CCAS Statement of Purpose Critical Asian Studies continues to be inspired by the statement of purpose formulated in 1969 by its parent organization,the Committee of Concerned Asian Scholars (CCAS).CCAS ceased to exist as an organization in 1979. but the BCAS board decided in 1993 that the CCAS Statement of Purpose should be published in our journal at least once a year. We first came together in opposition to the brutal aggression of the United States in Vietnam and to the complicity or silence of our profession with regard to that policy.Those in the field of Asian studies bear responsibility for the consequences of their research and the political posture of their profession.We are concerned about the present unwillingness of specialists to speak out against the implications of an Asian policy committed to en- suring American domination of much of Asia.We reject the le- gitimacy of this aim,and attempt to change this policy.We recognize that the present structure of the profession has often perverted scholarship and alienated many people in the field. The Committee of Concerned Asian Scholars seeks to develop a humane and knowledgeable understanding of Asian societies and their efforts to maintain cultural integrity and to confront such problems as poverty,oppression,and imperialism.We real- ize that to be students of other peoples,we must first understand our relations to them. CCAS wishes to create alternatives to the prevailing trends in scholarship on Asia,which too often spring from a parochial cultural perspective and serve selfish interests and expansion- ism.Our organization is designed to function as a catalyst,a communications network for both Asian and Western scholars,a provider of central resources for local chapters,and a commu- nity for the development of anti-imperialist research. Passed,28-30 March 1969 Boston,MassachusettsCCAS Statement of Purpose Critical Asian Studies continues to be inspired by the statement of purpose formulated in 1969 by its parent organization, the Committee of Concerned Asian Scholars (CCAS). CCAS ceased to exist as an organization in 1979, but the BCAS board decided in 1993 that the CCAS Statement of Purpose should be published in our journal at least once a year. We first came together in opposition to the brutal aggression of the United States in Vietnam and to the complicity or silence of our profession with regard to that policy. Those in the field of Asian studies bear responsibility for the consequences of their research and the political posture of their profession. We are concerned about the present unwillingness of specialists to speak out against the implications of an Asian policy committed to en￾suring American domination of much of Asia. We reject the le￾gitimacy of this aim, and attempt to change this policy. We recognize that the present structure of the profession has often perverted scholarship and alienated many people in the field. The Committee of Concerned Asian Scholars seeks to develop a humane and knowledgeable understanding of Asian societies and their efforts to maintain cultural integrity and to confront such problems as poverty, oppression, and imperialism. We real￾ize that to be students of other peoples, we must first understand our relations to them. CCAS wishes to create alternatives to the prevailing trends in scholarship on Asia, which too often spring from a parochial cultural perspective and serve selfish interests and expansion￾ism. Our organization is designed to function as a catalyst, a communications network for both Asian and Western scholars, a provider of central resources for local chapters, and a commu￾nity for the development of anti-imperialist research. Passed, 28–30 March 1969 Boston, Massachusetts