Fall 2014 – Spring 2015

The History of Paredon Records

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Dr. Theodore S. Gonzalves will discuss his next book project focusing on the history of a record label, Paredon Records, which released 50 albums of what is essentially (but all too often poorly categorized as) protest music, between 1970 and 1985. The label’s founders were U.S. activists and artists who initially were inspired by the Cuban revolution’s commitment to supporting the work of politically committed singer-songwriters from Latin America. Barbara Dane and Irwin Silber expanded that initial geographic focus to include LPs from Asia (the Philippines, China, Vietnam, Thailand), Africa (Angola), the middle east, and even radical songs and music from Europe (the UK, Ireland, and Greece) and the United States.

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Four American Moslem Ladies’: Racial and Gendered Insurgencies in Early American Islam

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This talk investigates the history of the first known photograph of Muslim women in the U.S. Taken in 1923, the photo features four African American Muslim women in the Bronzeville neighborhood of Chicago—at the time known as the “Black Metropolis”—who had converted to Islam through the Ahmadiyya movement, a South Asia-based missionary sect. Through an … Read more

Bollywood and Beyond: Visual Appeal in Costumes in Indian Films

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In 2010, Deepsikha Chatterjee (Hunter College/CUNY) and Cheri Vasek (University of Hawai’i, Manoa) received a grant from United States Institute of Theatre Technology to travel to India and study the process of Indian film production with focus on the work of costume designers. With the most number of films produced per annum in India, partly … Read more

Destroy All Dogmas: The Politics of Daikaiju Eiga

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On November 3, 1954, Ishiro Honda’s original Gojira was released in Japan.  In the sixty years since, this creation has inspired twenty-seven sequels, as well as decades of spinoffs and satires; books and blogs; and T-shirts and toys.  Meanwhile, other cinema monsters, from favorites like King Kong and Mothra to newcomers like Cloverfield and The … Read more

Diverse Early Childhood Education Policies and Practices: Voices and Images from Five Countries in Asia

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Diverse Early Childhood Education Policies and Practices explores issues in early childhood education and teacher preparation in five Asian countries: India, Singapore, China, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives. Some observed classrooms in these countries reflect influences that are simultaneously indigenous and colonial, local and global. By highlighting the diverse and often hybrid classroom pedagogies at … Read more

Obesity Risk Reduction Behaviors among Chinese Americans

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Obesity is a global epidemic affecting all populations including Chinese Americans. A survey research was conducted by Dr. Doreen Liou and Dr. Kathleen Bauer to uncover the attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors related to obesity risk reduction in Chinese Americans. Obesity risk reduction behaviors and psychosocial variables derived from the Theory of Planned Behavior and Health … Read more