Eric Liu : These are expressions of power and identity , and even political matters . Liu : As I explain in my new book , I call myself ` ` Chinese American '' -- without a hyphen . He would apply it playfully to commonplace situations , such as saying that the Yankees had `` a Chinaman 's chance '' of making a ninth-inning comeback . He says the hyphenated ` ` Chinese - American '' signifies a transaction between two people . Liu : Similarly , ` ` [UNK] , '' or American - born Chinese , is also inadequate in its identity sense .
Eric Liu : These are expressions of power and identity , and even political matters . Liu : As I explain in my new book , I call myself ` ` Chinese American '' -- without a hyphen . He says the hyphenated ` ` Chinese - American '' signifies a transaction between two people . Liu : Similarly , ` ` [UNK] , '' or American - born Chinese , is also inadequate in its identity sense .