Note: I used pseudonyms to protect the anonymity of the interview participants. For each interviewee, their age is listed in parenthesis after their pseudonym.

Mark (56): A Reluctant Gun Owner

           Having left China in his thirties, Mark spent a significant amount of time residing in New York City before eventually settling in Nashville. As the owner of a construction business that primarily caters to Chinese American clients, he is both familiar with the Nashville Chinese community and an integral part of it. Mark reports that he purchased his first and only firearm at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic due to heightened concerns about his own personal security. He described COVID as a “messy situation” and reports to having observed an influx of Chinese Americans purchasing firearms due to a growing sense of “lack of law and order.”

           Mark’s experience of COVID-19 aligns with many other Chinese Americans across the country who have reported feeling increasingly vulnerable and targeted as a result of the pandemic. The rise of anti-Asian violence and rhetoric during the pandemic has only compounded these feelings of insecurity. Mark’s decision to purchase a firearm as a means of self-defense reflects a broader trend among Chinese Americans who are seeking ways to protect themselves and their families amidst this uncertain and sometimes dangerous environment.

           Mark owns a handgun for self-defense, but he is also acutely aware of the dangers of pervasive gun ownership, such as incidents of mass shootings and firearm accidents. He admits that he is scared of using his gun, and that he purchased his gun primarily because “other Chinese men and American men were buying guns,” but is doubtful that his gun will ever be taken out of storage and put to use. According to Mark, he shares the general sentiment of the Chinese community in Nashville that owning a firearm is important and useful for self-defense. Ultimately, though, Mark believes that owning a gun is more of a burden for him since successful self-defense with a gun requires too much time for preparation (e.g., taking the gun out of his safe, loading the gun, etc.), making his gun unlikely to be helpful in a real-life robbery scenario. Mark thinks that it is important for some demographics to own a firearm, such as those who live in neighborhoods with high crime rates, but for him, the “cons outweigh the pros” (弊大于利) when it comes to gun ownership.

           When asked about the recent mass shootings perpetrated by and targeted toward Asian Americans, Mark professes surprise that Asian Americans would engage in gun violence since Asian countries have less of a “gun culture” compared to America. He believes that those perpetrators of mass shootings are “motivated by extreme hatred toward society and community” and that they most likely suffer from mental health conditions with no one around to help. Finally, Mark expressed concerns about the lack of sound gun control policies in America:

“Back in Pennsylvania, buying a gun is like getting groceries; people can buy any kind of gun without any kind of screening and even without an ID. Especially in Nashville, owning a gun is important because there are too many mentally unhealthy people. When you carry a gun around here, no one ever asks where you bought it from or if you are even allowed to own one. Everyone else has one [a gun], so you feel like you need one too. "

Jenn (59): A Gun Enthusiast

           Unlike Mark, who purchased his firearm for self-defense, Jenn is an avid gun user who frequents shooting ranges with her coworkers at the local hospital. Having moved to Nashville with her husband in the late 90s, Jenn has witnessed the growth of Nashville’s Chinese American population first-hand. She is well-connected within the Nashville Chinese community and is the host of several prominent WeChat group chats, including two named “Nashville Chinese Gun Owner Association” and “Nashville Chinese Republicans,” both of which boast a membership count in the upper hundreds. A few years ago, she had even invited a gun expert from California to educate Chinese Americans in Nashville on the use of firearms. Purchasing her first and only handgun around 2015, Jenn initially became interested in owning a firearm through conversations with her coworkers. Seeing the excitement of her coworkers about going to shooting ranges, her interest in the gun culture grew, and she began visiting shooting ranges and would go hunting with her friends in the woods. To Jenn, firearms are owned and used for fun rather than for self-defense.

