Consuming Citizenship - (Asian America) by Lisa Sun-Hee Park (Paperback)

About the Book

Consuming Citizenship investigates how Korean American and Chinese American children of entrepreneurial immigrants demonstrate their social citizenship and belonging as Americans through conspicuous consumption.

Book Synopsis

Consuming Citizenship investigates how Korean American and Chinese American children of entrepreneurial immigrants demonstrate their social citizenship and belonging as Americans through conspicuous consumption.

From the Back Cover

Consuming Citizenship investigates how Korean American and Chinese American children of entrepreneurial immigrants demonstrate their social citizenship as Americans through conspicuous consumption.
The American immigrant entrepreneur has played a central role in projecting the American ideology of meritocracy and equality. The children of these immigrants are seen as evidence of an open society. While it appears that these children have readily adapted to American culture, questions remain as to why second-generation Asian Americans feel compelled to convince others of their legitimacy and the way they go about asserting their citizenship status.
Extending our understanding of such children beyond the traditional emphasis on assimilation, the author argues that their consumptive behavior is a significant expression of their paradoxical position as citizens who straddle the boundaries of social inclusion and exclusion.

Review Quotes

"Lisa Park's fascinating foray into the lives of Asian immigrant entrepreneurs' children is at once illuminating and inspiring. Based upon extensive interviews and careful research, Consuming Citizenship challenges superficial stereotypes and provides nuanced portraits. Written with verve, it is an indispensable text for understanding the new generation of Asian Americans." --John Lie, University of California, Berkeley

About the Author

Lisa Sun-Hee Park is Assistant Professor in the Ethnic Studies Department and the Urban Studies and Planning Program at the University of California, San Diego. She is co-author of The Silicon Valley of Dreams: Environmental Injustice, Immigrant Workers, and the High-tech Global Economy (2002).