This piece is more about the Asian experience in America than it is about the frat guys on trial, who are mainly props in the author’s tale of woe. His bitterness is really something to behold. And he’s not alone- check out the responses he got when he posted it on Twitter. Tons of people, mostly Asians, are saying it’s the most profound thing ever, it moved them to tears, etc. I don’t know what portion of the U.S. Asian population holds Kang’s views, but clearly he’s not alone.

He recounts evil deeds that America has done to Asians at various times, but these don’t seem to done lasting damage if the demographic data are to be believed. Asians outperform whites on a variety of social indicators. Upon entering the U.S., Kang himself rose immediately into elite academic institutions and prestigious media gigs. The sense I get, from various comments he makes throughout the piece, is that he just feels fundamentally alienated from American society. He’s more bitter about that than about any specific discrimination he can identify.

And if that’s the case, my question for Kang and his Twitter friends is: What the hell do you actually want us to do? You’ve been admitted here by the millions, you have access to education and careers, you can get citizenship and participate in the political process. This isn’t the Jim Crow South we’re talking about here.

If his bitterness comes from a sense that he can never really fit in to the white majority culture, then it follows that he considers the majority an ipso facto problem, and is going to keep bitching until it’s gone.