Race, Identity & Culture

Martin ("Mar-teen") Sánchez-Jankowski, a professor of Sociology at the University of California, Berkeley, lived among ethnically diverse street gangs in New York, Boston and Los Angeles from 1978 to 1988. His observations are contained in his new book, Islands in the Street: Gangs in American Urban Society (Univ. of Cal. Press).

Tan's debut novel, "The Joy Luck Club," was a huge critical and commercial success, earning Tan a nomination for the National Book Award. She has a new novel, called "The Kitchen God's Wife," which draws explicitly from her mother's experiences as a Chinese immigrant and survivor of an abusive relationship.

Williams' new book, "The Alchemy of Race and Rights," is her personal reflection on racism in American life and society.

Vasquez's new movie, "Hangin' With The Homeboys," is a semi-autobiographical movie about growing up in the South Bronx. He talks to Terry Gross about relations between Latinos and African Americans in his neighborhood; Vasquez is biracial, and is part of both traditions.

Alvarez was born into a prosperous family in the Dominican Republic. When she was ten, her family moved to New York City. Alvarez's new novel, "How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents," is a semi-autobiographical work about the clash of cultures in her early life.

Dees co-founded the Southern Poverty Law Center and has been involved in civil rights cases for years. In 1988 he made legal history when he fashioned a seven million dollar verdict against the Klu Klux Klan that effectively bankrupted the group. He has a new memoir out, called "A Season for Justice: The Life & Times of Civil Rights Lawyer Morris Dees."

Mira is a third-generation Japanese-American who, in 1984, visited Japan for the first time. His own grandfather left that country at the turn of the century, and during World War II Mura's parents were interned in a relocation camp. He's written a memoir about his heritage, called "Turning Japanese: Memoirs of a Sansei."

Cisneros' first book, "The House on Mango Street," told the story of Esperanza Cordero, a young girl growing up in the Latino quarter of Chicago. Cisneros has a new collection of stories, called "Woman Hollering Creek."

We discuss free speech on college campuses with ACLU counsel Ed Chen, Nat Hentoff, University of Wisconsin legal counsel Pat Hodulik, and Brown University President Vartan Gregorian.

Journalist James Ridgeway has a new book on the rise of the white supremacy movement in the United States called "Blood In The Face." Ridgeway also co-produced a documentary film on the subject, also called "Blood On The Face."