Alien-ating Asians in 21st-Century Land Laws
Published in Just Security on
Advancing Justice – AAJC Article on Discriminatory Land Laws
In recent years, the United States has revived a form of land-based nationalism that turns diffuse anxieties over foreign influence, especially from China, into sweeping legislative and administrative action. Since Just Security first spotlighted new “alien land laws,” state and federal lawmakers, think tanks, and industry groups have increasingly coordinated to cast land ownership as a national security flashpoint...
Asian American advocacy groups, including Asian Americans Advancing Justice | AAJC, correctly call attention to the broad applicability and potential to fuel discriminatory bias through the inclusion of the term “agent” in land law legislation. These policies weaponize use of “agent” language in land laws to cast all Asian-identified individuals, especially those perceived as Chinese, as potential operatives of the Chinese Communist Party. Coupled with the consideration of the varied enforcement of these land restriction policies, such as mandatory reporting or signing of affidavits to prove status, as well as the common practice of buyer screening by real estate companies, could create additional hurdles or trigger scrutiny for Asian Americans buyers.