Grade: 8-12Subject: English Language Arts, U.S. History
Number of Activities: 2
This lesson will explore how the 1982 murder of Vincent Chin galvanized the Asian American community, resulting in increased visibility for Asian Americans, an organized response to racism and xenophobia, and the birth of a new generation of activists. In addition, the lesson will explore the legal impact of Vincent Chin’s murder and how it has shaped how we view and define hate crimes today.
Students will:
- Learn how xenophobia created by fear, anxiety, and discrimination has resulted in a history of anti-Asian sentiment including, but not limited to, Vincent Chin’s murder and how to apply these concepts to contemporary examples.
- Learn how Vincent Chin’s case was instrumental in further defining what a hate crime is and who could be considered victims of a hate crime.
- Learn how Vincent Chin’s murder led to the creation of a pan-ethnic, multi-generational activist movement motivated to end the pervasive racism experienced by Asian Americans across the country.
The 1982 murder of Vincent Chin represents a pivotal moment in
civil rights history. It is the first time that federal
hate crime laws are used in a case involving an Asian American victim. The legacy of his death continues to reverberate today, and remains a call to those seeking justice for hate crimes.
During the 1980s, the U.S. economy was in decline due to the 1970s international oil crisis and hit the American auto industry hard. Due to increased gas prices, American consumers began gravitating towards more fuel-efficient Japanese cars. This economic downturn of the U.S. auto industry and the trade war between Japan and the United States caused an increase in anti-Asian sentiment.
Within this backdrop, two White auto workers, Ronald Ebens and Michael Nitz, assumed Vincent was of Japanese descent and hurled racial insults at a bar, saying, “It’s because of you [profanity] that we are out of work!” A fight began but was quickly broken up. After both parties left, Ebens and Nitz searched for Vincent and beat him with a baseball bat. Vincent’s final words were “It isn’t fair.” He died four days later while in a coma.
In the murder trial, Ebens and Nitz pled guilty to manslaughter. Judge Kaufman sentenced them to three years’ probation and a $3,000 fine because it was deemed as nothing more than a simple barroom brawl. Given the severity of the crime, the light sentence galvanized the Asian American community across the country to fight against this injustice. Activists pushed for federal hate crime laws to apply to the case. These laws were first enacted as a statute within the Civil Rights Act of 1968, a landmark law signed by President Lyndon Johnson in the aftermath of Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination and as an extension of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This made it a crime to use or threaten to use force against an individual on the basis of race, religion, or natural origin. Although constitutional legal scholars said that this was meant to protect African Americans, protests convinced the Justice Department otherwise.
In 1984, a federal civil rights case found Ebens guilty, but was later overturned in a 1986 appeal. Nitz was acquitted in both trials. They never served a day in jail for Chin’s murder. However, the case was a seminal one as it served to further define what constitutes a hate crime, which is now determined by who the victim is as well as who the perpetrator believes one to be.
The legacy of the Vincent Chin case has inspired generations of Asian Americans to stand up against anti-Asian racism, bringing them together in solidarity within the community and across racial lines.
- Civil Rights: A set of fundamental rights for everyone, including equal treatment under the law, regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, gender, or other personal characteristics
- Hate Crime: when a crime is committed or conspired to be committed on the basis of a person’s specific characteristics. In most states, characteristics include race, color, religion, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or disability. At the federal level all these characteristics are included as well as national origin
- Xenophobia: fear and/or hatred of anything foreign, including people
- How did the socioeconomic conditions of the United States in 1982 create an environment for anti-Asian violence?
- When Ronald Ebens said “It’s because of you [profanity] that we are out of work” how was he stereotyping Asian Americans such as Vincent Chin? What are the effects and consequences on Asian Americans when they are seen in this way? How might this kind of stereotyping impact other communities?
- In the words of Vincent Chin, what was “not fair”?
- Ebens and Nitz were sentenced to three years’ probation and a $3,000 fine for the murder of Vincent Chin. Do you think this is fair? Why or why not?
- How did Vincent Chin’s murder and the movement to seek justice for him impact many Asian Americans?
- What parallels are there between Chin’s murder and how Asian Americans have been perceived and treated in other parts of history? What parallels are there to today?
Activity 1:
Understanding Hate Crimes
Tell students to work in pairs to write their own definition of the term ‘hate crime’. Give each pair the opportunity to share their definition with the class.
Have students familiarize themselves with the federal definition of a hate crime. The primary federal hate crimes statute was enacted in the Civil Rights Act of 1968 and still stands today. It defines a hate crime as occurring when someone “by force or threat of force willfully injures, intimidates or interferes with, or attempts to injure, intimidate or interfere with . . . any person because of his race, color, religion, familial status, disability, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, or national origin” (18 U.S. Code Section 245)
In order to understand the importance of having a hate crime law, students will investigate what made the Vincent Chin case a hate crime by answering the following question as a written response:
- Think about all the details of the murder of Vincent Chin. According to the federal definition of a hate crime, what about this incident made it a hate crime? Why do you think it’s more beneficial for those seeking justice for Chin to label it as a hate crime?
Pair students up and have them share their responses.
Activity 2: Fighting Discrimination, Past & Present
Read Viet Thanh Nguyen’s statement from the clip with students:
“I think the Vincent Chin murder was shocking to a lot of Asian Americans. Not because it represented something new, but that it actually represented something old. It reminded Asian Americans that progress hadn't really been made.”
Tell students to create a T-chart on a sheet of paper and label one side of the chart, “Asian American History;” this will represent the “old” things that Viet Nguyen referred to in the quote.
