Growing Up in Transnational Worlds: A Comparative Look at Chinese and Dominican Americans

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Transnationalism refers to the phenomenon of immigrants maintaining connections to their country of origin, and employing a dual frame of reference to evaluate their experiences and outcomes in the country in which they have settled. How does transnationalism matter in the identities among the second generation, e.g., individuals who were born in the United States, or migrated by late childhood? In this presentation, Dr. Vivian Louie examines this question among second generation Dominicans and Chinese who have grown up in strong transnational fields and had parents who want them to participate in the homeland imaginary. The focus is on transnational orientations and/or practices among second generation individuals with particular attention to generational status, class, ethnicity, gender, and race.

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Author Bio

Vivian Louieis Professor of Urban Policy and Planning and Director of the Asian American Studies Program and Center at Hunter College/CUNY. Dr. Louie served as the CUNY Thomas Tam Visiting Professor at Hunter from 2013-2014. She was previously an associate and assistant professor, and postdoctoral fellow in education, as well as lecturer in sociology at Harvard University, and a program officer at the William T. Grant Foundation.

Dr. Louie’s research has focused on understanding the factors that shape success along the educational pipeline among immigrants and the children of immigrants. She is the author of two books, Compelled to Excel: Immigration, Education, and Opportunity Among Chinese Americans (Stanford University Press, 2014) and Keeping the Immigrant Bargain: The Costs and Rewards of Success in America (Russell Sage Foundation, 2012). She is co-editor of and contributor to a third book, Writing Immigration: Scholars and Journalists in Dialogue (University of California Press, 2011).