Under the Dragon
California's New Culture

by Lonny Shavelson and Fred Setterberg
with photographs by Lonny Shavelson
Foreword by Andrew Lam

A collaborative publication and exhibition by  Heyday Books,
 and the Oakland Museum of California 

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“Ambitious and marvelously vibrant, Under the Dragon provides a captivating and astutely documented take on California’s changing cultural and ethnic intersections. It offers, by arresting photographic example, a fresh lesson in the things that divide and unite us all.” —Chandra Prasad, editor of Mixed: An Anthology of Short Fiction on the Multiracial Experience

“Under the Dragon documents the decreasing relevance of ‘race’ and the growing importance of community as we continue to mix, mingle, marry, and migrate.” —Kip Fulbeck, author of Part Asian, 100% Hapa

“Under the Dragon is a... tour guide to what the authors call ‘an unfamiliar country’...where...diversity has gone into hyperspace in a region where multiculturalism is already considered passé.” —Andrew Lam, author of Perfume Dreams: Reflections on the Vietnamese Diaspora

“Under the Dragon is a joyful celebration of diversity and a compelling case for stretching beyond our own assumptions about our differences.” —Janice Mirikitani, San Francisco Poet Laureate 2000. 

It's happening right before your eyes—the new California mix

When Lonny Shavelson and Fred Setterberg were viewing a Saint Patrick's Day parade in San Francisco, they were surprised to see a Chinese lion dance. They were even more surprised when the lion dancer emerged from his costume and turned out to be an African-American teenager.      The old paradigm of the melting pot and phrases like "ethnic diversity" can no longer describe the freedom with which more and more Americans are modifying and assimilating cultural elements across ethnic lines.       Under the Dragon is a fascinating look at the way individuals are building their own identities from an increasingly diverse pool, whether they are African American Buddhists, Latino Muslims, or a group of Mien students who invented their own cultural dance to celebrate their ethnic "heritage."       Pay attention to the stories behind the photographs—they will inspire you to look closer.