New book by sociologist CN Le explores ethnicity, immigration, and socioeconomic attainment

By Asian-American Village Staff

 

Dr. C.N. Le, director of Asian & Asian American Studies at U. Mass Amherst and the mastermind behind the website, Asian-Nation, has recently published a new book, Asian American Assimilation: Ethnicity, Immigration, and Socioeconomic Attainment.

In the book, which uses comprehensive data from the U.S. Census, Dr. Le broadens the idea of assimilation to include socioeconomic and institutional examples of integration by analyzing outcomes such as income, occupational prestige, small business ownership, residential segregation, and intermarriage for five Asian American groups, with an emphasis on Vietnamese. The results show that many Asian Americans, especially Vietnamese Americans, have historically and continue to encounter several disadvantages, particularly compared to Whites, when it comes to achieving structural integration.

Nonetheless, Dr. Le observes, many have been able to overcome such initial challenges in a relatively short amount of time by using collective resources and maintaining ethnic solidarity to weave together a pattern of achievement, mobility, and tradition.  In analyzing the interconnections between history, institutional conditions, and community solidarity, Dr. Le’s book serves as a valuable reference point and resource for students, policymakers, and Americans from all backgrounds.

In this, the book adds hard evidence to the growing body of research and publications that have recently begun to chip away at the myth of Asian Americans-as-monolithic-Model-Minority.  Other research we’ve covered include, most recently, a study by UCLA that looks at educational attainment among APA undergraduates in particular.

Available @ Amazon

Asian American Assimilation: Ethnicity, Immigration, and Socioeconomic Attainment

Dr, Le’s book was released by LFB Scholarly Publishing LLC as part of a New Americans series.

 

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