Angry Asian Man

1.10.2012

grandmother sentenced to 35 years for throwing child off bridge

Remember that awful story out of Virginia about the woman convicted of murder for tossing her 2-year-old granddaughter from mall pedestrian bridge? Last week, she was sentenced to 35 years in prison: Va. woman gets 35 years for fatally tossing granddaughter off mall walkway.

Guilty of first-degree murder, 51-year-old Carmela dela Rosa was given the maximum sentence. I can't fathom what could drive an individual to do something so horrifying. dela Rosa was apparently angry that her daughter had gotten pregnant out of wedlock:

I recently learned about the plight of Russell Green and his fight to stay in the United States: Stop the Deportation of Russell Green.

Adopted over thirty years ago from South Korea, he currently faces possible deportation because he was never naturalized as an American citizen. He's basically in a state of statelessness, screwed over by the foster care system.

Here's a public service announcement with some more information on Russell Green case and the unjust deportation of adult adoptees:

Some book news... Publisher's Weekly has got the scoop on The Firm Outing, the debut novel by Helen Wan, to be published by Macmillan/St. Martin's Press: SMP Nabs Lawyer's First 'Outing' and a YA Debut.

Congratulations, Helen. The Firm Outing tells the story of a young Asian American woman climbing the ladder in corporate America, hitting the Glass Ceiling, and what she decides to do about it. Here's the early buzz:

In this commercial, a couple is enjoying a McDonald's breakfast when the guy suddenly professes his love for his girlfriend. She responds by lovingly calling him the "Egg McMuffin of Boyfriends". I think that's supposed to be a good thing. Right? See for yourself:

If you can stomach it, here's some more information on the racism hazing and physical abuse Private Danny Chen had to endure from his so-called comrades while serving in Afghanistan, before he ultimately took his own life.

Democracy Now! has posted an interview with Liz OuYang of OCA-New York: Death of Private Danny Chen: Military Admits Chen was Target of Race-Based Hazing on Daily Basis. Here's the video:

gr2 presents printed matter 10, january 11-25

Good news, art lovers. Giant Robot 2 is currently undergoing a light remodel that will result in more gallery space. To celebrate, GR2 is opening a large print show, "Printed Matter 10." More information, including featured artists:

Hey, students. OCA, a national organization dedicated to advancing the political, social, and economic well-being of Asian Pacific Americans, is now accepting applications for its 2012 Summer Internship Program in Washington DC.

Celebrating its 23rd year, the OCA Internship Program seeks to cultivate future leadership by APA providing students from all over the country a hands-on opportunity to be involved in the political process. Here are some more details about the internship:

Okay, so I can listen to just about anything Clara C releases into the atmosphere with that amazing voice of hers. She's pretty enchanting. So I just heard her rendition of Bob Dylan's "Make You Feel My Love" and pretty much melted on the spot. What a gorgeous cover. Listen:

This is a disturbing story out Southern California about a woman who was wielding a ball-peen hammer before she shot and killed by police officers at the Asian Pacific Family Center in Rosemead: Deputies: Dimunitive woman wielded hammer before deadly shooting.

40-year-old Jazmyne Ha Eng, who was all of 4-foot-11 and 95 pounds, apparently had a history psychological disorders. On Wednesday, she was seen holding a hammer and behaving erratically in the lobby of the clinic. When sheriff's deputies arrived, she reportedly attacked:

Got this passed along to me and thought some folks might want to lend some support to an Asian American filmmaker's burgeoning project...

Hmong American actor Doua Moua, best known for his role as the gang member "Spider" in Gran Torino, has written a feature narrative, I Die, I Dim, and I Shine, and is now trying to put some funding together to get it off the ground. Here's a video of Doua with the short pitch:

Oh, come on. Given past experience, I shouldn't really expect much from radio personalities, but here we go again. Media Matters points us to racist comments made on a recent broadcast of Clear Channel's John and Ken Show: John & Ken Show: "There's A Lot Of ... Korean Painter Scam Guys."

On the January 5 show, co-host John Kobylt was talking about a small claims lawsuit he had once filed against a "Korean painter." When pressed why it was relevant that he was Korean, he explained that there are a lot of "Korean painter scam guys"... and other broad, dumbass generalizations.

Here's the audio clip:

In honor of last week's passing of civil rights icon Gordon Hirabayashi, just wanted to share this great photo taken at the intersection of Korematsu Ct. and Hirabayashi Dr. in the Almaden area of San Jose. The two new streets were named in 1988 and are still there today -- you can see it right there on Google's street view. Cool, right? (Thanks, Todd.)

mary hayashi pleads no contest in shoplifting

Last week in San Francisco County Superior Court, California Assemblywoman Mary Hayashi, who was arrested in October for shoplifting, pleaded no contest to the charges: Assemblywoman pleads no contest in shoplifting.

