Cambodian and Vietnamese immigrants targeted for deportation

"We can't stay silent."


Kim Nak Chhoeun, 42, came to the U.S. as a refugee when he was 6 years old.
From the Los Angeles Times: Most associate Trump's rhetoric about deportations with Latinos, given his vows to build a border wall, his assertions that Mexican immigrants are "rapists" and drug dealers, and his decision to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program for immigrants brought to this country illegally as children, most of whom are Latino.

But immigration activists say the roundups of people of Cambodian and Vietnamese descent are unprecedented and have sparked anxiety in Asian immigrant communities.

"People may think it's just Latinos being threatened when it comes to deportations. But there are all sorts of immigrants affected, and we can't stay silent," said Laboni Hoq, litigation director for the Los Angeles chapter of the civil rights organization Asian Americans Advancing Justice.

"This is a political issue. The administration is cracking down to deliver on campaign promises, and they are going community by community to make their actions known."

More here: As more Cambodian and Vietnamese immigrants are targeted for deportation, advocates say they 'can't stay silent'

Los Angeles Times publishes letters in defense of internment

"The interned Japanese were housed, fed, protected and cared for."



This is some kind of bullshit.

On Sunday, the Los Angeles Times published two letters from readers arguing that the forced mass removal and incarceration of thousands of Japanese Americans during World War II was necessary and justified.

The letters, published in the paper's print and online editions, were sent in response to a story by Carolina A. Miranda that ran last month regarding the internment camps. The letter-writers call Miranda's article "unbalanced," and attempt to make the case that "internment" was an imperative wartime measure.

One of the letter-writers, identifying himself as Steve Hawes, calls Miranda's reporting "another anti-U.S. remake of history," and argues that the internment was, in effect, ultimately for the good of "the Japanese." The other letter, penned by Dick Venn, calls for "a little bit balance" in Miranda's "one-way reporting."

No. Get out of here with that shit.

UCLA student is earning his PhD while homeless

26-year-old Louis Tse is a doctoral candidate in mechanical engineering. He's also living in his car.



According to a census conducted last year, there are an estimated 44,000 homeless individuals in Los Angeles County. In an ongoing video series for the Los Angeles Times, Lisa Biagiotti sets out to put the faces to the statistics, meeting people on the streets and learning about their experiences and the issues they face.

In her most recent video, she meets 26-year-old Louis Tse, a doctoral candidate in mechanical engineering at UCLA. He also happens to be homeless. (According to 2013-14 Federal Student Aid Form data, more than 56,000 college students identified themselves as homeless.) Tse reveals that he's been earning his PhD while secretly living out of his car for over a year. This is the first time he's going public with his situation.

In the video, Tse walks Lisa through his morning routine, talks about "rational homelessness" and his post-doctorate goals. He also shares that he's working to create a shelter for homeless youth.

Watch it here: He is getting his PhD - and is homeless