Lines of Inquiry is a new APARRI blog series highlighting the research of APARRI members, what led them to their field of study, and what influences shape the person behind the scholarship. For this feature, we spoke with Dr. Russell Jeung (San Francisco State University) about the intersections of activism, scholarship and community engagement.
Read the full conversation below.
- Could you tell us a bit about your current research interests?
As a full professor, I’m writing for broader audiences these days and seek to do public scholarship that might change the narrative about Asian Americans. In response to anti-Asian hate and current deportation policies, I’m writing a book tentatively titled Our Immigrant Inheritance: Ancestral Values Resistant to Change. In uplifting how Asian Americans embody values such as hospitality and justice, I hope to share how the US has much to learn from Asian living traditions. It builds on Family Sacrifices in that it demonstrates how Confucian, Taoist or Buddhist teachings continue to shape our lived experiences.
The current xenophobic ICE policies are extensions of anti-Asian hate, and I’m also writing about these connections in op-eds. I hope to raise up the voices of DACA students, formerly incarcerated persons, and those impacted by ICE detentions as I continue my activism around these issues.
- What led you to study religion and Asian Americans in the first place? And how have your interests and motivations as a scholar developed over time?
I grew up in the Christian faith, and I know from first-hand experience the powerful force of religion. Initially, I was interested in the intersection of race and religion in one’s identity, and now I’m especially interested in how religion impacts the political activities of Asian Americans. Overall, as a scholar-activist and person of faith, I want to see how we can better effect social change in our communities.
- Your work is powerfully embedded in the intersection of scholarship and activism, including your participation in APARRI’s Collaborative Grant program and your role as a founder of Stop AAPI Hate. What draws you to this intersection and motivates your work?
Since I was young, I’ve believed that working for social change, especially to empower low-income communities of color, has been my calling. I try to integrate my activities—my research, writing, teaching, and activism—around this sense of calling and praxis. For example, I study racial movements so that I can help to organize my community better. I write about Asian Americans in the margins in order to change the narrative about us. This calling gives me a lot of purpose and drive, as well as lamentation and pain.
- What has been the most surprising or rewarding aspect of your career?
Co-founding Stop AAPI Hate and helping to mobilize the movement against racism has been the most surprising and rewarding aspect of my career. I knew that working with community organizations to gather data about anti-Asian hate incidents was necessary to shape public policy, but I was shocked to witness so much racism and anger directed towards our community. Despite being traumatized by reading about the widespread, virulent hate towards us, I was very heartened to see the Asian American community stand up to racism. I’m grateful I could be in the position to help raise awareness of the issue and to propose solutions, such as promoting Asian American Studies at all levels.
- What piece of advice would you give to undergraduate or graduate students interested in studying AAPI histories and communities?
If possible, try to learn an Asian language so that you can interview immigrant populations and read their writings. I think we lose so much in our understanding of Asian American history and narratives when we can’t hear their voices (I’m not bilingual, I’m ashamed to admit).
Another piece of advice I want to share is that if you do have the privilege to become an Asian American scholar, please try to make your work accessible and applicable for the improvement of the community. Students went on strike so that Ethnic Studies could be established and so that community issues could be better addressed. We have a responsibility to honor their legacy, especially if you’re one of the few people who gets an Asian American Studies position.
- How has your experience with APARRI impacted you, whether professionally or personally? Are there any memorable experiences or moments that stand out?
APARRI helped me to survive academia and get established. If it weren’t for the support and mentorship of the few Asian American scholars of religion at the time, I wouldn’t have been able to get published and then be able to secure a position. APARRI provided the friendships and networks who reviewed my submissions and wrote my book blurbs.
- Is there anything else you’d like to share about your work?
I didn’t realize the platform that we as scholars have in voicing the concerns of Asian Americans and shaping the narrative about us. Because I’m a scholar of race and religion, the media is more likely to publish my op-eds than others’. That legitimacy and authority can’t be taken lightly; we thus have the responsibility to do public scholarship that is accountable to our communities and that can shape public opinion.
Professor of Asian American Studies at San Francisco State University, Dr. Russell Jeung is an author of books and articles on race and religion. He’s written Family Sacrifices: The Worldviews and Ethics of Chinese Americans (2019); Mountain Movers: Student Activism and the Emergence of Asian American Studies (2019); and At Home in Exile: Finding Jesus Among My Ancestors and Refugee Neighbors (2016).
In March 2020, Dr. Jeung co-founded Stop AAPI Hate, a coalition that was awarded the 2021 Webby Award for “Social Movement of the Year.” Dr. Jeung was named as one of the TIME 100 Most Influential Persons in 2021.
Dr. Jeung is a member of New Hope Covenant Church in Oakland, CA.