Afghan National Police Dari: پولیس ملی افغانستان Pashto: د افغانستان ملي پولیس
Abbreviation	ANP
Coat of Arms of the Afghan National Police
Agency overview
Formed	1747
Employees	126,000 (May 2011)[1]
Legal personality	Governmental: Government agency
Jurisdictional structure
National agency	Afghanistan
General nature	Law enforcement Local civilian police
Operational structure
Headquarters	Kabul, Afghanistan
Agency executive	Bismillah Khan Mohammadi, Minster of the Interior

The Afghan National Police - ANP (Pashto: د افغانستان ملي پولیس - Persian: پلیس ملی افغانستان‎) is the primary national police force in Afghanistan. It serves as a single law enforcement agency all across the country. The Afghan police force was first created with the establishment of the Afghan nation in the early 18th century. The agency is under the responsibility of Afghanistan's Ministry of Interior, headed by Bismillah Khan Mohammadi.

The current Afghan National Police was established after the removal of the Taliban government in late 2001. It receives funding, training and equipment from NATO states. Various local and Federal government employees from the United States as well as Germany's Bundespolizei (BPOL), the United Kingdom's Ministry of Defence Police provided most of the training.

In 2002, the EU-led mission (EUPOL Afghanistan) was heading the civilian policing in the Kabul area but by 2005 the United States established training programs in all the provinces of Afghanistan. The Afghan National Police had about 126,000 active members in May 2011, which is expected to reach 160,000 by 2014.^[1] More recently, the Afghan government, with persuasion from NATO, has employed local police forces known as Arbakai or Afghan Local Police (ALP).

History[link]

The modern Afghan police force has its origins to the Hotaki and Durrani Empire in the early 18th century, and over the centuries it was slowly modernized. The agency remained in existence throughout the Afghan Civil War and Soviet occupation that began in 1978/79 until Kabul fell in 1992 to the insurgents; the country descended into chaos and anarchy and then came under the heel of the Taliban, who enforced a primitive and barbaric justice. After the collapse of the Taliban regime in late 2001, there was little in the nation resembling a functional police department as private armed militias of warlords quickly filled yet again the vacuum left behind by a lack of central governance. The Ministry of Interior in Kabul, under the new Karzai government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, exercised little control over provincial police structures and was unable to effectively secure the remote provinces. Most of these problems were established after the Fall of Kabul in 1992, when the Soviet-backed government of Najibullah fell apart and the country entered into anarchy and chaos. From 1978 to 1992 the Afghan police had firm control over the country, much thanks to the Soviet Union and other factors related to the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan or the Soviet war in the country.^[2] Traditionally, police officers were poorly paid, recruited or conscripted from the poorest classes of society and frequently held in contempt by the communities they served. Compounding these factors, over two decades of unrest had also resulted in an illiteracy rate conservatively estimated at over 70% for police recruits.

Coat of Arms of the Afghan National Police with English Text

Although early efforts had trained 35,000 officers in basic recruit schools during 2003 and 2004, this training was insufficient to strengthen the structures and senior command levels needed to create an effective police force. Germany, as lead nation for police under the Bonn II Agreement, concentrated its efforts on setting up the Kabul Police Academy and drafted the long range blueprint for restructuring the police services. Except for Konduz Province which had a Provisional Reconstruction Team (PRT), Germany’s program had only limited reach into the provinces. As the U.S. Department of State International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs Bureau’s (INL) activity at this time was limited in resources and scope, the U.S. Departments of Defense and State, in Spring 2005, decided to shift the implementation of the police training and equipment program to the Office of Security Cooperation-Afghanistan (OSC-A), under the authority of the Commanding General, Combined Forces Command (CFC-A). In April 2006 OSC-A became the Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan (CSTC-A) keeping the OSC-A mission.

ANP commander marching to greet distinguished visitors at the Afghan National Police Academy (ANPA) in 2010.

The 2005 changes led to an increased impetus to implement significant reform programs, particularly the reform of higher staff levels at the Ministry of the Interior, the placement of police mentors throughout the country, substantial pay increases in the police salary plan and an impending, complete restructuring of the police payroll system. A nationwide reassessment of infrastructure and equipment needs was also undertaken, followed with the distribution of critically needed weapons, ammunition, vehicles, and office/dorm furniture. Although progress has been made in the areas of infrastructure, equipment and payroll distribution, these programs will take some time to reach fruition.

