Asian American Studies Research Guide

Secret Asian Man (or SAM, for short) is a comic written and drawn by Tak Toyoshima, a Japanese American. Originally published in 1999 in the Boston Weekly Dig, a weekly newspaper based in the Boston Chinatown, the comic and associated blog cover various social issues. Toyoshima also has a Twitter account.

Generasian (formerly This Asian American Life) is a blog, comic, and project headed by Katie Quan, a third generation Chinese American. Her work "centers around Asian American narratives, moments, and spaces," and often features work from other Asian American artists and figures.

Founded by Phil Yu in 2001, Angry Asian Man is a blog (accompanied by a podcast) focusing on Asian American news and issues. As Yu puts it, "I'm not as angry as you think. Yes, racism angers me. But I'm not here sitting in front of the computer, hating 'whitey' and plotting revolution. This is just a subject that has always interested me — pointing out racism and noting any and all appearances of Asians in mass media and popular culture (the good and the bad). It's something I care about. So I've created a little space on the web for it all... I suppose the angry part sometimes scares people, but rest assured, I'm a pretty civil, reasonable guy. Just don't cross me."

Hosted on Tumblr, Joshua Luna is a Filipino American who draws comics and blogs about Filipino and Asian American issues. He also has a Twitter account.

Reappropriate is a blog by Jenn Fang (with associated Twitter account and Facebook page) focusing on feminist, racial, and intersectional issues surrounding Asian Americans and especially Asian American women.

They Call Us Bruce is a podcast hosted by Jeff Yang and Phil Yu offering “an unfiltered conversation about what's happening in Asian America.”

Model Majority is a podcast hosted by Tony Nagatani and Kevin Xu, two former staffers of political campaign staffers and the Obama white house. Their episodes cover a variety of Asian American themes and issues, and often feature guests ranging from politicians to bloggers.

Yappie is a YouTube-hosted comedy/satire web series made by Wong Fu Productions. Its episodes cover such issues as Asian stereotyping, what it means to be Asian American, and who counts as Asian American. Yappie is but one series focusing on Asian Americans produced by Wong Fu Productions, an Asian-American-centric production studio working on “being positive influences, representing Asian Americans, and working hard to tell creative stories.”

The Slants are a dance-rock band comprised entirely of Asian Americans In 2017, the band received a U.S. Supreme Court decision in their favor (Matal v. Tam). The case focused on the band’s attempt to trademark their name, which had been denied on the grounds that “The Slants” was a pejorative reference to Asian peoples. The Slants, however, argued that their name was a reappropriation of a derogatory term, and that Asian-American activists had similarly used that term for years The band’s bassist, Simon Tam, wrote a New York Times opinion piece about the matter.

A composer and performer of opera, chamber music, orchestral pieces, and more, Kamala Sankaram is a winner of numerous awards for her pieces. Her works often explore themes of women confronting patriarchal power structures. She is currently a resident artist at the HERE Arts Center in New York City and a faculty member at SUNY Purchase.