他們離開中國追逐美國夢，如今為何反對教育平權

IRVINE, Calif. — George Li grew up in a Chinese society that he felt did not offer a fair shake. The government of Mao Zedong deemed his family capitalists and imprisoned his father.

加州歐文——喬治·李在中國社會長大，他覺得那里沒有給人公平的對待。毛澤東政府認為他的家庭是走資派，監(jiān)禁了他的父親。

So when Mr. Li moved to California in 1999, he felt he had found his American dream. He worked hard and earned his rewards: a master’s degree, then a job that allowed him to live comfortably with his wife and two children.

因此，當喬治·李1999年搬到加州時，他覺得他已經(jīng)找到了他的美國夢。他努力工作并獲得了回報：一個碩士學位，然后一份讓他與妻子及兩個孩子能過上舒適生活的工作。

But four years ago, he became alarmed when a co-worker told him about a state measure that would allow California’s public universities to use affirmative action in their admissions. Fearing that this would hurt his children’s educational chances, Mr. Li for the first time in his life became politically active.

但在四年前，當一名同事告訴他，一項州措施將允許加州公立大學在招生中采用平權政策時，他開始警覺。由于擔心這會損害他的孩子受教育的機會，喬治·李平生第一次在政治上變得活躍了起來。

He signed a petition and donated money to a campaign to stop the affirmative action measure. He sped up his timeline to become a citizen so that he could vote. He campaigned for Republican candidates for the State Legislature. More recently, he took the lead of a local Chinese-American political action committee, called The Orange Club, which is now focused on supporting California Republican candidates in the midterms.

他簽署了一份請愿書，并向一項旨在停止平權行動措施的運動捐款。他加緊辦理入籍事宜，以便能夠投票。他參與了支持州議會選舉共和黨候選人的競選活動。最近，他領導了一個名為金橙俱樂部(Orange Club)的當?shù)孛兰A人政治行動委員會，該俱樂部現(xiàn)在致力于在中期選舉中支持加州的共和黨候選人。

“We just realized if we’re not involved in this process, the political process in America, we would be forgotten,” Mr. Li said.

“我們剛剛意識到，如果我們不參與這個進程，美國的政治進程，我們就會被遺忘，”喬治·李說。

Mr. Li, 49, is among an increasingly vocal group of Chinese-Americans who were once politically dormant but have been galvanized by the fight over race-based school admissions.

49歲的喬治·李是越來越多曾對政治無動于衷，但卻因基于種族的學校招生問題引發(fā)的斗爭而受到激發(fā)的華裔美國人之一。

From Irvine to Houston to the Washington suburbs, Chinese activist groups like The Orange Club are beginning to capture the attention of lawmakers and influence policy debates. Much of their political activity can be found on the Chinese social media website WeChat, where the activists share articles and spread their message. And they have a clear litmus test for any politician seeking their support: opposition to affirmative action.

從歐文、休斯頓到華盛頓郊區(qū)，像金橙俱樂部這樣的華人活動團體開始吸引立法者的注意并影響政策辯論。它們的大部分政治活動可以在中國社交媒體平臺微信上找到，活動人士在微信上分享文章并傳播信息。對于任何尋求支持的政界人士來說，它們都有一個明確的試金石：反對平權行動。

Their numbers are small compared with the overall population of China-born immigrants, which has exploded over recent decades, from about 472,000 in 1980 to more than 2.8 million in 2016, according to Andrew Beveridge, a professor at Queens College, based on census data.

皇后學院(Queens College)教授安德魯·貝弗里奇(Andrew Beveridge)表示，根據(jù)人口普查數(shù)據(jù)，與在中國出生的移民總?cè)藬?shù)相比，他們的人數(shù)很少。近幾十年來，中國出生的移民人數(shù)激增，從1980年的47.2萬人增加到了2016年的280多萬人。

But a number of recent fights over education have highlighted their growing political clout. Dozens of Chinese-American groups helped draft a complaint filed with the Justice Department in 2015 that accuses Harvard of discriminating against Asian-Americans in admissions. They were on the front lines of protests several weeks ago when Mayor Bill de Blasio of New York proposed changing the admissions criteria for his city’s specialized high schools, where Asian-Americans account for more than half the population.

