Welcome to Season 5, Episode 28! In this episode, we sit down with Michael Luo, the award-winning journalist, editor, and author of Strangers in the Land: Exclusion, Belonging, and the Epic Story of the Chinese in America. Currently an executive editor at The New Yorker, Michael writes extensively on politics, religion, and Asian American issues. Before joining The New Yorker, he spent over a decade at The New York Times as a national correspondent and investigative reporter, earning accolades like the George Polk Award and the Livingston Award for Young Journalists.

His latest book, Strangers in the Land, published by Doubleday in April 2024, is a sweeping and deeply researched narrative history of the Chinese American experience—from the Gold Rush era to the 1960s. Drawing from archival sources, court cases, and personal stories, Luo sheds light on how Chinese immigrants helped build America while simultaneously being pushed to its margins. He highlights the people and policies that shaped their journey—from the railroad workers and early activists to the architects of exclusion laws and the courts that upheld them.

Through vivid storytelling and compelling analysis, Luo explores the roots of anti-Asian sentiment in the U.S., the foundations of our modern immigration surveillance state, and the broader struggle for belonging in a multiracial democracy. This is a must-read not only for lovers of history but for anyone seeking to understand how the past shapes our present-day debates on race, immigration, and identity.

In our conversation, Michael shares insights on how he approached this project, why it was important to center underrepresented figures like Hung Wah, Wong Chin Foo, Chin Gee Hee, and Sun Chong, and how understanding this history can guide us through today’s political and cultural tensions. If you want to hear more from Michael you can read his work in the New Yorker or see his posts on Instagram @luomich.

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