Becoming Asian American: Second-Generation Chinese and Korean American Identities

Based on interviews with second-generation Chinese and Korean Americans, this book explores how members of these communities develop identities as both Asian and American. Nazli Kibria conducted extensive interviews with second-generation Chinese and Korean Americans in Boston and Los Angeles who came of age during the 1980s and 1990s, examining the dynamics of race, identity, and adaptation within these groups. Kibria analyzes various strategies these individuals use to define themselves, drawing on discussions about childhood, interactions with non-Asian Americans, college, work, intermarriage, and child-raising. She finds significant differences between Asian American experiences and those documented in studies of other ethnic groups. These differences help explain the high degree of social integration and acceptance into mainstream American society that characterizes this population. However, Kibria's interviewees indicate that maintaining this acceptance requires constant effort. They cannot take their social position for granted. Kibria suggests that the emergence of a pan-Asian American identity—one that would complement rather than replace Chinese or Korean American identity—may help address this ongoing challenge.