Asian Americans in the People’s History of the United States
Profile.
Brief profiles of people and events from Asian American and Pacific Islander people's history.
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Theme: Asian American
Asian American
Learning About the Unfairgrounds: A 4th-Grade Teacher Introduces Her Students to Executive Order 9066
Teaching Activity. By Katie Baydo-Reed. Rethinking Schools. 10 pages.
Students hold a mixer and a mock trial in preparation for reading literature about internment.
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Students hold a mixer and a mock trial in preparation for reading literature about internment.
A Lesson on the Japanese American Internment
Teaching Activity. By Mark Sweeting. Rethinking Schools. 4 pages.
How one teacher engaged his students in a critical examination of the language used in textbooks to describe the internment.
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How one teacher engaged his students in a critical examination of the language used in textbooks to describe the internment.
The Other Internment: Teaching the Hidden Story of Japanese Latin Americans During WWII
Teaching Activity. By Moé Yonamine. Rethinking Schools. 18 pages.
Poetry, photography, and text are used in this role play to teach about the seldom told history of Japanese Latin American internment during WWII.
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Poetry, photography, and text are used in this role play to teach about the seldom told history of Japanese Latin American internment during WWII.
What the Tour Guide Didn’t Tell Me: Tourism, Colonialism, and Resistance in Hawai’i
Teaching Activity. By Wayne Wah Kwai Au. Rethinking Schools. 5 pages.
Lesson on the history of Hawai'i and the impact of colonization and tourism.
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Lesson on the history of Hawai'i and the impact of colonization and tourism.
How to Make Amends: A Lesson on Reparations
Teaching Activity. By Ursula Wolfe-Rocca, Alex Stegner, Chris Buehler, Angela DiPasquale, and Tom McKenna.
Students meet dozens of advocates and recipients of reparations from a variety of historical eras to grapple with the possibility of reparations now and in the future.
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Students meet dozens of advocates and recipients of reparations from a variety of historical eras to grapple with the possibility of reparations now and in the future.
Teaching About Asian Pacific Americans: Effective Activities, Strategies, and Assignments for Classrooms and Communities
Teaching Guide. Edited by Edith Wen-Chu Chen and Glenn Omatsu. 2006.
Comprehensive collection of articles and lessons on Asian Pacific American history.
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Comprehensive collection of articles and lessons on Asian Pacific American history.
Journey for Justice: The Life of Larry Itliong
Picture book. By Dawn Bohulano Mabalon and Gayle Romasanta. Illustrated by Andre Sibayan. 2018.
The first nonfiction illustrated Filipino-American history book for children tells the story of labor activist Larry Itliong, who organized farmworkers on the West Coast in the mid-20th century.
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The first nonfiction illustrated Filipino-American history book for children tells the story of labor activist Larry Itliong, who organized farmworkers on the West Coast in the mid-20th century.
A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America
Book — Non-fiction. By Ronald Takaki, with a foreword by Clint Smith. 2023. 576 pages.
A multicultural history of the United States, in the voices of Indigenous people, African Americans, Jews, Irish Americans, Asian Americans, Latinos, and others.
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A multicultural history of the United States, in the voices of Indigenous people, African Americans, Jews, Irish Americans, Asian Americans, Latinos, and others.
Angel Island: Gateway to Gold Mountain
Book — Non-fiction. By Russell Freedman. 2014. 96 pages.
An account of Angel Island, California, the entry point for one million Asian immigrants in the early 20th century.
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An account of Angel Island, California, the entry point for one million Asian immigrants in the early 20th century.
A Different Mirror for Young People: A History of Multicultural America
Book — Non-fiction. By Ronald Takaki, adapted by Rebecca Stefoff. 2012. 368 pages.
An adaptation for young readers of the classic multicultural history of the United States, A Different Mirror.
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An adaptation for young readers of the classic multicultural history of the United States, A Different Mirror.
Escape to Gold Mountain: A Graphic History of the Chinese in North America
Book — Non-fiction. By David H.T. Wong. 2012. 240 pages.
