Youth from NAKASEC and other groups are leading a 24-hour, 22-day vigil to defend DACA.
Right now, Asian American youth from NAKASEC (National Korean American Service & Education Consortium) and other groups are leading a 24-hour, 22-day vigil in front of the White House to call attention to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program and defend thousands of immigrant youth who are under threat of deportation if the Trump administration should end the program.
DACA was initiated under President Obama in 2012. The executive order allowed undocumented youth to come forward, undergo a rigorous background check, pay a fee and receive temporary legal status that allows them to have work permits and drivers licenses. Since the program's inception, nearly 800,000 beneficiaries -- including 130,000 Asian Americans -- have been granted permission to live, work and study legally in America.
But now, DACA and the futures of thousands are at risk.
In June, a coalition of ten state attorney generals, led by Texas, threatened legal action if Trump didn't make moves to rescind DACA by September 5. As it stands, DACA is "currently under review," with an update expected any day now. Trump is reportedly leaning towards ending the program.
That's almost 800,000 people who came forward with the government's promise of protection who would now be at risk of deportation. Who would lose their jobs. Who would be forced back into the shadows.
A K-Drama re-watch podcast by (and for) people who don't watch Korean dramas.
Are you a fan of Korean dramas? Then this podcast is probably not for you. The Korean Drama Podcast is the K-Drama rewatch podcast by (and for) people who don't watch Korean dramas.
In season one, host Will Choi (founder of Asian AF) and I -- both self-professed Korean drama beginners -- with help and hand-holding by our resident K-Drama expert Joanna Lee, attempt to watch and discuss the 2009 megahit drama Boys Over Flowers in its entirety, episode by episode.
In this episode, we catch up with our plucky K-Drama heroes as we enter what is essentially "season 2" of Boys Over Flowers. Skipping ahead six months, we follow Jan Di to Macau in search of the Perm Boy who left her behind. Will also learns where and what a Macau is. Oh, and the mystery of the juk man deepens.
"It is our responsibility to make moral decisions in difficult times and to give voice to inclusivity."
Well, this is a surprise... Actor Ed Skrein has stepped down from his role in the upcoming Hellboy movie reboot after his casting set off massive outcry over yet another instance of Hollywood whitewashing.
News broke last week that Skrein had joined the cast of Hellboy: Rise of the Blood Queen as Major Ben Daimio, a character who is Asian American in the comic books. This, of course, unleashed all kinds of internet fury. A white guy takes a role that clearly should have gone to an Asian actor. We'd been down this road before.
But here's what we haven't seen: a white actor stepping down from a role out of conscience and solidarity. Skrein's exit from Hellboy has to be the first time an actor has removed himself from such a high-profile project in response to public criticism. Hey, Scarlett Johansson, take some notes.
Skrein announced that he was leaving the project on Twitter.
Jeff Yang and Phil Yu present an unfiltered conversation about what's happening in Asian America.
What's up, podcast listeners? We've got another episode of our podcast They Call Us Bruce. Each week, my good friend, writer/columnist Jeff Yang and I host an unfiltered conversation about what's happening in Asian America, with a strong focus on media, entertainment and popular culture.
This week, having now ni hao'd their way into your hearts, we recap and revisit the first 20 episodes of They Call Us Bruce. Then they welcome friend and fellow podcaster Minji Chang (Kollabcast, First of All), for a round of The Good, The Bad and The WTF.
questions on (the limits & effects of) (asian american) allyship: Hyejin Shim raises some important questions about Asian American activism, the pitfalls of replicating white allyship, and re-framing the ways in which Asian Americans can understand their power and the stories they tell.
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Eating Our Own: Deconstructing the Misogynistic Myths of Asian American Antifeminism: There's been a crop of antifeminist essays accusing Asian American women of many things, including supporting white supremacy in dating practices. Ju-Hyun Park identified and debunked some of the base assumptions, arguments, and outright myths of the Asian American antifeminist narrative.
Returning to My Father's Koreatown: Margaret Rhee looks back at family, food, and memories in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Koreatown.
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No, Where Are You Really From? CNN asked people to share their experiences of being questioned about where they are really from. The #whereimreallyfrom project is a collection of 2,000 stories.
Kulap Vilaysack Will Take Over TV: Comedian and T.V. showrunner Kulap Vilaysack, creator of Bajillion Dollar Propertie$, has made it her mission to force Hollywood to address its race problem.
Hey, everybody! It is time, once again, 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 Teresa Huang.
'Hellboy' movie reboot casts Some White Dude as a Japanese American character.
At this point, they can't even pretend to give a shit.
This week, news broke that actor Ed Skrein has joined the cast of the upcoming Hellboy reboot, Rise of the Blood Queen, as Ben Daimio, who is Asian American in the comic books. Yes, in the illustrious Hollywood tradition of pretending Asian actors don't exist, yet another white guy will play an Asian character.
In the Hellboy comic books, Ben Daimio is a severely scarred former marine officer who works for the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense. Due to supernatural encounter in the field, he has the ability to transform into a monstrous, jaguar-like creature under extreme stress.
