NORINE DRESSER  

Cross cultural customs and beliefs have fascinated folklorist Norine Dresser for over twenty-five years and have been the focus of her university teaching, research and writing. “Multicultural Celebrations” (Three Rivers Press 1999), the fourth in a series on diversity, documents the richness of universal rituals as experienced in this country. Her “Multicultural Manners” book (Wiley 1995) and her Los Angeles Times “Multicultural Manners” column, which has been running since 1993 until May 5, 2001., demystify cross cultural misunderstandings.  The column and book earned the 1998 John Anson Ford Award for contributions towards resolving inter-group conflict, conferred by the County of Los Angeles Commission on Human Relations. “I Feel Like I Was from Another Planet” (Addison Wesley, 1994) and “Our Own Stories”  (Longman/Addison Wesley, 1995) target multi- cultural issues in the classroom. Subject of additional books and articles range from cat and horse bar mitzvahs to the role of folk medicine in contemporary health care to marriage traditions in early California, and the Chinese militia during World War II. Dresser, a retired faculty member of the California State University at Los Angeles, has received grants from the Smithsonian Institution, the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department.

  PRESENTATION TITLES

• Dos and Don’ts When Communicating with Asian Clients, Colleagues and Friends
  
• Asian Customs and Beliefs
  
• Asian Celebrations and Rituals in the U.S. and Canada
  
• Demystifying Cross Cultural Misunderstandings
  

Fee Range :  Negotiable

Home Base: Los Angeles, California