Presenters include:

• Russell M. Jeung, the 2025-6 Robert L. Hess Scholar in Residence, is Professor of Asian American Studies at San Francisco State University and co-founder of Stop AAIP Hate. Over the last 25 years his research has shaped the fields of Asian American Studies and Sociology of Religion. He is author of Family Sacrifices: The Worldviews and Ethics of Chinese Americans; Moving Movers: Student Activism and the Emergence of Asian American Studies; At Home in Exile: Finding Jesus among My Ancestors and Refugee Neighbors; Sustaining Faith Traditions: Race, Ethnicity and Religion Among the Latino and Asian American Second Generation (with Carolyn Chen): and Faithful Generations: Race and New Asian American Churches. He co-produced the documentary, The Oak Park Story (2010), about a landmark housing lawsuit involving Cambodian and Latino tenants. In March 2020, Professor Jeung co-founded Stop AAPI Hate, a coalition that was awarded the 2021 Webby Award for “Social Movement of the Year.” He was named as one of the TIME 100 Most Influential Persons in 2021.

• Yung-Yi Diana Pan is the director of the American Studies Program and Associate Professor of Sociology at CUNY, ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ. She is also faculty of Sociology at the Graduate Center. Pan’s research broadly intersects race, ethnicity, immigration, professions, and culture. Mostly, she is interested in examining how institutions not only maintain but reify racial norms and boundaries. Her first book, Incidental Racialization: Performative Assimilation in Law School (Temple University, 2017) examines how Asian American and Latinx law students are racialized as a part of their professional socialization. Her research has appeared in peer-reviewed sociology journals and interdisciplinary journals, including Sociological Forum, Journal for Asian American Studies, and International Journal of Clinical Legal Education, among others. She is co-PI on the ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ AANAPISI grant and has served in administrative positions at CUNY. Pan regularly teaches theory, research methods, and race and ethnicity courses, and advises students on an array of independent research topics.

The post Asian American Movements for Racial Justice: Resistance and Solidarity – The 2026 Robert L. Hess Memorial Lecture appeared first on ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ.

• Ava Chin is the author of Mott Street, winner of the CALA Best Book Award in Nonfiction and a PEN/Open Book Finalist, and Eating Wildly, winner of the M.F.K. Fisher Book Award for excellence in food writing. Mott Street, an ALA Notable Book and one of People magazine’s top books by Asian American authors, was a Best Book of the year by TIME, the SF Chronicle, Library Journal, Kirkus and Elle. Chin is the recipient of grants from the NYPL’s Cullman Center, Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program, NYFA, Asian American Writers’ Workshop and MacDowell. She is Professor of Creative Nonfiction at CUNY, head of the Grad Center’s American Studies Certificate Program, and a Visiting Scholar at Oxford University. The Huff Post named her one of “9 Contemporary Authors You Should Be Reading.”
• Russell M. Jeung, the 2025-6 Robert L. Hess Scholar in Residence, is Professor of Asian American Studies at San Francisco State University and co-founder of Stop AAIP Hate. Over the last 25 years his research has shaped the fields of Asian American Studies and Sociology of Religion. He is author of Family Sacrifices: The Worldviews and Ethics of Chinese Americans; Moving Movers: Student Activism and the Emergence of Asian American Studies; At Home in Exile: Finding Jesus among My Ancestors and Refugee Neighbors; Sustaining Faith Traditions: Race, Ethnicity and Religion Among the Latino and Asian American Second Generation (with Carolyn Chen): and Faithful Generations: Race and New Asian American Churches. He co-produced the documentary, The Oak Park Story (2010), about a landmark housing lawsuit involving Cambodian and Latino tenants. In March 2020, Professor Jeung co-founded Stop AAPI Hate, a coalition that was awarded the 2021 Webby Award for “Social Movement of the Year.” He was named as one of the TIME 100 Most Influential Persons in 2021.
• Alvin Khiêm Bùi is Assistant Professor of History specializing in Asian and Asian diasporic histories. He received his doctoral degree from the University of Washington, Seattle in modern Southeast Asian and East Asian history. His research is on ethnic Chinese in and from southern Vietnam. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa and magna cum laude from the University of California, Los Angeles, in History and Asian American Studies, after which he lived and worked in Vietnam in education and venture capital. He has published on Saigonese motorbike YouTubers and their diasporic Vietnamese audiences.

The post Recuperating Collective Stories: Writing Chinese American Memoirs appeared first on ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ.

Presenters include:

• Anju Gupta, Professor of Law and Judge Chester J. Straub Scholar; Director, Immigrant Rights Clinic, Rutgers Law School, Newark
• Russell M. Jeung, Professor of Asian American Studies at San Francisco State University, co-founder of Stop AAPI Hate; and Rober L. Hess Scholar-in-Residence 2026
• Rev. Deborah Lee, Co-Executive Director of Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity
• Socheatta Meng, Executive Director, Mekong NYC

Moderator:

• Gunja SenGupta, Professor of History, ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ and the Graduate
  Center, CUNY

The post The Lives, Rights, and Civil Liberties of Asian Americans in an Age of Mass Deportation appeared first on ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ.

