James Zarsadiaz

James Zarsadiaz is an award-winning historian of the United States. He is Associate Professor of History and Director of the Yuchengco Philippine Studies Program. Prof. Zarsadiaz specializes in urban and suburban history, Asian American history, cultural history, and political history. He currently sits on the board of the Association for Asian American Studies; was previously a fellow at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History and Asian Pacific American Center; and prior to entering academia, he worked in the U.S. House of Representatives.

He is the author of Resisting Change in Suburbia: Asian Immigrants and Frontier Nostalgia in L.A. (University of California Press, 2022), which is the 2023 recipient of the Organization of American Historians' Lawrence W. Levine Award for the best book in American cultural history. Prof. Zarsadiaz is presently working on a second book focused on Asian American conservatism and Republican Party activism since the Cold War. His research articles include: "Design Assimilation in Suburbia: Asian Americans, Built Landscapes, and Suburban Advantage in Los Angeles's San Gabriel Valley since 1970" (co-authored with Becky Nicolaides), which won the Urban History Association's Arnold Hirsch Award and the Vernacular Architecture Forum's Catherine W. Bishir Prize; "Raising Hell in the Heartland: Filipino Chicago and the Anti-Martial Law Movement, 1972-1986"; and "Methodists against Martial Law: Filipino Chicagoans and the Church's Role in a Global Crusade." Prof. Zarsadiaz has also published work in Amerasia Journal, American Literary History, International Migration Review, Journal of Asian American Studies, Journal of Social History, New Jersey Studies, and Pacific Historical Review, as well as op-eds for media outlets including Bloomberg, Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle, and Washington Post. He has done live interviews across media platforms including ABC, BBC, CBS, MSNBC, NBC, and NPR regarding current affairs and his research.

• Urban and Suburban Studies
• Immigrants and the Built Environment 
• Asian American Communities and Cultures 
• Conservatism in the U.S.
• Oral History

• Urban and Suburban History
• Asian American History
• Cultural History 
• Political History

• Program Director, Yuchengco Philippine Studies

• PhD, History, Northwestern University
• MA, History, Northwestern University
• BA, American Studies and Political Science, George Washington University

• Dean's Award for Excellence in Scholarly and Creative Work, University of San Francisco, 2025
• Mid-Career Award, Association for Asian American Studies, Filipino Section, 2025
• James Catiggay Faculty Changemaker Award, University of San Francisco, 2023
• Lawrence W. Levine Award, Organization of American Historians, 2023
• Best Article (Honorable Mention), Association for Asian American Studies, Filipino Section, 2020
• Catherine W. Bishir Prize, Vernacular Architecture Forum, 2018
• Arnold Hirsch Award, Urban History Association, 2016

• Zarsadiaz, J. (2022). Resisting Change in Suburbia: Asian Immigrants and Frontier Nostalgia in L.A. University of California Press.
• Zarsadiaz, J. (2021). "Methodists against Martial Law: Filipino Chicagoans and the Church's Role in a Global Crusade." Alon: Journal for Filipinx American and Diasporic Studies 1(3).
• Zarsadiaz, J. (2017). "Raising Hell in the Heartland: Filipino Chicago and the Anti-Martial Law Movement, 1972-1986." American Studies, 56(1), 141-162.
• Zarsadiaz, J. and Nicolaides, B. (2015). "Design Assimilation in Suburbia: Asian Americans, Built Landscapes, and Suburban Advantage in Los Angeles's San Gabriel Valley since 1970." Journal of Urban History, 43(2), 332-371.

• "Asian American voters backed Trump in Nevada. Here's how they feel about him now," NPR, 5/2/25.

• "US detention of Filipino green card holder, other Asian immigrants spark deportation fears," South China Morning Post, 3/28/25.

• "The City's Asian, Black community leaders prioritize unity," San Francisco Examiner, 3/11/25.

• "Activists seek to right historical wrongs in Japantown," San Francisco Examiner, 2/25/25.

• "Is there a Filipino neighborhood in Chicago?," WBEZ Chicago (NPR)/Curious City Podcast, 2/5/25.

• "SGV Strip Mall Sinigang," Zócalo Public Square, 12/19/24.

• "In Arcadia and Temple City, Asian American voters fueled gains for Trump," Los Angeles Times, 12/10/24.

• "Why Chinese Americans Have Shifted Rightward," New York Times, 12/9/24.

