Asian Americans in New York City: Literature and Film

FAIN: FV-50398-14

CUNY Research Foundation, Hunter College (New York, NY 10065-5024)
Jennifer Mie Margareta Hayashida (Project Director: March 2014 to May 2016)

A two-week seminar for sixteen school teachers to study Asian-American cultures in New York City through film and literature.

With the goal of re-framing how literature and film/video engages with issues such as immigration, American identity, and belonging, “Asian America, NYC” (June 14 - June 26, 2015) seeks to provide a relevant 21st century illustration of Asian American cultural production and communities through the lens of New York City – a multicultural urban social laboratory which has for centuries been the crucible from which American identity has been shaped and challenged. New York City is today home to the largest and most dynamic Asian American population of any city in the U.S, representing more than 20 countries and speaking at least 45 languages and dialects. Against that backdrop, Asian American filmmakers and writers contest normative conceptions of identity in new and critical ways; this seminar provides participants with a unique opportunity to examine this emergent work and return to the classroom equipped with new understandings of U.S. multicultural literature and film/video.