Ronald Takaki

America's Most Influential Scholar on Multiculturalism

A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America

Add to my catalogues

Create PDF

Email to a friend

Back to search results

Ronald Takaki is a preeminent scholar on our nation's diversity. Considered the father of multicultural studies, he is a professor of Ethnic Studies at the University of California, Berkeley. Over 34 years, he has taught 20,000 students, and has written twelve books which have influenced thousands more. One of them, A Different Mirror, won the American Book Award, and has sold over a half million copies; it is the text for anyone interested in the history -- and the future -- of multicultural America.

Over ten years ago, Ron Takaki helped then-President Bill Clinton write his major speech on race, "One America in the 21st Century." A lively speaker himself, Takaki presents a multicultural people's history of America. His brave reclaiming of the past --through "a different mirror" -- does not lead to "the disuniting of America." Rather, it is essential for the uniting of Americans, today and in the future, with each other and with the rest of the world. In the 21st century, this nation's racial and ethnic diversity will expand exponentially; by 2060, we will all, in a sense, be minorities. Takaki fosters in audiences a deep understanding of what led us to this point, and what it all means. What led to America becoming so diverse? And how can we incorporate the teaching of diversity into the curriculum for the coming Century?

Born in 1939, Takaki is the grandson of immigrant Japanese plantation workers. In the 60s, he taught UCLA's first Black history course. In the 70s, he began teaching in the newly instituted Department of Ethnic Studies, at UC Berkeley. His comparative approach to the study of race and ethnicity has inspired the B.A. and the Ph.D. program in Comparative Ethnic Studies, as well the school's multicultural requirement for graduation: the American Cultures Requirement. Takaki is also the author of Strangers from a Different Shore: A History of Asian Americans, which was selected by The San Francisco Chronicle as one of the best 100 non-fiction books of the 20th century.

BOOKS

A Different Mirror

Strangers From a Different Shore

All Speakers > Ronald Takaki

Welcome to My Catalogues.

We've made it easier than ever to choose speakers for your event. You can now create your personal catalogue of speakers, save it in one convenient place, refer back to it in the future and even send it to colleagues. Start now by clicking “Add to catalogue” next to a speaker's photo.