但是最近一些關于教育的斗爭凸顯了他們?nèi)找嬖鲩L的政治影響力。幾十個美籍華人組織在2015年幫助起草了一份提交司法部的申訴，指控哈佛大學在招生中歧視亞裔美國人。幾周前，當紐約市長白思豪(Bill de Blasio)提議改變該市特殊高中的招生標準時，他們站在了抗議的前線，在那些學校的學生中，亞裔美國人占一半以上。

The activists have yielded victories. In California, they helped defeat the affirmative action measure, known as S.C.A. 5. And in New York, the Brooklyn borough president, Eric Adams, initially supported Mr. de Blasio’s plan, only to backtrack after the uproar led by Chinese-Americans.

這些活動人士已經(jīng)取得了勝利。在加州，他們幫助擊敗了平權行動措施，即《第五號加州憲法修正案》(S.C.A. 5.)。在紐約，布魯克林區(qū)行政長官埃里克·亞當斯(Eric Adams)最初支持白思豪的計劃，但在遭到華裔大舉抗議之后，他放棄了。

The debate over race in education centers on how much schools should try to control their racial makeup. At many elite universities and specialized high schools, black and Hispanic students are underrepresented, while Asian and white students are overrepresented relative to their overall population.

關于教育中種族問題的爭論集中在學校應該在多大程度上努力控制它們學生的種族構(gòu)成。在許多精英大學和特殊高中，黑人和西語裔學生的比例偏低，而亞裔和白人學生的比例相對于他們的總?cè)丝趤碚f偏高。

Activists like Mr. Li worry that if schools calibrate their student ratios around race, Asian students are most likely to lose out.

像喬治·李這樣的活動人士擔心，如果學校按照種族來調(diào)整學生比例，亞裔學生的利益會受損。

The Orange Club grew out of a group of mostly Chinese-American mothers in Orange County who helped new immigrants navigate the school system and the community. When the affirmative action measure emerged in 2014, several parents in the group began asking what they could do to stop it, said Sarah Yang, who was among those who then founded The Orange Club.

金橙俱樂部由奧蘭治縣(Orange County)的一群華裔母親創(chuàng)辦，她們幫助新來的移民適應學校系統(tǒng)和當?shù)厣鐓^(qū)。俱樂部的發(fā)起者之一莎拉·楊說，當2014年平權行動措施出臺時，該組織中的幾位家長開始詢問他們能做些什么來阻止這種情況。

Ms. Yang has a 19-year-old son who will be a sophomore at the University of Chicago, and a 16-year-old daughter who is entering 11th grade in high school.

莎拉·楊有一個19歲的兒子，他將進入芝加哥大學讀大二，她還有一個16歲的女兒，正在讀高中11年級。

While the University of Chicago was one of her son’s top choices, Ms. Yang said that there were other elite schools he did not get into.

雖然芝加哥大學是她兒子的首選之一，但莎拉·楊說，還有其他幾個精英學校沒有錄取他。

“Nobody knows for sure what played a role in the decision making,” she said. “But I think in general, race is a part of the equation. How significant, we don’t know. We all understand for Asian kids you must do better in every way in order to get into college compared to other races.”

“沒有人確切知道什么在錄取決策中發(fā)揮了作用，”她說。“但我認為總的來說，種族是等式的一部分。有多重要，我們不知道。我們都明白，與其他種族相比，為了進入大學，亞洲孩子必須在各方面做得更好。”

Ms. Yang said her daughter is mindful of the high standards she faces as an Asian-American to get into elite colleges, and she places extra pressure on herself.