A graphic novel that gives a panoramic but also an intimate look at the Chinese experience in North America.
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A graphic novel that gives a panoramic but also an intimate look at the Chinese experience in North America.
Fred Korematsu Speaks Up
Book — Non-fiction. By Laura Atkins and Stan Yogi. Illustrated by Yutaka Houlette. 2017. 112 pages.
Story of Fred Koretmatsu, jailed for resisting internment by the U.S. government during WWII. He took his case to the U.S. Supreme Court twice.
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Story of Fred Koretmatsu, jailed for resisting internment by the U.S. government during WWII. He took his case to the U.S. Supreme Court twice.
Sugar
Book — Fiction. By Jewell Parker Rhodes. 2013. 288 pages.
Historical fiction about Reconstruction-era Louisiana through the eyes of a young girl who bridges the divide between the long-time plantation workers and the Chinese indentured servants.
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Historical fiction about Reconstruction-era Louisiana through the eyes of a young girl who bridges the divide between the long-time plantation workers and the Chinese indentured servants.
Sylvia & Aki
Book — Historical fiction. By Winifred Conkling. 2011. 160 pages.
Based on the true story of two girls who meet in 1940s California and a landmark lawsuit on education.
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Based on the true story of two girls who meet in 1940s California and a landmark lawsuit on education.
We Hereby Refuse: Japanese American Resistance to Wartime Incarceration
Book — Non-fiction. By Frank Abe and Tamiko Nimura; illustrated by Ross Ishikawa. 2021. 160 pages.
This graphic novel tells the story of Japanese American imprisonment during World War II, and the resistance and defiance that existed in these internment camps.
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This graphic novel tells the story of Japanese American imprisonment during World War II, and the resistance and defiance that existed in these internment camps.
101 Changemakers: Rebels and Radicals Who Changed US History
Book — Non-fiction. By Michele Bollinger and Dao Tran. 2012.
A collection of 101 brief and accessible profiles of rebels, radicals, and fighters for social justice.
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A collection of 101 brief and accessible profiles of rebels, radicals, and fighters for social justice.
A Young People’s History of the United States: Revised and Updated
Book — Non-fiction. By Howard Zinn, adapted by Rebecca Stefoff with additions by Ed Morales. 2022. 544 pages.
A young adult version of the best-selling A People’s History of the United States.
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A young adult version of the best-selling A People’s History of the United States.
Conscience and the Constitution
Film. By Frank Abe. 2000. 57 minutes.
In World War II, 63 Japanese Americans refused to be drafted from a U.S. concentration camp.
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In World War II, 63 Japanese Americans refused to be drafted from a U.S. concentration camp.
Yuri Kochiyama: “Then Came the War”
Film clip. Voices of a People's History.
Dramatic reading of Yuri Kochiyama's "Then Came the War" (1991) by Deepa Fernandes.
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Dramatic reading of Yuri Kochiyama's "Then Came the War" (1991) by Deepa Fernandes.
Ronald Takaki
Profile.
Ronald Takaki (April 12, 1939 - May 26, 2009) was an academic, historian, ethnographer, author, and activist who is credited with founding ethnic studies.
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Japanese American Evacuation and Resettlement Online Archive
Digital collection. Firsthand accounts and primary sources of the internment of Japanese Americans during WWII.
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Remembering 1882: Fighting for Civil Rights in the Shadow of the Chinese Exclusion Act
Website.
Primary documents, historical background, and more on the Chinese Exclusion Act and the history of Chinese American struggles for civil rights.
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Americans Who Tell the Truth
Website.
Portraits by Robert Shetterly and biographies of individuals who have taken a stand for justice.
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A People’s History of the United States: Highlights from the Twentieth Century (Audio)
Audio. By Howard Zinn. Read by Matt Damon. 2003. 8 hours, 44 minutes.
Audio book version of excerpted highlights from A People's History of the United States.
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Audio book version of excerpted highlights from A People's History of the United States.