Asian Fortune Your source for all things Asian American
Compiled by: Mary Tablante
1. U.S. Holocaust Museum Displays “The Plight of the Rohingya”
Washington, D.C.—Photographs showing Myanmar’s Rohingya Muslims in exile were projected on the outdoor walls of the Holocaust Museum, in association with FotoWeek DC 2013, beginning on Nov. 4. The Rohingya have no basic human rights, including no legal status in Burma, and they face discrimination and violence. In 2012, more than 100,000 Rohingya Muslims were displaced and the communities continue to face abuse. The photographs displayed are by Greg Constantine and the opening program featured a discussion about the current state of the Rohingya.
2. Chinese Americans Protest ABC Skit
Burbank, Calif.—Thousands of Chinese Americans and supporters rallied in front of ABC headquarters on Nov. 9 to protest a Jimmy Kimmel Live skit that aired on Oct. 16. In the skit, Kimmel asked four children how the U.S. should pay their $1.3 trillion debt to China. One child responded with, “Kill everyone in China.” Kimmel aired a follow-up skit entitled “Should we allow the Chinese to live?” Some protestors held signs that said “Teach kids to love, not to kill” and “Hate Speech is Not Funny.” Some called on ABC to fire Kimmel. Protests regarding the skit were held nationwide in cities including New York, Washington, D.C., San Francisco, Miami and 23 other cities, according to China Radio International. Kimmel and ABC both issued an apology to anyone offended by the sketch. A whitehouse.gov petition calling for an investigation of the segment received more than 100,000 signatures.
3. The State of Asian American Women
The Center for American Progress released a fact sheet on Nov. 7 about the state of entrepreneurship, health, economic security and political leadership for Asian American women. The fact sheet states that more than one in five Asian American women between the ages of 15 and 44 is uninsured. It also states that Asian American women held 8.36 percent of bachelor’s degrees despite constituting for only 5.14 of the female population in 2013. Asian American women are underrepresented among Fortune 500 CEOs and in positions of government. They also make less money than their male and non-Hispanic white counterparts despite the statistics of high educational achievement.
4. Cambodian Dancers Rededicate U.S. Buddhist Temples
Dancers and musicians from the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Angkor in Cambodia toured the U.S. to rededicate Buddhist temples. The dance troupe visited the D.C. area, including Silver Spring, Md., as well as Boston, New York and Los Angeles, according to the Charlotte Observer. The dance that the group performed to bless the temples was almost destroyed in the 1970s during Khmer Rouge, where 1.4 million Cambodians died from starvation and mass executions.
5. Asian American Winners in the 2013 Elections
After the November elections, Virginia Delegate Mark Keam, a Korean-American immigrant, was re-elected to represent Virginia’s House District 35. Additionally, Michelle Wu, a Taiwanese-American attorney and small business owner, ran for Boston City Council At Large. She won the second of four positions and is the second Asian American on Boston City Council, according to the Asian American Action Fund.
6. Indian American Director Wins Filmmaking Grant
San Leandro, Calif.—The San Francisco Film Society and Kenneth Rainin Foundation awarded Indian American filmmaker Musa Syeed a $35,000 screenwriting grant to produce an independent film, reported India West. Syeed will use the grant to film “Doctor,” which is about a young disgraced doctor from India who starts producing medicine illegally in New York. Syeed’s previous film, entitled “Valley of Saints,” premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2012.
7. Civic Leader Passes Away
CHICAGO—Chinese-American civic leader Leonard Louie died Nov. 3 at age 78. He helped create a public park in Chicago’s Chinatown called Ping Tom Memorial Park and more recently helped create a field house in the Chinatown neighborhood. Louie lived to attend the October opening of the 30,000-square-foot park, which includes a fitness center, gymnasium and a swimming pool. Louie earned an electrical engineering degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and began involvement in community causes starting in 1959. He also served as president of the St. Therese Chinese Catholic School for nine years and was a founding member of the Chinese American Development Corp.
8. Japanese Pitchers Finalists for Cy Young Award
NEW YORK—Three Japanese pitchers were finalists for the American League Cy Young Award. Yu Darvish of the Texas Rangers came in second place and Hisashi Iwakuma came in third place. These were the highest finishers for Japanese pitchers in any Cy Young award competition, reported The Associated Press. Additionally, Koji Uehara of the Boston Red Sox came in seventh. Although Max Scherzer of the Detroit Tigers won the award, Darvish said in a statement that it was an honor to be selected as a finalist.
9. Hmong American Elected to St. Paul City Council
St. Paul, Minn.—Dai Thao became the first Hmong American elected to St. Paul’s city council, defeating six other candidates, reported TwinCities.com. Thao is an information technology manager who became a political organizer for Hmong members TakeAction Minnesota, a liberal activist group, in 2008. He was also a staff organizer with ISAIAH, a social justice advocacy group.
10. Nail Salon Employees To Get Access to Asian Language Exams
CHICAGO—The state of Illinois will soon offer cosmetology licensing exams in Asian languages. Mora Zheng, owner of the Elle International Beauty Academy in Chinatown, said many students finish school, but are intimidated by taking the licensing exams in English, reported WBEZ. Zheng added that she opened her beauty school so that new immigrants could earn an honest living and get benefits. The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation will offer the cosmetology exam in Chinese, and will also provide Korean and Vietnamese translations of the nail technician licensing exam.
11. 22 Lewd Chinese Women
Kansas City, MO—Cast members debuted a new production entitled “22 Lewd Chinese Women” at the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association’s annual conference on Nov. 8. In the past seven years of the convention, it has highlighted reenactments of cases involving Asian Americans, reported NPR. The reenactment was about the case Chy Lung v. Freeman, a 19th-century Supreme Court case involving women who sailed from China to San Francisco without husbands or children. At the time, California’s commissioner of immigration called them “lewd and debauched.” A state law prohibited women from entering the U.S. unless they paid $500 in gold. Attorney Kathy Chin organizes the productions and told NPR that college theater departments in New Jersey, North Carolina and Kansas are interested in the script for “22 Lewd Chinese Women.”
12. Newspaper Describes Waitresses in Restaurant Review as ‘Exotic,’ ‘Almond-Eyed’
PHILADELPHIA—The Philadelphia City Paper retracted a description in a restaurant review entitled “The Flavors at Uzbekistan Restaurant” after the Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA) issued a complaint about its wording. The sentence read, “The flavors at Uzbekistan are exotic, much like the almond-eyed waitresses who serve you.” AAJA’s reasons for the complaint included describing waitresses as “almond-eyed” conjures up images of Asian Americans having “slanty” eyes, bringing up stereotypes of Asians and Asian Americans. AAJA also stated that this term dehumanizes and objectifies women.
13. Food Truck Pioneer Releases Novel
LOS ANGELES—Chef Roy Choi’s first book “L.A. Son: My Life, My City, My Food” was released Nov. 5. Born in Seoul and raised in L.A., Choi introduced Korean tacos through his food truck, Kogi BBQ. The book chronicles Choi’s journey growing up in Los Angeles and being exposed to a variety of cultures and food. Choi’s book also includes more than 85 recipes, including Korean fried chicken and pork belly stuffed pupusas. Choi was named Food and Wine Magazine’s Best New Chef in 2010.
