Final Exam
In Asian American Politics: Law, Participation, and Policy, Nakanishi and Lai discuss the growing APA (Asian Pacific American) population and the challenges of constructing and maintaining "pan-ethnic coalitions" among APAs. In Race, Rights, and the Asian American Experience, Angelo Ancheta (both in the preface and introduction) discuss the concept of “Asian” and “Asian American.”). Also, see class lecture for further elaboration.
(In the recommended readings, Asian American Politics by Aoki & Takeda, (Chapter 2), one of your required texts, the authors discuss the concept of "ethnicity," "pan-ethnicity" and "identity.")
By incorporating the first lecture on the history of ethnic studies and Asian American studies, as well as APA historical timelines, discuss the important role of understanding what it means to be Asian American or Asian Pacific American (APA) as a "pan-ethnic group." How does being part of a larger "pan-ethnic" group enhance and assist Asian Pacific Americans? How does it minimize or hinder Asian Pacific Americans?
Incorporate your own personal ancestry (whether you are of Asian ancestry, Pacific Islander ancestry or not) into how the organization of "ethnicity" and "pan-ethnicity" as well as your "ethnic identity" (and"pan-ethnic" identity) inform and influence how you understand yourself *and* how you understand what it means to be Asian Pacific American (Asian American, Pacific Islander) in the United States. What is "ethnicity?" How is it different from or connected to "race?" What is "pan-ethnicity?" Are APA's an ethnic group? racial group? pan-ethnic group? What is the difference between (if any) being part of an ethnic group, being part of a pan-ethnic group, being part of a race, *and* having an ethnic identity? What are the similarities (if any) of being part of an ethnic group, being part of a pan-ethnic group, being part of a race, *and* having an ethnic identity? Give examples about yourself or others you know. They can be personal examples or examples of others you know (or from the media). Support your positions. When stating opinions, they must be "informed opinions." Be sure they can be supported with logic, reason, and evidence
LECTURE #1
Disclaimer:
"Asian Pacific American" is a broad & diverse "pan-ethnic" group that spans many ethnicities, racialized groups, national origins, socioeconomic backgrounds, political ideologies, religions, sexual orientations, incorporation experiences (i.e. immigrant, refugee, slave, indigenous status, etc.) We won't be able to cover every single Asian/Pacific Islander ethnic group and all of the layers of complexity within and across each of them. However, if and when there are opportunities to incorporate APA gender/women issues not specifically covered in lectures or readings, let's see if you and/or I can incorporate them into our discussions. This is one of the challenges and difficulties when addressing such a diverse and complex group such as "APAs."
*Ethnicity* & *Pan-ethnicity*
Ethnicity: is when human beings are grouped together based on a shared history, culture and ancestry, as well as a sense of peoplehood and consciousness of kind (and originally geographic location). Most social scientists have illustrated that "ethnicity" is a categorization and boundary demarcation that the group itself constructs, negotiates and develops as an inclusionary measure (unlike "race" which is an exclusionary process).
From Dina Okamoto & G. Cristina Mora in "Panethnicity," Annual Review of Sociology (Vol. 40: 219-239 (Volume publication date July 2014):
"Panethnicity has become a significant form of identification across the globe. Categories, such as Latino and Asian American, but also identities, such as Yoruba and European, have been embraced by a growing number of individuals and institutions. In this article, we focus on three main issues: panethnic identification, the conditions under which panethnic categories are constructed, and recent directions in the field. We argue that panethnicity is characterized by a unique tension inherent in maintaining subgroup distinctions while generating a broader sense of solidarity. This tension distinguishes panethnicity as a form of ethnic expression because it places questions of subgroup diversity and cultural legitimacy at the forefront. As such, the study of panethnicity encourages researchers to take intragroup dynamics seriously and explore how conflicts between subgroups are often negotiated or muted in ethnic mobilization and categorization processes. We call for more research that moves beyond the US case study design and makes panethnic processes explicit in international research on race, ethnicity, and nationalism."
