Jeff Chang

Jeff Chang is the author and narrator of We Gon' Be Alright. In the majority of the book's essays, he is present not as a character or active participant in the events, but as a storyteller and analyst. He has an authorial and narrative presence that merges the voice and characteristics of the journalist, historian, and contemporary societal analyst and critic. However, in the book's final essay, The In-Betweens: On Asian Americanness, Chang emerges from the background and becomes the central character in that chapter, which is about his personal experiences as an Asian American discovering his identity and place in society as a Hawaiian who later moved to the continent.

From Chang's position as both writer and character in different essays, it is clear that he is highly educated and experienced in contemporary socio-cultural critique and issues of race in the United States. The final...