• "What the recall of progressives in the Bay Area says about Asian American views on crime," NBC News, 11/13/24.

• "Will Trump deport the thousands of Filipinos living in the US illegally?," South China Morning Post, 11/11/24.

• "Opinion: What did the Asian American vote this year tell us?," Los Angeles Times, 11/10/24.

• "Why did so many Hispanic voters turn to Trump?," The Times (UK), 11/7/24.

• "Fil-Am political expert weighs in on Trump's heightened rhetoric on immigration," TFC News, 10/17/24.

• The Republican Party is less white than ever. Thank Donald Trump," Vox, 9/25/24.

• "The Enormous Power of the Untapped AAPI Independent Vote," Ethnic Media Services, 9/10/24.

• "El voto AAPI será decisivo en los estados indecisos," La Opinión, 9/9/24.

• "The American Dream Without a House? Believe It," New York Times, 9/7/24.

• "Asian American Voters: Loyal to Democrats Or Switching To Republicans?," Positively Filipino, 8/14/24.

• "Harris' VP pick Tim Walz seen to draw independent, some GOP voters," TFC News, 8/8/24.

• "Analyst: Walz's Relative Obscurity Could Benefit Democratic Ticket," ABS-CBN, 8/8/24 .

• "The Philippines' first male athlete to win Olympic gold prompts outpouring of #PinoyPride," NBC, 8/6/24.

• "Opinion: Are Asian Americans voters loyal to Democrats or shifting Republican?," Los Angeles Times, 7/25/24.

• "20 years on, William Hung looks back on 'American Idol' audition with no regrets," NBC, 5/30/24.

• "Asian Americans on TikTok are calling out a 'SoCal Asian' superiority complex," NBC, 4/29/24. 

• "How a Vision of Suburban Utopia Shaped California's Asian Immigrant Communities," Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 4/26/24. 

• "The first U.S. Navy ship named after openly gay individual Harvey Milk has docked in San Francisco," KPIX CBS News, 3/28/24.

• "FilAms weigh in on Biden-Trump rematch after Super Tuesday," ABS-CBN, 3/8/24.

• "San Francisco's Emporium Centre rebrand may not fix troubled mall's problems," KTVU Fox 2 News, 3/1/24.

• "How TikTok is embracing the food of 'third culture kids,'" BBC, 2/8/24.

• "Fil-Am supporters oppose moves to remove Trump from state ballots," ABS-CBN, 1/25/24.

• "Nikki Haley urged to work on gaining AAPI support," ABS-CBN, 1/23/24.

• "Behind Boba Tea's Big Boom," Proof by America's Test Kitchen podcast, 12/13/23.

• "Larry Itliong, Filipino American leader in the labor movement, honored across California," NBC, 10/25/23.

• "Exploring The More Than 400 Years Of Filipino History in Southern California," LAist/Southern California Public Radio, 10/23/23.

• “Asian malls live on post-pandemic while other U.S. malls struggle,” AsianAmNews, 9/24/23.

• “Asian malls in the U.S. are thriving post-pandemic, bucking a retail trend,” NBC, 9/8/23.

• "Dr. James Zarsadiaz, Resisting Change in Suburbia," History of California Podcast, 8/25/23.

• "Filipino chefs are embracing fine dining in S.F. Will diners too?," San Francisco Chronicle, 8/3/23.

• "How one of Filipino America's last newspapers folded," Voices, Asian American Journalists Association, 7/24/23.

