The State of California alone accounts for one-third of the total Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander population in the nation, collectively, numbering almost 5 million and representing one in seven Californians. The largest population concentrations are in the San Francisco Bay Area and in the greater Los Angeles area.
Asian Americans represent over 13% of the total California population and include: Chinese; Filipino; Southeast Asian (Vietnamese, Cambodian, Laotian, Hmong); South Asian (Asian Indian, Pakistani); Indonesian; Japanese; Korean; Taiwanese; Thai; Other Asian.
Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders represent 0.6% of the total California population and include: Native Hawaiian; Guamanian or Chamorro; Samoan; Tongan; Other Pacific Islander.
AAs and NHPIs are often portrayed as model minorities who are self-sufficient and hardworking groups that have overcome barriers to social mobility and wellness. However, this cultural stereotype masks the documented health disparities and social and economic differences across AA and NHPI subgroups.