Daimio's Japanese American heritage actually plays a significant part in the character's development and backstory. In B.P.R.D.: Killing Ground, Daimio's loyalty is called into question when it is revealed that his grandmother was an Imperial Japanese agent known as The Crimson Lotus. As history has shown, Japanese Americans have a little experience with their loyalty being unjustly called into question by the government.
So yeah, this character is Asian American. But who the hell is Ed Skrein?
Hong Inh was the oldest among 10,000 new Americans at Tuesday's naturalization ceremony in Los Angeles.
This week, a 103-year-old woman from Cambodia joined thousands of flag-waving folks at the Los Angeles Convention Center to take the oath of allegiance and become our nation's newest Americans.
Hong Inh, who survived years of war and violence under the Khmer Rouge regime in the 1970s, came to the United States when she 97 years old to join a daughter and other relatives.
She was the oldest of more than 10,000 people at Tuesday's naturalization ceremony. She was joined by three generations of her family, from her 80-year-old daughter to her 13-year-old great-granddaughter.
Arizona GOP website displays family from Margaret Cho sitcom to represent Asian American interests.
It looks like Arizona Republicans are hard up for some Asian friends. In a spectacularly awful attempt to illustrate its diversity and support for Asian Americans, the Arizona Republican Party's official website prominently displayed a photo of a smiling Asian American family. Here's the problem: the family is fake. In fact, it's a cast photo of the fictional Kim family from Margaret Cho's short-lived 1994 sitcom All-American Girl.
For you young ones out there, decades before Fresh Off The Boat, ABC aired the very first sitcom featuring a Korean American family, starring rising standup comedian Margaret Cho. It made some waves, but for the most part it was not well received and was promptly canceled after a season. You heard it mentioned a lot in the hoopla as a predecessor to Fresh Off The Boat when that show hit the air a couple of years ago.
But it's pretty apparent that the show didn't have any fans among the Arizona GOP. Or they would have found a nonfictional or at least less recognizable Asian family to use as their token minorities.
Because Robert Lee is too similar to Robert E. Lee.
Really? We live in ridiculous times.
ESPN decided to move an Asian American announcer, Robert Lee, off the University of Virginia's upcoming home opener football game against William and Mary, "simply because of the coincidence of his name."
Because Robert Lee is too similar to Robert E. Lee.
Earlier this month, violence erupted at a white nationalist rally that gathered in Charlottesville, Virginia to protest the removal of a statue of the Confederate general. The night before a counter-protestor was killed, white nationalists marched across the UVA campus, carrying torches and chanting racist slogans. So yeah, you could say it was a minor coincidence that a guy named Robert Lee was going to call the play by play.
That minor coincidence was enough for ESPN to reassign Lee to announce the Youngstown versus Pitt game being played on the same day. It was supposed to be a minor change -- reassignments happen all the time, and neither game is even scheduled to be televised. But then word of the network's switch leaked on Tuesday.
Jeff Yang and Phil Yu present an unfiltered conversation about what's happening in Asian America.
What's up, podcast listeners? We've got another episode of our podcast They Call Us Bruce. Each week, my good friend, writer/columnist Jeff Yang and I host an unfiltered conversation about what's happening in Asian America, with a strong focus on media, entertainment and popular culture.
This week, we welcome actor Philip Ng, who stars as Bruce Lee in Birth of the Dragon. He talks about the premature controversy around the film -- it's not a biopic -- his approach to playing an icon, and some of the big differences between Hong Kong and Hollywood action.
A K-Drama re-watch podcast by (and for) people who don't watch Korean dramas.
Are you a fan of Korean dramas? Then this podcast is probably not for you. The Korean Drama Podcast is the K-Drama rewatch podcast by (and for) people who don't watch Korean dramas.
In season one, host Will Choi (founder of Asian AF) and I -- both self-professed Korean drama beginners -- with help and hand-holding by our resident K-Drama expert Joanna Lee, attempt to watch and discuss the 2009 megahit drama Boys Over Flowers in its entirety, episode by episode.
In this episode, we pick up from last episode's cliffhanger. Jan Di is rescued from the creepy model guy and the crew takes (another) trip to unwind, this time to the slopes! We talk about possessive gift giving, why Jun Pyo needs to stop trusting mean girls, Jan Di's fainting problem, cute DIY bentos, and consensual kissing!
Manhattan's Cornerstone Cafe apologizes after racial receipt goes viral.
This again. It's the return of the Racial Receipt! The latest sighting occurred in New York, where a Manhattan restaurant recently apologized for referring to an Asian American customer as "Ching Chong" on a receipt.
Last Wednesday, a server at Cornerstone Cafe in the East Village entered an Asian customer's name as "Ching Chong" on the slip for a to-go order of steak and eggs. Because why bother asking for a customer's actual name when you can silently mock them with a racial slur, right under their nose?
The incident started picking up attention when a friend of the customer, Facebook user Ziggy Chau, posted a photo of the offending receipt on social media. That's when the internet went in on Cornerstone Cafe.
