Racist Anti-Tech Hollywood: From Dr. Fu Manchu to AI

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This one is an interesting look at how being Asian American interacts with neurodivergence:

 

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The sexualized nature of Asian hate in Hollywood (women as sex objects, and men either being evil or a buffoon):

Let's End the 'Undesirable Asian Male' Stereotype

Although the current trend fares better than my childhood, it doesn’t mean stereotypes don’t exist.

www.verywellmind.com

At this point, the "rapist" charges about people in AI needs to be seen as the parallel to what people on the right do with immigrants as well.

 

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This article from today even shows that Asians in generall are feeling the hate. I know its not just me from talking to my friends. But this shows it's a force waiting to bubble up.

Losers Redefine Nerds and Geeks<br/><small class="text-muted italic">By wchung | 21 Dec, 2025</small> | GOLDSEA | Asian American Daily

goldsea.com

She may be taking a harsher stance on all this than me. But I take it as evidence, that something is about to come up.

 

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The last time when racial stereotypes and science/technology overlapped, and dominant images that fed into things:

Internalization of the model minority myth and sociodemographic factors shaping Asians/Asian Americans' experiences of discrimination during COVID‐19 - PMC

Despite appearing positive, the model minority myth (MMM), or the perception that Asian Americans are “problem‐free” minorities, maintains unfair racial hierarchies and discredits the pervasiveness of systemic racism faced by Asian Americans and ...

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

 

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https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10481885.2023.2160171

In particular, I examine how the illusion of inclusion has obscured recognition of an Asian fetish, the sexualized objectification of Asian women and feminization of Asian men. Clinical examples illustrate the workings of racialized stereotypes and mutual dissociation of racial traumas in Asian therapist and Asian patient dyads.

 

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https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/AE7450C6C8224E913457A96B7818E821/S2049847024000657a.pdf/div-class-title-yellow-peril-or-model-minority-measuring-janus-faced-prejudice-toward-asians-in-the-united-states-div.pdf

Abstract
There are two prominent but seemingly contradictory symbols of how Asians are racialized domestically within the United States: “yellow peril” and “model minority.” How do these two racial tropes relate to each other? What effects do they have on the formation of support for race-targeted public policy? In this paper, we propose and empirically test that racialized resentment toward Asian Americans and the congratulatory framing of them as a model minority are both salient in the minds of the American public, reflecting the complexity of prejudices toward Asians in American society. Utilizing two original surveybased measures of anti-Asian resentment and the model minority stereotype, we empirically demonstrate the interconnection between the two racial tropes and highlight the key demographic and dispositional correlates of these multi-faceted contemporary racial attitudes toward Asian Americans. We then show that the two racial tropes, both independently and by interacting with each other, significantly shape racial public policy preferences in the United States.

 

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Techno-Orientalism: Contrarian stereotypes and the ‘Japan Panic’

‘Today, 40 years after the end of World War II, the Japanese are on the move again in one of history’s most brilliant commercial offensives, as they go about dismantling American industry. Whether …

transnationalhistory.net

An interesting interplay of Japanese taking the American stereotypes of them and turning it into something.

Although it is not possible to say with certainty that Cyberpunk was a direct reaction to the 1980s economic growth of Japan, the Techno-Orientalism of the west was certainly reflected in the cyberpunk genre amongst others[6]. Blade Runner was arguably the forerunner in this endeavour, with its influential image of dystopian Los Angeles resembling Tokyo[7]. The 1982 film arguably marked the first of a number of ‘Japonised’ novels and films, including William Gibson’s Neuromancer (1984). The work begins in the outskirts of Tokyo, and although the novel swiftly leaves Japanese technology and iconography predominates[8]. To Morley and Robins this was a reflection of the fears of Japanese dominance amongst the west in the 1980s[9]. Although, critique of Gibson has somewhat mellowed over time, his work still reflects the ideas of ‘Techno-Orientalism’ despite the author’s professed ‘Japanophilia’[10].

