The Politics of Survival in Academia

This volume presents the personal accounts of African American, Asian American, and Latino faculty who describe in their 'narratives of struggles' the challenges they faced in order to become bona fide members of the United States Academy. These narratives show how survival and success require a sophisticated knowledge of the politics of academia, insider knowledge of the requirements of legitimacy in scholarly efforts, and a resourceful approach to facing dilemmas between cultural values, traditional racist practices, and academic resilience. The book also explores the empowerment process of these individuals who have created a new self without rejecting their 'enduring' self; the self strongly connected to their ethno/racial cultures and groups. Within the process of self -redefinition, this new faculty confronted racism, sexism, rejection, the clash of cultural values, and structural indifference to cultural diversity. The faculty recounts how they ultimately learned the skillful accommodation to all of these issues. It is through the analysis of survival and self-definition that faculty of color and women will establish a powerful foothold in the new academy of the twenty-first century.

This volume presents the personal accounts of African American, Asian American, and Latino faculty who use 'narratives of struggles' to describe the challenges they faced in order to become bona fide members of the U.S. Academy. These narratives show how survival and success require a sophisticated knowledge of the politics of academia, insider knowledge of the requirements of legitimacy in scholarly efforts, and resourceful approach to facing dilemmas between cultural values, traditional racist practices, and academic resilience. The book also explores the empowerment process of these individuals who have created a new self without rejecting their 'enduring' self, the self strongly connected to their ethno/racial cultures and groups. Within the process of self -redefinition, this new faculty confronted racism, sexism, rejection, the clash of cultural values, and structural indifference to cultural diversity. The faculty recounts how they ultimately learned the skillful accommodation to all of these issues. It is through the analysis of survival and self-definition that women and faculty of color will establish a powerful foothold in the new academy of the twenty-first century.

Chapter 1 Foreword
Chapter 2 Introduction
Chapter 3 Chapter 1. Redefining the Self: From AFDC to Ph.D
Chapter 4 Chapter 2. From Slaveship to Scholarship: A Narrative of the Political and Social Transformation of an African-American Educator
Chapter 5 Chapter 3. Hanging In: The Journey to Good Enough
Chapter 6 Chapter 4. Disabling Institutions
Chapter 7 Chapter 5. Reflecting on the Games of Academia: A View from "the Porch"
Chapter 8 Chapter 6. Academic Adversity and Faculty Warriors: Prevailing Amidst Trauma
Chapter 9 Chapter 7. A Chinese American Woman's Struggle for Success and Self-Discovery in the Academy
Chapter 10 Chapter 8. Transnational Linkages in Asian American Studies as Sources and Strategies for Teaching and Curricular Change