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Another match up along the same lines as my other thread comparing Australia with Canada.
California's history of Chinese immigration can be a fair comparison with Australia. Both are known for having gold rushes that brought them there. Also, other Asian groups are in both places.
I know that Australia has a lot of Asians, and I've known a few Asian Australians before, but I'll admit that IDK how much they've influenced Australian culture.
As far as CA goes, there are a few cities that have Asian majorities or have a very outsized Asian population relative to national averages. In SF, for example, 40% of the city is Asian. The San Gabriel Valley (SGV), to the East of LA, is very, very heavily Asian, specifically Chinese. Many Bay Area cities like Concord, Mountain View, San Jose, and Colma have a sizable Asian and South Asian population. In some areas, they're so prominent that they basically become the dominant local culture. Daly City, for example, has more Asian grocers than Western grocers, with Filipinos and Chinese making up the majority. El Monte and Alhambra in the SGV are very predominantly Chinese, with Chinese banks, restaurants, grocers, bakeries, salons, etc making up the norm.
Beyond that, Asians are very deeply ingrained in the fabric of most of CA, and there are many second, third, fourth, sometimes further-generation citizens. There have been plenty of Asians in high-level political positions, such as mayors, congressmen, chiefs of police, representatives, etc.
I think that one of the best examples of just how Asian CA is, is that a few years ago, I was driving with a friend from Ireland through a farming community in Northern CA, and we stopped off at a shopping center to grab some lunch and try to find some sunglasses. The shopping center had a Subway, two Chinese restaurants, a Hawaiian BBQ, a sushi place, and a Thai joint. When we walked into the Ross (large discount clothing retailer), everyone in line with us was Asian. This was a small town in the middle of nowhere.
^ I believe both Australia and California are about 13-15% Asian now, and growing, and have similar histories. Both have a history of Chinese migration during the respective gold rushes of the 19th century, with large Chinatowns established in Melbourne, Sydney, San Francisco and many smaller cities. Many started up businesses and while there was discrimination some became a part of the community. Many of these rural communities in particular were dismantled and many Chinese were literally 'run out of town' so that the Asian presence dwindled until later in the 20th century. I believe the US had the Chinese Exclusion Act, and Australia the White Australia Policy.
I've only been to LA and San Diego, but at least in the areas I visited I feel Sydney and Melbourne definitely felt more Asians, but LA doesn't have a strong city core where you see a very heavy concentration of Asians. If you walk around the CBD of Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth or Adelaide at least half the people walking around will be Asian. Australia's Asian community is fairly diverse, with Chinese, Vietnamese, Filipino, Indonesian, Malaysian, Indian, Lebanese, Turkish.etc as well as Koreans (mostly as students and on working holiday) and Japanese, Taiwanese.
Demographically, some areas are over 50% Asian, and in some suburbs as few as 20% were born in Australia. Similarly as few as 20% in extreme examples (Ashfield, Cabramatta, Springvale) even speak English at home. In the suburb I lived in, Footscray, you heard Vietnamese more than English.
Anyway Sydney and Melbourne are extremely multicultural and probably feels almost as Asian as San Francisco
I have never been to Australia so I can't say which has more Asian infleunce, but in Caliifornia Asian influence and presence is very noticable. In both the Bay area and Los Angeles.
Koreatown Los Angeles, just west of downtown is one of the biggest asian enclaves/business districts In North America. Korean businesses extend much further outside the actual oficial koreatown limits. There are other areas outside of LA like in Monterrey Park and in Orange county but this is the one I'm most familiar with.
I have never been to Australia so I can't say which has more Asian infleunce, but in Caliifornia Asian influence and presence is very noticable. In both the Bay area and Los Angeles.
Koreatown Los Angeles, just west of downtown is one of the biggest asian enclaves/business districts In North America. Korean businesses extend much further outside the actual oficial koreatown limits. There are other areas outside of LA like in Monterrey Park and in Orange county but this is the one I'm most familiar with.
Yes I've been to Koreatown. That's what I love about LA, all the different ethnic neighbourhoods.
Asians are second only to Latinos as a minority group in CA but are the fastest-growing group. Every large city and many smaller ones have sizable Asian populations. San Francisco and parts of LA have been mentioned. Across the bay in Oakland is the Bay Area's other Chinatown. Some years back, Oakland renamed E 14th street International blvd. due to the diversity along its length, a large proportion of that are Asians from just about every east and southeast group. San Diego also has a sizable Asian population with the neighborhood of Mira Mesa comprising mainly Filipinos and Vietnamese. Linda Vista with Filipinos, Cambodians, Laotians, and Vietnamese and an area known as Little Saigon which speaks for itself. The cities of National City and Chula Vista have some Filipino and Chinese present.
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