Presenters include:

• Russell M. Jeung, 2025–26 Robert L. Hess Scholar in Residence, professor of Asian American Studies at San Francisco State University, and co-founder of Stop AAIP Hate. He is author of Family Sacrifices: The Worldviews and Ethics of Chinese Americans; Moving Movers: Student Activism and the Emergence of Asian American Studies; At Home in Exile: Finding Jesus Among My Ancestors and Refugee Neighbors; and Faithful Generations: Race and New Asian American Churches. Jeung co-produced the documentary The Oak Park Story (2010), about a landmark housing lawsuit involving Cambodian and Latino tenants. He was named as one of the TIME 100 Most Influential Persons in 2021.
• Clarissa S.L. Cheah, professor of psychology and Asian studies faculty affiliate at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. A cultural development scientist, Cheah’s research illuminates how individual, relational, and contextual factors shape the socio-emotional, mental, and physical health of children and adolescents, with a sustained focus on Asian American and Muslim American families. Her innovative mixed-methods work advances conceptual frameworks on parenting, racial-ethnic identity socialization, and development, offering culturally grounded perspectives on development in the context of migration, marginalization, and resilience. She is president of the Society for the Research on Adolescence, and a Fellow of the American Psychological Association, the Association for Psychological Science, and the International Society for the Study of Behavioral Development.
• Cindy Liu, licensed clinical psychology and associate professor of pediatrics and psychiatry, Harvard Medical School. Liu is the director of the Developmental Risk and Cultural Resilience Program as well as the NICU Parent Mental Health Program at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Her research focuses on the measurement and mechanisms of stress and its impact on mental health across the developmental lifespan. Liu is currently principal investigator on several studies, including the BOBA Project, the largest NIH-funded study on Asian American adolescents. Her work has been supported by foundations and philanthropy and featured in outlets including The New York Times, USA Today, and CBS News. In 2023, she received Clarivate’s Highly Cited designation, recognizing scientists in the top 1% of citations.

The post Hess Week 2026: Struggling, Surviving, Thriving—Asian American Mental Health appeared first on ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ.

I was born and raised in Taiwan. I came to New York at 27 to attend ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ for my master’s degree.

Why did you choose ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ?

As an international student, I looked for a college that could provide me with a quality education and access to greater opportunities. I wanted to study in Brooklyn because of the diverse student population and key location in New York City.

You earned a master’s degree in sociology.

It was a field I fell in love with, and the classes and professors alike. My time at ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ gave me a real sense of what New York City is about—diversity, opportunity, and a path to thrive.

What was your first job after graduation?

I worked as a community journalist at World Journal, the largest Chinese-language newspaper in the United States. I wrote about current events and major local news for the Asian-American community in Brooklyn.

What inspired you to enter politics and, more recently, to run for State Senate?

As a journalist, I often amplified the issues and experiences of the local Asian-American community. But there was a disconnect when it came to the solutions and available resources in New York City because of language and cultural differences. I knew I wanted to amplify these stories and be a part of the solution. Anyone can make a difference in society if civically engaged and politically involved.

I joined the office of former Assemblyman Peter J. Abbate, who represented the Sunset Park, Dyker Heights, and Bensonhurst neighborhoods. I was chief of staff for 10 years, bridging the gap between state government and the southern Brooklyn community. It was inspiring each time the office resolved a constituent case, connected someone to a resource, or addressed a local matter. In 2022, after the redistricting of New York State and federal districts, a new Senate district (the 17th district) was created in Brooklyn. This newly created Asian plurality district was formed of neighborhoods I served in many capacities. I decided to throw my hat into the ring to bring a strong voice for Brooklyn’s diverse and vibrant communities.

What do you most want your impact on the Senate to be? What are your biggest goals?

I want the younger generation to see they can work hard and achieve their greatest dreams. I am the first Asian woman in the New York State Senate, and I’m excited to forge a path for our next generation of leaders. In my position, I am bringing more resources and investments to our immigrant communities. My goals center on education and opportunities for our youth. I’m fighting for our public schools to be fully funded and for major investments in the City University of New York. Through my efforts in the Senate, I hope to empower students with the tools to thrive in their passions.

When you were a child, what did you think you would be when you grew up?

I knew I wanted to positively impact people’s lives but did not have an exact role in mind. I pushed myself during my academic career to explore my curiosities and passions. There is no limit to dreaming big and believing in yourself. There was no long-term plan to become an elected official, but my journey in public service brought me there. I’m proud to be the first Asian-American woman in the State Senate and the first to ever represent this district.

The post Part of the Solution appeared first on ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ.