Asian-American Experiences: Anthropological Perspectives

This course, Asian American Experiences: Anthropological Perspectives, offers students a broad, comparative, and in-depth analysis of Asian American experiences in the 21st century from anthropological, media studies, and gender studies perspectives. It explores the experiences of contemporary Asian Americans through ethnographic research and anthropological works by reflecting on some of the key concerns of our society today: digital reproduction of racism, backlash against the rise of Asia as economic contender with the West, Trumpism/Fascism, #MeToo, and the explosion of racism against Asians since the COVID-19 pandemic. This class will be of special importance for MIT’s Asian American student population, as it also attends to the experiences of racialization in the workspaces of college-educated professionals, experiences that are often overlooked due to the society's emphasis on low income and earlier migrant communities.