De-Privileging Positions: Indian Americans, South Asian Americans, and the Politics of Asian American Studies

Abstract

This is not an essay about the marginalization of South Asian Americans within Asian American studies. And yet, ironically, it is--about moving from margin-center terminologies, California-centric, 1968-genesis theories, and "we were here first" mentalities, towards a progressive, intellectual paradigmatic shift, and a new vision of Asian American studies scholarship and pedagogy. This essay focuses on the emerging field of South Asian American studies (SAAS) and what it can contribute to Asian American studies (AAS) as a discipline at the turn-of-the-century.