Desired US Government Policy

The US government’s official position on Taiwan should be fully supportive of the Taiwanese right of self determination via referendum by all Taiwanese.

List of gaps listed from brainstorming session

We worked to group these by affinity.

Cultural Confusion:
Too many Taiwanese living in US call themselves Chinese.
Can't tell the difference between Taiwanese and Chinese.
People don't know Taiwan is not China
American's think Taiwan is Thailand, confused on where Taiwan is.
No famous Taiwanese author
Knowledge of Taiwan lacking
People think Thai people are from Taiwan
Don't know where Taiwan is
Lack of understanding by Americans about Taiwan - Cultural differences between Chinese and Taiwanese, Historical differences, Ethic differences, Political differences, Even can include here other Taiwanese-Americans

Lack of Unity:
Distraction by infighting among Taiwanese over items that do not serve to further the real purpose of Taiwan self-determination.
Short term thinking and vision - not looking at the long term

Financial Support:
Less financial support
Only care about money
Money buys Taiwanese
China has too much money and power
Taiwanese lack financial power

US Citizen Support:
US Government officials lie
Need more letters to Obama & congress about Taiwan issues
Lack of participation by American Taiwanese in political process
Lack of support for Taiwan from American citizens (perhaps mostly due to lack of understanding)
Too few people care

A-List Support:
Lack of celebrity support
Not enough Taiwanese influence in high society

History:
Lack of knowledge of Taiwan's history
Americans don't know Taiwan history
Do not know geographic or military importance of Taiwan
Taiwan is too small
No understanding of historical differences between Taiwan and China
Taiwanese people need to learn more about human rights (education)
Public believes historical errors
Lack of understanding of Taiwanese historical cultural
Public thinks since Taiwan is a democracy, Taiwanese already choose KMT meaning they choose to unify

No Guts, No Glory:
Taiwanese are not demanding, too timid
Taiwanese love to be ruled by others
Don't want to be discriminated against, even though they don't like Chinese
Need for a shining star, someone who can really lead Taiwanese to stand up for Taiwan
Need for a leader to stand up for what they believe
Taiwanese lack of inner strength and confidence in self
Taiwanese have no guts
Inability to articulate the Taiwan story or issue
Taiwanese cannot be shy; be proud of your country and culture

Human Rights:
Fundamentals of human rights
Figure out how to connect Taiwan & Tibet human rights due to large number of people supporting Tibet already
Politicizing what is a human rights issue
Human rights demoted for political or economic expediency

Pro-KMT/China Influence:
Influence on media by so-called "China experts" or "China hands" who are either purposely pro-China or simply ignorant of Taiwan history
Pro-China supporters control of mainstream media in propagating historical inaccuracies
Control or infiltration into both Taiwanese and Asian social groups by pro-China forces
Influence on media and US Government by American companies doing business with China to denigrate Taiwan self-determination
Breaking the pro-Chinese ideology
China
American citizen's not knowing the threats to Taiwan from China
Lack of media knowledge or attention on Taiwan
Lack of pro-Taiwan influence on media
Lack of deep media contacts and relationships with media
Lack of support by other countries