Peripheral Centers: Hawaiʻi’s Asian Diaspora Cultures

Rethinking the Center from the Margins K. Scott Wong (bio) Margins and Mainstreams: Asians in American History and Culture. By Gary Y. Okihiro. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1994. 203 pages. $25.00 (cloth). $12.95 (paper). Since the 1968–1969 Third World Strike at Francisco State College and University of California-Berkeley, when Asian American studies emerged as part of the political/educational agenda of Ethnic studies, the field has attained a fair degree of respectability and maturity. 1 A number of universities and colleges now offer courses in Asian American studies, a variety of English department courses often include Asian American literature, and most recently, the University of California, Santa Barbara has established the nation’s first Asian American studies department. In addition, the Association for Asian American Studies (AAAS) has grown into a nationally recognized academic association with an annual meeting, and the AAAS regularly sponsors a panel at the yearly American Studies Association conference. The maturity of the field, in terms of published scholarly work, was exemplified with the publication of Ronald Takaki’s Strangers From a Different Shore: A History of Asian Americans (1989) and Sucheng Chan’s Asian Americans: An Interpretive History (1991). These two survey texts of Asian American history marked the point at which enough research had already been published to warrant and sustain the writing of two synthetic, yet interpretive, studies of the histories of Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Filipino, and South and Southeast Asian Americans. Utilizing primary and secondary sources, these two scholars summed up a whole generation of Asian American historical studies and thus provided the field with standards by which future synthetic historical work in the field will be measured. With [End Page 415] the publication of Margins and Mainstreams: Asians in American History and Culture, Asian American studies has been advanced again by Gary Okihiro’s adept blending of history, literature, sociology, and cultural studies, all of which come together to provide a provocative and insightful reading of the Asian American experience and how it fits into the larger themes of American history, Ethnic studies, American studies, and contemporary debates on what it means to be an “American.” This book is made up of six chapters, each originally presented as lectures (printed here with slight modification) at Amherst College in the spring of 1992 during Okihiro’s tenure there as the John J. McCloy ‘16 Professor of American Institutions and International Relations (Okihiro is an associate professor of history and director of the Asian American studies program at Cornell University). As he mentions in the preface, these lectures were written and presented during a time of cultural debates. During this period, there was a “fervent and oftentimes heated debate about the idea of a mainstream, about the core of American history and culture, about intellectual ‘ghettoization’ and ethnic ‘balkanization’“ (ix). Thus with debates of this nature in the background, these lectures take up the issues of where and when Asian Americans enter and become part of the larger American cultural and historical landscape. There is also a bittersweet irony that these lectures were commissioned by the John J. McCloy Distinguished Visiting Professorship. During the Second World War, McCloy served as the Assistant Secretary of War (and later as the High Commissioner to Germany and the president of the World Bank) and was a staunch supporter of the wartime internment of Japanese nationals and Japanese Americans. Okihiro, one of the foremost historians of Japanese America, must have relished the opportunity to deliver these lectures under the auspices of McCloy’s legacy. 2 A general theme that reappears throughout these lectures is the contention that the core values and ideals of the nation emanate not from the mainstream but from the margins—from among Asian and African Americans, Latinos and American Indians, women, and gays and lesbians. In their struggles for equality, these groups have helped preserve and advance the principles and ideals of democracy and have thereby made America a freer place for all. (ix) Viewing American history in this way requires a recentering of our perspectives. Herein lies the book’s main contribution to the currrent discourse about race and ethnicity, gender studies, American studies, and [End Page...

