WASHINGTON—Weeks after a public opinion poll was conducted by the Committee of 100, a Chinese American Leadership Organization, Asian Americans are left contemplating the results of the national survey; IACPA wonders how serious an impact the results will have on the Asian American community and the mainstream society.

This telephone poll was held during the first two weeks in March, interviewing 1,216 Americans on the precipice of the collision between a U.S. spy plane and a Chinese fighter jet off Hainan.

The survey found 25 percent of its respondents to harbor these sentiments, while 23 percent would be uncomfortable supporting an Asian American Presidential candidate and of the number surveyed, 24 percent disapprove of intermarriage with an Asian American, according to an article in the April 27, 2001 edition of the San Francisco Chronicle.

Prem Shunmugavelu, Political Associate at IACPA, said, “the findings from this survey are of great concern. Nearly a quarter of our nation would feel uncomfortable in having an Asian American as President; we as a community have a great deal of work ahead of us in order to educate all Americans that Asian Americans are as ‘American’ as anyone else.”

“Being a part of the Asian American community, this has disturbing implications for Indian Americans,” he said. He added that he believes “diversity is the strength of our nation and that differences in race and color do not imply less loyalty to our nation.”

The results of the survey were “startling,” according to a FAQ sheet on the Committee of 100 website. “We thought that the findings would indicate some prejudice and identify some stereotypes, but the findings reflect highly negative attitudes and stereotypes among a significant group of people,” the sheet stated.

The purpose of this survey was to ascertain what the American population feels about Asian Americans, particularly Chinese Americans. This study was conducted in a two-prong approach, using qualitative and quantitative studies to offer a foundation to base further analysis and comparisons in the future, according to the FAQ sheet.

To read more about the survey, access the Committee of 100 website at www.committee100.org