The Making of Asian America through Political Participation

by Pei-te Lien

Overview

Asian Americans are widely believed to be passive and compliant participants in the U.S. political process -- if they participate at all. In this groundbreaking book, Pei-te Lien maps the actions and strategies of Asian Americans as they negotiate a space in the American political arena.

Professor Lien looks at political participation by Asian Americans prior to 1965 and then examines, at both organizational and mass-politics levels, how race, ethnicity, and transnationalism help to construct a complex American electorate. She looks at rates of participation not only among Asian Americans as compared with blacks, Latinos, American Indians, and non-Hispanic whites, but also among specific groups of Asian Americans -- Chinese, Japanese, Filipinos, Koreans, Asian Indians, and Vietnamese. She also discusses how gender, socioeconomic class, and place of birth affect political participation. With documentation ranging from historical narrative to opinion survey data, Lien creates a picture of a diverse group of politically active people who are intent on carving out a place for themselves in American political life.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781566398947
Publisher:	Temple University Press
Publication date:	08/28/2001
Pages:	312
Product dimensions:	6.22(w) x 9.24(h) x 1.14(d)

Table of Contents

	List of Abbreviations	vii
	Introduction	xi
Chapter 1	Charting a Hidden Terrain: Historical Struggles for Inclusion and Justice Prior to the Era of Civil Rights and Electoral Politics	1
Chapter 2	Constructing a Community That (Almost) Cannot Be: Contemporary Movements Toward Liberation and Empowerment--After 1965	42
Chapter 3	Participation in Electoral Politics: Evolving Patterns in Hawaii and Mainland States	83
Chapter 4	How Can We All Get Along? Cross-Racial Coalition-Building Possibilities and Barriers	123
Chapter 5	What Ties That Bind? Comparing Political Attitudes and Behavior Across Major Asian American Groups	170
Chapter 6	Linking Race, Ethnicity, Class, and Gender: Asian American Women and Political Participation	198
	Conclusion	227
Appendix	Researching Asian American Political Behavior with Sample Surveys: A Methodological Report	231
	Notes	246
	References	257
	Index	283