Scope and Content Note
The papers of Dori Jones Yang (1954-) span the years 2009-2011 and document the preparation of her 2011 book Voices of the Second Wave: Chinese Americans in Seattle. Primarily digital, the collection consists of transcripts and audio recordings of oral history interviews Yang conducted with Chinese Americans for her book, as well as photographs of interviewees.
Through the thirty-five oral histories, the interviewees convey the political climate of early twentieth-century China, which caused them to emigrate elsewhere, as well as their later experiences in the United States as students and citizens. Both digital and printed transcripts are available for all interviews, though some transcripts lack corresponding recordings. Also, the transcripts, both digital and printed, do not represent the entire interviews, which can last for several hours each. While the interviews are primarily conducted in English, some Chinese is spoken by the participants.