In November, the Post wrote about a new study from Brown University professor Nathaniel Hilger investigating the upward mobility of Asian Americans:

Hilger recently used old Census records to trace the fortunes of whites, blacks and Asians who were born in California during the early- to mid-20th century. He found that educational gains had little to do with how Asian Americans managed to close the wage gap with whites by the 1970s. Instead, his research suggests that society simply became less racist toward Asians.

As Hilger said at the time: “Asians used to be paid like blacks. But between 1940 and 1970, they started to get paid like whites.”

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How did all of this happen, and who was responsible?

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In her book, “The Color of Success: Asian Americans and the Origins of the Model Minority,” historian Ellen Wu explained how the American mainstream finally changed its mind about Asian Americans. Even today, many don't fully understand how this turnabout happened. Some assume that Asian Americans simply had superior values and worked hard. Many Asian Americans did work hard, but they also benefited from a wildly successful public makeover. It's an unexpected story involving geopolitics, Cold War anxieties, and James Dean.