The Asian American Forum (AAF) was a pioneering weekly radio program that aired on WWUH at the University of Hartford from July 1990 to June 1996. Created and hosted by Dr. Paul Bock and Mrs. Phoebe Ten Yin Ho Bock, it was the first Asian American college radio program on the East Coast. This collection comprises 254 digitized episodes (30 minutes each) that document crucial discussions on Asian American culture, history, stereotypes, and discrimination during a formative period for Asian American studies.
The program featured distinguished scholars, writers, artists, activists, and political leaders including Ling-chi Wang, Michio Kaku, John Tchen, Evelyn Hu-DeHart, Bill Ong Hing, Ron Takaki, Don Nakanishi, Gary Okihiro, Amy Ling, Gish Jen, Shawn Wong, Eric Chock, and Margaret Cho. Episodes addressed topics ranging from higher education and ethnic studies to domestic politics, civil rights, Korean-Black American relations, international affairs including China and Tiananmen Square, and responses to campus racism.
The collection represents vital oral history documenting Asian American perspectives primarily from the Northeast corridor, with additional representation from California, Hawaii, and other U.S. regions. These recordings provide crucial historical context for understanding contemporary challenges facing Asian American communities and preserve voices and viewpoints from scholars and community leaders, many of whom are now deceased. Originally recorded on audio cassette tapes with some VHS-C video components, this digitized collection includes transcriptions to enhance accessibility and enable full-text searching.
The program featured distinguished scholars, writers, artists, activists, and political leaders including Ling-chi Wang, Michio Kaku, John Tchen, Evelyn Hu-DeHart, Bill Ong Hing, Ron Takaki, Don Nakanishi, Gary Okihiro, Amy Ling, Gish Jen, Shawn Wong, Eric Chock, and Margaret Cho. Episodes addressed topics ranging from higher education and ethnic studies to domestic politics, civil rights, Korean-Black American relations, international affairs including China and Tiananmen Square, and responses to campus racism.
The collection represents vital oral history documenting Asian American perspectives primarily from the Northeast corridor, with additional representation from California, Hawaii, and other U.S. regions. These recordings provide crucial historical context for understanding contemporary challenges facing Asian American communities and preserve voices and viewpoints from scholars and community leaders, many of whom are now deceased. Originally recorded on audio cassette tapes with some VHS-C video components, this digitized collection includes transcriptions to enhance accessibility and enable full-text searching.
Submissions from 1991
Paul Bock discusses his experiences as an Asian American participant in Jesse Jackson's 1991 "March to Rebuild America" in Connecticut., Phoebe Ten Yin Ho Bock and Paul Bock