Background The racial, ethnic and sex compositions of a study population may impact the clinical performance of a biomarker. In a prospective clinical study to evaluate biomarkers for asthmatic and allergic conditions in a large medical center in the upper Midwest, a largely White-alone patient population was encountered. Using several outreach strategies, potential eligible patients were contacted to enroll in a biomarker clinical study and to provide blood specimens. The patient demographics between the eligible candidates and the enrolled participants were compared. The analysis was carried out to understand the likelihood of enrollment in different race, ethnicity, and sex groups; and to identify factors that contribute to selection biases in enrolled cohorts. Methods Patients with eligible asthma and allergic conditions were selected based on relevant diagnostic codes in their electronic medical records, verified by clinical research coordinator. In accordance with Institutional Review Board approval, eligible patients were contacted via their electronic healthcare portal or with a phone call. The study information was also posted in an internal classified ad as an additional outreach strategy. Interested participants were then contacted a second time to complete consent. Upon consent, participants were considered as “enrolled”. Demographics information including sex, race, ethnicity, and age were de-identified for comparison analysis. Results Among all eligible patients, a disproportionally low representation of Blacks, Asians, and Hispanics (“non-White” groups) was observed, relative to regional demographics (22.2% non-White groups, 2021 census) and higher asthma and allergy prevalence in the non-White groups. In eligible adult patients (>18 years old) with asthma, only 13.4% were from non-White racial and ethnic groups. In eligible pediatric asthma patients, a larger proportion at 24.1% were from American Indian, Asian, Black, or Hispanic groups. In patients with allergic conditions, 10.3% of the adult patients were from non-White only groups, compared to 21.9% in pediatric patients. Among all eligible patients, White-alone patients were more likely to enroll in the study compared to their counterparts from non-White groups, further skewing the racial and ethnic distribution in the enrolled cohorts. As a result, less than 10% of enrolled adult patients were from non-White background in both allergy and asthma cohorts. Among the enrolled pediatric asthma and allergy patients, 16.9% and 10.3% respectively were from non-White groups. We also identified sex and age dependent enrollment behavior across different study cohorts. In adult groups, there were more female eligible patients (allergy: 66.7% female; asthma: 66.7% female) than male patients. Female adult patients were significantly more likely to participate, thus constituting 79.6% and 75.8% of the enrolled allergy and asthma cohorts. In the pediatric groups, male patients represented a larger share of eligible patients (allergy: 58.6%; asthma 64.7%). Female pediatric patients were still more likely to participate in the study. Hence, male and female enrolled patients were closer to equal distribution (allergy: 50.0% male; asthma 59.7% male). Conclusion The non-even distribution of demographics in eligible patients contributed to biased distribution in enrolled patients. Existing outreach approaches were not effective in reversing enrollment rates in underrepresented racial and ethnic groups.

A Study of Paradigms and Theoretical Key Words of Asian American Literary Criticism

Honoring Asian diversity by collecting Asian subpopulation data in health research.

Performing Race, Speaking the Body

Meeting Asian/Arab American StudiesThinking Race, Empire, and Zionism in the U.S. Sunaina Maira (bio) and Magid Shihade (bio) I am the witness of the massacre I am the victim of the map I am the son of simple words . . . —Mahmoud Darwish, from "Poem of the Land"1 Speak, your lips still have their liberty Speak, still yours is the spoken word . . . Speak, for the truth is alive even now Speak, say all you wish you had said. —Faiz Ahmed Faiz, from "Speak" (1941)2 Why link Asian and Arab American Studies? Why should we speak of Arab American studies in Asian American studies, or have a conversation in ethnic studies about points of convergence and divergence between these two areas? Is it in order to recognize an emerging ethnic studies field in the U.S., with all the limitations that a politics of recognition based on multiculturalism entails? Is it to extend a comparative ethnic studies approach that is increasingly transforming Asian American studies while raising questions about the definition of ethnic and racial boundaries? In our view, the answer is all of these, but much more. We argue here that speaking of Arab and Asian [End Page 117] American studies in the same breath is ultimately valuable because it illuminates a broader and more urgent issue: the need to develop a fuller analysis of U.S. empire. The meeting of Asian American and Arab American studies has been increasingly highlighted in discussions after 9/11 as it has become apparent that Asian American—particularly South Asian—and Arab American communities as well as Muslim Americans more generally, have similar experiences as targets in the "war on terrorism" waged by the United States. The question of how to produce intellectual and political knowledge to respond to the everyday crisis of empire is urgent at this particular moment, but we want to point out that it has always been so—the conjuncture between Asian/Arab American studies helps to situate U.S. empire in a much longer historical trajectory that links movements in, and out of, Asia and the Middle East. Imperial power operates by obscuring the links between homeland projects of racial subordination and minority co-optation and overseas strategies of economic restructuring and political domination. This link between the domestic and global fronts of empire can be exposed only if we expand our frame of analysis to consider the ways in which categories of subjects such as "Asian American" and "Arab American" are positioned in relation to U.S. empire. Ethnic studies has focused in large part on documenting, understanding, and challenging the construction of ethnic and racial boundaries as they intersect with other axes of domination, such as gender, sexuality, and class, within the nation. However, there has also been a movement in Asian American studies to acknowledge the transnational dimensions of Asian communities and histories, on the one hand, and the paradoxes and pitfalls of a multiculturalist identity politics, on the other. So the meeting of Arab/Asian American studies highlights the question of borders, and the political and epistemological work of boundaries in shaping our understanding of power and resistance. It helps us to locate the issue of ethnic and racial borders within the larger frame of U.S. empire, and to understand that the question facing Asian American studies today is how to intellectually and institutionally confront imperial, not just national or ethnic, politics. This has always been the challenge for ethnic studies, which has often remained confined within a national frame. [End Page 118] The purpose of linking Asian and Arab American studies is not to colonize Arab American studies within an ever-expanding rubric of pan-Asian ethnicity, but to do the opposite: to challenge the ever-expanding borders of an imperial project that operates through direct as well as proxy wars, neo-colonial occupation, and client states. Ultimately, it is for Arab Americanists themselves to decide where they want to be situated in the academy and how Arab American studies should be introduced into the curriculum. Research on Arab Americans is growing and gaining more academic recognition through new faculty hires and programs, though it continues to occur in...

