The Unexpected Origins of the Asian American Studies Program

The Unexpected Origins of the Asian American Studies Program

Salley Lee

On February 1995, the students of a well known university submitted a proposal for an Asian-American studies program with several letters of faculty support and over 1200 student signatures. However, the administration rejected every single point in their proposal. To compromise, the students submitted another proposal with just two tenure-track professors and a director for the program, which was again rejected. Thus, in April 1995, a rally of 300 students protested the administration’s decisions. When that didn’t work, 17 students launched a hunger strike. This event shocked students at not only the university this was occurring, but also at many campuses across the nation. Students of Stanford, Princeton, the Midwest Asian American Student Union, and many other campuses began fasting in support of the hunger strike. The hunger strike ended after 23 days upon the realization that administration did not intend to establish an Asian American studies program in the near future. However, their efforts were not in vain as the program was instituted four years later in 1999. This event sparked proposals for an Asian American Studies program in other campuses across the nation. Today 37 Colleges/Universities have an Asian American Studies Major/Minor; 15 Colleges/Universities have an Asian American Studies Concentrations/Focus; and 18 Colleges/Universities have Asian American Courses.

Asian Americans are commonly labeled as the model minority. This label divides and disconnects Asian Americans from other minorities of America. “We’re only considered minorities when the topic of affirmative action rolls around, and then we’re shoved back into invisibility until the next time we can be trotted out as a political point against other ethnic groups.” Lisa Wong Macabasco, an alumni at UC-Berkley, describes how through the Asian American Studies class, she felt connected, not divided, with the other minorities represented in the United States. “I came to understand the many struggles that Asian Americans share with African Americans, Latinos, and Native Americans, as well as our differing experiences in this country.” This class was the first time she learned about her heritage and the history of her people in the States. “It was the first time I saw myself reflected in history books.” Even taking just one course “ brought me to a better sense of myself, my heritage, and my responsibility as a woman of color working in the media.”

Often, Asian Americans have been accused of disinterest in the affairs of American minorities due to their lack of participation in demonstrations and other activism activities. However, this article asks, rather than disinterest, could it be the lack of knowledge that divides Asian Americans from the other minorities of America?