The Sum of Our Parts: Mixed-Heritage Asian Americans (Asian American History and Culture) [Paperback]

Teresa Williams-Leon (Author), Cynthia L. Nakashima (Author), Michael Omi (Author)

Book Description

Series: Asian American History & Cultu | Publication Date: November 2001

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. 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.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"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

From the Publisher

A groundbreaking look at mixed-heritage Asian Americans. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 279 pages
• Publisher: Temple University Press (November 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1566398479
• ISBN-13: 978-1566398473
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 7 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #242,263 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Stephen Murphy-Shigematsu was born in Occupied Japan to a Japanese mother and Irish American father. He grew up in Massachusetts, went to Harvard, and became a professor at the University of Tokyo and Stanford. His writing illuminates multiethnic and transnational experiences and identities, as well as healing relationships.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Contribution, January 30, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: The Sum of Our Parts: Mixed-Heritage Asian Americans (Asian American History and Culture) (Hardcover)

I've been searching for a book like this. I bought some other personal testimonials, but this one combines personal stories and accounts and interviews with deeper analysis. I myself am mixed Asian-Spanish-Portugues-African born in Brazil, moved to Mexico at a young age and then, my family immigrated to the U.S. fiften yeers ago so this topic is close to my heart. I especially liked how the book deals with class issues, gender issues, and other issues that a lot of mixed-race and biracial research doesn't deal with. Especially worthy of mentioning is breaking the perspective that mixed-race issues and race matters in general are about black versus white conflicts. The last section of the book looks at mixed Asian communities in other parts of the world not just the Amerasians in the Philippines or Korea or Japan,but in SOuth America (Suriname), Europe (England), etc. Mr. Omi's Foreward adds a special sociological and cultural studies touch to the work. For these reasons, I think this book will be regarded as an important contribution.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Lot of Great Stuff, April 22, 2002

By 

"borkyone" (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Sum of Our Parts: Mixed-Heritage Asian Americans (Asian American History and Culture) (Paperback)

This book isn't for the simple minded or someone who just wants an easy answer -- skip this one and read People or something. But if you're really interested in hapa issues (and I'm hapa so yes) it's a great, articulate, intelligent group of essays covering many different aspeacts of hapahood. Some of the writing takes some mental acuity to comprehend but I found it really worth the effort.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Asians in the Mix, November 6, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Sum of Our Parts: Mixed-Heritage Asian Americans (Asian American History and Culture) (Paperback)

Hey, about time a critical examination of mixed heritage Asian Americans was published. It seems that many of the authors themselves are mixed or have a personal (as well as a professional) relationship to this topic. I like the combination of dispassionate academic inquiry AND a kind of personal insights into the world of mixed Asians. I especially enjoyed 1) Yen Espiritu's little blurb about her mixed family situation (though people don't identify her that way) 2) Cynthia L. Nakashima's piece on how a person's name is used to racialize and ethnically identify a person, 3) Teresa Williams-Leon's chapter that looks at race and sexual preference (I never thought of those issues before how race and sexuality are parallel, until I read this piece), 4) The Tiger Woods phenomenon by Jan Weisman and 5) Cathy Tashiro's work on organizing health knowledge for mixed people (interesting, for Tashiro, when she is identified as an Asian, her bone density for osteoporosis falls within the normal limits, but for a Caucasian person, her bone density could be recorded as abnormal. . . the biological analysis for a sociological dilemma called race & mixed-race. What's up with that?). All the chapters are pretty interesting, tackling all kinds of cross-experiences w/ mixed-ness among Asians. Finally, academic work that isn't just intellectual B.S. but is also accessible to average (mixed) Joes like myself. Great stuff on mixed Asians in different parts of the world too. I'd be willing to bet that THE SUM is going to become a collector's item. As a companion to this book, I'd suggest David Parker's & Miri Song's anthology too. Keep these books on mixed-race coming!