apalc x fung bros: does your asian mom vote?

Check it. Our friends at the Asian Pacific American Legal Center have launched the Your Vote Matters! 2012 campaign, an effort to harness the uptapped political potential of the Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities in the Los Angeles area.

To kick things off proper, they recently teamed up with popular up-and-coming YouTube personalities The Fung Brothers to produce this humorous video, Do You Asian mom Vote?!, targeting API youth in the San Gabriel Valley and beyond. Check it out:

jr aquino's blind audition for the voice

Straight outta Anchorage. If you missed NBC's singing competition The Voice last night, here's video of popular YouTube musician JR Aquino showing his smooth stuff during the blind auditions. As you can see, he impressed the judges with his rendition of Bruno Mars' "Just the Way You Are":

filipino nurses win language discrimination settlement

Yesterday, the Asian Pacific American Legal Center and the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced a landmark settlement of $975,000 against Delano Regional Medical Center, on behalf of 69 Filipino American hospital employees who were subject to national origin discrimination and harassment: APALC and EEOC Settle Harassment Suit on Behalf of Almost 70 Filipino American Nurses, Medical Staff For Nearly $1 Million.

According to the lawsuit, the Filipino nurses were mocked and humiliated for their accents, prohibited from speaking Tagalog in the workplace, and were singled out and monitored by supervisors and co-workers who constantly told them to speak English. When they complained about discrimination and harassment, management failed to do anything about it.

The settlement is believed to be the largest settlement for a workplace language discrimination case in the West Coast and the largest settlement for a workplace language discrimination case in the Healthcare Industry in the United States. From APALC's press release:

moca presents marvels & monsters and alt.comics

For those of you in New York, the Museum of Chinese in America invites you check out to two connected exhibitions that trace the complex relationship between Asian Americans and comics, starting this month, September 27 through February 24, 2013.

Marvels and Monsters examines the history of stereotypical and politically charged depictions of Asians and Asian Americans, while Alt.Comics presents contemporary Asian American artists using the medium to craft and present their own narratives.

join the saada undergraduate editorial board

Hey, college students. The South Asian American Digital Archive is an independent nonprofit organization working to document the rich history of the South Asian American community and ensure that these important stories are more widely known and preserved for future generations.

They're currently accepting applications from undergraduate students for its inaugural
SAADA Undergraduate Editorial Board. Here are some more details about the board and its responsibilities:

music video: "christianmuslim" by jason chu

Check out this music video for "ChristianMuslim," written, recorded and performed by Jason Chu and Rah Zemos. It's a really cool hand-drawn stop-motion animation piece speaking out against violence and bloodshed between people who "believe that we're all God's children":

Angyr Poetry Corner: "Alecia" by Janice Lobo Sapigao

We're getting poetic up here. It's time for another installment of Angry Poetry Corner, a regular weekly spotlight on the work of API poets -- not necessarily angry -- curated by Cara, our Angry Asian Intern. Because you could use a little more poetry in your life.

In the corner this week, a poem by Janice Lobo Sapigao.

the many deaths of al leong

I don't think I knew what I was getting myself into when I signed on as Executive Producer to help National Film Society make their web series Awesome Asian Bad Guys. Please help us reach our pledge goal.

One of the guys we've got involved with the project is none other than perennial 1980s villain Al Leong, who's got a loooong list of credits playing a lot of bad guys in movies like Die Hard and Lethal Weapon. See him highlighted in Patrick and Stephen's original video on Awesome Asian Bad Guys.

In honor of Al Leong and his illustrious career, here is a crazy, epic two-minute video montage compiling his many, many death scenes, every which way across nearly twenty movies and TV shows:

jeremy lin is one of the most influential men of the year... and still sleeps on his buddies' couches

Who are the most influential men of 2012? Jeremy Lin has made the short list of candidates for AskMen's Top 49 Most Influential Men of 2012.

Overall, there are very few Asian Americans on the list (suprise), but I did spot Aziz Ansari and Gary Locke sprinkled among the names. Vote by October 8 to determine who gets a spot on the final 49.

Meanwhile, Jeremy, who famously slept on former teammate Landry Fields' couch, is still trying to sleep on his teammates' couches.

"the punch with no name"

Snapped at The Pug, the Washington DC bar that received some negative attention -- from the city's Commission on Human Rights, no less -- for a sign promoting a special drink called "Marion Berry's Dirty Asian Summer Punch." As you can see, they've renamed the drink and redrawn the sign. (Thanks, Henry.)

in memory of janet liang: be one of the 170 in 7

Last week, we received the sad news that 25-year-old Janet Liang passed away. She was an amazing young woman whose three-year fight with leukemia inspired a nationwide bone marrow registry movement.

