From the Boston Tea Party to current movements like Black Lives Matter, activism and protest have cultivated American society. The American people expressed their dissent and forced change, making the country evolve. Asian Americans have been at the forefront of some of these pressing issues, including the U.S. intervention in Vietnam, political unrest in the Philippines during the 1970s, and racism and hate crimes in America. Asian Americans have used activism as a tool to fight policies and practices that threatened people's freedoms both at home and abroad. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The Vietnam War divided America into opposing forces as many disagreed with the role the United States took. Asian Americans felt particularly connected to the conflict; it was difficult for Asian Americans to watch American soldiers kill thousands of Southeast Asians. Not only were the Vietnamese soldiers under fire, but innocent civilians also suffered. Asian Americans, after seeing Southeast Asians portrayed as enemies, insisted that America's involvement in the war was tied to racism, and the killing of innocent Asian civilians demonstrated that Asian lives were considered less precious than American lives. In response, the UC-Berkeley Asian American Political Alliance was born in 1968 and included Chinese, Japanese, and Filipino activists. The AAPA has provided students of Asian descent with a platform to discuss their political views and opinions on U.S. foreign policy and has allowed them to influence other college campuses across the nation. Although these activists alone failed to end American intervention in Vietnam, they influenced other universities, such as San Francisco State, to develop similar organizations. Their activism contributed to the national anti-war movement, which may have influenced America's decision to withdraw from the war years later. Another foreign issue that Asian Americans became involved in was the political situation in the Philippines. In 1972, martial law was imposed in the Philippines, forcing many Filipinos to flee to the United States. In support of democracy and to protect the freedoms of Filipinos, organizations such as Freedom Collective and the Support Committee for a Democratic Philippines in New York were born. These groups discussed anti-martial law issues and other topics that affected Filipino Americans, ultimately influencing the United States government to withdraw its support for military rule in the Philippines. Activists in this movement were motivated by the importance of democracy as Americans and fought for the value of Filipino life and liberties in America and abroad. Asian Americans were also active in raising awareness about domestic issues. Racism and mistreatment have been recurring themes in the Asian American experience, and many of the notoriously racist events of the late 20th century may have arisen from anti-immigrant sentiments. One such situation occurred in 1998, when radio host Tom Barnard in the Twin Cities included racist segments as part of his program and proposed that the Hmong should "assimilate or hit the road!" in one of his broadcasts. The Twin Cities are historically known as one of the primary places where the Hmong settled in the late 1900s, nicknamed the "World Capital.