In the late 2000s the number of ANP officers getting killed in the line of duty jumped very sharply, with over 1,600 officers being killed in the years 2008 and 2009. Afghan officials estimate that over 100 police officers are killed in the line of duty each month.^[3] See List of Afghan security forces fatality reports in Afghanistan

In September 2011, Human Rights Watch (HRW) released an investigation report claiming that some members of the Afghan Local Police (ALP) were getting away with serious abuses including rape and murder.^[4] In January 2012, one ANP from Paktia and two from Logar were arrested for kidnapping children. The police confessed to the crime, while one of the kidnapped boys said, "I received a phone call from the policemen who introduced themselves as my friends. They offered me a ride. I went unconscious after they dragged me into a car."^[5]

In early 2012, the Ministry of Interior provided 300 armoured vehicles to the 1st border police brigade stationed around the porous Durand Line, in Nangarhar province. Col. Mohammad Ayub Hussainkhel, the 3rd Border Police Brigade Commander, said "the border police are now capable of maintaining better security for the Durand Line and to prevent infiltration of militants into the province from Pakistan."^[6] In February 2012, the United States promised that it would support the government of Afghanistan to protect its sovereignty and effectively control its borders.^[7] At a 2012 meeting with Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt in Chicago, U.S. President Barack Obama said, "We are going to be consulting with not only Denmark but our other allies in making sure that is a smooth transition and one that is sustained, where we continue to help the Afghan government support its own sovereignty and effectively control its borders."^[8]

Structure[link]

David Petraeus from the United States with Interior Minister of Afghanistan, Bismillah Khan Mohammadi.

Afghan Border Police (ABP) at Islam Qala in western Herat Province.

Afghan Highway Police (AHP)

The Afghan National Police (ANP) is an organization that falls under the control and responsibility of the Afghan Ministry of Interior, along with the Counter-Narcotics Police of Afghanistan (CNPA) and the Counter Terrorism Department. The ANP is composed of the following sub-agencies:

1. Afghan Border Police
2. Afghan Uniform Police
3. Afghan Highway Police
4. Criminal Investigation Department

Afghan Border Police[link]

The Afghan Border Police (ABP) are responsible for securing the borders and airports of Afghanistan against the illegal entry of persons as well as the smuggling of contraband. As of January 2011, there are at least 25 U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection officers providing training to the Afghan Border Police. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano stated that the number could reach 65 or more by the end of 2011. Napolitano visited the Torkham border crossing with Pakistan and was satisfied with the progress being made there.^[9][10] The ABP specific duties include the following:

• Provide border security patrols within a security zone that extends 55 km into the territory of Afghanistan.
• Provide immigration / visa services and investigate immigration violations.
• Establish and maintain Border Crossing Points, to include all international airports.
• Provide perimeter, building, aircraft and passenger security of international airports.

Afghan Uniform Police[link]

The Afghan Uniform Police (AUP) is the primary civil law enforcement agency in Afghanistan. The ANP is divided into five regional commands (north, south, east, west and central) as well as the Afghan National Civil Order Police, or ANCOP. Other forces falling under the command and control of the ANP include local traffic police departments as well as the fire department.

• Afghan National Civil Order Police (ANCOP)

Afghan Highway Police[link]

The Afghan Highway Police (AHP) was a sub-department of the national police that is currently dissolved with only speculation of return. Their primary responsibility was to provide traffic safety and overall security of the "Ring Road" highway that connects most of the major population centers in Afghanistan. Most of the personnel, equipment and facilities that comprise the highway police were reorganized under the uniform police.

Criminal Investigation Department[link]

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) is staffed with 4148 investigators spread over the nation with the majority in Kabul. They are tasked with investigation, crime scene forensic procedures, documentation of crime, and assisting other agencies to include assistance through the crime lab housed at the Ministry of Interior.

Facilities[link]

ANP cadets eating at the Kabul training center Student Dining Facility

It was reported in 2010 that the United States Army Corps of Engineers is building nearly 200 modern police stations for the Afghan National Police. The total cost of the project was reported to be over $600 million US dollars, and each police station is said to cost about $6 million. The project should be completed in 2012.^[11]

The Main ANP Training Facility in Kabul was established by the German police mission and is now led by the United States.

