Asian American Cross-Racial Dynamics in the U.S.

Curated by Holly Takashima

In the United States, discussions about race are often framed as a binary: black or white. It can be confusing and difficult to enter the conversation if you identify as something outside that dichotomy. This site is designed to re-frame this question of racial relationships in the United States through an Asian American perspective. The resources archived here represent my attempt to find materials that will help me have conversations with high school students that challenge the dominant narratives and assumptions surrounding race, pushing both my students and I to go deeper and to think more critically around the social and historical contexts hidden beneath seemingly personal and isolated experiences. The hope is that through a series of Socratic Seminars centered around guiding, open-ended questions and rooted in culturally and historically rich texts, we will wrestle honestly with ideas around the essential question: Where do Asian Americans fit into the racialized landscape of the United States?