The Challenge of Providing Culturally Competent Services

Aims/hypothesisEthnic representativeness of participant enrolment in diabetes RCTs involving multiple ethnicities remains unknown. The aims of this study were to evaluate the status and temporal trend of ethnic representativeness in enrolment to diabetes RCTs, and to assess under-enrolment of non-white ethnic groups and explore trial characteristics associated with under-enrolment.MethodsWe conducted a chronological survey by systematically searching the literature to include eligible RCTs published between January 2000 and December 2020. We assessed temporal trends in enrolment of ethnic groups in the included trials. Univariable logistic regression was used to explore the association between trial characteristics and under-enrolment of non-white groups, using a participant to prevalence ratio of <0.8 to define under-enrolment. This study was registered in PROSPERO (CRD42021229100).ResultsWe included 405 RCTs for analysis (327 multi-country trials, 69 conducted in the USA and nine conducted in the UK). The median enrolment rate of all non-white groups was 24.0% in the overall RCTs. Trials conducted in the USA and the UK had median enrolment rates of 29.0% and 12.0% for all non-white groups, respectively. There was a temporal trend towards increased participation of non-white ethnic groups in the overall RCTs; however, no significant improvement over time was found in the US or UK trials. Non-white groups were under-enrolled in most included trials: 62.3% (43/69) in US trials and 77.8% (7/9) in UK trials. The US trials with a high female proportion were associated with lower odds of under-enrolment of all non-white groups (OR 0.22; 95% CI 0.07, 0.65), while trials receiving funding from industry showed increased odds of under-enrolment (OR 4.64; 95% CI 1.50, 14.35). Outpatient enrolment and intervention duration were significantly associated with under-enrolment of Black participants. Only a small proportion of trials reported subgroup results or explored the effect modification by ethnicity.Conclusions/interpretationA temporal trend towards increased non-white ethnic enrolment was found in diabetes RCTs globally, but not in the USA or the UK. Non-white ethnic groups were under-represented in the majority of diabetes trials conducted in the USA and the UK. Some trial characteristics may be associated with non-white under-enrolment in diabetes trials. These findings provide some evidence for non-white ethnic representativeness in diabetes trials over the past two decades, and highlight the need for more effective strategies and endeavours to alleviate under-enrolment of non-white ethnic groups.Graphical abstractSupplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary peer-reviewed but unedited material available at 10.1007/s00125-022-05736-z.

Brief Reports: Psychiatric Illness and Substance Abuse Among Homeless Asian-American Veterans

To be or not to be (ethnic): Public vs. private expressions of ethnic identification differentially impact national inclusion of White and non-White groups

The concept of duty is overrated (Fire) The swamiji's testicles have grown too big for his loincloth (Fire) It's a dyke thing (Junky Punky Girlz) Eswar Allah tero Naam (Junky Punky Girlz) Before ex...

