Miliann Kang

About

Miliann Kang is a sociologist and Professor of Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Her research examines the intersections of race, gender, immigration, labor, and inequality, with particular attention to the experiences of Asian American women. She is the author of The Managed Hand: Race, Gender, and the Body in Beauty Service Work (2010), an influential study of nail salon workers that explores how race, gender, and immigrant labor shape service work and personal relationships. Through her scholarship, Kang investigates how social stereotypes influence everyday experiences and institutional structures. In Not Tiger Moms, she combines feminist research with personal interviews to challenge reductive ideas about Asian American mothers and highlight the diversity of their experiences. Her work contributes to broader conversations about racial identity, caregiving, and the social value placed on motherhood.