Panethnicity has allowed for Asian Americans to unite based on similar historical relations with the US, such as US military presence in their native country. The Asian American panethnic identity has evolved to become a means for immigrant groups such as Asian Americans to unite in order to gain political strength in numbers.
From Wikipedia (not the best academic source):
Panethnic labels are often, though not always, created and employed by outsiders of the group that is being defined panethnically. Mainstream institutions and political policies often play a big role in the labeling of panethnic groups. They often enact policies that deal with specific groups of people, and panethnic groups are one way to group large numbers of people. Public policy might dole out resources or make deals with multiple groups, viewing them all as one large entity.
In the case of "Hispanics/Latinos", their categorization into a panethnicity is applied irrespective of the country of origin (such as Mexican (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site., Peruvian (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site., Argentine (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site., Dominican (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site., Spaniard (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site., etc.) or the racial (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. origins (white (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site., mestizo (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site., mulatto (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site., black (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site., Amerindian (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.) of those people grouped into the "Hispanic/Latino" panethnicity.
Other US examples include the labeling of all people from not only East Asia (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. and South Asia (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. as Asian Americans (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site., or (reflecting the so-called "one-drop rule") all people with any degree (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. of sub-Saharan African (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.descent (even if predominantly of European (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. or other ancestries) as African American (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site., and all indigenous American tribes as a collective Native American (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. "ethnicity" with the implication that they represent one people with a single shared identity.
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For more details, see Yen Le Espiritu's work:
In 1992, Professor Yen Le Espiritu from UC San Diego wrote extensively about "Asian American Pan-Ethnicity." The framework of "pan-ethnicity" has been and can be applied to other groups such as Latinos, Native Americans, etc.
So now, let's begin by understanding Asian American Studies & contextualizing the legal history of APAs within the field of ethnic studies/Asian American studies.
What is Asian American Studies/Ethnic Studies? Why is it important?
Before we begin critically examining and discussing the social realities and histories of Asian Pacific American (APA) women this, I wanted to put the study of APA women and APA people in general into the *context* of ethnic studies & Asian American studies. This lecture is a little background information for you:
WHAT IS AAS?
Some of you may have been paying attention to ethnic studies (in Arizona in particular) and Asian American studies (in Los Angeles [CSULA] in particular) in the news lately. Asian American studies is part of an interdisciplinary field of studies that directly stems from the civil rights movement and the “ethnic power” movements. California was a “hot bed” for the kind of awareness, consciousness, collective action and activism that brought rise to this field. Asian American studies, like all ethnic studies, examined power relations of racialized, ethnic groups in the U.S., explored transnational relations between ancestral countries of origin and their structural links to the “American” experiences, and connected what was taught in the classroom to the ethnic communities outside of the university. “Giving back to the community” and “drawing linkages with our communities” became integral, critical aspects of ethnic studies’ scholarship.
Today, ethnic studies is at the forefront of examining the interconnected, interstructured nature of race, ethnicity, class, gender, sexual orientation, and other group identities/statuses, as well as incorporating global/transnational studies, diasporic studies, post-colonial, post-modern, post-structural theories. Most ethnic studies’ scholars are trained in single disciplines views as “more traditional” such as the social sciences, humanities, and applied fields.
San Francisco State University (then San Francisco State College) was the first campus in which a multiracial/multiethnic coalition of students organized the first “student strike” in 1968. The Third World Liberation Front (TWLF), a coalition of It is the longest student strike in U.S. history. A year latter, UC-Berkeley, UC-Santa Barbara, UCLA, CSU-Northridge (then-San Fernando Valley College) , CSU-Fresno, etc. followed.
