Opinion

Biden’s Medal of Freedom picks a reminder of US lack of regard for Asian-Americans

In the nearly 60 years since the establishment of the highest civilian honour in the US, only 11 Asian-Americans have been chosen among almost 700 recipients

Addressing this underrepresentation would be a meaningful way for Biden to show he is sincere when he says he cares about Asian-Americans

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US President Joe Biden presents the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Khizr Khan during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House in Washington on July 7. Khan was the only Asian-American among Biden’s first group of nominees for the medal. Photo: Bloomberg

Chi Wang, a former head of the Chinese section of the US Library of Congress, is president of the US-China Policy Foundation.

Published: 3:30am, 19 Jul 2022Updated: 4:22am, 19 Jul 2022

When US President Joe Biden handed out his first Presidential Medal of Freedom awards last week, he said “this is America” in reference to the diverse array of people to receive the nation’s highest civilian honour.

In many respects he was correct, as the recipients were diverse in race, gender, age and sexual orientation. But, just as Biden’s promise to appoint a cabinet that “looks like America” fell short of inclusion for Asian-Americans, members of the community were also under-represented as recipients of the award.

President John F. Kennedy established the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1963 to recognise contributions to “the security or national interests of the United States, or world peace, or cultural or other significant public or private endeavours”.

Recipients have included luminaries in film, music, athletics, academics, government, journalism and science. Biden’s list included gymnast Simone Biles, actor Denzel Washington, late Apple founder Steve Jobs and the late Republican Senator John McCain.