Although the model minority myth may seem like a positive representation of the Asian community, it fails to acknowledge the darker side of constant perfection
The model minority myth paints Asians as highly successful individuals due to their innate intellect. However, is their intelligence truly innate or does the pressure of conformity cause the Asian community to succeed in this standard? Society tends to view this community as perfect individuals that all racialized people should aspire to be.
However, is their intelligence truly innate, or does the pressure of conformity cause the Asian community to succeed in this standard?
However, the conceptualization of the Asian community as a "superior" minority group also isolates them from the broader racialized population.
This narrative has also been perpetuated in television as it reflects how society views Asians compared to other racialized individuals. For example, The Proud Family episode titled "Teacher's Pet" explicitly perpetuates this narrative that all Asians are high achievers with innate intelligence.
The model minority construct places the Asian community within a confined box where there is immense pressure to achieve success. Then to ensure success, Asian cultures tends to prioritize nurturing their child's intelligence, though sometimes to the detriment of other aspects of their lives, including their mental health.
Just as in any other community, there are those within the Asian community who may struggle in STEM-related subjects, while others may have challenges with the arts. However, for this community in particular, failure to live up to this myth can cause a disconnect between an individual's actual self, and ideal self, in turn further degrading their mental health as they may feel like they are not living up to their potential. Furthermore, to achieve this standard set forth by the model minority myth, people hide the areas they struggle in which leads to neglected mental health.
The model minority construct enacts harsher consequences on outliers, inducing stigma around mental health that prevents the Asian community from accessing the support they need. Additionally, this construct limits appropriate support for Asians as society sees their success and not their struggles. Why would an intelligent and successful population require support?
We also tend to overlook the socioeconomic barriers Asians face, hindering their ability to achieve the model minority construct.
The model minority construct especially can impact Asian individuals who experience adverse circumstances beyond their control; they are still expected to perform as well as their peers, or better, as the pressure to achieve perfection remains constant, even at the cost of their mental health. Success is the only option, leading their needs to be overlooked as society fails to see beyond the model minority myth.
However, by acknowledging that this myth often does more harm than good, we can work towards rewriting the dominant narrative and creating a safe space for people to relieve the pressures of perfection.
The Proud Family reboot, The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder, aired "Curved," an episode paralleling "Teacher's Pet." During the lunchroom scene, Penny frantically asks the Chang Triplets to join the debate club, thereby perpetuating the dominant narrative. As Penny is desperate to win the debate competition, it is implied that Asian individuals will give her the best chance of succeeding due to their intellectual superiority.
However, as we grow more aware of the dominant narrative, we learn to resist it. "Curved" demonstrates this as the Triplets confront Penny about perpetuating the model minority construct. Rejecting Penny's requests demonstrates that each triplet holds interests beyond stereotypically academic activities associated with the model minority ideals, reinforcing that society should recognize individuality rather than the stereotype.
Similarly, we can resist the dominant narrative by confronting and educating those perpetuating it. Creating alternative narratives that showcase contrast to the dominant narrative creates opportunities for society to change its perception of Western constructs.
By acknowledging that this myth often does more harm than good, we are working towards rewriting the dominant narrative and creating a safe space for people to relieve the pressures of perfection. By allowing the Asian community to explore their interests and be who they truly are as opposed to what society expects them to be, it also opens the conversation on mental health and accessing support.
In Nov. 2013, McMaster’s Fine Arts program received a $3 million donation—the largest donation ever made to the program—from McMaster alumnus Robert Fitzhenry to build a new addition to the studio space in Togo Salmon Hall. The space, which has not been updated since the 1960s, will be available for student use in Sept. of 2015. Named the Dr. Robert and Andrée Rhéaume Fitzhenry Studies and Atrium, the new addition will add 1,700 square feet to the studio space. The space is specially designed to let in plenty of natural light, and the atrium portion of the building will cover a courtyard workspace that will function as a reception area for students creating art. Fitzhenry graduated from McMaster with a BA in political economy in 1954. He dedicated the studio and atrium to his late wife, Andrée.
The brand new downtown health campus will be opened in spring of 2015. The building is 195,000 square feet, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certified, and will provide space for 4,000 students and 450 McMaster employees. The building will see 54,000 patients per year and provide physicians to over 15,000 Hamilton residents who do not have a family doctor. This care will be provided at the Family Health Centre located on the third floor of the building, which will be a space where students can work alongside health care providers to treat patients. The campus will be located at the corner of Main and Bay Streets, beside the MacNab Transit Terminal, an easily accessible area.
The campus will also contain the Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine’s Department of Family Medicine, the School of Nursing’s nurse practitioner program, McMaster’s continuing health sciences education program, the Maternity Centre of Hamilton, Shelter Health Network, and the City of Hamilton’s Public Health Department.
The new L. R. Wilson Hall will reach substantial completion in Dec. 2015, meaning that parts of the building will be open to the public, although there will still be uncompleted areas. The building will serve as a home for liberal arts students and faculty, including the Faculties of Humanities and Social Sciences. The building will have five floors and will be 62,000 square feet in size. It will contain one large 400-seat classroom, two 100-seat rooms, and a number of smaller classrooms as well as research spaces and laboratories. In addition, the building will have a joint Social Sciences-Humanities student lounge, gardens, a cafe, a 350-seat concert hall, and a theatre space. The theatre features a unique “black box” design that can be adapted for difference performance needs. Along with student areas, the building will host the Wilson Institute for Canadian History and the Gilbrea Centre for Health and Aging, as well as McMaster’s Indigenous Studies program offices.
Wilson Hall is also LEED certified building made possible by a $45.5 million investment from the Ontario government, a $10 million donation from Chancellor Lynton (Red) Wilson, and a $1 million gift from the McMaster Association of Part-Time Students. In June 2013, construction began on the $65 million project, which will provide much needed space to liberal arts students at McMaster.
McMaster University and the McMaster Students Union have partnered to create a mental health plan that will be released on Feb. 25, 2015. The plan was first conceived at a student-led forum on mental health in April 2013 where recommendations were made to the university. Over 150 meetings held with students, staff, faculty, and groups were held to determine student needs, and five key priorities were developed.
First, the plan looks to increase the services at the Student Wellness Centre by adding one mental health support person immediately, and a second in the future depending on the budget at that time. It also hopes to focus more on students experiencing trauma, including childhood or gender-based trauma. Next, the plan will re-evaluate the policies for Student Accessibility Services, as they are over a decade old and do not properly take into account students with mental health disabilities. Third, the plan will train 100 front-line staff, including librarians, financial aid, or other staff that interact with students, in how to identify signs of mental health issues.
Internally, the university will increase coordination among services to better understand complex student cases. This will help student cases involving mental health to be better understood by the university so that students can receive the support they need. Lastly, Dr. Catharine Munn, McMaster psychiatrist and professor in the health sciences department, will be conducting research on child and young adult mental health, an area that does not have a lot of existing research. This research will be applied to the plan once completed to better understand how to serve students regarding mental health.
SOLAR and Mugsi will be replaced by a new system called Mosaic that will improve on the course selection and student account management tools. Mosaic aims to provide a platform that will serve students’ needs in one place. This includes admission status, student fees, scholarships and awards, registration, schedules, degree audits, and transcripts.
The new course selection system will assign students designated times to log on and register, without the notification that the system is full. Timetables will also be available immediately for students on the new system.
