First Gen Coalitions: Making Connections between Black and Asian Student Experience feat. Jim Lee

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In this episode, LT reconnects with longtime friend and colleague Professor Jim Lee (Asian American Studies, UC Irvine), who played a pivotal role in her transition from undergrad to graduate school. Together they reflect on their shared journey through UCLA in the 1990s—navigating the promises and limits of multiculturalism, coalition-building between Black and Asian students, and the hidden curriculum of academia.

From memories of the Rodney King era and Prop 209 debates, to pop culture touchstones like Dawson’s Creek, The X-Files, and Buffy, LT and Jim weave together stories of scholarship, friendship, and first-gen identity. They also explore how chosen family, imposter syndrome, and parenthood continue to shape their lives and teaching today.

This conversation is as much about solidarity and survival as it is about joy, fandom, and building lasting first-gen coalitions.

For more info:

https://www.smartgirlbook.com/

https://www.faculty.uci.edu/profile/?facultyId=5634

https://tupress.temple.edu/books/pedagogies-of-woundedness

https://www.humanities.uci.edu/news/james-kyung-jin-lee-honored-prestigious-book-award