Anti-Racist Educator Unpacks Asian American Racialization and Self-Determination in New Book
A series of ideas and frameworks sets out to dispel white supremacist stigmas and stereotypes affecting people of Asian descent.
BERKELEY, CALIF. — Second-generation Taiwanese American educator Ellie Yang Camp delves into the complexity and nuances of what it means to be racialized as Asian in the U.S. in her debut book Louder Than the Lies: Asian American Identity, Solidarity, and Self-Love (on sale October 22, 2024). Intended as a guide for Asian Americans seeking clarity and validation, Camp draws on personal experiences, peer insights, historical case studies, and the racial justice struggles of other people of color to examine the inner workings of white supremacy and map an escape route from its system.
“Racial categories are thrust on us as a tool to govern us, not as expressions of how we see ourselves,” writes Camp, “Without a map, sometimes the safest thing to do is go with the flow of where everyone else is moving. And that flow tells us that if we become the whitest version of ourselves, fit into the ideal of the quiet, hardworking model minority, and distance ourselves from Blackness, we will be safe. To have the boldness to define ourselves is an act of radical liberation.”
Divided into three parts, Louder Than the Lies explores white supremacy through three lenses — The System, Living in the System, and Dismantling the System. Across the chapters Camp reveals how the nested ideologies of Eurocentric thinking, settler colonialism, capitalism, and empire have fomented and sustained racism. She explores, among other topics, the roots and impacts of anti-immigrant fervor and the perception of Asian Americans as “perpetual foreigners”; the curricular erasure of Asian American history and achievement; yellowface and whitesplaining; anti-Blackness within Asian American communities; and the past and present scourges of anti-Asian violence and hate crimes in the United States.
Throughout, readers are encouraged to press into and through moments of discomfort and to draw inspiration through self-reflection and coalition-building solidarity movements. By unlearning prevailing dogmas and cultivating introspection and multiracial allyships, Camp charts a path out of the “dumpster fire” of racist indoctrination and toward self-love and the collaborative, cross-racial pursuit of justice.
Advance Praise for Louder Than the Lies
“Louder Than the Lies is an essential read for understanding Asian American identity. It is a testament to Ellie’s commitment to our community.”
—Linda Yoon and Soo Jin Lee, coauthors of Where I Belong
“There is a drastic and urgent need for more Asian American voices, and especially Asian American women’s voices. Ellie has been a passionate leader in this space, and she has been instrumental in my own understanding of Asian American history.”
—Jeremy Lin, NBA Champion
“It’s vital to have a book like this out in the world. Ellie provides invaluable insights and resources to help our community better understand where anti-Asian hate comes from, how it impacts how we see ourselves, and how we can work together to overcome it.”
—Dion Lim, Emmy Award–winning news anchor and author of Amplify! My Fight for Asian America
“This book offers much-needed hope and encouragement to engage in collective possibilities for a more just future.”
—OiYan A. Poon, author of Asian American Is Not a Color
“This is and will be a necessary and useful tool for generations to come.”
—Jenny T. Wang, author of Permission to Come Home
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Ellie Yang Camp is an artist and educator from the San Francisco Bay Area. The proud daughter of Taiwanese immigrants, she has been a high-school history teacher, a full-time parent, a calligrapher, an anti-racist educator, and now an author. She has a bachelor’s degree in political science from UC Berkeley and a master’s degree in education from Stanford.
