AAPI Research and More: Alex Koenig and Maya Zerazion

By Maribeth Wagganer

Alex Koenig and Maya Zerazion created a study with Professor Elsa Fan over the summer conducting interviews and collecting oral histories from the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community in St. Louis.

Koenig is a fourth-year student, double majoring in Anthropology and Global Studies, and Zerazion is an Anthropology and Sociology major and a Human Rights minor.

They were brought together by Fan, who knew they would make a great contribution to the research team with their passion to advocate for the AAPI community. Zerazion explained, “I think this project is a very meaningful step toward expanding how we should think about race in the Midwest, and in challenging the current reductive narrative about Asian Americans.”

By being in a qualitative study, they were able to hear people’s stories and make connections on how their identity have made an impact on their lives and as a community.

Another reason why Zerazion was interested in the research was because they “ ... had a personal interest because of the ambiguity that comes with falling outside of the racial binary here, either the microaggressions that come with being perceived as palatable, having to contort and fit into a category that is not representative of who I am, or having to exist in a strange limbo where a sense of belonging it just out of reach.”

Koenig also has a close relationship and curiosity to learn from the community “Since they were born and raised here, they thought it sounded intriguing to get to meet with people from the community.”

After collecting the interviews, both students learned a lot from the research. For instance, Koenig was intrigued by the stories that had taken place in the 1940s and 1960s, at a time where language surrounding Asian identity did not exist.”

They were inspired by the participant’s stories by listening to how history and generational trauma have made a huge impact on their lives along with their identities.

Zerazion learned the “ ... different facets of their identities tended to be more prominent in certain spaces. For example, someone described feeling like they had to be more Asian in Queer spaces, and more Queer in Asian spaces — like the identity that felt most out of place in a given group space was the one most salient in those circumstances.” In other words, people have multiple identities, and some had to adjust their identities to fit in with the crowd. This shows that identity is a huge part of people’s lives, and over the years, many of the Asian American and Pacific Islanders had to hide or change their identities to accommodate for society.

I asked the students what their plans were after graduation, and Zerazion said, “I am planning on going to graduate school in the future but not right after I graduate. I would like to get more experience and have the chance to explore more interdisciplinary work.”

Koenig said, “I plan to continue my education in Japanese in the hopes of obtaining a formal degree and N2 certification as a translator. I also hope to use the knowledge I already have in language to secure connections with the Japanese community in St. Louis, particularly the Japanese American Citizens League.”

As Webster students they have learned and grown in their academic fields, along with their own personal growth. For instance, Zerazion said, “I have loved most of my professors, I love how passionate and excited some are about their specialties, and I love how they have intentionally included extremely diverse perspectives in our readings.” In addition, Koenig stated they have obtained, “the ability to look at socioeconomic issues from a multitude of perspectives, and to trace contemporary issues back to historical origins.”

From a personal perspective, Zerazion learned to ask for help when needed, find innovative ways to help themself, and most importantly, trust in their point of view and interpretation on life.

Koenig has learned as an anthropologist to become more open-minded and informed, which has shed light on her perspective of marginalized communities. The students have grown in their academic careers and learned to apply the values taught in the classroom to their personal lives by learning from devoted professors and the Asian American and Pacific Islander community.