           Although Jenn is manifestly much more satisfied with owning and using a firearm compared to Mark, her use and ownership of firearms can be similarly seen as a sign of assimilation. When asked what owning a firearm means to her personally, she responded:

“I think owning a gun is a privilege and just a part of American culture. My coworkers often talked about the different kinds of guns they owned and about going to shooting ranges, and I wanted to fit in with my friends. It’s like getting my ears pierced (something more socially taboo and less common in China but very much common in the U.S.); other people have it [a gun] so I wanted to have it too.”

           Despite her love of firearms, Jenn recognizes that “gun violence in America has gone too far and something needs to be done.” She believes that the three Asian American mass shooters likely led deeply unfulfilling lives, had mental illnesses left untreated, and consequently developed a need to lash out and take revenge on the society that they deemed to have failed them. I followed up on her response and asked whether she thinks these men were motivated by their experiences of alienation and anti-Asian hate. According to Jenn, Sinophobia stems primarily from a lack of education, and although she has experienced Sinophobia in her time living in Nashville, she is surrounded by well-mannered people at work and at home that she does not “take it [experiences of micro-aggression] to heart.”

Lauren (67): A (Former) Prospective Gun Owner

           Like Mark, Lauren believes that she does not need a handgun because of the relative safety of her neighborhood. She does not own any firearm, though she professes having thought of purchasing a rifle and learning how to use it multiple times during her time in Nashville. She recounts wanting to purchase a firearm at the beginning of the pandemic, particularly after the protest event in downtown Nashville in which a protester set Metro Courthouse on fire. She says to me:

“People target Asian Americans because they know they [Asian Americans] don’t own guns. In my situation, you know, since I live by myself, emotionally speaking I do want to own something [a firearm] just in case someone breaks in. I hear about stories where mentally-troubled youths break into houses, and on top of that, these daily shootings too make me afraid and insecure in my own house.”

           When asked about her personal attitudes toward gun ownership, Lauren gave a balanced answer that owning guns have both pros and cons. On one hand, Lauren thinks that owning a firearm would provide her emotional comfort, “just in case” she needs to defend herself against a burglar. On the other hand, the cost of a firearm seems to outweigh the benefits for her:

“You have to know how to manage your gun and keep your gun in good condition, be familiar with all the gun laws to know when you can shoot, and take a lot of training. And also, emotionally speaking, I don’t know if I can really shoot at someone.”

           Although Lauren has not garnered sufficient motivation to purchase and maintain a firearm, she considers gun ownership an inherent right for all American citizens under the Second Amendment. Having lived in the U.S. for more than 40 years, she believes that the right to bear arms is “important so people can defend themselves.” I inquired whether she knows any Chinese American in Nashville who owned a firearm, to which she responded, “Yes, only those with American husbands.”

           Lauren observes that, relative to other areas of the U.S. where she has lived (e.g. Seattle, WA), the Chinese community in Nashville is “pretty [politically] conservative” and shares her attitude that gun ownership is a right. She thinks anti-Asian hate crimes are “not bad in Nashville, but it’s been heightened since COVID,” and that consequently has raised her sense of awareness and urgency to do something to protect herself. For now, however, she is not looking to purchase a firearm.

           When asked about the recent mass shootings in California, Lauren describes them as “a little different” compared to other mass shootings in America. She believes that gun control alone is not the solution to these mass shootings, that it is also about the “mental part.” Lauren thinks that the main underlying issue of gun violence in America is the unresolved mental health issues that are currently prevalent in society, and that a lot of times people promote gun control because it seems like the easier solution. But, according to Lauren, mental health issues are hard to solve, and there may not be an easy solution to gun violence in America:

“Guns are like fire, they can be damaging, but it all depends on how they’re used. In my experience, the longer they [Chinese Americans] live in this country, the more they realize the importance of owning a gun. Gun ownership is not inherent in Chinese culture. So the first reaction really is: no, we don’t need a gun. But Americans, they view [gun] ownership very differently, just read the Constitution! If they [Chinese Americans] stay here long enough and understand the Bill of Rights, a lot of them are pro-gun ownership here. It’s just that the emotional hurdle for me is too great, and as a woman, I have less access and knowledge to guns.”