Hayashi was caught trying to steal nearly $2,500 in clothing from Neiman Marcus. As part of a plea deal, the charges were reduced from felony grand theft to a misdemeanor. She was sentenced to three years' probation and $180 in fines, and required to stay at least 50 feet from the Union Square store.

So why did she do it? According to Hayashi's attorney, she had been diagnosed with a benign brain tumor and was taking medication that might have influenced her thieving behavior:

read these blogs

Pvt. Danny Chen, 1992-2011: This is an in-depth, incredibly infuriating New York Magazine article on the life and death of Private Danny Chen, whose service to the United States was cut short by racism, hazing and abuse.

The Sundance Diaries: I Made This Film To Come Out To My Parents: Korean American filmmaker Andrew Ahn shares the story behind his short Dol, which was selected to screen at this year's Sundance Film Festival.

Best of 2011: Asian American Films: Asian Pacific Arts counts down an impressive year of ambitious narrative films by Asian American directors.

Dawen's 2011: A Year in Asian American Songs: Singer/songwriter Dawen offers up his annual roundup of the year in Asian American music.

20 OF THE MOST RECOGNIZABLE COMMERCIAL ACTORS: If you've watched television for any length of time recently, you've seen the actors on this list, which includes Aaron Takahashi, Randall Park and Kenzo Lee.

this week's angriest posts

Not really the angriest, just the most viewed.

gordon hirabayashi, 1918-2012

papa john's and "lady chinky eyes"

army reveals new details about racial bullying of danny chen

chinese american woman gets critical at romney rally

woman targeted victims through internet dating scam

angry reader of the week: pearl kim

racist ron paul supporter's video attacks jon huntsman's "un-american" values

tony hong, doodler

akira remake shuts down production. for now.

if you get hit by a train, are you responsible for your flying body parts?

One week into 2012 and it's already craaaazy.

Papa John's and "Lady Chinky Eyes"

Papa John's employee nicknames Asian customer "Lady Chinky Eyes" on receipt.

Minhee, a recent customer at the Papa John's Pizza location on 3477 Broadway in New York City, was given this receipt for her transaction on Friday evening. As you can see, an employee took the liberty of giving her the nickname "lady chinky eyes." An employee who, no doubt, will soon be out of a job.

koreatown comedy festival, january 12

LA folks, get ready to laugh for a worthy cause. LiNK and Kollaboration are putting together the first ever Koreatown Comedy Festival on Thursday, January 12 at CGV Theaters in Koreatown. It's hosted by PK and Dumbfoundead. Check out the lineup:

casting call: overweight asian with a strong accent

Oh boy. Just wanted to share this casting call that recently came my way... This one's a promo for Comedy Central's Tosh.0, requiring an overweight Asian man with the ability to speak with a "strong Asian accent." Awesome. It's the same old nonsense on the TV. Take a look:

Geek out with me, will you? Saw this the other day over on io9.. Check out these awesome concept sketches by Wonder Woman artist Cliff Chiang (posted a couple of years ago, actually), re-imagining the Justice League as 1970s anime characters. I love it.

Batman's design looks relatively close to his usual crime-fighting self, but Superman is a giant wristwatch-controlled robot and The Flash looks a lot like Racer X. To see more drawings, go to Cliff Chiang's website here.

community mourns sudden death of high school student

Some tragic news out Rancho Bernardo, California, where community members are shocked over the sudden death of a popular high school student: RB High Mourns Sudden Death of David Hu.

17-year-old David Hu, a top-ranked college-bound honors student, was found unconscious by family members early Thursday morning, taken to a nearby hospital and pronounced dead. The cause of his death is still undetermined:

New year, new people to meet. It's 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 crime fighter Pearl Kim.

Remember the unnamed Asian American actress who was suing the Internet Movie Database for posting her age on her public IMDb profile? In an amended court filing, she has revealed her name: Huong Hoang, aka Junie Hoang: Actress Suing IMDB Reveals Her Real Name.

Junie Hoang, who you know and love from such recent classics as Gingerbread Man 3: Saturday Night Cleaver and Hoodrats 2: Hoodrat Warriors, claims that IMDb violated her privacy by posting her age, which she says has led to a "substantial decrease in acting credits, employment opportunities and earnings."

It's an election year, so you know what time it is. Racist campaign ads!

