The Truth Behind "Oriental"

Oriental. Merriam Webster defines oriental as follows: of, from, or characteristic of East Asia. So why has this term become extremely derogatory and offensive?

Orientalism was coined as the East conquered the West, through their “Manifest Destiny.” Edward Said said orientalism is the ideological mechanism by which the West (Occident) has naturalized and justified the domination of the East (Orient). So what is oriental? Oriental has political and historical connotations. Oriental reinforces negative stereotypes to the people of Asia. By saying someone is oriental you are effeminizing them. Oriental has a very gender associated meaning, calling someone or a group of people feminine. You are saying they are naturally easy and ready to be dominated, and in other words, enslaved. Orientalism was the discourse that causes the hegemony of the East having power over the West. The system between the Asian’s and the Americans was definitely that of unequal power, and the Asian’s consented to it.

So why is this bad? The East was only fulfilling their god given title of expansion. Well, orientalism was used to describe the peoples of the West as easily conquerable. It then became known to mean exotic. Different. Sexual. Outside the norm. Unusual. All these meanings are demeaning toward the Asian’s immigrating to the United States. The United States brought the Asians to the U.S. not for the fortune of a better life, but to be their slaves. To be separated from their families. To work tirelessly on the railroads. The United States was imperialistic. They just wanted to spread the mother country, impose their practices on new territories, and create dominance while spreading power. They set up economic systems that served the powerful mother country, while exploring land and natural resources.

In summary, when you call someone oriental, it is highly offensive. You are telling them they are a weak female, who is easily dominated. You are sexualizing them when you call the oriental, because it has the connotation of exotic. They are just as American as you or I, and yet you are telling them they are outside the norm and different.

Why is this important? Many people are uneducated about other cultures and do not realize what could be offensive to them. As Americans, it is hard to know what is offensive to other people. In schools we are taught primarily about black and white supremacy, however they leave out what happened to the people of the Asia. Many Americans don’t know that the United States brought Chinese into America for cheap labor. Many Americans do not realize when calling someone of an Asian race, that it is highly offensive and derogatory. It is important to know, so that the word will become extinct and the few instances of unknown racism will be extinct.