USC must do more than issue degrees to Nisei students


A drawing of the Dr. Joseph Crow Center for International and Public Affairs with a background of the U.S. and Japanese flags.
(Lauren Schatzman | Daily Trojan)

In June 2020, during the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests, the global pandemic and Asian American hate, USC temporarily renamed the Rufus von KleinSmid Center to the Center for Public and International Affairs. On Nov. 18, President Carol Folt announced the official renaming of the building to the Dr. Joseph Crow Center for International and Public Affairs. 

Von KleinSmid was not only an active supporter of eugenics but also of the Japanese internment movement during World War II. Under von KleinSmid’s tenure, the University denied readmission to Japanese American USC students displaced by internment camps and locked their records so that transfering to other colleges would be impossible. These students were “Nisei,” a term that describes Japanese Americans with immigrant parents who had citizenship by birth. 

In October, USC announced it would issue a formal apology to the Japanese Americans whose educations it disrupted. As a part of this apology, President Carol Folt will deliver a speech and issue honorary diplomas to an estimated 121 Nisei students at the Asian Pacific Alumni Association Gala in April. 

For many, USC’s actions pave the way forward. It is not always easy for large institutions to admit their mistakes and make active, public efforts to fix them. For others, however, USC’s steps may potentially add to Asian American marginalization. 

For the past several decades, Asian Americans of various ethnicities, cultures and experiences have been seen as the “model minority.” Many Asian immigrants who come to the United States to live a better life have suffered and tolerated hate and prejudice. It is also true that this quiet perseverance has, until recently, rendered anti-Asian racism invisible. 

According to a clinical article published in the New England Journal of Medicine, “Public awareness of crimes against Asian Americans increased in February 2021 only because of a boost from social media and subsequent attention by national news outlets.”

Presently, USC’s actions are concerning. USC students have demanded renaming CPA and issuing degrees to Nisei students for the past few decades. Given that it took both national BLM protests and the global pandemic for USC to implement these changes, USC inadvertently pushes the notion that awareness around Asian American hate is merely a part of the Black and white racial dichotomy.

In times like these, we need genuine, enduring change. The Asian American community does not need any more short-lived headlines. Despite the model minority myth, anti-Asian American racism warrants fervid and persistent dedication. USC needs to do more than just implement a name change or issue diplomas. What use is a name change if the majority of upperclassmen, alumni and faculty still refer to the renamed CPA as VKC? In the same vein, what use is a diploma if the recipients have either passed away or have no use for one now? 

USC’s changes may sound impressive on paper, but they accomplish nothing in terms of longevity. As a result, USC will actually harm the movement against Asian American hate by adding to the notion that racism toward Asian Americans is invisible and insignificant. 

Right now, USC needs to take further steps to properly educate its student body about the reasons for both the name change and Nisei degrees. It needs to foster real discussion about how the institution failed its students, why its actions were wrong and what steps it will take to remedy the issue. 

In this regard, USC still has room to improve. In addition to President Folt’s speech, USC could also empower the voices of Nisei students and the families that were impacted. USC Visions and Voices, for example, is a perfect way to help spread these stories to the student body. Instead of big headlines and ceremonial apologies, detailing the experiences provide not only a deeper insight but also a direct acknowledgement of Asian American hate.

USC must also continue the conversation. In an article regarding a panel from the Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism’s chapter of the Asian American Journalist Association, “The plight of Asian Americans does not just end after one panel — the conversation must keep going until real change is seen.” 

Ultimately, USC cannot jump from one crisis to another — it must be persistent in its efforts. Only with this form of acknowledgement can there be a genuine change, and only with this genuine change can healing occur for those impacted.