Asian American studies emerges in the context of civil rights, ethnic/racial power movements, anti-war movement, free speech movement, women’s movement, etc. The “bottom-up” origins of this academic discipline which questioned the role of the university itself continues to inform and shape the field. Students demanded universities to offer courses that examined the social histories, realities, lives, stories of Native Americans, African Americans, Chicanos/Latinos, Asian Americans, etc. Following this ethnic/racial power movements within the universities across California and the nation, Euro-American groups (Irish Americans, Italian Americans, working class whites, etc.) began rethinking and re-imagining their social positions within U.S. “racialized” society. Many social scientists refer to this Euro-American experience more as “symbolic ethnicity” or “emergent ethnicity” because the reasons for “ethnicity” in the lives of Euro-Americans seemed (historically & contemporarily) to differ qualitatively and structurally than for “racialized,” minority groups or “people of color.” “Whiteness studies” examines the oppositionalized “dominant” racial position occupied by those who fit within the socially constructed category of “white” in U.S. society. "Whiteness studies" is basically the corollary to ethnic studies. Scholars like Peggy McIntosh and Tim Wise (we'll be reading their work) have been pioneers in "Whiteness studies."
AAS & Ethnic Studies at CSUN:
Asian American studies at CSUN has a very interesting and unique history. The department is a benefactor of ethnic studies activism and movements by previous generations. In the 1980s, Asian American students and individual faculty (both part-time and full-time) at CSUN began meeting regularly to talk about teaching classes on Asian American history and identity. Black studies (known at CSUN as Pan-African studies) and Chicana/o studies had already well-established themselves by the 1980s when students and faculty were discussing adding Asian American studies to the mix. One of the first classes to be taught on Asian Americans from an ethnic studies’ perspective was in Anthropology by Dr. Laura Uba, a psychologist! Students like Gary Mayeda and Tony Osumi, who both work in Asian American communities today, were at the forefront pushing CSUN’s administration for more courses.Dr. Gordon Nakagawa (in Communications) and Dr. George Uba (in English) were also active along with Dr. Laura Uba to form a more coherent program. In 1990, Dr. Bob Suzuki, former Academic Affairs Vice President, leaves CSUN. As a parting gift to CSUN, with a stroke of a pen, creates the Department of Asian American Studies. And then, the development and growth of the department begins. The events that took place at CSUN are similar to other programs and departments. However, by the 1980s, ethnic studies was a well-established field and precedents were set. Though ethnic studies was not always welcomed at CSUN, today, ethnic studies holds an important place in CSUN’s academic life and accolades. Today, in addition to Pan-African Studies (situated in the College of Social Behavioral Studies), Chicana/o Studies, Asian American Studies, American Indian Studies, and Central American Studies (all housed in the College of Humanities). CSUN’s Asian American Studies Department is the first university in southern California to establish an AAS department and the second department of AAS after SFSU to be established (first in the nation). CSUN CAS (Central American Studies) at CSUN is the first CAS program to be established in the U.S. CSUN Chicana/o Studies is the largest Chicana/o or Raza Studies Department in the nation.
Asian American Studies at CSUN was founded in 1990.
*Though I am not a big fan of wikipedia, what is posted on wikipedia is historically sound and contemporarily relevant. A great cliff notes’ version:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethnic_studies (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
Other Readings & Information on Ethnic Studies:
Who’s Afraid of “The Tempest”?
http://www.salon.com/2012/01/13/whos_afraid_of_the_tempest/ (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
http://blog.angryasianman.com/2011/01/save-asian-asian-american-studies-at.html (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
http://sundial.csun.edu/2011/02/csun-community-reacts-to-csula’s-ethnic-studies-dispute/
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/education/july-dec10/arizona_12-30.html (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/05/12/politics/main6476501.shtml (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
http://www.blackpast.org/?q=perspectives/san-fernando-valley-s-multiethnic-past-unexpected-communities-color-america-s-suburb (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
“The History of Ethnic Studies” by Gary Okihiro:
http://www.columbiaspectator.com/2007/10/15/history-ethnic-studies (Links to an external site.) (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