Regional ANP Training Facilities have been established in:

• Wardak (led by ISAF)
• Gardez (led by USA)
• Kandahar (led by USA)
• Herat (led by Italy)
• Mazar-e-Sharif (led by Germany)
• Khost (led by USA)

Rank Structure[link]

New graduates sitting at the Afghan Ministry of Interior in 2012

Female ANP officers stands at attention during a pass and review formation before the start of the International Women's Day ceremony at the Ministry of Interior in Kabul on March 4, 2010.

General Officers[link]

• Colonel General
• Lieutenant General
• Major General
• Brigadier

Officers[link]

• Colonel
• Lieutenant Colonel
• Major
• Staff Captain
• Captain
• First Lieutenant
• Second Lieutenant
• Third Lieutenant

Non-Commissioned and Enlisted[link]

• Staff Sergeant
• Sergeant
• First Corporal
• Corporal
• Soldier^[12]

Rank Disparities

Some ranks are known by several names. These disparities are most-likely caused through different translations from Dari to western languages as well as being interpreted differently by inherently unrelated agencies such as the U.S. military versus the German Police. The role of the "sergeant", or noncommissioned officer, is not well developed and is often overlooked by the prestige associated with being a regular, or commissioned, officer (lieutenant or higher). This lack of emphasis on the subordinate ranks has also stunted the clear definition of ranks as well as their roles and responsibilities.

The ranks of 3rd Lieutenant and Senior Captain are being phased out after the Ministry of Interior underwent a Rank Reform process in which they eliminated a disproportionate amount of senior-ranking officers within the police. These ranks are believed to have served as a way to better distinguish and balance out an extremely top-heavy leadership corps.

Known Alternative Titles

Rank Reform

Brig. Gen. Ahmed Fahim Qayem, commander of the Central Unit, Police Zone 101.

The original formation of police and security forces saw an overwhelming majority of senior-ranking personnel due to disorganization and corruption. It was not uncommon to find someone holding a senior rank, such as lieutenant colonel, possessing minimal qualifications or having little to no responsibilities for a rank of that stature. It was a period of total mismanagement that allowed people to use bribery and other forms of influence to gain prominent positions in the national police force. It was soon evident that the organization was “top heavy” and thus ineffective in conducting the daily duties expected of the police. Furthermore, many leaders inside the Ministry of Interior were guilty of human rights violations and other forms of blackmail and corruption. There was an obvious need to reorganize and repair this broken ministry.

Police commander Azizullah aiming a modified AMD-65 in the Paktika Province.

MOI began a Rank Reform initiative in October 2005 to completely overhaul and replace it’s existing leadership structure and composition. The United Nations and ISAF forces conducted background checks on all eligible candidates in attempt to thwart the acceptance of MOI leaders with past human rights violations or records of corruption. Concurrent with rank reform, salary reform was also implemented to match their pay with that of their equivalent counterparts in the Afghan National Army who had been receiving higher pay from their inception.

Despite rank and pay reform, it is still very common to see a disproportionate level of senior-ranking officers within the police force. Although these officers have been "reformed" and their rank and pay adjusted to "sergeant", for example, they will still wear the rank of "captain", or whatever they feel is appropriate, in an effort to retain more authority. Corruption, bribery and treason are also still very common in the national police.

Widespread corruption in all levels of the ANP has long been a major problem for the combating of the Taliban insurgency. Taliban fighters of both high and low rank have been able to quickly buy their release from police custody with bribes ranging from $100–$10,000.^[13] Drug use, defections to the Taliban and sexual harassment of female officers is also widespread within the ANP.^[14] Due to the high level of corruption, the Afghan government sends the relatively un-corrupted Afghan National Army to more sensitive scenarios. The level of corruption has resulted in decreased monetary support of the National Police and increased monetary support of the National Army on the part of international donors.

Equipment[link]

ANP Ford Ranger

ANP with riot gear at the Ghazi Stadium in Kabul

The primary vehicle of the ANP is the four-wheel drive, diesel, 4-door Ford Ranger (and Ranger SORVs), provided by the thousands from the United States. Other vehicles include Humvees, diesel-powered variants of the U.S. consumer Nissan Frontiers, Toyota Hilux pickup trucks exported from Thailand, and Volkswagen Transporter T4/Eurovans, as well as Yamaha motorcycles donated by Japan. Older vehicles, like the UAZ-469 all-terrain vehicle, were obtained from the Soviet Union.

