Group Photo of the Second CCAS Friendship Delegation
March-April 1972
Printed photograph
From the Macalester College Archives, Macalester College Photo Collection, East Asian Studies
Label written by Kai Martin
In March 1972, Nina Moore (‘71, third row, second from left) and Craig Cox (‘73, first row, fourth from left) represented the Macalester Committee of Concerned Asian Scholars (CCAS) on a 5-week Friendship Delegation trip to China. They brought scrapbooks, videotapes, and cameras in order to showcase what life was like in the Twin Cities, with the goal of exchanging them for images of life in China to bring back to the United States. Upon their return to Minnesota, Nina and Craig wrote and presented about their experience, sharing a perspective that was very different from the Cold War stereotypes of the 1960s.
The $2,000 in funds for Nina and Craig’s travel ($14,676.84, adjusted for 2024 inflation) was raised in just 2 weeks in a frantic effort by the Macalester branch of the CCAS. There was clearly a lot of local support for their participation in a more politically active form of Asian studies. They were chosen out of 55 individuals interested in the trip. In the Mac Weekly, Nina and Craig emphasized that they would be acting counter to similar trips by travelling to rural working communes as opposed to big cities and tourist sites. Aspects of this particular photo to note include the predominant whiteness of the group, their linked hands, and their apparel– the individual with the Mao t-shirt, Craig and his neighbor’s bare feet, Nina’s Mac t-shirt, etc. The diversity (or lack thereof) communicates a lot about this group and their idealistic goals, but none of Nina or Craig’s writings about the trip are archived at Macalester.
The CCAS had its origins in student criticism of the Vietnam War, and particularly discontent about the silence of Asian Studies scholars on the subject. Previously the Bulletin of Concerned Asian Scholars, the organization now goes by the name Critical Asian Studies and publishes their journal with Taylor & Francis. From 1967 to 2024, they have provided an approach that challenges the academic norm of Asian Studies, which has historically promoted paternalistic, narrow-minded perspectives. CAS focuses on questions of power and oppression, pushing back against ideologies that support imperialism and exploitation. It does not pretend that Asian Studies is politically neutral.
Resources:
- “Mac student, alumna will visit China.” The Mac Weekly, February 11, 1972.
- Vandermark, Mary. “CCAS delegates sent off.” The Mac Weekly, February 25, 1972.
- “Critical Asian Studies.” https://criticalasianstudies.org/