The history of Asians in America dates back over 400 years. How much have you had a chance to learn?

• What did Chinese immigrants in the 1800s do besides build the railroads?
• What was it like to be an Asian woman in the early 1900s?
• Who were the earliest Asians to come to Michigan and what did they do?
• How did the stereotypes of Asians as “coolies,” “dragon ladies,” and “gooks” arise?
• Why did the “model minority” image of Asian Americans begin?
• How does the experience of Asian Americans relate to other ethnic groups and communities of color?
• How did new immigration and refugee laws of the 1960s and 1970s lead to the exponential growth of Hmong, Indian, and Vietnamese communities in America?
• Why did the U.S. Government…
  • deny Asian immigrants the right to become U.S. citizens?
  • use military force to take control of the Philippines as a U.S. colony?
  • place Japanese Americans in concentration camps during World War II?
  • cover up a massacre of Korean civilians by U.S. troops for 50 years?

These are some of the questions we will explore in “History of Asian Americans.”

Readings will include first-hand accounts of life in America from the perspective of Asian American pioneers. Films and videos will complement readings. Course assignments provide an opportunity for students to examine the relationship between their family history and the experience of Asian Americans in U.S. history. Lectures and other course materials will critically analyze popular (mis)conceptions of Asians in America while also investigating historical issues rarely addressed by the mainstream media and K-12 education.

3 hours lecture and 1 hour discussion. No prerequisites.