Ronald Takaki
Ronald Takaki | |
---|---|
Hawaii Territory, U.S. | |
Died | May 26, 2009 Berkeley, California, U.S. | (aged 70)
Nationality | American |
Occupation | Historian |
Known for | Ethnic studies author |
Title | Professor |
Spouse |
Carol Rankin (m. 1961) |
Children | 3 |
Academic background | |
Alma mater | College of Wooster (BA) UC Berkeley (MA, PhD) |
Thesis | A pro-slavery crusade: The movement to reopen the African slave trade (1967) |
Academic work | |
Discipline | History |
Sub-discipline | Ethnic studies |
Institutions |
Ronald Toshiyuki Takaki (April 12, 1939 – May 26, 2009) was an American
His work addresses stereotypes of Asian Americans, such as the model minority concept.[1] Among his most notable books are Strangers from a Different Shore: A History of Asian-Americans from 1989 and A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America from 1993. Takaki was a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles from 1966 to 1971 and University of California, Berkeley from 1971 to 2003.
Early life
Born in 1939 in
His undergraduate experiences there caused him to begin asking the kinds of questions which evolved into the foundation of his career.
Takaki then began graduate studies in American history at the University of California, Berkeley and completed his master's degree in 1962 and Ph.D. in 1967.[1] His dissertation was on the subject of American slavery, focusing on the rationale for slavery.[3] This work later became his first book: A Pro-Slavery Crusade: the Agitation to Reopen the African Slave Trade.[10]
Takaki's personal experiences inspired him to devote his life to working for equality for Asian Americans and others. A seminal event in his life developed when his wife's family refused to accept him because they could only see him as a "jap"—not as a native-born American citizen just like any one else.[8]
Academic career
His initial teaching experience was in 1966 at the University of California at Los Angeles, where he taught the first Black History course offered at that institution.[1][2] When recalling his first day teaching this course, he stated, "When I walked into the classroom I discovered it was held in a huge auditorium - 500 seats and every seat was taken, and students were sitting in the aisles, and there was a loud chitter-chatter, the students were excited...As I made my way to the front of the auditorium all of a sudden a silence descended in this room and their eyes were riveted on me and I could just feel them saying to themselves, 'Funny, he doesn't look black'."[11] One of his students on the first day asked what the class was going to learn about "revolutionary tactics," and he later recalled that his immediate response was to suggest that he hoped students would learn skills of critical thinking and effective writing—and that these could be quite revolutionary.[8]
In 1971, he accepted a teaching position at Berkeley where his general survey course, "Racial Inequality in America: a Comparative Perspective," led the development of an undergraduate ethnic studies major and an ethnic studies Ph.D. program.
Personal life
Takaki married Carol Rankin in 1961; they met as students at the College of Wooster. They had three children.[10] Takaki died of suicide on May 26, 2009, in Berkeley, California, after having multiple sclerosis for nearly 20 years, according to his son Troy.[5]
Honors
- Association of Asian American Studies (AAAS), Lifetime Achievement Award, 2009.[13]
- Bay Area Book Reviewers Association, Fred Cody Lifetime Achievement Award, 2002.[12]
- Asia Pacific Council, Lifetime Achievement Award, 2002.
- Society of American Historians (SAH), 1995.[14]
- Cornell University, Messenger Lecturer, 1993.[14]
Bibliography
- Takaki, Ronald T. (1971). A Pro-slavery Crusade: The Agitation to Reopen the African Slave Trade. New York: OCLC 135218.
- Takaki, Ronald (1984). Pau Hana: Plantation Life and Labor in Hawaii, 1835-1920. Honolulu: OCLC 13847902.
- Takaki, Ronald T. (1993) [1972]. Violence in the Black Imagination: Essays and Documents (Expanded ed.). New York: OCLC 26858128.
- Takaki, Ronald (1994) [1987]. From Different Shores: Perspectives on Race and Ethnicity in America (Expanded ed.). New York: Oxford University Press. OCLC 28332474.
- Takaki, Ronald; Steoff, Rebecca (1994). Issei and Nisei: The Settling of Japanese America. New York: OCLC 28675449.
- Takaki, Ronald (1994). From the Land of Morning Calm: The Koreans in America. New York: OCLC 29478707.
- Takaki, Ronald (1994). Ethnic Islands: The Emergence of Urban Chinese America. New York: Chelsea House. OCLC 28965757.
- Takaki, Ronald (1995). India in the West: South Asians in America. New York: Chelsea House. OCLC 30360857.
- Takaki, Ronald (1995). Hiroshima: Why America Dropped the Atomic Bomb. Boston: Little, Brown and Company. OCLC 35272716.
- ISBN 0-933286694.
- Takaki, Ronald (1998) [1989]. Strangers from a Different Shore: A History of Asian Americans (Revised and updated ed.). New York: OCLC 80125499.
- Takaki, Ronald (2000) [1979]. Iron Cages: Race and Culture in Nineteenth-Century America (Revised ed.). New York: OCLC 638854790.
- Takaki, Ronald (2001). Double Victory: A Multicultural History of America in World War II. Boston: Back Bay Books. OCLC 47828820.
- Takaki, Ronald (2002). Debating Diversity: Clashing Perspectives on Race and Ethnicity in America. New York: OCLC 48013647.
- Takaki, Ronald (2008) [1993]. A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America (Revised ed.). Boston: Little, Brown and Company. OCLC 243768090.
See also
- A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America
References
- ^ a b c d Aguirre, Adalberto. (2003). Racial and Ethnic Diversity in America: A Reference Handbook, p. 125.
- ^ a b c d Anwar, Yasmin (May 28, 2009). "Ronald Takaki, pioneer and legend in ethnic studies, dies at age 70". UC Berkeley. Archived from the original on May 30, 2009. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
- ^ a b Ravitz, Jessica (June 3, 2009), "How '10-toes Takaki' changed U.S. history", CNN, archived from the original on June 3, 2009, retrieved July 23, 2021
- ^ Takaki 1998, pp. 173–174, 489.
- ^ The Los Angeles Times, archived from the originalon June 11, 2009, retrieved July 21, 2021
- ^ Takaki 1998, pp. 36, 504.
- ^ Takaki, Ronald (May 22, 2006). "A Different Mirror: 2006 Whitman College Commencement Address". www whitman.edu. Whitman College. Retrieved February 10, 2015.
- ^ a b c "In Depth with Ronald Takaki". C-SPAN. February 28, 2009. Retrieved April 23, 2015.
- ^ University of Richmond: Takaki bio notes. Archived 2010-06-09 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b Takaki, Carol Rankin (July 22, 2009). "Ronald Takaki - a Multicultural Life". AsianWeek. Archived from the original on January 31, 2011. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
- ^ "America in a Different Mirror with Ronald Takaki". youtube.com. November 17, 2004. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved January 21, 2015.
- ^ a b Hyman, Carol. "UC Berkeley Professor Ronald Takaki wins Fred Cody Award for lifetime literary achievement, service to community." UC Berkeley Press Release. November 18, 2002.
- ^ AAAS, Book award, Hawaii, 2009: Lifetime Achievement Award
- ^ a b Quintero, Fernando. "Telling the Untold Stories: Ronald Takaki's 'Re-visioning' of History Turns Anglo-Centric Views Inside Out," UC Berkeley Press Release. May 24, 1995.