1990 african american boycotts
1992 los angeles riots
A01=Pyong Gap Min
african american community
american culture
american society
Author_Pyong Gap Min
brooklyn
Category=JBSD
Category=JBSL
Category=JHBL
Category=JHM
Category=KNP
collective action
economics
eq_bestseller
eq_business-finance-law
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_isMigrated=2
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
eq_society-politics
ethnic conflict
government agency
hostility
immigrant merchants
immigration
korean american immigrants
korean merchants
los angeles
low income
middleman
minority demographic studies
minority groups
new york
political mobilization
race in america
racial dynamics
racism in america
sociology
united states of america
white society
Product details
- ISBN 9780520204898
- Weight: 408g
- Dimensions: 152 x 229mm
- Publication Date: 30 Nov 1996
- Publisher: University of California Press
- Publication City/Country: US
- Product Form: Paperback
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In this unflinching exploration of one of the most politically charged topics of our time, Pyong Gap Min investigates the racial dynamics that exist between Korean merchants, the African American community, and white society in general. Focusing on hostility toward Korean merchants in New York and Los Angeles, Min explains how the 'middleman' economic role Koreans often occupy - between low-income, minority customers on the one hand and large corporate suppliers on the other - leads to conflicts with other groups. Further, Min shows how ethnic conflicts strengthen ties within Korean communities as Koreans organize to protect themselves and their businesses. Min scrutinizes the targeting of Korean businesses during the 1992 Los Angeles riots and the 1990 African American boycotts of Korean stores in Brooklyn. He explores Korean merchants' relationships with each other as well as with Latin American employees, Jewish suppliers and landlords, and government agencies. In each case, his nuanced analysis reveals how Korean communities respond to general scapegoating through collective action, political mobilization, and other strategies.
Fluent in Korean, Min draws from previously unutilized sources, including Korean American newspapers and in-depth interviews with immigrants. His findings belie the media's sensationalistic coverage of African American-Korean conflicts. Instead, "Caught in the Middle" yields a sophisticated and clear-sighted understanding of the lives and challenges of immigrant merchants in America.
Pyong Gap Min is Professor of Sociology at Queens College and the Graduate School of the City University of New York.
