Asian-American Studies
New Communities Symposium (April 13, 2010)
The New Communities Symposium is an event intended to: raise awareness of the growth and reconceptualization of the field of Asian American Studies in the Midwest; explore unique characteristics of Asian American Midwestern identitydiscuss contemporary Asian American-produced media, literature, and popular cultural practices; promote the Committee on Institutional Cooperation Asian American Studies Consortium; highlight the relatively new Purdue Asian American Studies program; and meet a Purdue Graduate School strategic initiative of fostering interdisciplinary graduate education.
BASIC INFO:
The symposium is free and open to the public. Registration is not required.
Visitor parking is available at the Grant Street Parking Garage ( http://www.union.purdue.edu/HTML/PMU/MapAndDirections.aspx) located directly across the street from the Purdue Memorial Union, where the symposium will take place.
Overnight guests can make reservations at the Union Club Hotel. ( http://www.union.purdue.edu/Html/UnionClubHotel/) Guests of the Union Club Hotel can have their Grant Street Parking Garage parking validated.
For more information contact Symposium Chairperson, Kate Agathon at agathon@purdue.edu.
KEYNOTE ADDRESS DESCRIPTION:
"Becoming Asian Pacific American...in the Midwest?!! Identities, Cultures, and Communities"
Growing up in California, Frances Kai-Hwa Wang grew up both part of and slightly outside of Chinese culture and mainstream American culture. Then she came to the Midwest for graduate school and was completely culture-shocked into an activist Asian Pacific American identity.
As Lead Multicultural Contributor for AnnArbor.com, Contributor for New America Media, and Acting Editor of IMDiversity.com Asian American Village, Ms. Wang has written and lectured extensively on issues of identity and culture as process rather than simply one "Aha" moment in time.
Ms. Wang will share funny and lyrical stories of the many different ways she has wrestled with identity and culture--as a child, as a student, as a parent, and as an activist. She will also offer thoughts about how learning more about Asian Pacific American history and taking a more multicultural or more global perspective can help all of us learn to think outside of the box and cultivate our characters beyond mainstream norms in order to build better, stronger, more inclusive communities for us all.
TOPICS and PARTICIPANTS:
Asian American identity in the Midwest, at college campuses and in the media are some of the topics that will be discussed at the New Communities symposium.
Panelists include Asian-American activists "Angry Asian Man" blogger Phil Yu, Blacklava founder Ryan Suda, songwriter Dawen and spoken word artist Kelly Zen-Yie Tsai. Professors and graduate students from Northwestern University, Purdue University, University of Illinois Chicago, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and Indiana University also are participating.
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