Cold War Memories and Asian American Poetry

In this session we will explore how Asian American subjectivity is conditioned by histories and ongoing realities of U.S. imperialism in Asia. Focusing in particular on the long afterlives of U.S. militarism in Korea and Southeast Asia from 1945-1975, we will read and discuss four short poems by contemporary Asian American writers of Korean, Vietnamese, Hmong, and Lao descent, all of whom grapple with intergenerational memories of imperial violence in their homelands. This session will involve discussion among participants.

Our instructor, Adhy Kim (He/They), is an assistant professor in the Literatures in English Department and Asian American Studies Program at Cornell University. They are broadly interested in how Asian/American literature intersects with multiple imperial histories across Asia, the Pacific, and North America.