Unconditionally Asian Americans: A Conversation on Korean Diasporic Identity in the U.S. South

S. Moon Cassinelli is an assistant professor in the department of English and the women’s and gender studies program at Virginia Tech. Using feminist and queer of color critique to examine how interracial genealogies are formed as a result of U.S. militarization, Cassinelli’s research focuses on contemporary narratives of transnational adoption and kinship in the Korean diaspora. He thanks Al Evangelista and Kathryn Walkiewicz for their time and insights on “Unconditionally Asian Americans.”

Lorraine Dresch’s experiences in the U.S. South are lifelong: she grew up in Wise County, Virginia, completed her English BA at the University of Virginia’s College at Wise and her English MA at Virginia Tech, and now teaches English, journalism, and Africana studies at a high school near Charlottesville. As an educator, she creates interdisciplinary learning experiences rooted in authentic inquiry about legacies of historical injustice. Her MA thesis research focuses on ambiguous racializations of nonhuman characters in children’s animated film franchises.