America is prejudiced. That fact is no stranger to any of us. From its conception, it has been a land of segregation and oppression, from wiping out Native American populations, enslaving Black Americans, to the violent treatment of immigrants. Everything about the US has been prejudiced and people definitely do talk about it. However, there is one conversation of prejudice many people seem to push aside. A prejudice that is repeatedly dished out by the American government, media, and education. A prejudice that too many Americans seem to just accept as fact.
What is Sinophobia?
Sinophobia is the hatred for the Chinese people or anything associated with China. Like racism, it is a hatred or even a fear, and like racism, it is systemically rooted. It has been a very inherent part of American society since as early as the late 19th century, making it very much a systemic issue in the US.
However, it is important to not conflate Sinophobia with racism, and specifically racism against Asians. It’s not exactly the same. Sinophobia does not affect all Asians. It is specific to Chinese people, and that is for a reason. Of course, that doesn’t mean racism cannot be mixed with Sinophobic sentiment. It often is. In fact, many non-Chinese Asian Americans might face Sinophobia. But that doesn’t mean they are synonymous with each other.
Similarly, you cannot conflate xenophobia with Sinophobia. The words are quite similar, and also hold similar definitions, but they are far from the same. Sinophobia isn’t the prejudice against Chinese immigrants the way xenophobia is prejudice against immigrants. Sinophobia is the prejudice against anything to do with China as a whole, whether it is Chinese immigrants, Chinese citizens, Chinese culture, or Chinese government. Again, Sinophobia and xenophobia often appear hand-in-hand, especially when targeting Chinese Americans in the US. However, they are still very different terms and should be properly differentiated as such.
The History of Sinophobia in the US
Like I mentioned before, Sinophobia has been inherent in American society. Prominently, it started in the later 19th century. Most popular was the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 which prohibited the immigration of Chinese laborers. However, this act did begin as a restriction of Chinese immigration rather than exclusion [1]. Since only laborers were restricted, Chinese immigrants came to the US under different titles so that they could immigrate.
History paints this as the very first time the US discriminated against the Chinese, like it was something sudden and abrupt. However, this isn’t an entirely accurate view. The Page Act of 1875 actually restricted the immigration of Chinese women prior. The white populations often accused Chinese women of prostitution and spreading sexually transmitted diseases (which was most probably not true) despite the fact that many poor white women were in a similar position. For this reason, this act was passed to prohibit the immigration of Chinese contract laborers and women participating in “immoral” activities.
Sinophobia in Modern America
Not only does Sinophobia still exist today, it is stronger than ever. As I mentioned in my previous article on functional illiteracy, the US just put in $1.6 billion dollars into anti-Chinese propaganda in 2024. The FBI has painted China as a threat to US “democracy” because of its “authoritarian government” without giving solid proof of either of these claims. This propaganda has obviously taken a hit on the American people, with 38% of Americans viewing China as an “enemy.” Sinophobic propaganda is rampant in America and purposely perpetuated by the American government with interest in condemning China.
If you don’t think Sinophobia is prevalent in the US right now, try this: what’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think about China? Is it the affordable and well-built housing and substantial reduction of poverty and homelessness? Or is it the kids working in fast-fashion sweatshops and security cameras every few feet? Because if it is the latter, then I assure you that the Sinophobia Western media propaganda has done its job on you.
Why?
The biggest question is, why? Why does the US go out of its way to promote such Sinophobic sentiments? Why does it hate China so much, and why does it need its citizens to hate China as well? The answer is quite simple—they don’t support the US. China has created a nation where they condemn the unjust actions of the American empire and withhold any sort of alliance with it. But China isn’t alone in this. Other countries like Cuba, Venezuela, and Iran, to name a few, have been subjected to a similar propagandized rhetoric that demonizes their state and people. All because they don’t support US imperialism and demand grubby American hands off their soil.
Honestly, the Sinophobic notions are quite reminiscent of the anti-Soviet propaganda during the Cold War. Similar to how the US propagandized its people into believing the USSR was an authoritarian state controlling a land full of oppressed peasants , it wants you to think the same for China. They conveniently excluded facts such as the growth from 25% to 94% literacy rate during the Soviet Union while the US still had literacy tests to bar Black Americans from voting. Now, they conveniently ignore the fact that China has eliminated extreme poverty while the US has had a 30% increase in homelessness from 2022 to 2024.
They don’t want you to know that. They want to keep you ignorant. Because if the people all knew the full truth, they would turn their backs on the American empire and charge at it with pitchforks and torches. The truth will make the people fight the US, and that’s the one thing that will cause this oppressive empire to crumble.