莎拉·說，她的女兒意識到她作為亞裔美國人進入精英大學所面對的高標準，她給了自己額外的壓力。

“That’s something that I feel that’s not fair in a way,” Ms. Yang said. “They have to work extremely hard in order to get into their dream school.”

“這在某種程度上是不公平的，”她說。“為了進入他們夢想中的學校，他們必須非常非常努力。”

Ms. Yang said she was familiar with racial struggle. She had to overcome a lot of challenges to become the vice president of engineering at a technology company dominated by white men. Schools, she said, should be the great equalizer, a place where your race or gender should not give you an advantage.

莎拉·說她對種族斗爭很熟悉。她克服許多挑戰(zhàn)，才成為了一家由白人男性主導的科技公司的工程副總裁。她說，學校應該是一個偉大的、創(chuàng)造公平的地方，一個你的種族或性別不應該給你任何優(yōu)勢的地方。

But affirmative action turned that notion on its head, Ms. Yang said. Of S.C.A. 5, she said, “I didn’t think that the U.S. could have such an unfair bill.”

但她說，平權法案徹底顛覆了這個觀念。關于第五號加州憲法修正案，她表示，“我沒想到美國能有這么不公平的法案。”

During the fight over the measure, Ms. Yang and other Chinese-Americans in Orange County held meetings, handed out fliers and signed online petitions. They protested in front of the office of Assemblyman Ed Chau, who eventually broke with his fellow Democrats and came out against the bill.

為了抗爭，薩拉·楊和奧蘭治縣的其他華裔美國人開會、發(fā)傳單、在網(wǎng)上簽名請愿。他們到州眾議員周本立(Ed Chau)的辦公室前舉行抗議，他最終與民主黨同僚決裂，并出來公開反對該法案。

In late 2014, the group interviewed and endorsed four Republican candidates for the State Legislature who opposed affirmative action. It enlisted dozens of volunteers to campaign for them. All four candidates, none of them incumbents, won.

2014年底，這個團體與四名反對平權行動的共和黨州立法機構(gòu)候選人舉行了會面，并對他們表示支持。它招募了數(shù)十名志愿者，為他們助選。這四名非現(xiàn)任議員的候選人，都贏得了選舉。

“They were a constant presence in my campaign office,” said Young Kim, a Republican who unseated an incumbent Democratic assemblywoman and is now running for Congress. “This was the first time that I knew that there were very active Chinese-American parents that were organizing this movement, specifically to fight against S.C.A. 5.”

“他們經(jīng)常出現(xiàn)的我的競選辦公室，”共和黨人金映玉(Young Kim)說。她取代了現(xiàn)任的民主黨州眾議院女議員，目前正在競選國會席位。“這是我第一次知道，有非?；钴S的華裔美國父母在組織這場運動，特別是為了奮力抵抗第五號加州憲法修正案。”

Even after winning the fight in California, Mr. Li and other activists remain wary. Mr. Li said it was important to prevent Democrats in the California Legislature from gaining a supermajority that could allow them to pass a bill reinstating affirmative action. He said he was still worried about what the future held for his 13-year-old son, despite his strong academic performance.

即使在加利福尼亞贏得斗爭之后，喬治·李和其他活動人士仍然保持著警惕。他表示，重要的是，要防止民主黨在加州的立法機構(gòu)獲得絕大多數(shù)席位，這可能會讓他們得以通過恢復平權行動的法案。他說，他13歲的兒子盡管學習成績優(yōu)異，但還是擔心他的前途。

“I think for him it’s going to be really, really tough if nothing is changed in current college admissions system policies and practice,” he said. “As an Asian male, it’s going to be very tough for him to get admitted to a top, elite school.”

“我認為，如果現(xiàn)行的大學招生政策和做法不改變的話，對他來說將會非常非常艱難，”他說。“作為亞洲男性，進入頂尖的精英學校將會非常難。”

His daughter is entering her senior year pursuing environmental studies at the University of California, Berkeley — a college Mr. Li said he did not think she would have gotten into if affirmative action had returned to California.