• "Summer Book Club, Part 1: 'Resisting Change in Suburbia,'" The Urbanist, Monocle Radio, 7/6/23.
• "Resisting Change in Suburbia," New Books in Asian American Studies podcast, New Books Network, 6/27/23.
• Episode 189: Filipino American Suburbanization with Dr. James Zarsadiaz, This Filipino American Life podcast, 6/16/23.
• "Resisting Change in Suburbia," New Books in the American West podcast, New Books Network, 5/23/23.
• One year after Laguna Woods mass shooting, Asian community mourns ongoing tensions, violence, Orange County Register, 5/13/2023.
• Season 2, Episode 6: Ube in the Bay, Taste the Nation with Padma Lakshmi, Hulu, 5/5/23.
• How renovation of an iconic Chinese mall represents a shift in L.A.'s Chinese community, Los Angeles Times, 2/27/23.
• Episode 413: Dr. James Zarsadiaz on the Significance of Monterey Park, The SGV And Other Ethnoburbs, Asian America: The Ken Fong Podcast, 2/19/23.
• Monterey Park: The Making of America's First Suburban Chinatown, Notes from America with Kai Wright podcast, WNYC (New York Public Radio),  1/26/23.
• Asian Americans are reeling from California's back-to-back mass shootings, Vox, 1/26/23.
• Shock turns to disbelief in mass shooting-hit Asian communities, France 24, 1/25/23.
• California just eclipsed its deadliest month for mass shootings. It only took 23 days, The Mercury News, 1/25/23.
• Monterey Park: A pioneering Asian American suburb shaken by the tragedy of a mass shooting, The Conversation, 1/24/23.
• Op-Ed: Why the Monterey Park shooting feels like an attack on Asian America, Los Angeles Times, 1/23/23.
• Imagining a National Museum of Asian Pacific American History and Culture, Washington City Paper, 11/30/22.
• SGV Connect 105: Resisting Change in Suburbia: Asian Immigrants and Frontier Nostalgia in L.A. with James Zarsadiaz, SGV Connect Podcast/Streetsblog LA, 11/18/22.
• Op-Ed: What Asian immigrants, seeking the American dream, found in Southern California suburbs, Los Angeles Times, 10/17/2022.
• When Filipinos Fight with Filipino-Americans, No One Wins, Esquire Magazine, 8/12/2022.
• Philippine ex-President Fidel Ramos dies, BBC World News, 7/31/2022.
• Ferdinand Marcos Jr Sworn in as Philippines president, BBC Newsday, 6/30/2022.
• Why Marcos Jr. gets massive OFW backing despite father’s labor export policy, Rappler, 6/6/2022.
• The Philippine election: How revised history and misinformation made its way on the ballot, KCBS Radio Bay Current podcast, 5/12/2022.
• Dictator's Son Could Become Philippines President, ABC 7 News, 5/10/2022.
• Son Of Former Dictator Wins Philippine Presidency, NBC, 5/10/2022.
• Why AAPI Heritage Matters, NBC, 5/2/2022.
• From Olivia to Bruno to H.E.R., Filipino American artists enjoy a breakout year at Grammys, Los Angeles Times, 3/30/2022.
• Nochebuena: Why many Hispanic, Latinx and Filipino families celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve, USA Today, 12/23/2021.
• Philippines Struggling After Deadly Typhoon, NBC, 12/19/2021.
• The Pandemic's Impact on the Filipino Community, All IN, WFYI (NPR) & WVPE (NPR), 12/14/2021.
• A Complicated Love Story: Author Carlos Bulosan's Critique of America Gave Filipino Migrants a Voice, USA Today, 11/19/2021.
• In Daly City, the Bayanihan Spirit Is Alive and Well, KQED, 08/05/2021.
• Opinion: Asians in Arcadia against homeless people? It's complicated, Los Angeles Times, 07/01/2021.
• For Fil-Am youth, fighting Asian hate in the US means breaking silence, Rappler, 4/14/2021.
• Cherry Blossom Trees Vandalized in San Francisco’s Japantown, The New York Times, 1/8/2021.
• How the Bay Area became the sports world’s epicenter of revolutionary thought, San Francisco Chronicle, 11/24/2020.
• The fates of dozens of city statues are under review amid calls to reconsider the past, The San Francisco Examiner, 07/23/2020.
• San Francisco’s Toppled Statues, SF Weekly, 07/04/2020.
• Local Filipinos Disappointed Trump Didn't Push Duterte on Drug Killings, Southern California Public Radio/KPCC (NPR), 11/13/2017.
• Trump Boasts of ‘Great Relationship’ with Philippines’ Duterte at First Formal Meeting, Washington Post, 11/13/2017.
• Elaine Chao is Sticking by President Trump. That Shouldn’t be a Surprise, Washington Post, 09/07/2017.
• Asians and Asian Americans Swarm to Thriving Diamond Jamboree, Los Angeles Times, 07/02/2017.
• Militants in the Philippines: President's Martial Law Order is Déjà Vu for Some Expats, Southern California Public Radio/KPCC (NPR), 05/24/2017.
• Asian American Electorate a Sleeping Giant, MSNBC, 09/17/2016.
• Why Candidates Should Court Asian American Voters, San Francisco Chronicle, 09/09/2016.