Biography
Amy Uyematsu, born and raised in Southern California, is the author of six poetry collections that draw on her experiences as a third-generation Japanese American woman, activist, and high-school math teacher.
Uyematsu was born in Pasadena in 1947. Her grandfather was an influential flower farmer before his properties were seized and he, and her parents, were interned with other Japanese American citizens at a desert camp during World War II. That Blue Trickster Time (2022), released just before Uyematsu’s death, explores this family history. Written during the Trump and Covid-19 years, many poems reflect the deepening political and racial divides in America, including the surge of anti-Asian hate crimes since 2020.
Earlier in her career, Uyematsu co-edited the seminal anthology Roots: An Asian American Reader (1971). Her essay, “The Emergence of Yellow Power in America,” continues to be read in many Asian American studies classes. She lived in Los Angeles.