This latest gem is from someone claiming to be a Ron Paul supporter, attacking Republican presidential candidate Jon Huntsman for his "un-American" values. His totally un-American crimes? Among other things, an ability to speak Mandarin and having adopted children from (gasp!) China and India.

Yup. Here we go with another round of equating China with all things evil. Complete with an extra Oriental soundtrack -- never has Mandarin made to sound so sinister. It's one of the most unabashedly racist attack ads we've seen in a while. Take a look:

This week, Army officials met with the parents of Pvt. Danny Chen, who committed suicide in Afghanistan after being subjected to racially charged hazing and bullying from his fellow soldiers. His family was briefed with new details about his treatment -- and it's an ugly portrait of the cruelty he had to endure: Private Chen's Family Learns More About Hazing by Fellow G.I.s.

Private Chen's family and supporters held a press conference yesterday, where they disclosed some of the details of the abuse, and said that officers in command of Chen's battalion were aware of the harsh treatment he had repeatedly received -- nearly every day of his six-week service in Afghanistan:

miss kim, january 19-29

Miss Kim is a play about a Korean American woman coming to terms with being sexually abused by her uncle, family denial and betrayals, and somehow finding humor through it all. What's even more unique about this Off-Broadway play is that the lead, Gina Kim, is telling her own story.

Miss Kim will be performed at the 45th Street Theatre in New York City starting January 19 through January 29. More information:

Check out this super-rad skate video produced for a lifestyle commercial contest sponsored by Penny Skateboards, which just re-released a line of plastic boards with new modern materials. It features some Asian people rolling around the city, and they look like they're having a lot of fun:

2012 shiu kuen and allen chin scholarship

Attention students! The Asian Pacific Fund is now accepting applications for the 2012 Shui Kuen and Allen Chin Scholarship, two $1,000 scholarships available specifically for restaurant workers and children of restaurant workers.

The scholarship, founded in 2005, honors the values of Detroit restaurant owners Shui Kuen and Allen Chin through supporting the education aspirations of children of workers in the Asian/Pacific Islander food service industry in the U.S. Here are the eligibility requirements:

In Austin, a man is alleging that he was abused and arrested by police when he witnessed and attempted to record two officers assaulting a woman during a DUI stop: APD officers accused of abuse during New Year's arrest.

34-year-old Antonio Buehler says he was stopping for gas on New Year's Eve when he saw officers violently manhandling a woman. When he began taking pictures of the incident, an officer accused him of interfering with the investigation, pushed him, then placed him under arrest.

The officer says that Buehler spit in his face. Buehler denies it. Here's a video that pieces together two news reports, cameraphone footage, and Buehler's account of what transpired that night:

Good news, Akira fans. Production has shut down on the project we love to hate. For now. Warner Brothers is reportedly halting the live-action remake amid a swirl of casting, script and budget issues: 'Akira' Production Offices Shut Down As Warner Bros. Scrutinizes Budget.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, production offices in Vancouver are being closed, with below-the-line talent and crew being told to stop working and go home. We all knew this thing was a big fat mess. Apparently, the people in charge are finally starting to realize it too:

Last week in New York, the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund filed a complaint on behalf of four Asian American voters, saying their voting power is unfairly limited by the way the state's legislative districts are drawn: Asian-American voters get the shaft in NY because of political district lines: Suit.

The complaint urges the Brooklyn Federal Court to adopt a redistricting plan that provides Asian Americans in New York with equal political representation. Here's AALDEF's press release: AALDEF Files Complaint on Behalf of Asian American Voters in New York Redistricting Case .

Happy birthday to one of the world's greatest living directors, Hayao Miyazaki. The master animator, responsible for such classics as Princess Mononoke, My Neighbor Totoro, Spirited Away and countless other stunning feature films, is 71 years young today.

To honor the occasion, artist Martin Hsu shares these birthday sketches, dedicated to an inspirational figure in both life and art. Check it out:

Props. Props to the unidentified Chinese American woman who stood up at a New Hampshire political rally yesterday and got a little hostile, criticizing Republican U.S. presidential candidate Mitt Romney for his anti-China rhetoric: US presidential hopeful Romney takes heat on China criticisms.

Who are you, outspoken Chinese American mystery woman? Don't know. But she loves America. And she has a problem with Mr. Romney's degrading comments about China ("it just doesn't make me feel good") and asked the former Massachusetts Governor "not to put Asians down." Damn right.

stir friday night! in chicago sketchfest! january 14

Chicago residents, come catch the Asian American comedy group Stir Friday Night at the Chicago Sketch Fest on Saturday, January 14. The funny folks who brought you "How I Met Your Tiger Mother" are one of 138 groups participating in the world's biggest sketch comedy festival, which runs 8 days in January. Details for SFN's performance:

Last year, I wrote about Janet Liang, a UCLA student who was diagnosed with leukemia right as she was about to graduate. After a year of chemo and several complications, Janet beat leukemia without a transplant.

