External Research Associate
Vice-Provost and Associate Vice-President (International)
Western University
Research Keywords:
Cultural studies; postcolonial literature and theory; Asian North American and Canadian literature
Research Region(s):
Asia, Canada, China
Research Diaspora(s):
Asian Diaspora, Chinese Diaspora
My research focuses on diasporic subjectivity within the fields of cultural studies, postcolonial literature and theory, and Asian North American and Canadian literature. My latest book, Mass Capture: Chinese Head Tax and the Making of Non-Citizens in Canada is also available in a beautiful open access edition. Mass Capture is a SSHRC-funded project that focuses on Chinese Canadian head tax certificates known as "C.I. 9's." These certificates mark one of the first uses of identification photography in Canada. Drawing from this archive, my research explored the relationship between citizenship, photography and anticipation as a mode of agency. I have co-edited Human Rights and the Arts: Perspectives on Global Asia with Susan Henders (York, Politics). This book rethinks the contexts and subjects of human rights by taking its lead from writers, artists, filmmakers and dramatists in Asia and the Asian diaspora. My book, Eating Chinese: Culture on the Menu in Small Town Canada, examines the relationship between Chinese restaurants and Canadian culture. My current project, Asian Values: Fictions of Finance and Beautiful Money, explores diasporic movement and theories of value in postcolonial Asia.