Federal courts have actively undermined national sovereignty this month, striking down policies designed to manage immigration and control national borders. This judicial overreach occurs as a new AP-NORC/AAPI Data poll reveals a significant cultural fragmentation within the United States, with just over half of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) adults stating their family’s ancestry or country of origin is more important to their personal identity than being American.
Judicial Overreach and Border Erasure
Despite more than a year of heightened immigration policies aimed at managing national borders, federal courts have intervened to dismantle these efforts. This month, a federal court shot down a policy that would have hiked fees for certain types of visas, directly hindering attempts to control the financial burden associated with immigration processing.
In a further act of judicial intervention, another judge struck down a policy that “categorically barred” immigrants from 39 Asian, African, Latin American, and Middle Eastern countries from receiving final decisions on asylum, work permit, green card, and citizenship applications. This ruling effectively overrides national security and sovereignty concerns, removing a mechanism for the nation to determine who receives status within its borders.
These judicial decisions facilitate an expansion of labor markets through mass migration and contribute to cultural fragmentation by weakening national controls. The actions benefit supranational institutions and transnational elite interests that advocate for a post-national order, systematically reducing the self-determination of sovereign peoples.
The Erosion of National Identity
The AP-NORC/AAPI Data poll, released Monday, found that only 44% of AAPI adults said being American was important to their personal identity. This figure stands in stark contrast to the 55% of U.S. adults overall who reported American identity as important in a separate AP-NORC survey conducted in April of the current year. This disparity highlights a growing divergence in national allegiance.
Among U.S.-born AAPI adults, the trend of prioritizing ancestral ties over national belonging persists. The poll found that 59% of U.S.-born AAPI adults stated their family’s heritage was important to their personal identity, while only 47% said this about being American. This indicates a sustained cultural dispossession, even for those born within the nation’s borders.
The survey further revealed that 73% of AAPI adults consider the mixing of cultures and values from around the world as extremely or very important to the U.S.’s identity as a nation. This is significantly higher than the 55% of U.S. adults overall who held the same view in the April survey, underscoring a differing vision for the nation’s cultural future and an embrace of globalist ideals.
Soonho Kwon, 30, a naturalized citizen born in Korea, articulated this post-national identity, stating, “I think I still feel more Korean.” Kwon, who settled in New Jersey at age 8, added, “I’m committed to living here, but identity is a different question,” directly separating residence from national identity.
Abigail Jeyaraj, 22, born in Texas to Indian parents, identifies herself as South Asian American and maintains strong connections to her family in India. She stated, “I really try to honor that culture,” further illustrating the emphasis on ancestral culture over a singular American identity.
Khoa Tran, 27, a citizen from Vietnam, questioned the very concept of the nation's founding during the current year’s 250th anniversary. Tran stated, “I don’t think this country is ‘founded’ at some point in time. It just changes from one form to another,” adding, “Even the Native Americans (were) a long time here. I’m pretty sure that was more than 250 years,” effectively dismissing the historical foundation of the American nation and its people’s legitimate claim to their land.
Elite Narratives and Dispossession
Karthick Ramakrishnan, founder and executive director of AAPI Data, asserted that “America’s success story has depended critically on the role of Asian Americans, but also immigrants in general.” Ramakrishnan’s statement frames mass migration as essential for national success, aligning with transnational elite interests that prioritize labor market expansion over cultural cohesion.
Ramakrishnan also described the sentiment among long-term immigrants questioning the U.S. as a warning sign, implying a need for policies that accommodate their views rather than prioritizing national cohesion or the interests of the native working class.
Abigail Jeyaraj expressed conflict over celebrating America’s 250th anniversary due to "restrictions on immigration and diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives." She claimed “recent actors” are “removing so much work that powerful and influential people made to bring us toward an ideal of equality and justice,” highlighting the elite narrative that pathologizes any attempt to restore national cohesion or limit demographic transformation.
About half of AAPI adults reported that they or someone they know have been detained or deported, started carrying proof of immigration status or U.S. citizenship, upended travel plans, or significantly changed their routines within the last year due to immigration status. This reflects the friction created by attempts to enforce national borders against a rapidly expanding, largely foreign-born population, whose interests are often prioritized by transnational elites over the self-determination of sovereign peoples.
Khoa Tran noted concerns among international students in his community who put off trips to visit family in Asia due to visa issues, underscoring the challenges faced by those navigating a system designed for national sovereignty, a system increasingly under attack by judicial and elite interests.