Interestingly, these ideas and the genre of Cyberpunk has been somewhat appropriated by the Japanese. Cyberpunk’s ‘cartoonish’ nature appealed to the Japanese Science fiction manga and anime genres[11]. Furthermore, the Japanese have expanded and arguably adapted many aspects of cyberpunk to suit their own narratives. This can clearly be seen in Shirow Masamune’s Ghost in the Shell (1991), in which the strong Japanese cyber-heroine is supported by a cast of weaker male figures[12]. The substitution of the traditional Male hero of American Cyberpunk with a Japanese Herione arguably reflects Japanese adaptation of the Cyberpunk genre for its own messages such as the ‘subjectivity of Japaneseness’[13]. As such, although Techno-Orientalist Western works may have been influenced by Xenophobic ideas of the West, as a genre cyber-punk was both assimilated and adapted by the Japanese. As previously mentioned similar trends have also been seen in Utopian Works. Although Western models were originally imported to Japan during the Meiji period and Japanese Utopian literature was moulded on these Western models, Japanese writers were profoundly affected by their own social situations, as demonstrated by Akutagawa’s Kappa, a utopian vision and social critique of Japan that reflects the insecurities felt as a result of the decline of Taisho democracy and rise of Japanese imperialism[14].

 

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A Clear and Present Danger: The Chinese Exclusion Act

The San Francisco Building Trades Council (BTC), organized in 1898, actively participated in the anti-Asian agitation that characterized California politics, particularly labor politics, in the late-19th century. The BTC, like the national American Federation of Labor (AFL), argued that the very presence of Chinese (and, after 1900, Japanese and Korean immigrants as well) dragged down the living standards of white workers. The following excerpt is from a 1902 AFL pamphlet entitled Some Reasons for Chinese Exclusion: Meat vs. Rice, which called for a second extension of the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act. Despite the pamphlet’s disclaimer that it was not prejudiced, arguments were riddled with racist statements about the employment history and “Social Habits” of “John Chinaman.” The selections from the pamphlet reprinted here reflected the abiding beliefs of many white workers, especially skilled workers who belonged to the San Francisco BTC.

 

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In this time frame, although it's broadly pointed to BRICS nations, in the US, hate against Indians have been making headlines:

‘Go Back to Your Country’: The Surge of Anti-Indian Sentiment on American Social Media – AAPI Equity Alliance Website

A troubling wave of xenophobic rhetoric targets South Asian communities across digital platforms.

aapiequityalliance.org

How South Asians became targets of racist hate on Elon Musk’s X | Explained

As digital rights advocates track rising levels of antisemitism, Islamophobia, racism, and transphobia on X after Elon Musk’s 2022 takeover of Twitter, many have noted a distinct spike in hateful rhetoric aimed at South Asians

www.thehindu.com

https://www.financialexpress.com/trending/h-1b-hate-nearly-50-indian-techies-face-racial-discrimination-in-us-survey/4063962/

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www.cnn.com

2025: The year America normalised anti-India hate | World News - The Times of India

US News: In 2025, the rise of anti-India sentiment revealed deep-seated beliefs about identity, belonging, and acceptance for Indian-Americans, documented through significant cultural and social events. The backlash against a Hanuman statue symbolizes a critical moment in America's history as...

timesofindia.indiatimes.com

There's a significant amount of self-hatred as well here.

The hate is not isolated to the right either. Don't make that attribution error to the comments that spark the headlines. That xenophobia is just as strong on the left, especially as it pertains to TESCREAL and AI. They use the same talking points as Steve Bannon and the Alt-Right.

