Asian American History
Cross-Racial Solidarity Movements &
the Formation of the Asian American Identity
GRADE LEVEL: 9 - 12
SUGGESTED RUN TIME: 135 minutes (3 class periods of 45 minutes each)
SUGGESTED RUN TIME: 135 minutes (3 class periods of 45 minutes each)
Common Core Standards
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Main Ideas
1. During the era of the Civil Rights Movement, the collective identity of Asian America was born. Asian American activists modeled their strategies after Black activists, and students began educating themselves about common experiences through Asian American history. 2. The rise of the Asian American identity led to more unified activism & greater political power. 3. The Yellow Power Movement used this power to form coalitions with other non-Asian American groups and successfully agitate for common goals, such as ethnic studies programs. 4. At the same time as these movements for liberation accelerated, activists began looking inward and investigating intersectional concerns like gender. Our experiences and privilege are never determined only by one identity; intersectionality is an important theory that asks us to consider how multiple identities interact and intersect to shape someone’s life experiences. |
Lesson Plan Agenda
Part 1: Civil Rights and the Birth of the “Asian American” Identity (45 mins, Slides 2-31)
SLIDES 2-5 3 MINUTES |
Introduction of Lesson and Main Ideas |
SLIDES 6-8 8 MINUTES |
Overview of Vocabulary Slide 6: Includes all the vocabulary for this lesson. Ask for student volunteers to define the terms in their own words. Slides 7-18: Definitions of terms. |
SLIDES 19-20 8 MINUTES |
Pre-Lesson Discussion Slide 16: Pre-lesson discussion question: In our class, we have talked a lot about Black activists and leaders in the Civil Rights Movement. What do you think Asian Americans were doing in this movement? Ask for students to share their thoughts as a whole group. Slide 17: Pre-lesson discussion question: Thinking about yourself, what role would you have wanted to play in the Civil Rights Movement? If helpful, scaffold by first putting students into break-out groups before coming together to discuss.
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SLIDES 21-26 10 MINUTES |
The Civil Rights Movement, Black Power, & Asian Americans Follow the slides to review how Asian Americans were influenced by the Civil Rights and Black Power movements. Slides 22 & 23: Educator can point out the visual similarities between the two pictures (raised fists, protest, defiance) |
SLIDES 27-28 8 MINUTES |
Discussion of the term “Asian American”: Benefits & Drawbacks Slide 27: Main takeaway. Slide 28: Discussion questions: What does being Asian American mean? What are the benefits of a collective identity like Asian American? Are there drawbacks? Possible topics of discussion might include the power of community unity, the common stereotypes that all Asian Americans face, or the diversity in cultures, languages, and national origins among the Asian American community. |
SLIDES 29-31 8 MINUTES |
Given the students’ answers to the previous discussion questions, use their responses to transition into these slides, which review the coining of the term “Asian American” and its purpose, some groups’ reactions to the term, and why the term ultimately gained in popularity. Slide 30: Educator can ask students whether their thoughts on the discussion from Slide 28 have changed after learning that Asian America encompasses 40 countries and 2,300 languages. Why still might Asian Americans choose to identify with this label? |
Part 2: The Rise of the Asian American Movement (45 mins, Slides 33-54)
SLIDES 33-36 4 MINUTES |
Asian Americans in Local Activism Slide 34: Emphasize that the Black Panthers had a huge impact on the organization and mobilization of Asian Americans. |
SLIDE 37 2 MINUTES |
Introduction to Yellow Power Movement Educator can provide a brief description of the Vietnam War if necessary. Example: The Vietnam War encompassed many U.S. military conflicts in Southeast Asia (Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia), that lasted approximately two decades from 1955-1975. Historians estimate that millions of Southeast Asian civilians were killed. |
SLIDES 38-42 15 MINUTES |
Third World Liberation Student Strikes Slide 38: Educator can explain the reasoning behind the group’s naming and how the term “Third World” was meant to be cross-racially unifying. Slide 39: Discussion question: The Third World Liberation Front consisted of students from all different racial and ethnic groups. Why is cross-racial solidarity necessary when fighting for equality? Slide 41: Discussion question: Why do you think Asian, Black, Chicano, and Indigenous students wanted an ethnic studies program at their universities? Slide 42: Main takeaway and answer to the discussion question. Educator can link this answer back to why an antiracist history class is important. |
SLIDES 43-49 15 MINUTES |
Yellow Power Movement and Asian American Women Slide 45: Ask for a student volunteer to read the quote. Then, discuss and analyze what it means. Slide 49: Discussion questions: Are certain types of work, like secretarial work, more associated with one gender? Have you ever experienced or witnessed this? How did it make you feel? |
SLIDES 50-54 8 MINUTES |
Revolutionary Women in Revolutionary Movements Slide 50: Explicitly make a connection between the vocabulary word “intersectional” and the Venn diagram graphic. Note the overlaps between identities and explain that intersectional activism involves acknowledging and adjusting to account for those overlaps. Slide 53-54: Discussion questions: Why was intersectionality an important concept in the Yellow Power Movement? Thinking more generally, why is understanding and acknowledging intersectionality important? |
Part 3: Asian Americans against the Vietnam War (and Other Forms of Protest) (45 mins, Slides 55-68)
SLIDES 55-58 10 MINUTES |
Asian Americans against the Vietnam War **Please preface this section by warning students that you may be discussing triggering material, including wartime violence and racial slurs. Build in time afterwards to check in with students if needed.** Slide 55: If necessary, educator should give a brief summary of the Vietnam War. Example: The Vietnam War encompassed many U.S. military conflicts in Southeast Asia (Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia), that lasted approximately two decades from 1955-1975. Historians estimate that millions of Southeast Asian civilians were killed. Slide 58: Educator can ask students to break out into groups and analyze the military propaganda poster more closely. Discussion Questions:
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SLIDES 59-61 15 MINUTES |
Slide 60: Close-up of the Gidra May 1972 magazine cover with the dialogue written on the slide. Ask students to analyze the magazine cover. Possible topics of discussion might include the gendering of the Vietnamese fighter, the patronizing hand on the Asian American soldier’s shoulder, the slur that is applied to both the native Vietnamese and the Asian American, and the symbols on the American soldier’s (Joe’s) uniform. Slide 61: Discussion questions: What does this illustration reveal about how Asian American soldiers were seen and treated by the U.S. military? How would you feel if you were the soldier?