Unfortunately, I recently received word that Janet is no longer in remission. Her leukemia is back, she will need a marrow donor. On December 26th, Janet checked back into the hospital for another round of chemo.

Here's a video with some information about her situation:

This is extra hot. Reppin' her hometown of San Francisco, check out dancer/choreographer Ellen Kim and friends strutting their stuff here, there, and everywhere in this kickass video, to the tune of A Tribe Called Quest's "Scenario":

This is a really weird civil case out of Chicago involving a man who was killed by train, and whether or not his estate can be held liable for injuries caused by his flying body parts. Yes, you read that correctly: Death of man struck by train leads to 'bizarre' civil case.

18-year-old Hiroyuki Joho was struck and killed by a train while crossing Edgebrook Metra station tracks. A large portion of his body was thrown toward the platform, knocking over a 58-year-old woman who suffered injuries, including a broken leg and wrist. She, in turn, sued Joho's estate:

Heads up, West Coast. Singer/songwriter/producer David Choi has announced dates for the upcoming west coast leg of his Forever & Ever Tour. You know and love him as that guy on your YouTube screen, but soon you'll be able to see him making some music live. Here are the tour dates:

Mohammad Salman Hamdani, a Pakistani American New York City police cadet who died at the World Trade Center in the September 11 attacks, is nowhere to be found on the list of fallen first responders at the National September 11 Memorial in Lower Manhattan.

Instead, his name is an afterthought, added to the memorial's perimeter where the placements are -- let's be honest -- given less significance.

This New York Times article is a frustrating examination of the anger over how Hamdani's legacy was treated after the September 11 attacks, and how he fell under suspicion largely because of his Pakistani roots and Muslim religion: Obscuring a Muslim Name, and an American's Sacrifice.

Okay, how awesome is this photo? The kid on top is Felix Chang of Falls Church, Virginia, who won first last week at the 2011 America's Crown Dixie Nationals Wrestling Championships last week in the 6-year-old heavyweight division. That is one tough-looking kid. (Thanks, Mark.)

asian store owner targeted in bank holdup

More news of crimes targeting Asian Americans... Last week in Cheltenham, Pennsylvania, an Asian business owner was followed, assaulted and robbed outside a bank: Cheltenham holdup was ambush, police say.

55-year-old Peter Ly was ambushed by three men who were waiting for him on his way to make a deposit. When he resisted, they shot him and made off with a satchel filled with thousands of dollars. Fortunately, he wasn't seriously hurt.

According to police, it's likely that Ly was targeted, though they're unwilling to say at this point whether or not his race had anything to do with the attack. But come on. Considering recent robberies in the area, it's not out of the question:

jet li is back in the expendables 2 trailer

I meant to post something about this when it dropped a couple of weeks ago... Here's the first teaser trailer for the action sequel The Expendables 2.

Yes, another crazy-ass gathering of Hollywood's aging, old-school action heroes. And yes, everyone's back, and then some. Including Jet Li as "Ying Yang," despite early reports that he was out of the project. Take a look:

Poetry and karaoke. They go together peanut butter and jellyfish. And our friends at the Asian American Writers' Workshop in New York, in collaboration with Nodutdol Korean Community Development, are seeking submissions for a multidisciplinary performance event next month.

Part of the Workshop's Neighborhood Word initiative, which brings literary programming to the outer boroughs, the event will use singing and poetry to harmonize, shake, split, and excavate the deeper musical notes of diasporic narratives centered on community, family, the romantic, and immigration.

Want to participate? Here are the submission guidelines:

He just draws lines. This is a cool video interview with Los Angeles-based artist/storyteller Tony Hong, who meticulously creates beautiful and intricate ink "doodles." His work has been featured on products sold at Target and Apple stores nationwide. In his own words:

Crazy tragic story out of San Diego, where a 76-year-old woman died on Christmas Eve after suffering numerous injuries in a vicious dog attack last summer: Woman mauled by pit bulls in June dies.

Emako Mendoza was mauled by a neighbor's two pit bulls last June -- an attack that left her with horrible life-threatening injuries requiring multiple surgeries, including amputations of both of her legs and her left arm. Her life was never the same again.

