The stereotype of the socially inept, meek Asian-American is one that needs changing. That ultimately requires Asian-Americans to challenge themselves --- and society at large -- to rethink the place of Asian-Americans in our society.
Whereas gays in Western civilizations have to contend only with the idiocies of outdated religious moral concepts, the Confucian tradition that infuses most Asian societies is much more of a social straitjacket, affecting every aspect of life much more menacingly.
After I wrote my first blog post here, I felt a certain sense of satisfaction. I felt like I'd excavated something difficult about ethnicity and gender and literature and identity. Imagine my shock when I saw the ads by Google.
When I said that "Amy Tan" had become a dirty word, I meant it in the full sense: a taboo, a line drawn in the sand, a barrier to understanding. I don't know if that came through.
There's something troubling about the use of the word "relationship" that excludes all relationships but romantic ones. All other adult relationships aren't just excluded in the wording; they're absent from the studies.