By Lily Qi Saturday night, March 26, 2016, exactly one month before the Maryland primary election, over 350 people packed the Cabin John Middle School Cafeteria in Potomac, Maryland, to meet 10 candidates from both the Democratic and Republican parties running for Maryland’s 8th Congressional District seat. According to the candidates, it was the second largest event of the 17 …

Column By Lily Qi I would really love to see a woman succeeding Senator Barbara Mikulski. I admire Congresswoman Donna Edwards for many reasons—her passion, her intellect, and her strong principles. As a single mother, she overcame tremendous odds to become Maryland’s first black Congresswomen. As a woman, minority and immigrant, I find her story particularly inspiring. But I am …

  By Lily Qi     The headlines and rhetoric are hard to ignore. A recent Washington Post editorial sounded the alarm, again, that the Chinese cyber attacks against the United States are ramping up and that as a nation, from lawmakers to citizens, we need to be much more vigilant about the cyber warfare that is posing eminent threat …

By Lily Qi During this past Asian American Heritage Month (the month of May), the Fairfax County, Virginia government dedicated a Comfort Women Memorial inside the county government complex to honor and remember the women who were forced into sex slaves for the Japanese Imperial Army during World War II. While the women were from several East and Southeast Asian …

By Lily Qi May 18 was a glorious Sunday in the Boston area. Tens of thousands of families and friends descended on one of the nation’s best-known education corridors to celebrate the class of 2014. My husband and I were among the happy crowds joined by my family from Shanghai for our son Andrew’s graduation from Tufts University. We fully …

By Lily Qi Last year, I organized a highly productive trade mission to China for Montgomery County (notice I am bragging here), and when the photos from the trip were posted on the County Web site, I got an email from a colleague asking why I wasn’t in one particular photo. Well, I was busy arranging the right lineup of …

By: Lily Qi I recently hosted a political fundraiser for a local campaign. It was a fabulous event by all accounts—we reached our fundraising goal; we had a large turnout with a good mix of community leaders and businesspeople, and most importantly, everyone had a great time and felt that they were part of something special and meaningful. But what …

By Lily Qi Since about five years ago, my family started celebrating what I call the “Jewish Christmas” on Christmas Day, with a trip to the movie theater for a new release followed by a dinner at a Chinese restaurant, though we would still attend the Christmas Eve service at a church. Why “Jewish?” Because that’s what many people of …

by: Lily Qi Like many, I was surprised by the strong worldwide reactions to an October segment of the “Jimmy Kimmel Kid’s Table” show in which a young guest said we should “kill everyone in China” as a way to settle our national debt with China.  Not because the program aired without anyone raising the red flag in the media …

Food Etiquette in Social Settings by: Lily Qi I know many people, in spite of years of living in the U.S., are still uncomfortable when ordering food from a menu with unfamiliar dishes or having to eat with a fork and a knife. These days, most nice social occasions have some food connections, especially during the holiday season.  Whether sharing …

By: Lily Qi I often come across people who wonder why I chose to work for a local government. After all, the Washington, DC region is the seat of the federal government, which offers better-paying jobs and greater latitude for professional development and career advancement to move up and around. In addition, a local government’s functions, jurisdictional reach and budget …

By Lily Qi Something as mundane and common as giving and receiving compliments may be a serious challenge if you are an immigrant. Over the years, I have learned, often the hard way, the essential importance of receiving and giving compliments, at home, at work, and in social or semi-social environment. Generally speaking, East Asian cultures tend to be more …

By Lily Qi I have meant to write about my last year’s trip to Turkey for a while. The recent turmoil in Turkey and its neighbor Egypt brought back memories that prompted me to revisit that unique experience of last spring. What a difference a year makes. About this time last year, I was having dinner at an Egyptian friend’s …

By: Lily Qi The two largest Asian communities in the Washington metro region, Chinese and Indians, are often being talked about by public figures in the same manner and even in the same breath. True, there are many similarities between them, including the highly-educated human capital, the large concentration of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) talents, the amazing achievement …

By Lily Qi A couple of years ago, when my son was looking for his first college summer internship, I gave him some general advice and urged him to start early, but stopped short of stepping in to make sure he landed a good job. It was hard to watch him struggle, but the frustrations he went through that summer turned …

QultureMATTERS  By Lily Qi On a recent business trip to China, I was automatically assumed to be an interpreter or assistant because I was helping with communication on both sides. I had to assert myself and remind my colleagues that I, too, had original thoughts to contribute. This small example shines light on the issue of how Asian women are …