Interloper in the Ivy League: An African-American Perspective on China

As an historian and interloper in the Ivy League, I see the world through the lens of my unique identity, where the flow of history and personal struggles intertwine.

Growing up in a poor foster family, Richard L. Davis carved an extraordinary path through academia to become a distinguished historian of ancient China. Despite facing significant challenges and exclusion, he secured advanced degrees and taught at some of the top universities—an achievement nearly impossible in his generation.

Within predominantly white academic institutions, he—the interloper in the Ivy League—offers a fair yet compassionate judgment of elite universities undermined by systemic and structural flaws. He reveals how these remarkably homogenous institutions are biased power structures based on pedigree, race, and personal connections, which restrict opportunities for individuals from diverse backgrounds.

More than a record of his academic path, the memoir acknowledges the deep impact of those who greatly supported him. His identity as a gay Black with a public school background often led to questions being raised about his qualifications and abilities, with missed opportunities as a result. His mentors, friends and lovers became sources of special strength at those times, helping him to overcome challenges and break through the boundaries. In addition, through the lens of a historian, he reflects on the evolving landscapes these past several decades of Taiwan, Hong Kong, and China, places where he has lived and witnessed firsthand.

Richard L. Davis
Richard L. Davis is a renowned historian specializing in middle-period and late imperial China. Born in Buffalo, New York, he earned degrees in political science, Asian studies, and history, receiving his doctorate in 1980. Davis taught at Middlebury College, Duke University, Brown University, and later at Lingnan University in Hong Kong, where he chaired the History Department. He also spent time in Taiwan, teaching at Soochow University and National Chung-cheng University.

Davis has written extensively on the Song and Five Dynasties periods. His notable works include Court and Family in Sung China: Bureaucratic Success and Kinship Fortunes for the Shih of Ming-chou (1986), Wind Against the Mountain: The Crisis of Politics and Culture in Thirteenth-Century China (1996), as well as numerous scholarly articles. He also translated and wrote an introduction for Historical Records of the Five Dynasties (2004). In addition, Davis led study-abroad programs in East Asia and served as president of the Song Studies Group for the Lingnan Region. He retired from Lingnan University in 2016 and relocated to Taipei, Taiwan. His scholarly contributions have had a lasting impact on the field of Chinese history.