe1940s,angeredbythediscriminationagainstIndiansinAmerica,Saund
helped to form the Indian Association of America. The organization successfully
lobbied for the Luce-Celler Act of 1946, which allowed Indians to become U.S.
citizens.15
His rise from a small-town student to a civil activist and Congressman broke
barriersfortheAsianAmericancommunityandhasbeenwidelyrecognized.
DALIP SINGH SAUND:
A CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST and a labor leader, Vera Cruz was
born in the Philippines in 1904 and emigrated to the U.S. at the age of 22. His
experience as a new immigrant in the labor field led him to become active in the
AgriculturalWorkersOrganizingCommittee,(AWOC)anorganizationthatdedicated
itself toimprovingtheconditionsof migrantworkers.In1966,theAWOCmergedwith
Cesar Chavez’s National Farm Workers Association (NFWA) to become the United
Farm Workers (UFW). The merge was the result of collaboration between the two
unionstostrikeagainstgrapegrowersinDelano,California.VeraCruzservedasUFW
VicePresidentandwasanintegralpartof itsManagingBoard.
VeraCruzwasfeaturedin2000bookPhilip Vera Cruz: A Personal History of Filipino
Immigrants and the Farmworkers MovementbyCraigScharlinandLiliaV.Villanueva.16
PHILIP VERA CRUZ:
BILL AND YURI KoCHIYAMA: YURI
KOCHIYAMA isapioneerforwomen’srightsand
civilrightswhohasspokenatmorethan100educationalinstitutionsintheU.S.and
Canada.Shewasbornin1921inSanPedro,CaliforniatoJapaneseparents.Asa
youngwoman,YuriKochiyamawitnessedherfather’sarrestbytheU.S.government
duringWorldWarII.Atthesametime,sheandherfamilywereforcedtorelocate
alongwithothersof Japaneseancestrytointernmentcamps.
ShemetBillKochiyamaatthecampwhileheservedinWWII,andthecouple
marriedin1946.Throughouttheirlives,YuriandBillcontinuedtoparticipateincivil
rightsmovementsfortheethniccommunity,travelingtomanycitiesandcountries
withtheirchildren.In2004,YuripublishedPassing It On: A Memoir,whichrecounts
herstrugglesandsuccessesasahumanrightsactivist.17
HELEN ZIA:A SECOND-GENERATION CHINESE-AMERICAN,Ziacompletedhereducation
at Princeton University as part of its first co-ed class in the 1970s. Although she
had initially studied medicine, Zia chose to work as a journalist and civil activist.
Asidefromherownpublishedworks,ZiaalsoservedastheExecutiveDirectorof Ms. Magazineandwashonoredasoneof themostinfluentialAsianAmericansby A.
Magazine.Shehasalsoearnedawardsforcoveringtopicssuchascivilrights,women’s
rights,andthepreventionof hatecrimes.Shehasbeenfeaturedinseveraltelevision
programsandfilms,including“Who Killed Vincent Chin?”and“Vincent Who?” 18
6
PoPULAtIoN AND StEREotYPES: IN
THE LATE 1970S, the last of the laws
againstAsianimmigrationwererescinded.5 Asaresult,duringthe1980s,Asian
AmericanswerethefastestgrowingracialgroupintheUnitedStates.Theirgrowth
rateduringthistimeincreasedto96.13%,overtakingthatof whitesbynearlya
factorof 25.6
The growing populations of Asian Americans and legal integration that
was occurring gave rise to animosity among many “displaced” Americans.
This friction materialized most widely in the form of stereotypes. The most
common stereotype is that all Asians are the same, despite being compromised
of almost 15 million people representing more than 31 ethnicities.7
VINCENt CHIN: ON JUNE 19, 1982, Vincent Chin celebrated his upcoming
weddingatabachelor’spartywithfriendsataclubinHighlandPark,Michigan,
asuburbof Detroit.Hewasanindustrialdraftsman,hadalovingfamily,andwas
about to marry his girlfriend. But that fateful night, Chin argued with Ronald
Ebens,awhiteautoworker,whowasangrythattheJapanese
automotiveindustrywasfastsurpassingthatof America.With
his stepson, Michael Nitz, he targeted Chinese-American
VincentChinasoneof theculprits.Ebenswasheardyelling,
“It’s because of you little motherfuckers that we’re out of work!” This verbal altercation soon escalated into Chin’s
death.8
Ebens’ stepson Michael Nitz, who was recently laid off fromhisjobasanautoworker,sharedinEbens’outrage.After
bothpartiesleftthebar,EbensandNitzdrovethroughthestreetsof Detroituntil
theyfoundChinsittingoutsideafastfoodrestaurant.Thetwomenapproached
Chin.Ebens,armedwithabaseballbat,struckChininthelegs,andwhileNitzheld
Chindown,EbensproceededtostrikeChin’sbodyandheadseveralmoretimes.