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SLIDES 62-67 15 MINUTES |
Asian Americans Protesting through Music Slide 64: Ask students what “Yellow Pearl” sounds like. Educator can point out that the band’s name sounds very similar to “Yellow Peril.” Ask students why the band might have chosen a name that sounds like “Yellow Peril.” Slide 66: Lyrics to Yellow Pearl’s “Somos Asiáticos (We Are Asians)” with their translations. Ask students to analyze the lyrics. Potential questions to ask:
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SLIDE 68 AFTER CLASS |
As take-home work after class, ask students to respond to the journaling prompt: Were you surprised by the power of song in the Asian American movement? Why do you think people found Yellow Pearl’s songs so compelling? What are some contemporary examples of intersectionality in activism? Educator may also choose to have students complete an additional after-class project by selecting a song from Yellow Pearl’s A Grain of Sand album (available to listen for free on Youtube) and researching the historical references in the song. We particularly recommend “We Are the Children.” |
Additional Resources
Books:
Karen Ishizuka, Serve the People: Making Asian America in the Long Sixties (2016).
Daryl J. Maeda, Chains of Babylon: The Rise of Asian America (2009).
Shelley Sang-Hee Lee, A New History of Asian America (2013).
Erika Lee, The Making of Asian America (2015).
Online:
“Yellow Power: The Origins of Asian America” (Densho)
“History of the Asian American Civil Rights Movement” by Nadra Kareem Nittle (ThoughtCo)
“Making and Unmaking the Asian American Movement” by Michelle Chen (Asian American Writers’ Workshop)
“Yellow Power: The Formation of Asian-American Nationalism in the Age of Black Power, 1966-1975” by Jeffrey O. G. Ogbar (Souls Journal)
“AAPI History: Activist Origins of the Term ‘Asian American’” by Anna Purna Kambhampaty (Time)
“The Third World Liberation Front” (The Berkeley Revolution) — a great resource because the site includes primary documents and photographs for students to analyze
“In the Belly of the Monster: Asian American Opposition to the Vietnam War” (Densho)
“Looking Like the Enemy: Political Identity & the Vietnam War” by Karen L. Ishizuka (Pacific Council on International Policy)
“The Forgotten Zine of 1960s Asian-American Radicals” by Jaeah J. Lee (Topic)
“Ending ‘Male Chauvinism’ In the Movement: Lessons from the Long Sixties” by Mark Tseng-Putterman (Reappropriate)
Karen Ishizuka, Serve the People: Making Asian America in the Long Sixties (2016).
Daryl J. Maeda, Chains of Babylon: The Rise of Asian America (2009).
Shelley Sang-Hee Lee, A New History of Asian America (2013).
Erika Lee, The Making of Asian America (2015).
Online:
“Yellow Power: The Origins of Asian America” (Densho)
“History of the Asian American Civil Rights Movement” by Nadra Kareem Nittle (ThoughtCo)
“Making and Unmaking the Asian American Movement” by Michelle Chen (Asian American Writers’ Workshop)
“Yellow Power: The Formation of Asian-American Nationalism in the Age of Black Power, 1966-1975” by Jeffrey O. G. Ogbar (Souls Journal)
“AAPI History: Activist Origins of the Term ‘Asian American’” by Anna Purna Kambhampaty (Time)
“The Third World Liberation Front” (The Berkeley Revolution) — a great resource because the site includes primary documents and photographs for students to analyze
“In the Belly of the Monster: Asian American Opposition to the Vietnam War” (Densho)
“Looking Like the Enemy: Political Identity & the Vietnam War” by Karen L. Ishizuka (Pacific Council on International Policy)
“The Forgotten Zine of 1960s Asian-American Radicals” by Jaeah J. Lee (Topic)
“Ending ‘Male Chauvinism’ In the Movement: Lessons from the Long Sixties” by Mark Tseng-Putterman (Reappropriate)
CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT TEAM
Emily Xu
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Kathy Lu
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Julia Wang
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