Multicultural education (MCE) is a foundation of curriculum studies with an extensive history of debate and progress that harkens back to the earliest formations of public education in the United States. MCE can be viewed as both a philosophical and a pedagogical concept. As a philosophical concept, MCE is rooted in the ideals and values of democracy, social justice, equality, equity, and the affirmation and equal recognition of human diversity. MCE critiques the monocultural curriculum and ethos of the current and prevailing Eurocentric system of education and other racist structures in the United States. As a pedagogical philosophy of democracy, MCE advocates inclusion and promotes equal educational opportunity for all. MCE considers diversity to be one of the greatest strengths of the United States and regards free association and communication as valuable to human development. As a pedagogical philosophy of democracy, MCE is not static, and, although the ideology and conceptual lenses—equality, equity, social justice—remain firmly in place, the framing of MCE has been modified to welcome concepts other than race, socioeconomic status, and gender, and to facilitate deliberate discussions of power and privilege. MCE as a pedagogical philosophy of democracy seeks a fair playing field for all students and does not advocate the superiority of one culture or one group of students over the others. Although Black scholars at the turn of the 20th century consistently discussed the need for greater curriculum diversity and the recognition of contributions by people of color, forms of MCE in K-12 and higher education primarily evolved from the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. During the Civil Rights Era, advocates challenged the primacy of whiteness in textbooks and argued for accuracy in reporting the history and culture of African Americans, Native Americans, Asian Americans, and Hispanics. In addition, ethnic studies courses became a part of the curriculum at numerous high schools and colleges, and ethnic studies departments and programs were established at several universities. It was during this period of social reform that the K-12 MCE movement began to emerge. Multiculturalists argue for a curriculum that takes the child’s experience into account: a culturally relevant curriculum that is fluent and authentic in the design to meet the needs and interests of students and to prepare them for citizenship and the workforce. A multicultural curriculum should include content, multiple perspectives, visuals, critical questioning, and the practice of democracy. The field of education research and practice has evolved to a focus on social justice as curriculum. Social justice education reframes the curriculum to concentrate on past and present political events and societal perspectives that highlight issues of oppression and marginalization from institutional and structural positions, moving away from a focus on the interrelated nature of individuals and groups embedded in the foundations of MCE. Similarly, the revival of K-12 Ethnic Studies is a notable outgrowth of critical multicultural spaces. Ethnic studies courses attempt to bridge students’ lived experiences and the historic and current experiences of Americans to deconstruct and reconstruct school content, teachers’ pedagogical practices, and the hidden curriculum of whiteness and white privilege. As MCE continues to evolve, the related philosophy, concepts, and outcomes remain a vital component of the American curriculum.

Acknowledgments Introduction | Color-Line to Borderlands Part One | Ethnic Studies as a Matrix: Moving from Color-Line to Borderlands Multiculturalism: Battleground or Meeting Ground? Ethnic Studies as a Matrix for the Humanities, the Social Sciences, and the Common Good The Problematics of Ethnic Studies The Influence of African American history on U.S. History Survey Textbooks since the 1970s Part Two | Institutional Structure and Knowledge Production Ethnic Studies in U.S. Higher Education: The State of the Discipline From Ideology to institution: the Evolution of Africana Studies The Dialetics of Ethnicity in America: A View from American Indian Studies Whither the Asian American Subject? Thirty Years of Chicono and Chicana Studies Part Three | Changing and Emerging Paradigms Asian American Studies and Asian studies: Boundars and Borderlands of Ethnic Studies and Area Studies Reimaginging Borders A Hemispheric Approach to Latin American and U.S. Latino and Latina Studies Bridges to the twenty-first century: Making Cultural Studies-- and making it work Heavy Traffic at the Intersections: Ethnic, American, Women's, Queer, and Cultural Studies Contributors Index

Editor—To sociologists, Boydell et al's findings are counterintuitive.1 One would expect economic deprivation (at neighbourhood level) to be a decisive factor for an increased incidence of mental illness. But it...

In recent years, activists have campaigned across the country for schools toincorporate ethnic studies into their curricula. For example, in 2021, California GovernorGavin Newsom signed a new law mandating an ethnic studies graduation requirement forall high school students, starting with the class of 2030. While this movement has greatlybenefited students by exposing them to multicultural perspectives, misconceptions, such asthe model minority stereotype often assigned to Asian Americans, still pervade schoolcurricula. The stereotype portrays Asian Americans as having more of a hard-workingmentality and a propensity for achieving socioeconomic success, compared to other ethnicgroups. This is especially important in a state like California, which is home to nearly athird of the country’s Asian population and twenty-one Asian ethnic groups. Schoolcurriculum standards must move away from an essentialist point of view, which assumesthat Asian Americans have a uniform experience, and explore the intersectional oppressionsthat impact the Asian American community. For example, Asian American students in Berkeley High School only learned about Chinese and Japanese culture and never discussedSoutheast Asian history, such as the wartime conflict in Laos. Schools should also recruitand support Asian American educators, as these teachers’ cultural knowledge and racializedexperiences will bring the revised curriculum to life. Changes to California’s curriculumcan serve as a model for the rest of the nation at a time when the model minority myth ismanipulated by legislators to suggest that Asian Americans have overcome racism toachieve socioeconomic success and fuel the anti-critical race theory movement, thatsuppresses learning about racial oppression in schools altogether.