Weapons[link]

• Smith & Wesson Sigma 9mm
• AMD 65 assault rifles
• AK-47 assault rifles
• Vz. 58 assault rifles
• Rocket-propelled grenade systems

Uniforms and body armor sometimes mis-matched and poorly distributed. Most police personnel are issued at least one uniform that is traded out for warmer/cooler uniforms depending on the season. It is common to find a varying array of blue, green and gray uniforms amongst the police due to different manufacturers and the rapid growing of the force with many people joining. Some police have resorted to having their own uniforms custom made. Body armor and helmets are seldom given to individual soldiers and are often given out on an as-needed basis. The composition of this equipment varies between American, Russian and Chinese military grade equipment to 3rd party equipment that provides little-to-no real protection. Plans to upgrade weapons and uniform are being drafted by the Afghan government. Typically the ANP badge is worn on one shoulder and the Afghanistan flag on the other.

In August 2010, an order was placed for 2,526 M1152A1 Humvees with B2 armor kits, for the Afghan police and National Guard.^[15]

Current status[link]

In May 2011, the number of the Afghan National Police was 126,000 and is expected to reach 160,000 by the end of 2014.^[1]

See also[link]

• Afghanistan Police Program
• Ring of Steel (Kabul)

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Afghan National Police

• Official site
• NATO Training Mission-Afghanistan

Afghan American

Zalmay Khalilzad • Lina Rozbih Khaled Hosseini • Ali Ahmad Jalali
Total population
300.000 [1]
Regions with significant populations
West Coast (California), Northeast (Virginia), South (Florida)
Languages
American English, Pashto, Dari (Persian), Uzbek, and other languages of Afghanistan
Religion
Predominantly Muslim

An Afghan American refers to an American with heritage or origins in Afghanistan.

History and population[link]

Afghan Americans have a long history of immigrating to the United States, as they may have arrived as early as the 1920s.^[2] Due to the political borders at that time period, some of these Afghan immigrants may have been ethnic Pashtuns from British India (present-day Pakistan) or Afghanistan.^[2] Wallace Fard Muhammad, credited for being the founder of the Nation of Islam, may have been from Afghanistan. World War I draft registration card for Wallace Dodd Ford from 1917 indicated he was living in Los Angeles, California, as an unmarried restaurant owner, and reported that he was born in Shinka, Afghanistan in 1893.^[3] During the 1930s and 1940s, well-educated Afghans entered America.^[2] Between 1953 and early 1970, at least 230 migrated into the United States.^[2] Some of those who entered the US were students who won scholarships to study in American universities. After the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, around five million Afghan citizens decided to leave their country to immigrate or seek refuge in other countries. These Afghan refugees mostly settled in neighboring Pakistan and Iran, and from there many made it to the European Union, North America, Australia, and else where in the world.

Those who were granted asylums in the United States began to settle in California (mainly the Los Angeles-Orange County area and San Francisco Bay Area) and in the Northeastern United States, where large Muslim community centers keep them closely bonded. Fremont, California, is home to the largest population of Afghan Americans in the U.S.^[4] Smaller Afghan American communities also exist in the states of Texas, Illinois, Florida, Washington and elsewhere.

According to the United States Census Bureau, there were approximately 65,972 Afghan-Americans living in the country in 2006. According to the Embassy of Afghanistan in Washington, DC, the over-all Afghan population in the United States in 2011 is around 300,000.^[5] While 30,000 reside in Northern Virginia, approximately 65,000 Afghans comprise the diaspora community based in the San Francisco Bay Area.^[5] Some figures estimate that there may only be about 80,000 Afghan-Americans but the actual number may be 200,000^[6] to as high as 300,000.^[5] Nevertheless, such higher figures may be an exaggeration, as a recent census of 2001 found approximately 9,000 of Afghan ancestry living in New York metro area, considerably lower than the 20,000 regularly cited.^[7] Although, the 300,000 figure is a commonly accepted number. Flushing, Queens has a substantial amount of Afghan Americans^{[citation needed]}.

Culture[link]

Hazrati Abu Bakr Siddique in Flushing, Queens, New York City.