喬治·李的女兒在加州大學伯克利分校(University of California, Berkeley)攻讀環(huán)境研究，即將念大四。他表示，如果平權行動重回加州，她恐怕是進不了這所大學的。

For many Chinese families, a focus on education is deeply rooted in the tradition they came from.

對于許多中國家庭來說，對教育的重視深深植根于他們的傳統(tǒng)。

The civil service exam was a staple of Chinese governance for more than 1,000 years, leading to the rise of a gentry class of bureaucrats who supplanted aristocrats with inherited privileges. The test was a powerful engine of social mobility. The exam was abandoned in 1911, when the Qing imperial dynasty was overthrown.

在1000多年的時間里，科舉制度一直是中國主要的統(tǒng)治方式，它導致了一個官僚士紳階層的崛起，取代了繼承特權的貴族。這個考試是社會流動性的強大引擎。隨著清朝推翻，科舉制度于1911年廢除。

Later, under Mao and during the massive upheaval of the Cultural Revolution, schools were closed. When they reopened after the revolution ended in 1976, it was clear just how much the country yearned for education. More than 11 million students flocked to take the college entrance exams over the next two years.

后來，在毛澤東的領導下，以及文革動亂期間，學校停課。1976年文革結(jié)束后，它們才恢復招生，這個國家對教育的渴望顯而易見，在接下來的兩年時間里，有超過1100萬的考生參加了高考。

Chinese-Americans, most of whom voted for Hillary Clinton in 2016, are split on whether to support affirmative action. Their support for it has fallen in recent years, from 78 percent in 2012 to 41 percent in 2016, according to the National Asian-American Survey. Among other Asian-Americans over that time, backing for affirmative action has remained consistent, at nearly three in four.

2016年的大選中，大多投票給希拉里·克林頓(Hillary Clinton)的華裔美國人在是否支持平權法案的問題上存在分歧。根據(jù)全美亞裔調(diào)查(National Asian-American Survey)的數(shù)據(jù)，他們對該政策的支持率下降，從2012年的78%降至2016年的41%。在同一時期的其他亞裔當中，支持平權行動的比例保持不變，接近四分之三。

Alex T. Tom, the executive director of the Chinese Progressive Association in San Francisco, said that he supports affirmative action because he believes that Asian-Americans, like others, benefit from learning in diverse environments.

舊金山進步華人協(xié)會(Chinese Progressive Association)會長亞歷克斯·T·湯姆(Alex T. Tom)說，他支持平權行動，因為他相信，亞裔跟其他人一樣，也能受益于在多元化的環(huán)境中學習。

The son of a Chinese father and Taiwanese mother, Mr. Tom, 42, said he did not get into his two top college choices — the University of California, Berkeley and the University of California, Los Angeles. But he did go to the University of California, San Diego, where he said he was exposed to racially diverse communities.

湯姆今年42歲，父親是中國人，母親是臺灣人，他說他沒有進入自己優(yōu)先選擇的兩所大學——加州大學伯克利分校(University of California, Berkeley)和加州大學洛杉磯分校(University of California, Los Angeles)。但他上了加州大學圣地亞哥分校(University of California, San Diego)，他說，在那里，他接觸了種族多元化社區(qū)。

“There are benefits of living in a pluralistic society,” he said. “And there’s benefits that I gained from being able to have a suite mate who was black, and also someone who was Latino and white.”

“生活在多元化的社會中是有好處的，”他說。“我有一個黑人室友，還有拉丁美洲和白人室友，他們都讓我獲益匪淺。”

And he said that while some Chinese immigrants may feel that they can overcome potential discrimination by having degrees from elite institutions, they would still face racism.

他說，一些中國移民可能認為他們可以通過獲得精英機構(gòu)的學位來克服潛在歧視，但他們?nèi)匀粫媾R種族主義。

“You’re still, no matter what, seen as kind of like an other in this country,” he said.

“無論如何，你仍然像是這個國家的異類，”他說。

One argument for affirmative action is that it would help correct for the harm done to generations of African-Americans who have faced systemic racism.

