Ten years ago, a group of students at Hunter College in New York City rallied to save a dying Asian American Studies program. Today, the fight continues, with CRAASH – the Coalition for the Revitalization of Asian American Studies at Hunter College – calling for the implementation of an Asian American Studies major, department and expanded faculty in the face of a minor students say is once again on the edge of instability.
According to the organization, which has penned an open letter and launched a petition and the hashtag #WhyINeedAAS, the program faces problems including stagnant funding and a lack of tenure-track faculty, despite the minor finding increasing popularity among Hunter’s student body, which is 30 percent Asian.
“We are campaigning for an Asian American Studies major because we’re saying that we cannot sustain ourselves with the program that we have now,” said Kevin Park, a CRAASH leader. “It’s sad that we’re almost in the same place we were 10 years ago.”
The Asian American Studies Program (AASP) began in 1993 as a student-faculty initiative. Student efforts saved the program at a crisis point in 2006, when it was nearly eliminated and its director denied tenure; current director Jennifer Hayashida is the the only full-time, non-adjunct AASP faculty member.
Students, who call the state of the program “unsustainable,” are asking the college to create hiring lines for five full-time AASP faculty, tenure for Hayashida, increased funding, and disaggregate data on the Asian student population, which would ensure, Park said, that the administration does not see the entire segment as a monolithic body but as a diverse group with a range of needs.
Linda Luu, another CRAASH member, said Hunter’s offering of AAS courses – the largest in the city – was one of the reasons she chose to attend the school. “There are few places on campus where people can unpack their own histories and talk about race, culture and immigration,” Luu said. “Asian American Studies is a pathway to get involved with AAPI activism in general.”
Citing the recent victory of a student-run campaign for an AAS major at Northwestern University that took 25 years, the organization argued in its letter to Hunter President Jennifer Raab that it is a time of “strong climate for student change.” “The reasons for growth are clear, ranging from student demand to additional critical scholarship to changing demographics and consequent needs for an increasingly diverse student body,” the letter reads. “We demand that the administration fulfills its responsibility to provide a holistic and diverse curriculum for its equally diverse CUNY student body.”
Student activism has been the backbone of Asian American Studies programs across the country for decades – at Northwestern, the quest for one famously led to a 23-day hunger strike by dozens of students in 1995. Park said CRAASH has connected with the activist group there, as well as at institutions like Cornell, NYU and Columbia.
CRAASH has found support from a large number of the student body, said member Michael Garrovillas, in particular by facilitating public dialogue through its efforts. “We’ve been seeing students, and we’ve been talking to them, to hear from them their opinions. The support has been growing as the days go by.”
“The Asian American Studies Program started with students advocating for and organizing for it first,” Park said. “We are still here, and we will continue to be here.”
