Running Head: LITERACY PRACTICES OF ASIAN AMERICAN STUDIES 71

The Literacy Practices of AS AM 71: Introduction to Religion in Asian America

Trang Nguyen
University of California, Santa Barbara

LITERACY PRACTICES OF ASIAN AMERICAN STUDIES 71

The Literacy Practices of AS AM 71: Introduction to Religion in Asian America

Religious studies is a multidisciplinary field that studies religious beliefs, behaviors, and
institutions through the lenses of many different cultures and identification roles. Introduction to
Religion in Asian America studies the major themes and issues in Asian American religion
history, belief, and practices. From what I have observed and learned, there are three distinct
literacy practices used in this discipline that are recurrent through observing the course, reading
scholarly journal articles in the discipline, and interviewing participants of the subject: analyzing
and making sense of past historical events that center around immigration laws and patterns; the
use of personal experiences of oneself or others through identification with a gender, class, or
race; and using the types of transmissions of Asian traditions into America to show the effects of
one tradition on the other. In an interdisciplinary field like this one, the combination of the many
different perspectives from researchers, students, and professors are pivotal in understanding and
studying abstract subjects such as religion and Asian American experiences, history, and culture.
After evaluating the readings assigned in class as well as other scholarly articles, I have
noticed that writers and researchers of Asian Americans and Asian American Religion all have
one thing in common: some kind of connection to the study, whether it be a direct or indirect
personal experience. For example, Land Without Ghosts is a book written by a Chinese professor
and researcher Fei Xiaotong that shows the Chinese impressions of America. He talks about his
experiences in America and how he notices a feeling of emptiness since he has moved here; he
compares his new life in New York and Chicago to his childhood home in China. Fei makes the
argument that America lacks ties and connections to its history, making it a land without
ghosts, or a place with no hope that there is more out there after death making the living
(Xiaotong, Land Without Ghosts) that is happening less enriching and more surface level. Being

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able to read about how a Chinese professor views America truly shows the underlying issue of
orientalism (Busto, 2016) and its constant separation of the East and the West (Busto, 2016).
Although Fei essentially calls America a lifeless country with no substance, readers are still able
to gain some perspective make sense of this other side. As Westerners studying the East,
understanding the perspectives of the subjects that we are studying is definitely necessary. While
Feis experiences were quite biased, reading what he had to say was a vital part in understanding
the main concepts of the course. Reading books, articles, etc. from figures in the Asian American
Religion discipline is probably the most important part of the class, aside from attending lecture.
These writings embody how historical events have evoked intellectuals to critically think and
evaluate the why of things. With Feis book in particular, his personal experience with being an
Asian in America embodies one of the millions of different perspectives out there, and reading
about it helps us make connections to the natural divide that different races and cultures create.
Just like how Religious Studies professor at Pennsylvania State University Charles S.
Prebish in Luminous Passage: The Study and Practice of Buddhism in America reveals the
factor behind his interest in Buddhism, my Asian American friend and classmate Alvin Ong also
reveals his ties to Asian American Religion that sparks his interest in the subject. Prebish (1999)
starts off by telling us readers stories of his two Asian American friends who experience
Buddhism in an unconventional way. His first friend suddenly sparks an interest for Buddhism
after years of a seemingly contented, if politically engaged, secularism (Prebish, Luminous
Passage), which causes him a curious feeling of uneasiness. Similarly, he learns of this second
friend whose very religious family uses these religious beliefs to justify hurtful actions that
recently occurred at a family event. The events of his friends reveal a side of Buddhism in which
Prebish is not used to and has never heard of. He is intrigued at the ways his Asian American

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friends have adopted this new American Buddhism into their lives. Why is it that his friend is
able to have this newfound interest in Buddhism? And why is it that his second friend is still
faithful to his religion despite these uncharacteristic actions done to him? Similarly, my
classmate Alvin Ong reveals his reasons as to why he is doing so well in the course and so
interested in the material. After interviewing Alvin, he has shared that his family is both Buddhist
and Catholic. He has always wondered why his family was able to practice both religions and did
not defy any rules. From taking this class, Alvin has learned of the many different ways in
which religion, particularly Buddhism, can be practiced and interpreted. This flexibility is a new
aspect to religion, especially one such as Christianity, that attracts him to the subject. He even
says this personal connection to Buddhism is why he remains interested in the subject and that
this interest enables him to do well in the course; after all, is it not more fun to learn something
you actually care about? My point is, both Prebish (1999) and Alvin have personal ties, direct
and indirect, that draw them to the subject. Prebish (1999) is intrigued by the events of his
friends lives and Alvin identifies with the religion. Say for example if my topic were Chemistry,
the reasons as to why participants in the subject are drawn to it correlate more to the personal
interests of the individual themselves versus here, where while that could also be the case,
identification with an aspect of the subject (race, religion, gender) is actually a stronger tie.
Prebish and Fei, among the many other intellectuals out there studying Asian American Religion,
reveal some kind of connection to the subject they are studying which makes them a much more
interesting source to read from because their first and second hand experiences are a vital part in
studying abstract subjects such as religion and interactions among a group of people.
Another literacy practice that is recurrent in studying Asian American Religion is the
study of Asian American immigration laws and patterns. Immigration is one of the most

