Erika Lee

Orientalisms in the Americas: A Hemispheric Approach to Asian American History

Erika Lee takes a hemispheric approach to Asian American history, looking at the multi-national immigration restrictions on the Chinese in Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. In her article, she looks specifically at how notions of Orientalism that originated in the U.S. not only crossed its northern and southern borders, but also were embraced, unquestioningly, by Canadians and Mexicans to advance their respective nation-building agendas. Arguing that the seemingly national issue of immigration is best understood in a transnational context, Lee opens up new areas of scholarly inquiry by exploring how racialization and public policy related to immigration have been an interlinked, global phenomenon.