The medical examiner confirmed that she died due to complications from the dog attack injuries:

My fellow geeks, some new music for you... Adam WarRock, the internet's foremost comic book rapper, just released "616,", the first single from his upcoming full-length album You Dare Call That Thing Human?!? Filled to the brim with comic book references and geeky shout outs. Have a listen:

Asians behaving badly... internet dating scam edition! Last month in Irvine, police arrested a woman accused of using internet dating sites to target Korean men then steal their property: Woman scammed Korean men she met online, Irvine police say.

According to authorities, 36-year-old Sunmee Kim used websites like Koreancupid.com to lure potential victims, accused them of physical abuse, then robbed the men while they were in custody. Kim was arrested after her fingerprints came up in a criminal database connected to incidents dating back to 2009:

Whoa! What the...? Here's a trailer for something to look forward to in 2012: Prison Dancer: The Interactive Web Musical. Yes, from the mind of director Romeo Candido, a musical web series inspired by those crazy Filipino prison dance videos that took the world by storm. Take a look:

Received word through social media that civil rights hero Gordon Hirabayashi, best known for being one of the few people to openly defy the government's unconstitutional internment of Japanese Americans during World War II, has died. He was 93.

Hirabayashi was arrested, convicted and imprisoned, and eventually appealed his case to the Supreme Court (Hirabayashi vs. United States) -- the first challenge to Executive Order 9066. The Court ruled against him, 9-0. However, his wartime convictions were successfully overturned forty years later.

Rest in peace. Here's the Facebook post from Mr. Hirabayashi's son, Jay Hirabayashi, announcing his passing:

read these blogs

The Best in Asia and Asian America 2011: Jeff Yang's last "Tao Jones" column of 2011 picks the best, the worst and the most memorable events, individuals and phenomena of the year that was.

'Yo, Is This Racist?' Andrew Ti's Tumblr Has Your (Hilarious) Answer: Colorlines profiles Andrew Ti, the guy who answers all of your stupid race questions on the amazing and hilarious Yo, Is This Racist Tumblr.

"Ching Chong, Chinaman": The De-Americanization of Asian Americans: University of San Francisco law professor Bill Ong Hing on the death of infantryman Danny Chen, vigilante racism and the historical de-Americanization of Asian Americans.

Private Danny Chen, and why I will never again reach out to OWS about something that matters to me: One person's account of how a recent march and vigil for Pvt. Danny Chen was hijacked by OWS protestors.

Newest Knick Out to Prove He's Not Just a Novelty: "I'm just going to play basketball... I'm not going to overthink anything. I'm just going to go out there, have some fun and play."

Asian-American fans praise Knicks' signing of Ivy Leaguer Jeremy Lin: "New York's Asian-American community was bursting with pride and excitement over the signing of Lin, the Knicks' first Asian-American player since Wataru Misaka donned the orange and blue in the 1947-48 season."

First Asian Knick passes on advice to Lin: Speaking of Wat Misaka, the first Asian American player in the NBA offered some words of encouragement to the newest Knick.

Top 10 Best Dressed Asian Americans of 2011: From Far East Movement to Harry Shum Jr., Hyphen names the most stylin' Asians of the year.

How A Teen's Coerced Confession Set Her Free: Another disturbing article on how Worcester, MA police detectives coerced a false confession out of 16-year-old Nga Truong -- landing her in jail for nearly three years.

Has Asian American Studies Failed? Continued: Timothy Yu, Professor of English and Asian American studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, follows up on his provocative, much-discussed post on the challenges facing the field of Asian American studies.

Lure of Chinese Tuition Pushes Out Asian-Americans: The University of California system is enrolling record numbers of out-of-state and international students who pay almost twice that of in-state residents -- but are they squeezing out high-achieving Asian American applicants?

Look Outside the Bubble: Best Liberal Arts Colleges for Asian Americans: "What if we told you that unlike the Fancy Pants schools and the UCs, there were colleges that WELCOMED and ACTIVELY RECRUITED Asian Americans with carrots like scholarships/tuition discounts? It's true."

How to Raise Strong and Confident Asian Pacific American Daughters: Frances Kai-Hwa Wang offers some of her best suggestions and practical techniques for raising strong and confident Asian Pacific American daughters and instilling APA Girl Power.

A Hmong Generation Finds Its Voice in Writing: Here's a nice article, picked up by the New York Times, on the groundbreaking literary work of the Hmong American Writers' Circle in Fresno, California.

1.01.2012

happy angry new year

Happy New Year, Angry Readers. Thank you to all your support of this blog over the last decade. We've got some great schemes and plans dreamed up for the coming year, so here's hoping 2012 is our best year yet. Stay Angry.

1.10.2012

1.09.2012

1.08.2012

1.07.2012

1.06.2012

1.05.2012

1.04.2012

1.03.2012

1.02.2012

1.01.2012

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