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important aspects of Asian American Studies. As American history shows, immigration laws are
solely based on the labor needs of the American economy (Busto, Introduction to Religion in
Asian America). When cheap labor is required, immigration laws are relaxed and welcoming.
Conversely, when communities start seeing it as a threat to jobs or when labor is no longer
needed, immigrations laws become stricter. Knowing this, we can look at pivotal immigration
and naturalization laws such as the Hart-Celler Act of 1965 or the 1790 Naturalization Act.
While the 1790 Naturalization Act restricts American citizenship to free, white peoples, the
1965 Hart-Celler marks a shift in the different types of waves for Asian immigration. It proposed
to end the quota system but in reality, America was manipulating the law once again to make
immigration fit the needs of its economy. Pre-1965, the Asian immigration population consisted
primarily of male unskilled labor. The work force then filled up with cheap labor, and America
began seeing the need for different roles to be filled so post-1965, immigration patterns shifted to
a preference for the highly educated and professionals. Post-1965 laws even made special
accommodations for family reunification because that meant the immigrant men would be more
inclined to come to America with their families. This shift in immigration patterns perfectly
shows Americas manipulative nature when it comes to immigration laws. America utilizes
immigration laws to its benefit thus completely controlling how immigrants come into the
country. The 1790 Naturalization Act and Pre-1965 nature also shows how while America may
need Asian labor, it is unwilling to allow immigrants to even become citizens by limiting
naturalization as well as only allowing single males into the country because they will not bring
their families and want to stay. These key laws as well as various caste (Busto, 2016) laws that
restrict Asians from moving up in their societal roles allow us to understand one of the main
underlying causes of the natural separation between America and Asian America. From the

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beginning, America was in control of the Asian populations abilities to come into the country
and essentially of how Americans viewed Asians. Through these laws, especially pre and post
1965, America easily showed Americans that Asians were either these savage, primitive peoples
whose traditions were backwards and weird and who were only worth cheap labor or that they
were the model minority and could be highly educated professionals, worthy of this American
exceptionalism attitude. This then causes another natural divide, aside from race, between the
notorious East vs. West dynamic. Not only do important figures of Asian American Religion
mention these immigration laws to convey why Asian Americans are portrayed the way they are,
they also use it as a way to show transmission of Asian traditions into the US.
Lastly, understanding Asian American history is actually studying how the combination
of Asian American came about. Analyzing immigration patterns and the integration of Asian
culture into American culture helps us understand how this separate Asian culture has changed
and modernized into an Asian-American culture. This integration of cultures is exemplified
through Alvins Asian American identity and Professor and Orientalist Jan Nattiers three
transmissions of Buddhism model. Nattier proposes three ways in which Buddhism entered the
US: Import/Elite Buddhism (recipient with leisure time and money actively seeks
enlightenment), Export/Evangelical Buddhism (brought by citizens of other countries that
focuses heavily on material needs), and Baggage/Ethnic Buddhism (carried by immigrants like
baggage). She focuses on these different ways Buddhism enters into American culture and how
the influences or lack of influence of Asian culture are adapted into an Asian American culture.
Throughout all three methods of studying this course (observing, interviewing, researching), all
these methods reveal an obvious connection with Asian and American culture. In most cases, the
mere fact of being in America makes us Asian American. Whether it be through first or second

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generational influence, all the Asians in America are in fact Asian American. The first generation
are my parents, who spent the majority of their lives in Asia before coming here and do not adopt
as much of American culture while the second generation is more like me, who either came to
the US very young or are born here and grow up within American culture. The ways in which we
were brought about relate to how American we become. Other than my own Asian American
identity, philosophers and orientalists such as D.T. Suzuki also have his ties to Asia. D.T. Suzuki
is a good example of an Asian American; he was a student in Japan interested in Buddhism and
Western Studies who came to study under the influence of White philosopher Paul Carus. While
he is from Asian and looks Asian, he was taught by a White man studying Asian religion,
which heavily influenced his ways of thinking. He was able to appear to Asians because of his
ethnic background and also to Americans because of his progressive and Western ways of
thinking. Looking at these intersections of Asian and American identity enable a better
understanding of Asian American religion as a whole.
After a long analysis, my research in the field of Asian American religion reveals these
three literacy practices that make understanding the discipline easier. These practices, done by
researchers, professors and students of the discipline, show an interconnected relationship
between the studiers of the course and the actual subject itself. With these practices, we are able
to truly understand and experience the subject making it a perfect way to learn.

References

LITERACY PRACTICES OF ASIAN AMERICAN STUDIES 71

Arkush, R. D., & Lee, L. O. (1989). Land without ghosts: chinese impressions of america from
the mid-nineteenth century to the present. Berkeley: University of California Press.

Nattier, J. (1995, Fall). Visible&invisible. Retrieved Spring, 2016, from

http://tricycle.org/magazine/visible-invisible/

Prebish, C. S. (1999). Luminous passage: the practice and study of buddhism in america.
Berkeley: University of California Press.