Although the majority of Afghans have assimilated into the American way of life, some migrants from Afghanistan have attempted to not assimilate into American culture as they have valued their traditional culture even after several generations. Afghan Americans value their oral tradition of story telling. The stories they tell are about Nasreddin, history, myths and religion.^[2]

Afghan Americans celebrate August 19 in the United States as "Afghan Day" or "Afghanistan Day", it is the day that their former nation had won the war against the British in 1919. Smaller festivals are held in cities that have Afghan communities, usually at the parks where black, red and green colored Afghan flags are spotted around cars.^[8]

Religious background[link]

The overwhelming majority of Afghan Americans are Muslim, which includes the majority Sunni and the Shia minority of Islam. There is a small community of Afghan Jews in New York City, numbering about 200 families^[9]

Economic status[link]

While the early immigrants were well-educated, the subsequent waves of migrants have not been as educated.^[2] The first immigrants came to the US by choice and were well-educated.^[2] In contrast, current immigrants have fled Afghanistan after it destabilized during the Soviet occupation as this group has had trouble coping with learning a new language.^[2] Those who have pursued their education in America in the middle 20th century and traveled back to Afghanistan, faced trouble attaining employment when returning back to the US since their education, often in medicine and engineering, is frequently viewed as outdated.^[2] After the Soviet invasion, Afghanistan's education system worsened, causing many migrants in the late 20th century to place less emphasize on educational attainment.^[2]

In almost every Afghan American household someone is attending or has graduated college. A sizable number of Afghan Americans who do not seek higher education often enter into food industry, mainly in running Afghan cuisine restaurants and fast food establishments such as Kennedy Chicken.^[10] The newcomers to America can be sometimes found vending coffee and bagels in Manhattan where they have replaced Greek Americans in the field.^[11]

Notable Afghan Americans[link]

Zalmay Khalilzad presents George W. Bush an Afghan ballot from the 2004 presidential election in Afghanistan.

Khaled Hosseini at the White House in 2007, with Bush and Laura Bush.

Politics and academia[link]

• Zalmay Khalilzad - United States Ambassador to the United Nations from 2007 to 2009. He previously served as United States Ambassador to Afghanistan and United States Ambassador to Iraq.
• Ali Ahmad Jalali - Distinguished Professor at the National Defense University in Washington, D.C.
• Ishaq Shahryar - Afghan Ambassador to the United States from 2002 to 2003
• Said Tayeb Jawad - Ambassador of Afghanistan to the United States from 2003 to 2010
• Nazif Shahrani - Professor of anthropology at Indiana University

Business and finance[link]

• Quayum Karzai - Brother of Afghan President Hamid Karzai and owner of Afghan cuisine. restaurants in the Southern California and Baltimore–Washington Metropolitan Area.
• Mahmoud Karzai - Brother of Afghan President Hamid Karzai and owner of Afghan cuisine restaurant.
• Fauzia Karzai - Sister of Afghan President Hamid Karzai and manager of Helmand restaurant in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
• Ehsan Bayat - Business entrepreneur who founded Afghan Wireless.
• Abdul W. Haqiqi - Economist and co-author of a number of published and cited works concerning Islamic banking accounting standards.
• Baktash Khadem Zaher - Founder and CEO of Paramount Business Jets, Graduate of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.^[12]

Literature[link]

• Khaled Hosseini - Famous author, his work includes the Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns
• Tamim Ansary - Author of West of Kabul, East of New York, a book published in 2001, shorty after the "9-11" attacks.
• Fariba Nawa - Journalist

Media and art[link]

Vida Zaher-Khadem and Baktash Zaher-Khadem worked on the movie FireDancer.

• Anwar Hajher - Filmmaker who directed 16 Days in Afghanistan, a documentary about life after the Taliban.
• Mithaq Kazimi - Filmmaker, producer of 16 Days in Afghanistan
• Jawed Wassel - Writer/Director of first Afghan Oscar contender Feature Film called FireDancer.
• Azita Ghanizada - Actress and TV host, she appeared in a number of films and TV shows
• Nabil Miskinyar - Television anchor
• Lina Rozbih - News anchor at Voice of America's TV Ashna
• Zakia Kohzad - former Afghan actress and news anchor
• Youssof Kohzad - Artist, Poet, Painter and Actor

Afghan music singers[link]

