Chang and Eng Bunker, popularly known as the Siamese twins, were the most famous Americans of Chinese descent in the nineteenth-century United States. The lengthy careers of these conjoined brothers and their families, who put their bodies on display in performances across the country, allow scholars to compare norms of race, class, deformity, and gender across space and time. This lecture considers how the examples of Siam’s twins and their mixed-race children provide insights into a tumultuous period of anti-Asian racism punctuated by Chinese exclusion.  

Joseph Orser earned his Ph.D. in U.S. history from Ohio State University and teaches at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. Professor Orser previously worked as journalist for almost ten years, five in his native Florida and the rest in Bangkok, Thailand.

Seating is limited. Please RSVP here.

Joseph Orser earned his Ph.D. in U.S. history from Ohio State University and teaches at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. Professor Orser previously worked as journalist for almost ten years, five in his native Florida and the rest in Bangkok, Thailand.

For more information, please contact Prof. J. Wu (j.wu@uci.edu) and Julia Lee (juliahl1@uci.edu).