Multiculturalism affects institutions crucial to our daily lives: government, workplaces, schools, historical records, the media, laws, and art. It justifies who can participate in politics and whether those such as Asian Americans who have been historically excluded and voiceless will be heard and thus influence policies and resource distribution. This political terrain affects the literary marketplace that may incorporate authors and communities of color who have been historically ignored or rejected for their criticism of Eurocentrism or failure to uphold white norms. Working within a field coming into prominence alongside and because of multiculturalism, Asian American writers understand themselves and their texts to be part of reclaiming forgotten experiences and histories as well as diversifying the imaginative landscape of US literature. As unintended consequences of multiculturalism’s emphasis on Asian cuisine, holidays, or other cultural traditions, Asian Americans are perceived as having a culture that benefits and disadvantages them in terms of citizenship and spheres of agency, denying them full citizenship, upward mobility, equal pay, or artistic capabilities.