This week, in Janet's memory this blog is partnering with a network of other Asian American websites to host 170 in 7: A Bone Marrow Cyberdrive in Memory of Janet Liang. And we need your help.

read these blogs

'Trek' star's own history inspires new musical: Allegiance -- a New American Musical is Jay Kuo's adaptation of George Takei's memories of life in an internment camp during World War II.

Margaret Cho Is Ready for Her Emmy Close-up: Margaret Cho's comedic portrayal of Kim Jong-il on 30 Rock earned her an Emmy nomination. On playing the late dictator, her guest appearance on the new series Angry Little Asian Girl, and her current comedy tour.

The New New Girl: Mindy Kaling Promotes Herself Out of The Office and Into The Mindy Project: A New York Magazine profile on Mindy Kaling, in which she talks about The Mindy Project, the recent loss of her mother, and being able to "go head-to-head with the best white, male comedy writers that are out there."

The Strange Fate of Kim's Video: The best video collection in New York, amassed over many years by MR. Yongman Kim, was shipped to a Sicilian town with the a promise that it would be kept accessible to cinephiles. Here's what really happened to it.

this week's angriest posts

Not necessarily the angriest, just the most viewed.

• rest in peace, janet liang


• this again: hooters receipt calls asian customer "chinx"


• yellowface might as well be a frozen yogurt topping


• starbucks "chink eyes" strike again! in paris.


• who won masterchef season three?


• beware the bison


• the real bodies manifesto lookbook


• serving up some dirty asian summer punch


• tbs orders second season of sullivan and son


• chew tv series is still in the works

And finally, National Film Society needs your help! If you've got a dollar or fifty to spare, pledge on Kickstarter to help us make Awesome Asian Bad Guys!

3rd i's san francisco international south asian film festival 2012

San Francisco film fans! You are invited to 3rd i's San Francisco International South Asian Film Festival 2012, with over twenty films from nine different countries. It's happening September 19-23 at the Roxie and Castro Theaters, and September 30 at Camera 12 in San Jose.

It all kicks off with the award-winning Opening Night film, The Island President next Wednesday. Here are some more details about the festival, including a brief rundown of the entire schedule:

dream team la hosts deferred action application clinic, september 22

As you know, the Department of Homeland Security is accepting applications for Deferred Action Childhood Arrivals (DACA), which gives eligible undocumented youth a two-year pause from the threat of deportation and an opportunity to secure a work permit.

For those in Los Angeles, next week, Dream Team LA will be hosting its second free DACA community forum/application drive. It's happening Saturday, September 22 at the LA Convention Center.

Here are some more details about the event:

angry reader of the week: laarni dacanay

Good people of the world, what is up? 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 Laarni Dacanay.

gathering the grassroots, september 15

If you're in New York, make some plans to check out Gathering the Grassroots, a day-long public event focusing on the current issues and responses of Asian American and Pacific Islander working class communities. Speakers include Dennis Chin, Helen Gym and Vijay Prashad.

It's happening Saturday, September 15 at the Museum of Chinese in America. Here are some more details about the event:

18 million rising: activating asian america

America, I share with you the official launch of 18MilliongRising.org, a new campaign/website to promote Asian Pacific Islander American civic engagement by leveraging the power of technology and social media. Because you know we're all up in that space.

18 million rising? Because there are approximately 18 million of us APIAs in the United States, we're growing faster than any other racial group, and we could be a political force to be reckoned with... if we could just get off our asses and get engaged. That's what 18MR is trying to do:

asian american actors in annie

"The sun will come ouuuuut..." The much-loved musical Annie returns in an all-new Broadway revival next month. From the looks of it, there are a couple of Asian American actors in the cast, including J. Elaine Marcos as Lily St. Regis and 9-year-old Junah Jang (making her Broadway debut) as Tessie.

You can see them in this behind-the-scenes video from Broadway.com:

speak up connie at the all for one theater festival, september 15 and 23

New York! On September 15 and September 23 only, catch Speak Up Connie, a performance by Cindy Cheung and directed by BD Wong. With the help of her ukulele, Cindy Cheung tells the story of a conflict-avoiding, "nice Chinese girl" growing up in Southern California finally learning to speak up. Here are some more details: