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8.31.2014

Read These Blogs



Kinda Racist? Try Diet Racism! Do you say sorta racist stuff? Do you think it's only fair that there be a White History Month? Then we've got the soda for you! Enjoy the refreshing taste of Diet Racism. The same sweet ignorance of regular Racism, but with none of the guilt or self awareness.

The Manipulation Factor: An Asian American Take on O'Reilly, Race, and Asian Americans: Recently, Fox News gem Bill O'Reilly announced that white privilege does not exist, citing some racist crap about Asians being model minorities as evidence. Scot Nakagawa dispels O'Reilly's conclusions.

Bill O'Reilly's "Asian privilege" disgrace: The Fox News host needs some basic history lessons: Cherry-picked statistics and more race baiting from the Fox News host, in a condescending "Asian privilege" segment -- Marie Myung-Ok Lee also responds to O'Reilly's racist rant.

The Culture Canard of the Model Minority Myth: how racial gaps in academics aren't due to cultural pathology: "As Asian Americans, I believe we have a personal responsibility to not only refuse to support The Model Minority Myth, but to actively dismantle it at all costs."

Why All Communities of Color Must Demand an End to Police Brutality: In the wake of the unlawful killing of Mike Brown, other communities of color have released statements of solidarity against discriminatory law enforcement practices, as well as an urgency to collectively identify and implement solutions.



How The 'Kung Fu Fighting' Melody Came To Represent Asia: You know that tune. It kicks off "Kung Fu Fighting" and, as NPR's Code Switch says, "it's almost always used to signal that something vaguely is happening or is about to happen." What's the history behind those nine little notes, anyway?

Moving to New York Made Me Asian: "Then I moved to New York City and suddenly, I was Asian." Lisa Bernier talks about moving to New York, silent racism, and saying out loud what everyone else is thinking.

Why I Just Can't Become Chinese: "In this supposed age of a rising China and a declining U.S., we Americans should worry a bit less. No matter how huge China's GDP gets, the U.S. retains a deep, enduring competitive advantage: America makes Chinese Americans. China doesn't make American Chinese."

How Are Different Asian-American Groups Faring Economically? The United States Department of Labor recently published a report with a detailed breakdown of the different economic outcomes that various Asian-Americans and Pacific Islanders have faced.

In tech, even Asians are left out at the top: Despite the large number of Asians in American tech companies, there are few at the top of the corporate ladder. Buck Gee wants to change that.



Hello Kitty is not a cat, plus more reveals before her L.A. tour: As anthropologist Christine Yano prepared for an upcoming Hello Kitty exhibit in L.A., she discovered some news that many found shocking: Hello Kitty is not a cat. Also, she's British. Also, she has her own cat.

I was taking pictures of my daughters. A stranger thought I was exploiting them. Every year, when Jeff Gates and his family head to the Jersey shore, he takes a photo of his daughters on the Cape May ferry. This year, the tradition was ruined by an upsetting interaction with a stranger.

I Ghostwrite Chinese Students' Ivy League Admissions Essays: Eunice Park is a black market college admissions essay writer who claims she has written over 350 fraudulent essays for wealthy exchange students.

Kennewick Man 'could have been Asian': New findings about the "Kennewick Man" -- the ancient skeleton found on the bank of the Columbia River in 1996 -- reveal that his skull "most closely resembles Pacific Rim populations such as the Ainu of Japan and Polynesians, reflecting deep roots in coastal Asian groups."

What's Inside: The Science of Sriracha's Fiery Deliciousness: Ever wonder why Sriracha is so delicious? Wired looks into the ingredient science behind your favorite hot sauce.



That Guy in That Commercial: You've seen him before. In every other TV commercial. The Rafu Shimpo profiles Aaron Takahashi, the unofficial "Asian American King of Commercials."

Grace Park Interview: Vancouver actress Grace Park, who's starred in Battlestar Galactica and Hawaii Five-0, chats with The National about celebrity, shyness and her start at the CBC.

An interview with the speculative fiction writer & translator Ken Liu: An interview with speculative fiction writer Ken Liu, author of the award-winning short story "Paper Menagerie" and translator of Liu Cixin's The Three-Body Problem.

China's 'Great Wall' Takes A Hit At U.S. Heavyweight Boxing: 26-year-old boxer JianJun "Taishan" Dong, also known as the Great Wall in his native China, is taking on the U.S. boxing world.

Jennifer Moon Wins Hammer Museum Award, Plans to Start Revolution: Artist Jennifer Moon, whose work is a multimedia mixture of fantasy and autobiography with a revolutionary bent, recently received the Hammer Museum's 2014 "Made in L.A." Public Recognition Award.