For Immediate Use
June 25, 2004

Letisia Márquez, lmarquez@support.ucla.edu
(310) 206-3986

UCLA Asian American Studies Center Journal Examines Civil Rights Challenges and Issues of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders

(Note to Editors: For media copies of the book, contact Letisia Marquez at 310-206-3986, or lmarquez@support.ucla.edu.)

A renowned group of civil rights advocates and scholars examine civil rights issues facing the rapidly growing and diverse communities of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the second issue of AAPI Nexus: Asian American and Pacific Islander Policy, Practice and Community.

The journal focuses on the complexities of the Asian American civil rights agenda, such as the necessity of bridging the gaps between activists and scholars to strengthen civil rights advocacy and civil rights research, the limits of pan-Asian frameworks in addressing the needs of specific populations, the problems in developing effective coalitions both within Asian American communities and between Asian Americans and other minority communities, and the changing demography that has shaped and reshaped Asian American civil rights.

 Who else can reporters call for more information?    No Story Resources assigned  What email/web links would you like listed with your story?    No Web Links assignedMost of the essays and articles in this special issue were produced originally for a strategic roundtable held in October 2002 and sponsored by The Civil Rights Project at Harvard University and the UCLA Asian American Studies Center. The two-day roundtable at Harvard drew participants from the worlds of academia and advocacy with the goals of exploring common objectives to address racial justice for Asian Americans, illuminating new problems and issues, and grappling with the many challenges facing Asian American communities in the post?9/11 world.

The “practitioner’s� essay was written by Karen Narasaki, president and executive director of the National Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium, and June K. Han, a doctoral student in sociology at Harvard. The essay highlights the civil rights issues that have come to dominate America’s post-9/11 environment, including anti-Asian violence, racial profiling, abridgments of immigrants’ rights, restrictive immigration policies, employment discrimination, denials of language rights and unequal access to the justice system. In doing so, Narasaki and Han illuminate critical and long-standing gaps that exist between advocates working on these key issues and researchers focusing on Asian American communities.

Peter Kiang, professor of education and Asian American Studies at the University of Massachusetts, Boston, focuses on the theme of ethnic diversity within the Asian American population by examining closely educational equity issues affecting Southeast Asian American communities. Kiang argues that the experiences of Southeast Asian Americans, who are among the country’s most economically disadvantaged Asian Americans, are easily neglected or ignored in pan-Asian civil rights frameworks, leading to profound ethical issues and to potential harm in Southeast Asian American communities.

Claire Jean Kim, professor of Asian American studies and political science at the University of California, Irvine, addresses the challenges that come with developing cross-racial collaborations and coalitions between Asian Americans and other minority communities. Kim tests the “people of color� construct by exploring the ambiguity of Asian American political identity, the effects of this ambiguity on Asian American alliances with blacks and Latinos, and the successes and failures of two Asian American community organizations — the Korean Immigrant Workers Association in Los Angeles and CAAAV: Organizing Asian Communities in New York City — that have engaged in cross-racial alliances.

Rowena Robles, a faculty fellow in Asian American Studies at the University of California, Irvine, focuses on the controversial Ho vs. San Francisco Unified School District lawsuit to illustrate some of the legal, political and rhetorical conflicts within Asian American communities. The lawsuit, initiated by Chinese American parents during the 1990s to challenge admissions policies at San Francisco’s Lowell High School and to overturn a long-standing desegregation court order, illustrates the divergent interests that can arise within an Asian American community, as well as between Asian Americans and other minority groups.

Paul Ong, UCLA professor of urban planning and director of The Ralph & Goldy Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies, analyzes the demographic trends and patterns that have influenced the growth of Asian American populations and the nature of Asian American civil rights. Examining a variety of sources, including data from the 2000 census and various social and economic indicators, Ong discusses recent trends in migration, population growth, education, segregation and other key areas to illustrate the complexity of Asian American civil rights issues.

The book’s guest editors are Angelo Ancheta, director of Legal and Advocacy Programs for the Civil Rights Project at Harvard; Jacinta Ma, senior advisor to Commissioner Stuart Ishimaru at the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission; and Don Nakanishi, director of the UCLA Asian American Studies Center and associate editor of AAPI Nexus.

The special issue on Civil Rights (Vol. 2, no. 1) can be purchased for $12 plus $4 shipping and handling. California residents must add 8.25 percent sales tax. The rates for a one?year subscription, or two issues a year, to AAPI Nexus are $25 for individuals and $55 for institutions. Shipping and handling is included. International subscriptions cost an extra $12. Payment can be made by check or credit card. Make checks payable to “UC Regents,� and send to: AAPI Nexus Subscription, UCLA Asian American Studies Center Press, 3230 Campbell Hall, Box 951546, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1546.

For bulk order inquiries or credit card payments, please e-mail aascpress@aasc.ucla.edu or call (310) 825-2968.

-UCLA-
LM318