Asian American and Pacific Islander adults are significantly more focused on economic pressures than racial discrimination, with around 4 in 10 identifying personal finances as a major source of stress compared to only about 1 in 10 citing discrimination, according to a new AP-NORC/AAPI Data poll. The survey found that around half of AAPI adults said discrimination is not a source of stress at all, while about 2 in 10 identified health concerns and relationships with family or friends as major stressors.
The poll of 1,228 U.S. adults who are Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders was conducted last month using a sample drawn from NORC's probability-based Amplify AAPI Panel. The margin of sampling error for all respondents is plus or minus 4.5 percentage points.
Decline in Reported Hate Incidents
About one-quarter of AAPI adults said they have personally experienced a hate crime or incident in the past year, such as verbal harassment or physical assault, a level consistent with a survey conducted last summer but down from an October 2023 poll in which 36% said they were victims of an act of abuse tied to their race or ethnicity over the prior year. Preliminary FBI data also shows a decline as the pandemic receded into the background, with anti-Asian hate crimes and bias crimes overall falling between last year and this year based on information submitted by law enforcement agencies.
The poll found that about 1 in 10 AAPI adults said they have been called a racial or ethnic slur in the past 12 months, down from roughly 2 in 10 about two and a half years ago. Around 15% said they have been verbally harassed or abused by another person in the past year because of their race or ethnicity, down from 23% in 2023.
Karthick Ramakrishnan, founder and executive director of AAPI Data, said, "The key is there's been a decline but a stabilization. So, it hasn't declined since last year," and added, "Both hate crimes and hate incidents are still an issue in our community." Even so, about 3 in 10 AAPI adults in the new survey said it is "extremely" or "very" likely they will be a victim of discrimination based on their race or ethnicity in the next five years.
Economic Priorities Take Center Stage
John Magner, 58, who is half white and also of Hawaiian and Chinese ancestry, said he faces more discrimination from Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders around his home of West Jordan, Utah, who do not believe he is part Hawaiian. He said a Pacific Islander customer at the hardware store where he works called him "cracker and a little wannabe Pacific Islander." Magner said, "I work full-time but we're struggling," and added, "Inflation and then also some family stuff that's gone on, having to pay medical bills. It's just bills."
Ramakrishnan said he also considers whether there is less scapegoating of immigrants of color because people understand that it has no bearing on the current economy. He said, "The likely reasons for those economic struggles have nothing to do with race or immigration," and added, "They have to do with other factors, like tariffs, war on foreign policy, AI data centers. Those are all the things that people see that are driving up costs."
Shifting Rhetoric and Personal Experiences
Advocates said the tone of the rhetoric has shifted away from COVID-19-related tropes toward anti-immigrant sentiments. Stephanie Chan, data and research director at Stop AAPI Hate, said, "We're seeing things like 'Go back to China' still. But, it's more like 'ICE is going to deport you,'" and added, "The rhetoric that's being used to justify very harsh and aggressive immigration enforcement, all of this is also feeding into anti-AAPI hate persisting."
Ambar Capoor, 52 and India-born, said that in his diverse Los Angeles neighborhood, a white man pushed him unprovoked while he was waiting in line at a restaurant and told him, "You don't belong here. You should go back to your country." Capoor, who is a naturalized citizen and has lived in the U.S. for 26 years, said, "None of this stuff normally bothers me," and added, "If somebody starts an altercation, that I'll walk away from." But Capoor, a Democrat, said he thinks the divisive political climate has emboldened people to openly say racist things.
Nosheen Hamid, 36 and a stay-at-home mother with a toddler, said she has lived in Salt Lake City for 17 years. In her native Pakistan, her family was considered a minority because of their Catholic faith. In her mostly white Utah community, she said she gets racially profiled too. A couple of months ago, she said, a door-to-door salesman approached her home and seemed surprised she lived there. "He was like, 'Are you renting here?' He asked me a few times and it got to me for just a second," Hamid said. "People didn't expect me to be in the space that I was, work-wise, school-wise."
The poll is part of an ongoing project exploring the views of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders, which are usually not highlighted in other surveys because of small sample sizes and lack of linguistic representation.
Why This Matters:
The survey reveals that AAPI adults are prioritizing economic stability over concerns about discrimination, with financial pressures outweighing racial issues by a four-to-one margin as sources of stress. This shift in focus suggests that bread-and-butter economic issues—inflation, medical bills, and cost of living—resonate more deeply with AAPI communities than identity-based grievances. The decline in reported hate incidents since the pandemic peak, confirmed by both survey data and preliminary FBI statistics, indicates progress in reducing overt racial hostility. However, the stabilization of incidents at current levels and persistent concerns about future discrimination suggest ongoing challenges. The data underscores that economic policy decisions affecting tariffs, inflation, and healthcare costs have more immediate impact on AAPI communities' daily lives than discrimination-focused initiatives, pointing to the importance of policies that promote economic opportunity and fiscal responsibility.