In this final conversation of the series, we will celebrate the cultural heritage and cuisine of Asian Americans. Using food as a focal point, this discussion examines the possibilities and challenges of maintaining a sense of culture and home in Gainesville and beyond.
May 1st, 2021 at 1:00 PM
Meet the Moderator
Sandy F. Chang is Assistant Professor in Modern Asian History at the University of Florida and specializes in migration, gender, and sexuality in Southeast Asia and the British Empire. Her scholarly areas of interest also include global China, inter-Asian connections, modern border regimes, women’s history, and global empires/comparative colonialisms. She is currently working on a book project that traces the border-crossing journeys of over a million Chinese women who traveled as wives, domestic servants, and sex workers to British Malaya in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Her research has been supported by the American Council of Learned Societies, The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. Prior to coming to Gainesville, she received her Ph.D. in History at the University of Texas at Austin. Her favorite dishes include Taiwanese beef noodle soup, laksa, and roti canai.
Meet the Speakers
Min Ji Kang is a Ph.D. candidate in English at the University of Florida. Her research interests are in race and gender studies, and her doctoral project focuses on depictions of slavery and resistance in contemporary culture through novels and museums.
She spent her childhood in South Korea before coming to the U.S. and kept her connection to her roots through cooking and eating Korean food. She currently runs a food blog, Community Foodwaves, which captures the stories of culture and care behind local restaurants for the local and international audience.
Aditta Riha Bangladeshi-American born and raised in Orlando, Florida. She graduated from the University of Florida in 2018 with her Bachelor’s in Family, Youth, and Community Sciences (non-profit/at-risk community field). She has worked with PACE Center of Alachua, Children’s Home Society of Central FL, and currently does freelance non-profit work with starter-up non-profits in Orlando, graphic designs for flyers, short videos, post cards, and even decorates graduation caps.
Vianna Quach is a first-year student at the University of Florida pursuing a Biology Degree on a Pre-Professional track with an English minor. She was born in Orlando, FL, to Vietnamese immigrant parents.