The Sum Of Parts: Mixed-heritage Asian Americans (Asian American History and Culture Series) - Tapa dura

"The Sum of Our Parts is the first collection of essays on multiracial and multiethnic Asian Americans by experts in the field. The book is timely and will make an important contribution to the discourse on race, ethnicity, and identity formation. Comprehensive, historical, diasporic, and theoretically grounded, it includes groups not covered anywhere else, and will appeal to both academic and popular audiences." --Judy Yung, University of California, Santa Cruz "This book begins to remedy a crucial absence in contemporary liberatory discussion--Asian identities, and multiracial Asian identities. It should be an important and welcome contribution, academically and beyond." --Naomi Zack, Professor of Philosophy, University at Albany, SUNY "This collection of essays focuses on the construction of identity among people of Asian descent who claim multiple racial heritages. In the year 2000, for the first time in US history, the government's census allowed people the option of officially categorizing themselves in more than one racial group. According to this census, nearly one-third of all interracial marriages in the USA included an Asian-descent spouse. This book is divided into four sections: an examination of the history of multiraciality and Asian America; socio-cultural narratives of family and identity; analyses of political implications of multiracial identities; and an exploration of Asian-descent multiraciality, globally." --SAGE Race Relations Abstracts "These critical and provocative essays analyzing how multiracial identities have been constructed not just in the US but in a global context explore the multiple meanings accorded that identity from a variety of disciplinary perspectives, with a social science emphasis...A contribution to studies of race and ethnicity, as well as to Asian American studies, this collection is highly recommended..." --Choice "...a stellar interdisciplinary anthology...It not only fills the gap in the extant literature, but also furthers our understanding of the multiracial experience..." --The Journal of the West

Largely as a result of multiracial activism, the US Census for 2000 offers people the unprecedented opportunity to officially identify themselves with more than one racial group. Among Asian-heritage people in this country and elsewhere, racial and ethnic mixing has a long but unacknowledged history. According to the last US Census, nearly one-third of all interracial marriages included an Asian-descent spouse, and intermarriage rates are accelerating. This unique collection of essays focuses on the construction of identity among people of Asian descent who claim multiple heritages. In the U.S., discussions of race generally center on matters of black and white; mixed heritage Asian Americans usually figure in conversations about race as an undifferentiated ethnic group or as exotic Eurasians. The contributors to this book disrupt the standard discussions by considering people of mixed Asian ethnicities. They also pay particular attention to non-white multiracial identities to decenter whiteness and reflect the experience of individuals or communities who are considered a minority within a minority. With an entire section devoted to the Asian diaspora, "The Sum of Our Parts" suggests that questions of multiracial and multiethnic identity are surfacing around the globe. This timely and provocative collection articulates them for social scientists and students. Author note: Teresa Williams-Leon is an Assistant Professor of Asian American Studies at California State University, Northridge. Cynthia L. Nakashima is a Ph.D. candidate in Comparative Ethnic Studies at University of California, Berkeley.