Kevin Lee- Blog Post Week 3

            In Christopher Lee’s “Diaspora, Transnationalism, and Asian American Studies: Position and Debates,” he talks about how Asian American Studies has come to be an object of study as transnationalism. At the end of this chapter, Lee states, “Asian American Studies, with its mission of making learning relevant to experiences of its constituencies, cannot not engage transnational issues” (Lee 32). In order to understand the Asian diaspora, one must first understand the connection between Asia and America. Lee mentions that the term “Asian American” has been instable due to the lack of knowledge of the Asian diaspora. Asian American Studies provides knowledge and insight on the Asian diaspora and the Asian community that we do not usually learn about in any other classes in school. This knowledge can be critical in a transnational sense because through this knowledge, globalization could improve even further than it is now. Through Asian American Studies, America can rethink their views on the Asian diaspora, and Americans can hopefully learn more about the background and struggles of the Asian diaspora and hopefully provide some insight and help for them.

Question: Would Americans truly be able to understand the Asian diaspora/community through Asian American Studies? Would Americans view on the Asian community, or Asia in general, change through learning Asian American studies as an object of study as transnationalism?

Work Cited:

Lee, Christopher. “Diaspora, Transnationalism, and Asian American Studies: Positions and Debates.” Displacements.

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