A Message from Acting Director Natalie Masuoka
I offer this message currently serving as the Acting Director while Professor Karen Umemoto is on her research sabbatical. We wish Professor Umemoto a productive leave and I look forward to working with the Center's amazing group of dedicated Center staff through the end of the calendar year. I offer this message currently serving as the Acting Director while Professor Karen Umemoto is on her research sabbatical. We wish Professor Umemoto a productive leave and I look forward to working with the Center's amazing group of dedicated Center staff through the end of the calendar year.
The Center's mission to foster and promote research on Asian American and Pacific Islander communities in today's tenuous times is one that I commit to continue as Acting Director. I began my term just days before the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments on the Trump v Barbara case and the application of birthright citizenship for Americans on April 1st. The established precedent on birthright citizenship was decided in the landmark U.S. v Wong Kim Ark in 1898 which upheld that Wong Kim Ark was a citizen of the United States by nature of his birth on American soil. This case makes plain the trailblazing efforts of many Asian Americans who used the legal system to advocate for their rights during a time when they were formally excluded from most other established areas of representation. But as I listened to the Supreme Court Justices's deliberations and the oral arguments for the Barbara case as they discussed the Wong Kim Ark case, I reflected on how important of a role Asian American Studies has played in not only documenting but also contextualizing the politics surrounding Chinese immigration in the nineteenth century so that we can better understand the similarities and differences between immigration politics then compared to now.
Legal scholars, historians and other scholars today can build upon the longstanding work of Asian American Studies as they wade through the arguments of Barbara and the historical development of birthright citizenship and immigration policy. While we do not yet know what the Court's decision will be, we do know that the knowledge developed in Asian American Studies help us to make better sense of how historical events connect with the issues of today.
The lessons learned from the Wong Kim Ark case show how important it is that we continue to support the teaching and research in Ethnic Studies. This Spring, we will be hosting several exciting events. Please find more details below. We hope that you can join us for the celebration and official release of the Foundations and Future Asian American and Pacific Islander Multimedia Textbook on May 9th.
In solidarity,
Natalie Masuoka
Acting Director
Professor of Political Science and Asian American Studies
Collective Memories: Oral Histories of Asian American Studies Founders
All Rights Reserved. © UCLA Asian American Studies Center, Los Angeles, California
Remembering Alan Nishio (1945-2023)
Alan Nishio was an exemplar of activism and service who profoundly influenced generations of students, community organizations and educational institutions.
Alan was interviewed as part of the UCLA Collective Memories project. To learn more about him, please view his oral history interview conducted on October 30, 2018.
Project Spotlights
Reports and Publications |
CrossCurrents, Newsmagazine of the UCLA Asian American Studies Center, Bridging Research and Community Since 1969
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Asian ICE Arrests, Detentions and Removals Data & Research Brief Series Updates By Paul Ong, Jonathan Ong, Melany De La Cruz-Viesca, and Cindy Quach
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By Paul Ong and Jonathan Ong
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ICE Detention of Asians: Increased Numbers and Hardships Under Trump By Paul Ong and Jonathan Ong
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Special Election November 2025: Redistricting and the Consequences for Asian American Voters By Natalie Masuoka
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New Research Brief: ICE Arrests of Asians Tripled from 2024 to 2025 UCLA study traces how the surge of ICE arrests have affected Asians By Jonathan Ong and Paul Ong
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Intersections: A Journalistic History of Asian Pacific America Editors: Amy Wang, Lori Matsukawa, Naomi Tacuyan Underwood, Arnold Pan, Yi-Shen Loo, Leszel Tanglao
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Asian American Language Needs in L.A. Wildfires Paul Ong, Chhandara Pech, Jonathan Ong, Melany De La Cruz-Viesca, Silvia R. González, and Bryzen Enzo Morales
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Asian American Voter Access in L.A. County In-Language Ballot Use, Voter Experiences and Effectiveness of Voter Outreach
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Asian American, Latino, Black and White Voters in Los Angeles City Elections Racial Diversity and Representation in 2020 and 2022
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A translation of WWII-era Japanese concentration camp poetry, recovers the lost voices of Japanese immigrants
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Korean & Asian American Journalists Writing Truth to Power
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EventsNovember 6, 2025
Bruce Lee and Cultures of Solidarity: Lessons for Today
UCLA Fowler A103B
Book Talk by author Jeff Chang for Water Mirror Echo Bruce Lee and the Making of Asian America, followed by a panel with guest speakers, H. Samy Alim, Martha Gonzalez, and Gaye Theresa Johnson.
Thursday, November 6, 2025, 3:30-6:00pm
June 28, 2025
Preserving Our Histories and the Freedom to Tell Our Stories
UCLA School of Law
We invite you to an exclusive author event and preview of the UCLA Asian American Studies Center's Foundations and Futures: Asian American and Pacific Islander Multimedia Textbook. Join us as journalist, author, and Emmy-award-winning filmmaker Julie Ha reflects on her experience retelling this monumental story, explores the importance of preserving historical narratives across communities, and unveils, for the first time, her textbook chapter, Free Chol Soo Lee: How a Lone Death Row Inmate Sparked a Movement. This is the second in a series of Foundations and Futures' chapter preview events.
Saturday, June 28, 2025, 2:00-4:00pm
May 29, 2025
An Asian American Writer's Notebook: Past, Present, and Future Tense
UCLA The Harry & Yvonne Lenart Auditorium
Join us for the David Nishida and Tina Yamano Nishida Distinguished Lecture and Panel featuring keynote speaker Helen Zia, activist, journalist and author, who will be in conversation with Julie Ha, journalist & co-director of the "Free Chol Soo Lee" documentary and Amber Phung, journalist with Pacific Ties newsmagazine. Join us for an insightful discussion at this in-person event that will engage thought leaders and audience members. It will be an enriching experience!
Thursday, May 29, 2025, 6:00-8:00pm
2024 Asian American & Pacific Islander Policy Summit
"Moving from Collective Knowledge to Action"
DATE: Friday, March 8, 2024
UCLA Meyer and Renee Luskin Conference Center
425 Westwood Plaza | Los Angeles, CA 90095
Registration is required. Please register here.
View the 2024 AAPI Policy Summit Program, Schedule, and more information here.
The "2024 AAPI Policy Summit: Moving from Collective Knowledge to Action," builds upon the 2023 Summit that focused on reimagining California by developing solutions that establish more equitable institutions, policies, and systems that work toward social justice for all. In particular, a future inclusive of Asian American and Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander communities. We invite you to join us as we continue to weave together our collective knowledge and build a future where action, power, representation and care lead to enduring impact.
The Summit is made possible in part by the Asian and Pacific Islander Equity Budget, which was a result of a statewide coalition of 116 community-based organizations and the California Asian American & Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus who advocated for these funds to support the critical work in developing equity, safety, and unity for California's diverse AAPI communities.
This event is co-organized by UCLA Asian American Studies Center, CA AAPI Legislative Caucus, and Commission on Asian & Pacific Islander American Affairs.
View the Policy Summit from February 10, 2023 here!
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