Hey everybody. Once again, it's time to meet the Angry Reader of the Week, spotlighting you, the very special readers of this website. Over the years, I've been able to connect with a lot of cool folks, and this is a way of showing some appreciation and attention to the people who help make this blog what it is. This week's Angry Reader is Juliet Shen.
Who are you?
A blogger, a student, an unpaid intern, an organizer, a board member, a feminist, a protester, and above all: a hardcore nerd. I'm an Arizona girl freezing in an upstate world.
What are you?
I'm the Advocacy Coordinator for the East Coast Asian American Student Union, organizer for New York Students Rising (NYSR), member of Save Our SUNY, blogger for Fascinasians, Community Service chair for the New York State Young Democrats Caucus of Color, and host for the Albany watch party for the Vincent Chin Google+ Hang Out.
Where are you?
I'm currently sitting at my office eating a mantou and filing memos. Which is part of the New York Assembly. Which is in Albany. Which is in New York. When I'm not here, I'm at my friend's coffee shop loitering and drinking chai lattes.
Where are you from?
I'm from a white upper middle class suburb in Arizona where reality TV shows were filmed at my high school, celebrities shopped at our malls, and middle schoolers went to tanning salons.
What do you do?
I prowl the internet for news and stories relating to Asian Americans, undiscovered talent on YouTube, and recipes and post it on Fascinasians. I also try to interview Asian Americans in leadership positions because it's always nice to have a role model that you can look at and think "hey, they look like me!"
I also help plan and organize with NYSR for higher education issues in New York. Yeah walk outs! Yeah strikes! Yeah sit ins! Yeah civil disobedience!
What are you all about?
I'm all about eating good food, having good laughs, finding good shoes, and collective effervescence.
What makes you angry?
Those who know me personally know that I am generally a very nice person... who gets pissed really easily.
Street harassment makes me angry. When women can't walk alone at night without feeling some fear or trepidation. The idea that if something does happen, the blame could get placed on the victim because of what they were wearing, their sexual history, and their personality. That society teaches women to not get raped instead of teaching men not to rape.
Budget cuts make me angry. The fact that my school has already cut Italian, French, Russian, Theater, and Classics and removed the "Diversity and Pluralism" requirement from the gen eds. The fact that students like me won't be able to learn the things they want because humanities aren't considered important enough compared to business and nanotechnology. The fact that New York is raising SUNY and CUNY tuition 10% each year.
Racism. That's kind of a big duh, but the fact that not only is there rampant injustice in our society, but people CHOOSE to ignore it and live on blissfully. That ignorant buttheads will classify me as either a "Dragon Lady" or a "fragile, innocent china-doll."