The beating was so severe that Chin slipped into a coma and was pronounced
brain-deadatHenryFordHospital.OnJune23,1982,Chindiedof hisinjuries
—justfivedaysbeforehiswedding.Theassailantswerearrestedbytwooff-duty
policeofficerswhowitnessedthebeating.9
LEGAL HIStoRY: AFTER A PLEA BARGAIN, Wayne County Circuit Judge Charles
KaufmanconvictedRonaldEbensandMichaelNitzof manslaughter.Eachman
wassentencedtothreeyearsprobationand$3,000infines.Neitherservedanyjail
timeafterpostingbail.Whenquestioned
about the sentence, Judge Kaufman
responded, “These weren’t the kind of men you send to jail... You don’t make
the punishment fit the crime; you make
thepunishmentfitthecriminal.”10
TheAsianAmericancommunity,andmanyotherminorities,outragedbythis
verdictralliedtogetherandinspiredtheU.S.JusticeDepartmenttofilechargesin
November1983.AfederalgrandjuryaccusedEbensandNitzof conspiracyand
violatingChin’scivilrights.InJune1984,Nitzwasacquittedof allcharges.Ebens
wasfoundguiltyof violatingChin’scivilrightsandwassentencedto25yearsin
prison.Afterbeingreleasedona$20,000bond,inSeptember1986hisconviction
3
wasoverturnedbyafederalappealscourtonalegaltechnicality.Aftermorepublic
indignation,theJusticeDepartmentorderedaretrialinCincinnati,whereajury
clearedEbensof allchargesinMayof 1987.InJuly1987,followingavictoryin
acivilsuitovertheunlawfuldeathof VincentChin,Ebenswasorderedtopay
$1.5millionaspartof asettlementtotheChinestate.Afterdisposingof hisassets,
Ebensfledthestate,leavingthesettlementunpaid.11
LilyChin,VincentChin’smother,disgustedwithAmerica’slegalsystemleftthe
U.S.inSeptember1987,toliveinherhometowninGuangzhou,China.Priorto
leaving,shesaid,“Whatkindof lawisthis?Whatkindof justice?Thishappened
becausemysonisChinese.If twoChinesekilledawhiteperson,theymustgoto
jail,maybefortheirwholelives...Somethingiswrongwiththiscountry.”12
LEGACY: THE
STORY OF VINCENT CHIN has fueled Asian American civil rights
awareness and activism. While this was not the first time the community had
united – there were earlier pan-Asian political movements in the late 1960’s,
particularlyontheWestCoastandcenteredoncollegecampuses–Chin’sdeath
inspirednationwideinvolvement,stretchingbeyondacademiatoincludepreviously
unengaged community members of all ages and economic backgrounds. As a
resultof thecourtsystem’s“leniency”towardsEbensandNitz,AsianAmerican
leadersacrossthecountrygalvanizedforcesinsupportof LilyChinandinpursuit
of equal rights. These organizations included the American Citizens for Justice
(ACJ),theCommitteeAgainstAnti-AsianViolence(CAAAV),theNationalNetwork
AgainstAnti-AsianViolence,AsianAmericansUnited(AAU),andBreaktheSilence
CoalitionAgainstAnti-AsianViolence.13
InMichiganchangesweretakingeffectasthecommunityralliedforlegalreform.
In1985,theCrimeVictimsRightsActwascreatedtoclarifytheparticipationof felonycrimevictimsinthecriminaljusticeprocess.Newmandatoryminimumlaws
alsoimposedprisontermsforthosefoundguiltyof certaincrimes.Althoughthese
werestepstakentoolateforVincentChin,theyemergedfromhistragicdeathto
givejusticetoothervictimsandhelpedtoshapesubsequenthatecrimelawsuits.14
Over25yearslater,theVincentChincaseremainsanimportantpartof the
civilrightsstruggleinAmericaandcontinuestoinspireanewgenerationof civil
rightsactivists.
4
DISCUSSIoN:
 WhowasVincentChin?
 Who were the men that assaulted and killed Vincent Chin? How did the
economicconditionsof theearly1980saffecttheirperceptionsof him?
 HowdidtheAsianAmericancommunityinitiallyreacttohismurder?What
inspiredtheirresponsetobecomeamovement?
 Describethelegaloutcomesof theVincentChincase.Whatdoesthisshow
abouttheAmericanlegalsystematthetime?
 Doyouagreewiththejudges’rulings?Wouldthesamelegalrulingsbemade
today?
 Doyouthinktheoutcomeof theVincentChincasemighthavebeendifferent
if therehadbeenmoreAsianAmericansrepresentedinthejudicialsystemorin
electedoffice?
 How did Vincent Chin’s murder affect the Asian American civil rights
movement?Howdiditaffectorrelatetothecivilrightsmovementsof otherethnic
groups?
 WhatrelevancedoyouthinkVincentChin’smurderhasforustoday?
 WhathashelpedtoimprovetheAsianAmericancivilrightsmovementand
decreaseracialtensionsinthelastfewdecades?
 WhydosofewAmericansknowaboutVincentChin?Whatdoesthatshow
abouttoday’sculture?
 Howcanawarenessberaisedonthistopic?Howcanweincreasestudentand
communityinvolvementincivicaction?
 Can you describe some outstanding Asian American leaders in your
community?
 Hasthelackof acentralizedcivilrightsmovementandaleadingcivilrights
figureputtheAsianAmericancivilrightsmovementatadisadvantage?
 Can you name individuals of Asian American ancestry and other ethnic
backgroundswho,asvictims,haveraisedtheawarenessof civilrights?Doyousee
anysimilaritiesbetweenVincentChin’smurderandthemurdersof EmmettTill
(1955),SeanBell(2006)orMatthewShepard(1998)?
ACtIVItIES:
 Interview a leader in your local community. Ask the person how he/she
became involved in civil rights and the path he/she took to get there. Did he/
shefacediscriminationanddifficultyasanaspiringAsianAmericanleader?What
eventorideainspiredhim/hertopursueacareerincivilrights?Finally,askyour
communityleaderif he/shehasheardof VincentChin.
 Interview several Asian American family members or friends. Make an
informalpolltoanalyzetheirawarenessof VincentChin.Trytointerviewpeople
of differentagesandcollectasmuchdataaspossible.Doyourresultsmirrorthose
of theresearchersinn“Vincent Who?”?
 Imaginethatyou’rewritingalettertoLilyChin,VincentChin’smother,to
expressyourthoughtsonthetragedy.Whatwouldyousaytoher?
5