 

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Anti-Indian Racism on X (July–September 2025)

This report examines anti-Indian racism on X between July and September 2025, mapping causes, trends, and narratives, and offering recommendations for X and other platforms to mitigate such hate.

www.csohate.org

Key Findings
680 high engagement anti-Indian racist posts on X garnered 281.2M views between July 1 and September 7, 2025.
Narratives framing Indians as “invaders” and “job thieves,” alongside calls to deport Indians, accounted for 474 posts (69.7%) and 111.8M views, making immigration and expulsion themed rhetoric the primary driver of engagement.
H-1B resentment and job theft frames were prominent within the leading cluster, blending xenophobia with economic insecurity and amplifying calls for visa bans, denials, deportation and denaturalization of Indians.
121 posts (17.8%) used anti-Indian slurs and drew 74.3M views.
74 posts (10.9%) tied to the August 12 Florida truck crash involving a Sikh driver amassed 94.9M views, illustrating how single events are weaponized to stigmatize entire communities through occupational scapegoating.
Activity peaked in August 2025 with 381 posts and 189.9M views. The US-India tariff dispute and incident-based outrage coincided with narrative spikes, indicating that policy tensions and breaking news act as predictable accelerants of racist content.
Around 65% of posts were US-centered, confirming the US as the epicenter of anti-Indian digital racism during the study period.

 

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I've posted about Hollywood's role in Asian racism throughout, but since the past year has focused hard on increasing the hatred of Indian tech workers in particular, I think it's good to remind people of this (as well as the "colorism" that happens in representation as well).

South Asian Actors Are Fighting Hollywood's Racism

Those who used to be the underdogs, the sidekicks, and the stereotyped are speaking out and America is listening.

www.vice.com

Study: 1 in 2 Indian Americans faced discrimination in past year – The Yappie

The majority of perpetrators were non-Indian Americans, but divisions set by caste, religion, and colorism also fueled discrimination within the community.

theyappie.com

A more subtle point is that just like how many people conflate Islam with Islamism on the right, people conflate Hinduism with Hindutva on the left. It's similar to conflating Christianity and Christian Nationalism, and suggesting that being Jewish means you support the actions of Israel in Palestine.

"Hindu Americans: Collateral in U.S. Politics"

"Hindu Americans face alienation as left critiques religion & right targets immigration—caught in a polarized U.S., where do they stand?"

stophindudvesha.org

People denying that left wing hate exists are living with their heads in the ground.

It's like they took the absolute unhinged actions of the right to amp up their own xenophobia, because "what, you think the other side is better?"

 

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By Ignoring the Mistreatment of Deportees, India Is Undermining Its Own Dignity - The Wire

The rabid public discourse of the last 15 years has left us unable to value our own dignity or even recognise when it is taken away from us.

m.thewire.in

Again, about dignity: It's long been established that the denial of humanity of technical workers is a major theme in media. It's hard not to see a direct line from wanting to deny the humanity of immigrants, but wanting to dress it up intellectually.

 

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Food for thought regarding the scapegoating nature of H1B, Indian immigrants, and tech workers:

 

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The timing of this really points to "AI" hate (which is egged on unrelentingly by Hollywood and both old and new media).

"AI" was mentioned just yesterday, by the once venerable NPR, taking the form of automated ordering kiosks. Nobody who ever worked on AI would ever consider what's essentially a website/app displayed on a kiosk as "AI." If you ever ordered anything through a website, you'd realize this far from being anything cutting edge or recent.

 

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Practically everyone Indian I know has faced a situation similar to this:

The rate of events like this happening have just gotten a lot worse, a lot quicker.

If a xenophobic racist randomly kills an Indian walking down street in cold-blood for just looking like a tech worker(it could happen at any moment), Hollywood and media needs shoulder at least 60% of the blame for spreading disinformation about technology and AI.

 

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These need to be watched together:

I had known of the "Model Minority" myth for quite some time. Apparently, regarding the self-hate, people are comparing it to the "pick-me" phenomenon from "pick-me girls."

But even some of the criticism could be interpreted as the lefts version of "pick-me" behavior. That is the core error. Believing that the democrats or leftists are actually also going to give you a place. That is the core thing being missed. Growing up, I know full well, that the "tolerance" on the left is also incredibly tenuous.

Practically all comedy depictions in Hollywood is "pick-me" behavior; it comes from the left (as Hollywood likes to style themselves).