In the decades since his untimely passing at the age of thirty-two, Bruce Lee\u2019s body of work has grown to an undeniably lasting legacy. He went on to become globally recognized after his death, his influence acting as a cultural bridge between the East and West \u2013 popularizing martial arts and providing inspiration and momentum for a new arena of Western martial arts films. While the impact of his work can be seen across genres and generations, cultural historian and journalist Jeff Chang is hoping to highlight the barrier-breaking importance of Bruce Lee\u2019s life to the development of Asian American identity over the last fifty years.<\/p>\n
In his new biography,\u00a0Water Mirror Echo<\/em>:<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0Bruce Lee and the Making of Asian America<\/em>,\u00a0Chang highlights areas of Bruce Lee\u2019s story that have been overshadowed by acclaim. Chang unpacks the stark reality of Bruce Lee as a baby born in segregated San Francisco and a youth living in war-ravaged, fight-crazy Hong Kong. As he found his way back to America as a teenager,\u00a0Bruce Lee embraced West Coast counterculture and meshed it with the Asian worldviews and philosophies that reared him.\u00a0Water Mirror Echo\u00a0<\/em>\u2013 a title inspired by Bruce Lee\u2019s own way of moving, being, and responding to the world \u2013 explores how these transitions and unique vantage points created a figure whose very presence helped shape the idea of what being an Asian in America is, at a critical time in the early development of the culture.<\/p>\n Chang presents this new work in conversation with a panel of figures directly affected by Lee\u2019s life\u2013 activist and former student Sue Ann Kay, long-time friend Doug Palmer, and daughter Shannon Lee.\u00a0Water Mirror Echo<\/em>\u00a0layers an expertly collected archive of Lee\u2019s life with a thoughtfully nuanced analysis of the way Lee defied stereotypes and expectations. 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