Asian Americans in the Twenty-First Century: Oral Histories of 1st to 4th Generation Americans

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This book is a 21st Century snapshot of Asian Pacific Americans; a tapestry of tales reflecting their lives, experiences, hopes, and dreams. Ultimately the spectrum of values–in education, family, work–form a remarkable mosaic of the Asian American experience, distinct in many ways from that of Asians living in Asia, or as immigrants encountering diaspora elsewhere in the world.

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While there have been many books on history, immigration and diaspora of Asians in America, few have been framed through the voice of individual experience. This book is written in oral history format, with stories which reflect the range of complexities inherent in the landscape of Asians in America. These first-hand accounts were conducted within the spirit of journalistic interviews. Their richness derives from the collective diversity that comprise the Asian American Experience.

Through the individual experiences recounted, we become engaged in the discourse of major themes within the interdisciplinary fields of cultural, and sociological literature, history, and politics, spanning first to fourth generation. Within the book, there are a range of voices. Examples: Gary Locke, former governor of Washington State, talks about his start in American politics; while Hank Sasaki shares his passion for Country and Western music as the “Cowboy from Japan”. Gita Deane recounts her efforts to fight for same-sex marriage in Maryland, while Dale Minami, attorney, details his efforts in changing the tide of history in Korematsu v. United States, 1984.

URL: http://thenewpress.com/books/asian-americans

Author Bio

Joann Faung Jean Lee, Ph.D. is author of Asian Americans in the Twenty-First Century (New Press, 2008). This marks her third book of oral histories on Asians in America. She has written and lectured extensively on the Asian American experience and Asians and media.

She has been a journalism educator for over two decades. She is currently Professor and Chairperson of the Communication Department at William Paterson University. She has served as Dean of the Reynolds School of Journalism, University of Nevada, Reno. At Queens College, City University of New York, she established and directed the journalism program and created the T.W. Wang Awards for Excellence in Coverage of Chinese American Issues, a national journalism award sponsored by the World Journal. She was also a faculty member of the Graduate School of Journalism, Columbia University.

As a journalist, Dr. Lee was the first Asian American reporter hired by CNN, as well as its first New York Correspondent, covering Wall Street, the United Nations, and the court system. She was also the first Asian American television reporter to be hired for ABC and CBS local affiliate stations in Sacramento, Chicago, and Philadelphia.

Her other books include Asian American Actors (McFarland, 2000), and Asian Americans (New Press, 1992).