Asian Fortune Your source for all things Asian American
By Mary Tablante
Watches for the Blind
BOSTON—MIT graduate student and Korean American Hyungsoo Kim designed a watch that doesn’t require vision or sound; the watch allows people to check time without having to look at a watch or cellphone. Kim calls the watch a “timepiece,” not a watch, because “you don’t have to watch this to know the time.” The timepiece is named “Bradley,” after Brad Snyder, a soldier who lost his eyesight from an IED explosion while serving in Afghanistan. Kim, founder of Eone Timepieces, hopes that the watch will help blind people as well as appeal to people who are not blind. He opened a Kickstarter campaign with the goal of raising $40,000 by Aug. 15 to fund the project. The campaign already has more than $256,000 in donations.
First APA Fire Chief in U.S
Berkeley, Calif.—UC Berkeley appointed the first Asian American fire chief in the continental United States. Gil Dong has served the fire department for 23 years; he started as a paramedic-firefighter in 1990 and has worked in every fire department division. Dong’s responsibilities will include overseeing 134 staff members, managing a $34 million budget and emphasizing training and emergency preparedness.
Math Whiz
The first Asian American was elected to become the president of the Mathematical Association of America. Francis Su, a math professor at the Harvey Mudd College in California, will be serving as president-elect and will officially be president in Feb. 2015. Su’s specialties are geometric and topological combinatorics, applications to game theory and the social sciences. Su also created the Math Fun Facts iPhone app and Math Fun Facts website. In addition, he has posted 26 lectures of his Real Analysis course on YouTube. He has been part of the Harvey Mudd College faculty since 1996.
Financially Fit
A Wells Fargo bank poll found that Chinese Americans are feeling more optimistic about their financial futures than the overall population. In the poll, three out of five Chinese Americans reported they were financially better off today than three years ago and 65 percent said they were confident about their future incomes. The poll also showed that Chinese Americans are more likely to live within their means and pay off credit card balances every month compared to the general population.
NYC Film Fest
NEW YORK—The 36th Asian American International Film Festival was held July 24 to Aug. 3 in New York City. The festival is the nation’s oldest Asian film festival. Featured films included Soongava – Dance of the Orchids, which is about two young women who go against traditions in Nepali society, and Our Homeland, a film about a man who returns to Japan decades after he was sent to North Korea as a child for a repatriation program.
4th DesiQ Conference
SAN FRANCISCO—LGBT South Asians from the United States and all over the world gathered for the fourth annual DesiQ Conference in San Francisco from July 4 to 6. The conference included activities and presentations on marriage equality, LGBT rights and even a speed dating session. Hosted by Trikone, a nonprofit organization for bisexual, lesbian, gay and transgender South Asian people, was the fourth DesiQ conference held since 1995.
Middle School Basketball Player Target of Racial Harassment
Russell, Ky.—The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, a civil rights group, filed complaints with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights in order to investigate the racial harassment of a middle school basketball player in Kentucky. Milena Clarke, 14, is an Asian-Kazakh adoptee and was the target of continuing racial harassment in Kentucky’s Russell Independent School District basketball program since July 2011. The report stated that coaches and officials within the school ignored requests from the Clarke family to end the harassment. Clarke plans to continue playing basketball and working to make sure minorities in the school district do not experience what she went through in the future.
NPR Names South Asian Host
Culver City, Calif.—South Asian American Arun Rath was named anchor of the NPR newsmagazine Weekend All Things Considered on July 11. Rath’s experience includes being a senior reporter for PBS’ Frontline and The World. Rath is set to take over as the anchor in September, which is when the weekend edition will move its broadcast to the west coast.
Bose Founder Dies
Wayland, Mass.—Amar Gopal Bose, the founder and chairman of the audio equipment company Bose Corporation, died July 12 at the age of 83. For more than 45 years, Bose worked as a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he also earned his bachelor’s degree, master’s degree and doctorate in electrical engineering. Two years ago, Bose donated the majority of his company’s shares to MIT. Bose’s father was a Bengali freedom fighter who taught at the University of Calcutta.
CAPC Twitter Town Hall
On July 12, The Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) hosted a Twitter Town Hall on the topic of comprehensive immigration reform. Tweeters used the hashtag #AskCAPAC. Congressman Judy Chu, Senator Mazie Hirono, Congressman Mike Honda, Congresswoman Tammy Duckworth and Congressman Mark Takano were among the participants in the town hall.
Article of Faith or Weapon?
Emeryville, Calif.—When a Sikh couple, Manjot and Ikman Singh, were preparing to watch Man of Steel on June 22 at AMC Theatres, the two were forced to leave the theater after a security guard accused them of having weapons. Ikman was carrying a kirpan, a ceremonial blade, but he said it was not visible when the security guard approached him. AMC responded saying it will vigorously enforce its no weapons policy.
Kiran Ahuja’s trip to Georgia (USA)
Gwinnett County, Ga.—White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders Executive Director Kiran Ahuja took a trip to Gwinnett County, Georgia, where she met with leaders and members of organizations in the growing AAPI community. During her visit, Ahuja discussed issues and concerns that affect Georgia’s AAPI population, including small business growth, immigration and health care. Ahuja, whose home state is Georgia, wrote in a blog on the WHIAPPI website that she was inspired to see the community growth and leadership in the state.
