Cultural Historian Jeff Chang Brings Bruce Lee's Legacy to UC Merced for AANHPI Month

"From 'Talk Story' to Published Writer

Earlier in the day, Chang shared a more intimate look into his own unconventional path as a writer as part of "Storytelling with Jeff Chang" at the Kolligian Library.

Growing up in Honolulu in a family of Chinese and Native Hawaiian descent, Chang developed an instinct for narrative through the Hawaiian tradition of "talk story," a community gathering focused on food, drink and storytelling to share memories, oral histories and expansive legends.

That instinct took years to find its professional form. Chang graduated from UC Berkeley with a political track and worked in the California Legislature. He found the experience draining and would rediscover his passion during a return to college radio at UC Berkeley and then UC Davis, where he hosted one of the only hip-hop shows in the Central Valley in the early 1990s. The friendships he developed during the period, including artists who would go on to become major hip-hop figures, were the seeds of his first book, "Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation."

When approached by an editor to write a new comprehensive biography on Bruce Lee, Chang shared that he was unsure about how to tackle the concept of celebrity biography. Although enthusiastic about the project, he described feeling overwhelmed by the sheer volume of existing material on Lee and uncertain what he could add. The breakthrough, he said, came during the pandemic, when a new generation's reclamation of Lee's image as a symbol of pride and solidarity in the face of rising anti-Asian violence made the book's focus suddenly clear.

"This was a generation finding in Bruce Lee the figure they needed," he explained. "That gave me my assignment - not a celebrity biography, not the 'knock-them-off-the-pedestal' genre, but something about why this figure keeps being claimed, across generations and across cultures."

"And, of course, knowing you don't get paid until you turn in the final draft, that reality will always focus you," he added.

Food for Thought: A Series Built on Connection

UC Merced's exploration of Bruce Lee as a groundbreaking symbol of Asian and Asian American representation began last year with Shannon Lee. The Bruce Lee Foundation chair and daughter of the martial arts icon visited campus as a Food for Thought guest speaker during Women's History Month to share her work preserving and expanding her father's legacy for new generations.

For Vanagten, who organized Shannon's talk and started reading Chang's book shortly after, the connection was evident. "Shannon's visit explored Bruce Lee's personal philosophy while Jeff's work expands that conversation into culture, history, activism and representation in America," he said. "It felt like a natural continuation of the conversation."

The reception at the recent event brought that theme of continuation to the table. Along with Bruce Lee's favorite dish, the reception featured recipes created by "Top Chef" alum Tu David Phu, who is among the first guest chefs Vanagten brought to Merced, before the Food for Thought series had fully taken shape.

"Chef Tu's willingness to engage with our community helped open doors for future guest chefs, filmmakers, authors and storytellers who have since become part of Food for Thought," Vanagten said.

The Food for Thought Speaker Series, including this year's AANHPI Heritage Month event, is supported by the UC Merced Division of Equity, Justice & Inclusive Excellence (EJIE).

"The series creatively promotes cultural awareness and community building by highlighting cuisine alongside the diverse lived experiences of groups comprising our state's population," said EJIE Vice Chancellor Delia Saenz. She noted that featured speakers address difficult topics such as exclusion, bias and hardship, while equally celebrating resilience, talent and cultural representation.

"This event, like others in the series, helps to foster community by bringing together students, faculty, staff and members from the community at large, in a space for learning and for breaking bread," she added.