Farhad Darya

• Ehsan Aman - Artist and music composer of Afghan music
• Farhad Darya - Singer of Afghan music
• Naim Popal - Singer of Afghan music
• Ahmad Wali - Singer of Afghan music
• Haidar Salim - Singer of Afghan music
• Rahim Jahani - Singer of Afghan music
• Mariam Wafa - Singer of Afghan music
• Jawad Ghaziyar - Singer of Afghan music

Beauty Queens[link]

• Vida Samadzai - Beauty for a Cause of Miss Earth 2003
• Zohra Daoud - Miss Afghanistan 1974

Afghan royalty[link]

• Crown Prince Ahmad Shah Khan - Former Crown Prince of Afghanistan and current pretender to the throne
• Prince Muhammad Zahir Khan - Son of Ahmad Shah Khan, Hereditary Prince of Afghanistan
• Prince Muhammad Emel Khan - Son of Ahmad Shah Khan
• Princess Hawa Khanum - Daughter of Ahmad Shah Khan
• Princess Khatul Begum - Wife of Ahmad Shah Khan, Crown Princess of Afghanistan

Other[link]

• Zahira Zahir - Sister of Afghan singer Ahmad Zahir
• Rishad Zahir - Son of Afghan singer Ahmad Zahir

Relationship[link]

After 9/11, a mosque run by Afghan-Americans in Flushing, New York, donated blood, held a vigil for World Trade Center deceased and funded a memorial for the fire fighters.^[13] Since late 2001, after the U.S. war in Afghanistan, large numbers of Afghan-Americans work for the U.S. government as translators and others. Many of them lost their lives in the war, the same way US soldiers have.

Victims of hate crimes[link]

Around the time of 9-11 an individual went on a shooting rampage in Mesa, Arizona, where he shot at a home owned by an Afghan-American.^[14] Additionally, vandals defaced an Afghan restaurant with red liquid intended to appear as blood.^[15] Moreover, the Afghan Mission to the UN received a letter that contained quotes from Osama Bin Laden along with a dried pig's ear.^[15]

In more recent acts, Alia Ansari, a mother of six children, was shot dead in California on October 20, 2006, an incident which the victim's family and local leaders deemed a hate crime.^[16][17] While wearing her hijab, Ansari was gunned down in front of her children. The incident eventually led to local politicians to call November 13 "wear-the-hijab-day".^[18]

Other Afghan-Americans, like U.S. Air Force veteran Mustafa Aziz, have faced long delays in obtaining their US citizenship. The ACLU consequently filed a lawsuit and accused government officials of improperly delaying background checks and allowing applications to linger indefinitely.^[19] In 2006, the ACLU claimed victory as Aziz ultimately received his citizenship.^[20]

See also[link]

• Afghanistan – United States relations
• Demography of Afghanistan
• Culture of Afghanistan
• Afghan diaspora

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Afghan Americans

• The Afghan Diaspora
• Afghan-American Chamber of Commerce
• Afghan-American Youth Council
• Karzai Speaks to Afghan-Americans in Speech at Georgetown (2002)
• 'Little Kabul' immigrants apprehensive (2001)
• In Va.'s Little Kabul, Joy; Afghans' Celebration Tempered by Fears Of Renewed Division
• Afghan American Demographics

v t e Afghan diaspora Asia India Iran Pakistan Tajikistan United Arab Emirates Europe Germany Netherlands Turkey United Kingdom Elsewhere Australia (Pashtun) Canada United States See also Pashtun diaspora Hazara diaspora

v t e Asian Americans East Asian Chinese (Tibetan1) Japanese Korean Mongolian Taiwanese South Asian2 Bangladeshi Indian Indo-Caribbean Nepalese Pakistani Sri Lankan Tamil Southeast Asian Burmese Cambodian Filipino Hmong Indonesian Laotian Mien Singaporean Thai Vietnamese Other Afro-Asian Amerasian Asian Hispanic and Latino Americans Eurasian Multiracial American Punjabi Mexican History General Immigration Military Topics Arts and Entertainment Demographics Politics Stereotypes 1 The US Census Bureau reclassifies anyone identifying as "Tibetan American" as "Chinese American".[5] 2 The US Census Bureau considers Afghanistan a South Asian country, but does not classify Afghan Americans as Asian.[6]