20th century american culture
20th century cambodian politics
A01=Nancy J. Smith-Hefner
american culture
american education
Author_Nancy J. Smith-Hefner
buddhist
cambodia
cambodian genocide
cambodian refugees
Category=JBFH
Category=JBSL
Category=JHM
Category=JPVC
Category=NHD
Category=NHTZ1
Category=NHWR7
communism
cultural heritage
cultural studies
eq_bestseller
eq_history
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_isMigrated=2
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
eq_society-politics
ethics
ethnography
identity
immigrant groups
khmer americans
khmer buddhism
khmer culture
khmer holocaust
khmer socialization
marriage
metropolitan boston
moral education
morality
personhood
pol pot
religion
sexuality
southeast asia
united states of america
Product details
- ISBN 9780520213494
- Weight: 454g
- Dimensions: 152 x 229mm
- Publication Date: 25 Jan 1999
- Publisher: University of California Press
- Publication City/Country: US
- Product Form: Paperback
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In the early 1980s, tens of thousands of Cambodian refugees fled their war-torn country to take up residence in the United States, where they quickly became one of the most troubled and least studied immigrant groups. This book is the story of that passage, and of the efforts of Khmer Americans to recreate the fabric of culture and identity in the aftermath of the Khmer holocaust. Based on long-term research among Cambodians residing in metropolitan Boston, this rich ethnography provides a vivid portrait of the challenges facing Khmer American culture as seen from the perspective of elders attempting to preserve Khmer Buddhism in a deeply unfamiliar world. The study highlights the tensions and ambivalences of Khmer socialization, with particular emphasis on Khmer conceptions of personhood, morality, and sexuality. Nancy J. Smith-Hefner considers how this cultural heritage influences the performance of Khmer children in American schools and, ultimately, determines Khmer engagement with American culture.
Nancy J. Smith-Hefner is Associate Professor of Applied Linguistics, University of Massachusetts at Boston.
