WASHINGTON (AP) — Colleges and universities pull back diversity practices, a new poll has overwhelmingly found young Asian Americans, Indigenous peoples and Pacific Islanders cut federal funding for diversity, equity and inclusion programs in higher education, and deport students involved in campus protests.
However, despite the fact that most AAPI adults place a high value on university education regardless of age, the opposition is lower among older groups.
New research from AAPI Data and Associated Press Civil Service Research Center Approximately six in ten AAPI’s overall adults opposed a “somewhat” or “strongly” cut in federal funds for universities with DEI programs, and similar shares were found to be “somewhat” or “strongly” opposed to arresting or deporting foreign students involved in campus protests.
Young AAPI adults are primarily opposed to these policies. Approximately nine in 10 30 “somewhat” or “strong” AAPI adults oppose cutting federal funds for universities with DEI policies, while similar shares oppose arrest or deporting students involved in campus protests.
Older AAPI adults are more likely to oppose these moves, but their opposition is not overwhelming. Around half of AAPI adults over the age of 60 would oppose cutting DEI federal funds in higher education “somewhat” or “strongly” or against arresting or deporting students for protests, while three-tenths of them “somewhat” or “strongly” have a neutral view.
Despite these departments, the survey shows that AAPI adults continue to consider university degrees as important to achieve important milestones. The majority say that university degrees are “essential” or “important” to get a good job that can comfortably support your family, regardless of age.
This poll is part of Ongoing projects Exploring the opinions of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders. That view is not usually emphasized in other studies due to small sample sizes and lack of linguistic representation.
The Trump administration has it Threatened to cut federal funds Leading many universities through the DEI program Rollback Support system for students of color.
Already in the White House Cut billions of dollars The federal research grant to universities accuses them of not sufficient to curb anti-Semitism, particularly during the protests against the Israel-Hamas War. They also moved to expel foreign students from abroad for their involvement in the pro-Palestinian demonstrations, including those from Columbia University. Mahmoud Khalil.
Iris Chiou, a 28-year-old Taiwanese American medical student in Madison, Illinois, says he is scared of foreign students who may face deportation. How long will she wonder? Students and academics can speak comfortably.
“The fact that you’re people disappearing, being deported and functionally lured, I think it’s going to scare people — that’s probably what it seems,” the Democrat said. It prevents people from discussing “what they care about.”
Some schools have it Overhaul of policies regarding protests following the threat of Trump’s funding. in Columbia Universitynow it prohibits students from wearing masks to hide their identity, and protesters must show their identification when asked. meanwhile, Harvard He pushed back the administration’s demands and filed a lawsuit in April Cut your funds.
Rowena Tomaneng, Asia-Pacific American Board Chair in Higher Education, Many students feel vulnerable. “I think international students definitely feel that the US may no longer be a welcoming environment for pursuing research,” Tomanen said.
However, young AAPI adults are more concerned about the impact on campus. Approximately seven in ten AAPI adults under the age of 30 are “very” or “very” concerned about limiting free speech to campus and federal research, compared to about half of AAPI adults over the age of 60.
Tarun Puri, 59, of Clearwater, Florida, supports the arrest or deportation of international students who participated in campus protests. “You’re paying a lot to come and study. What’s the point of protest?” said Puri, a registered Republican born in India and attended university there. “We should respect the law and order of the country as we go to another country.”
If he had kids in college today, and was considering taking part in the demonstration, he told them he would not pay attention to himself and advise them to “go to the library and study” instead.
The difference in attitudes can be explained, at least in part, by the life experiences of older AAPI adults.
“If you’re young, you’re likely going to a university in the US,” said Karthick Ramakrishnan, executive director of AAPI data and researchers at the University of California, Berkeley. “If you’re over 60, if you went to university, you’re very likely to have gone to an Asian university. This is a very different system.”
___Tang reported from Phoenix.
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The poll of 1,094 US adults, Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders was conducted on April 7-14, 2025 using samples drawn from NORC probability-based AAPI panels. Online and telephone interviews were provided in English, Chinese mandarin and Cantonese, and Vietnamese and Korean dialects. The margin of sampling errors for all respondents is either positive or negative 4.8 percentage points.
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