Beyond <i>The Chinese Connection</i>: Contemporary Afro-Asian Cultural Production

Acknowledgments

vii Acknowledgments Books do not write themselves, and as an author, I am indebted to a number of individuals and institutions without whose help this volume would remain a vague idea in my head. Many thanks to my mentors in this process who thoughtfully read pieces of the project, especially Thomas Scanlan , Sherrie Tucker, and Gary Okihiro, and scholars whose encouragement as well as insight were invaluable, including Robin Kelly, Bill Mullen, Mark Anthony Neal, Vijay Prashad, Amritjit Singh, and William Tsutsui. Special thanks to Bertram Ashe, who was the first person to encourage me to pursue “that Afro-Asian thing.” I am indebted to Ohio University, University of Kansas, and Elon University for providing the time that a scholar needs to work in the form of sabbaticals and leaves, as well as colleagues at those institutions who shaped the project in innumerable ways. I am particularly indebted to Ronald Richardson and Chris Loken-Kim for organizing three conferences on blacks and Asians at Boston University that were invaluable as this project evolved. Last but not least, I must thank my family, especially my parents, Mary and Perry Boyd, as well as my siblings, Terry Peace, Jeffrey Boyd, and Perry L. Boyd, whose frequent inquiries about “the book” served as motivation. I also must thank friends who are family, especially Anne Soon Choi, Traci Currie, Mara Holt, Jackie Modeste, and Renee B. Nick, who, in addition to offering emotional support, read parts of the manuscript almost as many times as I did. Of this group, special thanks goes to Eric Ashley Hairston. This page intentionally left blank Beyond The Chinese Connection This page intentionally left blank ...