Label the other side of the chart, “Vincent Chin Murder;” this will represent the “new” things that Nguyen referred to in the quote.
Instruct students to consider why Ronald Ebens and Michael Nitz attacked Vincent Chin and what their racial bias was against people of Asian descent. Then have students write down their responses in the “Vincent Chin Murder” column.
Instruct students to consider the history of anti-Asian racism that Nguyen referred to from the clip. Write down the images and incidents that happened to Asian Americans in the past in the “Asian American History” column.
California Common Core Standards Addressed
National Standards for History:
U.S. History Grades 5-12 9.4A.6
Evaluate the agendas, strategies, and effectiveness of various African Americans, Asian Americans, Latino Americans, and Native Americans, as well as the disabled, in the quest for civil rights and equal opportunities.
U.S. History Grades 5-12 10.2A
The student understands economic patterns since 1968.
U.S. History Grades 5-12 10.2A.4
Examine the consequences of the shift of the labor force from manufacturing to service industries.
U.S. History Grades 5-12 10.2A.6
Assess the effects of international trade, transnational business organization, and overseas competition on the economy.
College- and Career-Readiness Anchor Standards:
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.2
Determine central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.4
Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including determining technical, connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze how specific word choices shape meaning or tone.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.7
Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse media and formats, including visually and quantitatively, as well as in words.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.10
Determine central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.9
Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.SL.1
Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.SL.2
Integrate and evaluate information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.L.6
Acquire and use accurately a range of general academic and domain-specific words and phrases sufficient for reading, writing, speaking, and listening at the college and career readiness level; demonstrate independence in gathering vocabulary knowledge when encountering an unknown term important to comprehension or expression.
Grade 8:
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.8.1
Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.8.4
Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone, including analogies or allusions to other texts.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.8.6
Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how the author acknowledges and responds to conflicting evidence or viewpoints.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.8.3.d
Use precise words and phrases, relevant descriptive details, and sensory language to capture the action and convey experiences and events.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.8.9
Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.8.1
Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 8 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.8.1.d
Acknowledge new information expressed by others, and, when warranted, qualify or justify their own views in light of the evidence presented.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.8.6
Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate general academic and domain-specific words and phrases; gather vocabulary knowledge when considering a word or phrase important to comprehension or expression.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.1
Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.2
Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of the source distinct from prior knowledge or opinions.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.9
Analyze the relationship between a primary and secondary source on the same topic.
Grades 9-10:
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.9-10.4
Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language evokes a sense of time and place; how it sets a formal or informal tone).
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.9-10.1
Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.9-10.4
Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language of a court opinion differs from that of a newspaper).
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.9-10.5
Analyze in detail how an author’s ideas or claims are developed and refined by particular sentences, paragraphs, or larger portions of a text (e.g., a section or chapter).
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.9-10.6
Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how an author uses rhetoric to advance that point of view or purpose.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.3.d
Use precise words and phrases, telling details, and sensory language to convey a vivid picture of the experiences, events, setting, and/or characters.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.9
Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.9
Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.9-10.1.c
Propel conversations by posing and responding to questions that relate the current discussion to broader themes or larger ideas; actively incorporate others into the discussion; and clarify, verify, or challenge ideas and conclusions.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.9-10.1.d
Respond thoughtfully to diverse perspectives, summarize points of agreement and disagreement, and, when warranted, qualify or justify their own views and understanding and make new connections in light of the evidence and reasoning presented.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.9-10.6
Acquire and use accurately general academic and domain-specific words and phrases, sufficient for reading, writing, speaking, and listening at the college and career readiness level; demonstrate independence in gathering vocabulary knowledge when considering a word or phrase important to comprehension or expression.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.1
Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources, attending to such features as the date and origin of the information.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.2
Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of how key events or ideas develop over the course of the text.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.9
Compare and contrast treatments of the same topic in several primary and secondary sources.
Grades 11-12:
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.11-12.4
Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone, including words with multiple meanings or language that is particularly fresh, engaging, or beautiful.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.11-12.1
Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text, including determining where the text leaves matters uncertain.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.11-12.5
Analyze and evaluate the effectiveness of the structure an author uses in his or her exposition or argument, including whether the structure makes points clear, convincing, and engaging.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.11-12.6
Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text in which the rhetoric is particularly effective, analyzing how style and content contribute to the power, persuasiveness, or beauty of the text.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.11-12.3.d
Use precise words and phrases, telling details, and sensory language to convey a vivid picture of the experiences, events, setting, and/or characters.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.11-12.9
Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.1.c
Propel conversations by posing and responding to questions that probe reasoning and evidence; ensure a hearing for a full range of positions on a topic or issue; clarify, verify, or challenge ideas and conclusions; and promote divergent and creative perspectives.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.1.d
Respond thoughtfully to diverse perspectives; synthesize comments, claims, and evidence made on all sides of an issue; resolve contradictions when possible; and determine what additional information or research is required to deepen the investigation or complete the task.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.11-12.6
Acquire and use accurately general academic and domain-specific words and phrases, sufficient for reading, writing, speaking, and listening at the college and career readiness level; demonstrate independence in gathering vocabulary knowledge when considering a word or phrase important to comprehension or expression.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.11-12.1
Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources, connecting insights gained from specific details to an understanding of the text as a whole.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.11-12.2
Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary that makes clear the relationships among the key details and ideas.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.11-12.9
Integrate information from diverse sources, both primary and secondary, into a coherent understanding of an idea or event, noting discrepancies among sources.