MAJOR NEW BOOK ON ASIAN AMERICANS AND WAR AND PEACE BY UCLA ASIAN AMERICAN STUDIES CENTER PRESS

New Book by UCLA Asian American Studies Center Features Asian Americans' Perspectives on Sept. 11 and Its Aftermath

As the one-year anniversary of Sept. 11 approaches, the United States continues to grapple with its ramifications. Threats of nuclear attack, the escalation of military force and the violation of civil liberties continue to change and challenge communities throughout the world. For Asian and South Asian Americans in the United States, the current state of affairs is a familiar, ironic reminder of their individual experience and collective history.

"Asian Americans on War & Peace," co-edited by Russell C. Leong and Don T. Nakanishi, is a new book published by UCLA's Asian American Studies Center, which addresses the parallels between recent world events and the legacy of war, xenophobia and resistance in Asian-American history. Twenty-four scholars, writers and activists reflect on Sept. 11 and its aftermath. The book incorporates various perspectives on the crisis, including geopolitical analyses, creative works and historical commentaries.

"Each morning, the war begins anew; each evening, the war takes on a new face," said Russell Leong, the book's co-editor and the center's director of publications. "'Asian Americans on War & Peace' is the first book to respond to the event of Sept. 11, 2001, from Asian-American perspectives, from the vantage point of those whose lives and communities in America have been forged both by war and by peace."

Divided into four sections, the book begins with "Worlds of Crisis," which documents the range of national and global reactions immediately following the terrorist attacks.

Renowned journalist Helen Zia starts off with her essay, "Oh, Say, Can You See?" She links patterns of racial profiling of Asian Americans - In such cases as the Democratic campaign finance scandal, the Wen Ho Lee trial and the suspect role of Asian immigrants in the high-tech industry - as cautionary examples of the need to challenge the xenophobic frenzy against Arab and South Asian Americans.

"If Asian Americans of every color and religion aren't speaking out against these travesties, then we are part of the problem, collaborators in our own oppressions," Zia writes.

Jessica Hagedorn, Roshni Rustomji-Kerns, Vijay Prashad, Amitava Kumar and Leong follow with their thoughts on the significance of the events of Sept. 11.

The second section of the book is entitled "Civil Liberties and Internment." Authors examine the media's dubbing of Sept. 11 as "another Pearl Harbor," along with the consequent detention of countless Arabs and South Asians, evoking the memory of Japanese-American internment during World War II.

Jerry Kang, a UCLA law professor, analyzes the selective claims of "necessity" and "national security," which he believes operate in a racist fashion during periods of war. The section also includes pieces in a similar vein by Frank Chin, Moustafa Bayoumi, Stephen Lee, Ifti Nasim and San Francisco poet laureate, Janice Mirikitani.

The third section, "Geopolitics," engages the reader in a critical overview of the wider cultural, economic and political implications of the battle against terrorism. Arif Dirlik, history professor at Duke University, begins with his essay, "Colonialism, Globalization and Culture: Reflections on September 11." Despite condemning the terrorist attacks, Dirlik urges readers to keep in mind the horror of Taliban-supported crimes, as well as to investigate the United States-backed ventures that exploit and brutalize people of that region.

"Let us hope that … we can see our way more clearly out of the tragedies of our making," he concludes. Works by Grace Lee Boggs, Vinay Lal and David Palumbo-Liu contribute to this message.

"Peace" is the fourth section. The writings of James Yamazaki, Jeff Chang, Angela Oh, Michael Yamamoto and Mari Matsuda call for compassion and vigilance in moving toward peace. In his personal account, James Yamazaki, author and a UCLA pediatrics professor, addresses the question, "Why Does a Pediatrician Worry About Nuclear Weapons?" He remembers witnessing the ravages of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. With the increasing speculation over nuclear buildup, he emphasizes the importance of a policy of deterrence. "We have reached a critical junction in man's history for survival on this planet that requires our combined intellect, resources and compassion for our fellow man to prevent another atomic holocaust," Yamazaki writes.

The volume ends with a chronology of domestic hate crimes and worldwide mobilizations in the crisis thus far.

Throughout the 228-page book, archival photographs of Asian-American history and images of the Asian-American experience post-Sept. 11 by Corky Lee, Eric Chang and Mary Uyematsu Kao bridge the realities of past and present and suggest hope in the midst of warfare.

Russell C. Leong is the editor of Amerasia Journal and Adjunct Professor of English at UCLA.

Don T. Nakanishi is Director of the UCLA Asian American Studies Center and Professor of Education and Asian American Studies.

The book is available for purchase through the UCLA AASC Press Publications. Please click here for more information and ordering information.