平權行動的一個論點是，它有助于糾正幾代人都面臨系統(tǒng)性種族主義的非裔美國人所受的傷害。

But a number of other Chinese-American activists said they believed that race-based admissions were one of the few things in the United States that represented true discrimination. Tony Xu, a member of the Silicon Valley Chinese Association, said he was not so sure about other allegations of racism.

但其他許多華裔活動人士表示，他們認為，以種族為基礎的錄取是美國為數(shù)不多的、代表著真正歧視的事物之一。硅谷華人協(xié)會成員托尼·許(Tony Xu)表示，他對其他種族主義指控就沒那么確定了。

“Inside people’s minds, maybe there’s something still there,” he said. “Systematically there’s no discrimination. I don’t believe that; I don’t feel that.”

“在人們頭腦里，也許還有一些東西依然存在，”他說。“沒有什么系統(tǒng)性的歧視。我不相信;我沒有感覺到。”

Instead, activists said the slights they experience — whether it’s someone mocking their accent or the shape of their eyes — are limited to personal interactions.

相反，活動人士說，他們所經(jīng)歷的瑣事——無論是他人嘲弄他們的口音還是嘲笑他們眼睛的形狀——僅限于個人互動。

“We never feel like this is something the whole society is doing,” Ms. Yang said. “You just more feel like this is just one person. We don’t really feel it is the system that created that discrimination.”

“我們從未覺得這是整個社會所做的事，”莎拉·楊說。“你會覺得這只是個人行為。我們并不真正覺得是體制在制造這種歧視。”

For some of the activists, their political work has led them to take up other issues. In Maryland, a sanctuary city measure proposed in 2017 failed after a Chinese activist group protested it. The law would have barred the use of state and local funds to aid federal immigration enforcement. The Chinese-Americans in opposition said that since they had followed this country’s immigration law and waited patiently for citizenship, others should, too.

一些活動人士的政治工作還導致他們面臨其他問題。在馬里蘭州，一個中國激進組織提出抗議后，2017年提出的一項城市庇護措施沒有獲得通過。該法律如實施，將禁止使用州和地方資金來幫助聯(lián)邦移民執(zhí)法。反對該措施的華裔美國人說，既然他們遵守了這個國家的移民法，耐心等待獲得公民身份，其他人也應該這樣做。

The Orange Club is now focused on helping Republicans win in midterm races this fall. Orange County is host to a number of competitive House races, and the group is also supporting John Cox, the Republican candidate for governor of California.

金橙俱樂部現(xiàn)在專注于幫助共和黨人在今年秋季的中期選舉中獲勝。奧蘭治縣有很多競爭激烈的眾議院席位角逐，該俱樂部還支持共和黨候選人約翰·考克斯(John Cox)競選加州州長。

In June, a post on an Orange Club page sought to rally volunteers to help in the final days of the congressional primary campaign of Bob Huff, a Republican and former state senator. The article asked followers to add their names to the post if they could help. Twenty-eight people signed up for what was ultimately an unsuccessful campaign.

今年6月，金橙俱樂部頁面上的一篇文章呼吁志愿者在共和黨和前州參議員鮑勃·赫夫(Bob Huff)的國會初選活動的最后幾天提供幫助。文章說，如果擁躉們可以提供幫助，請將自己的名字填寫到帖子中。共有28人報名參加，競選最后失敗了。

“Let’s not forget that Bob Huff was alone fighting against S.C.A. 5 in the California Senate in 2014,” the post read, adding that it was time “to pay him back with tangible action. God helps those who help themselves. Helping Bob Huff is helping the Chinese people ourselves.”

“我們不要忘記，2014年，鮑勃·赫夫在加州參議院獨自與第五號加州憲法修正案作斗爭，”文章說，現(xiàn)在是時候“以實際行動報答他。上帝助自助者。幫助鮑勃·赫夫就是幫助我們?nèi)A人。”