The Loneliest Americans

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This compelling blend of family history and original reporting delves into Asian American identity within a Black and white context. Following the 1965 immigration law that transformed U.S. demographics, millions, including the author's family, arrived with little understanding of their new environment or the concept of "Asian America." The narrative traces their journey from a housing project in Cambridge to a college town in the South and finally to the West Coast, set against the backdrop of a burgeoning Asian America. As new immigrants, many working-class or undocumented, arrive, upwardly mobile professionals grapple with their parents' assimilationist ambitions and their own place in a multicultural elite. Kang explores the existential loneliness felt by Asian Americans navigating the racial binary, highlighting various experiences—from the transformation of Flushing into an immigrant wealth hub to the struggles of impoverished parents in New York City. He captures the complexities of identity, including the voices of those involved in movements like Black Lives Matter. In response to rising anti-Asian violence, Kang advocates for a new immigrant solidarity grounded in the realities of refugees and the working class, moving beyond superficial cultural markers.