Walk into a university seminar or a corporate DEI training session, and you’ll hear the term "BIPOC" or "People of Colour" thrown around like it’s a universal catch-all. It isn’t. For many, the question of whether are Asians people of colour seems like a no-brainer. Of course they are. They aren't white. But if you actually talk to folks in the community—from 3rd generation Japanese Americans in California to recent Hmong arrivals in Minnesota—the answer gets messy. Fast.
The term "People of Colour" (POC) was originally designed as a political umbrella. It was meant to build solidarity among groups that aren't white. It’s a tool for power. But tools don't always fit every hand perfectly.
Honestly, the Asian experience in the West is defined by a bizarre "in-betweenness." You’re often excluded from whiteness but simultaneously held up as a "Model Minority" to shame other marginalized groups. This creates a weird friction. Are you "coloured" enough to claim the struggle? Are you "white adjacent" because of high median household incomes? These aren't just academic debates; they're questions that dictate how funding is allocated, how hate crimes are reported, and how history is taught.
The Political Roots of the POC Label
We need to go back to the 1970s. Before "Asian American" was a thing, people were just "Oriental" or "Asiatic"—labels forced upon them by outsiders. It was the activists like Yuji Ichioka and Emma Gee who coined "Asian American" at UC Berkeley in 1968. They wanted a political identity. They wanted to join the Third World Liberation Front.
When we ask are Asians people of colour, we are really asking about political alignment. In the late 20th century, the term POC emerged to replace "minority," which felt small and diminishing. The idea was simple: if we aren't white, we share a common cause against systemic racism.
But Asia is huge. It’s not a monolith.
You’ve got over 40 countries and thousands of languages. Lumping a billionaire tech executive from Mumbai in with a refugee from Cambodia under the "POC" banner can sometimes obscure more than it reveals. It’s helpful for voting blocs. It’s less helpful for medical research or poverty advocacy where specific ethnic data matters.
The Model Minority Myth as a Wedge
Here is where it gets uncomfortable. White supremacy has a long history of using Asians to prove that "the system works." This is the "Model Minority" myth. It suggests that because some Asian groups have high educational attainment and income levels, racism must not be a barrier.
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This myth is a weapon. It’s used to tell Black and Brown communities, "Look, the Asians did it, why can't you?"
This creates a sense of "Whiteness-adjacency." If you’re successful, are you still a person of colour? Of course, the answer is yes. Wealth doesn't stop a bullet or a slur. Just look at the surge in anti-Asian hate crimes during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the Stop AAPI Hate reporting center, thousands of incidents were reported, ranging from verbal harassment to physical assault. In those moments, the "Model Minority" shield evaporated instantly.
The reality is that Asians are "People of Colour" when it's time to be scapegoated, but often "White-adjacent" when it's time to distribute social services or affirmative action benefits. It's a moving target.
Diverse Realities Within the Umbrella
If we look at the data, the "Asian" category hides massive inequality. It’s the most economically divided racial group in the U.S.
- Income Gaps: According to Pew Research Center, the top 10% of Asian earners make nearly 11 times as much as the bottom 10%.
- Poverty Rates: While some groups like Indians and Filipinos have low poverty rates, others—specifically Hmong, Laotian, and Burmese Americans—experience poverty at rates significantly higher than the national average.
When we use the POC label too broadly, we risk ignoring the people who need the most help. A Hmong farmer in North Carolina has a very different relationship with the state than a South Korean software engineer in Seattle. Both are technically "People of Colour," but their "POC status" doesn't mean they face the same hurdles.
The "Brown" vs. "Yellow" Dynamic
There is also the internal hierarchy of the POC label. South Asians (Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi) often identify strongly as "Brown." East Asians (Chinese, Japanese, Korean) sometimes feel a different type of racialization.
For South Asians, the post-9/11 era fundamentally changed their POC identity. They were targeted by the state, surveilled, and racially profiled in ways that "Yellow" Asians weren't always subjected to. This created a specific "Brown" solidarity that sometimes sits parallel to, rather than inside of, the broader Asian POC identity.
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Then there’s the issue of skin colour itself. Colourism is rampant within Asian communities. Light-skinned East Asians might move through the world with a level of privilege that darker-skinned South Asians or Southeast Asians don't have. Does that make them "less" of a person of colour? Phenotypically, maybe. Politically? No.
Why "BIPOC" Changed the Conversation
Recently, the acronym BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour) has gained traction. The goal was to center the unique experiences of Black and Indigenous people whose history of chattel slavery and genocide in the U.S. is distinct.
Some Asians felt sidelined by this. Others felt it was a necessary correction.
If are Asians people of colour is the question, BIPOC answers it by putting Asians in the "POC" part of the acronym. It acknowledges that while Asians face racism, it is fundamentally different from the anti-Blackness that defines much of American history. It’s about acknowledging a hierarchy of oppression without dismissing the very real discrimination Asians face, like the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 or the Japanese Internment camps of the 1940s.
The Power of the Label
So, why keep the label? Why bother identifying as a Person of Colour?
Because there is power in numbers.
When Asian Americans identify as POC, they join a broader movement for civil rights. It allows for cross-racial coalition building. Think of the 1982 murder of Vincent Chin. Chin, a Chinese American, was beaten to death by two white autoworkers in Detroit who thought he was Japanese and blamed him for the success of the Japanese auto industry.
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That tragedy didn't just galvanize Asians; it brought together Black civil rights leaders and Asian activists. They realized that the logic of the attackers was the same logic used to oppress all non-white people. In that moment, being a Person of Colour wasn't about skin tone—it was about a shared vulnerability to a specific type of violence.
Moving Beyond the Binary
We often try to fit race into a Black/White binary. It doesn't work. Asians are often the "third wheel" in this conversation, which is why the POC label is so contested.
We have to be able to hold two truths at once.
Asians are people of colour who face systemic racism, xenophobia, and the "perpetual foreigner" trope.
Asians also hold varying levels of privilege depending on their ethnicity, class, and skin tone, which can sometimes align them with white institutional interests.
Both are true.
If you're trying to navigate this in your workplace or your personal life, don't look for a simple "yes" or "no." Look for the nuance. Are you using the term POC to build a bridge, or are you using it to erase the specific struggles of your neighbours?
Practical Steps for Navigating Asian POC Identity
- Disaggregate the Data: If you’re in a position of leadership, never look at "Asian" as a single block. Break it down by ethnicity to see who is actually being left behind.
- Acknowledge Anti-Blackness: Being a person of colour doesn't make someone immune to prejudice. Addressing anti-Blackness within Asian communities is a vital step in making the POC label actually mean something.
- Study the History: Look into the Delano Grape Strike, where Filipino and Mexican farmworkers joined forces. That is the "People of Colour" label in action. It’s not a lifestyle brand; it’s a labor strategy.
- Listen to Southeast Asian and Pacific Islander Voices: These groups are often the most marginalized within the Asian umbrella. Their experiences with the criminal justice system and poverty are frequently erased by the "Model Minority" narrative.
- Use Specificity Whenever Possible: If you are talking about a problem facing Indian Americans, say "Indian Americans." Only use "People of Colour" when you are genuinely talking about an issue that affects the collective group.
The label is a tool. It's only as good as the work you do with it. Using it to hide the complexity of the Asian experience does a disservice to everyone involved. But using it to find common ground in a world that often wants to keep us divided? That’s where the real value lies.