Asian-American doctor says white nationalists refuse her care: Dr. Esther Choo is an Asian-American emergency room physician in Oregon who has practiced medicine for more than a decade. Yet, she says, a few times a year, a patient will refuse to let her treat them. Solely because of her race.
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We Must Stand Up for Dreamers and #DefendDACA: "Today, on the heels of nationwide vigils that spoke out against racism, people all around the country will stand up once again on behalf of Dreamers, young immigrants who face an uncertain future under President Trump and his administration. Just as we stood against white supremacists, we must stand with the Dreamers as well."
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Philly Councilwoman Helen Gym unflinching in calls to remove Rizzo statue: Philadelphia Councilwoman Helen Gym is calling for the city to take down a statue honoring Frank Rizzo, the late police commissioner and mayor who was known for sometimes brutal treatment of the black and gay communities.
What happened to Chicago's Japanese neighborhood? Chicago's Lake View neighborhood once had a thriving Japanese community, but it fell victim to a push for assimilation. As one Japanese-American puts it: "You had to basically be unseen."
A Look Back at the Chinkees, the Ska Band that Reclaimed Asian Identity: The Slants aren't the first Asian American rock band to reclaim a racial epithet. The ska punk band the Chinkees, who the Slants have shouted out as an inspiration, began releasing music in 1998, skanking against ugly stereotypes and putting Asians on the forefront of American rock.
Set against the backdrop of 1960s San Francisco, Birth of the Dragon is a modern take on the classic movies that Bruce Lee was known for. It takes its inspiration from the epic and still controversial showdown between an up-and-coming Bruce Lee and kung fu master Wong Jack Man -- a battle that gave birth to a legend.
Before becoming a legendary icon, known to millions around the world, Bruce Lee was a driven young man working to establish himself as a top kung fu master. In 1964, everything changed for Lee when Wong Jack Man, a Northern Shaolin master from China, arrived in San Francisco and stepped forward to accept Lee's public challenge. Remarkably, the outcome of that ensuing confrontation was observed by only a handful of witnesses and, still hotly contested today, has taken on mythic proportions. But one thing appears certain: from that epic battle, Bruce Lee emerged as The Dragon -- the man who brought kung fu to the world.
Directed by George Nolfi, Birth of the Dragon is a lively imagining of that mythic fight. Philip Ng stars as the then unknown but irrepressibly talented Bruce Lee, and celebrated Chinese actor Xia Yu plays Wong Jack Man. The film also stars Billy Magnussen, Jingjing Qu, Jin Xing and Simon Yin.
Aaaaand we're back. Sorry, it's been a minute. After a lengthy hiatus, my original interview podcast Sound and Fury is back! Hopefully, we'll get back on track, keep things regular and stick around for a while.
In Episode 23, I talk to actor and filmmaker Justin Chon about his award-winning indie film Gook. He explains why he wanted to make a movie set during the 1992 Los Angeles riots, his Korean American family's personal connection to the conflict, and his reasoning behind the film's controversial title.
"The mother of three children, a historian, an Asian American Studies scholar..."
Hello, internet friends. It it time, once again, 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 Ji-Yeon Yuh.
The NYPD is investigating the incident as a hate crime.
Because it's not enough to be racist against the living. These guys were racist against the dead too. This week in New York, three teens broke into a cemetery and vandalized dozens of grave sites in the Asian section, toppling headstones, breaking marble markers and scrawling racist graffiti throughout the grounds.
Three suspects, who appear to be between 16 and 19 years old, broke into the Cypress Hills Cemetery in Brooklyn just after midnight on Tuesday and vandalized graves in an Asian section, another section and two memorial abbeys in the center of the grounds. According to the NYPD, the suspects knocked over 70 headstone, broke 15 marble memorial markers in a mausoleum, and spray-painted them with hate graffiti
The graffiti included "fuck Jackie Chan" and "ching chong" on a grave that appeared to originally have an Asian language on it, according to the NYPD. They also wrote the phrase, "fuck sand n--gers."
Police released a video of the suspects, who can be seen taking photos inside the cemetery:
Asian Americans Advancing Justice is calling on you to pledge your support.
I don't know if you heard, but a horde of racist white dudes recently held a march in Charlottesville, Virginia last weekend. They weren't wearing hoods, but they were carrying torches and Nazi and Confederate flags to make it all too clear what they stood for: white supremacy, white power and nativism.
Ah, the ugly building blocks of our great nation.
While the man who is supposedly the President of the United States unsurprisingly refuses to denounce or distance himself from these racist shits -- let's face it, he wouldn't be in the White House without them -- some of us refuse to stand around and let literal Nazis trample, strangle and seize the soul of this democracy.
Asian Americans Advancing Justice has just launched a new pledge campaign calling on Asian Americans to come together, join the fight and take a stand against white supremacy.
"We call on all Asian Americans to join us in defending our vision of democracy -- one where we protect the vulnerable amongst us, resist efforts to erode our hard-won rights and protections, and fight to advance progress for all marginalized communities."
A K-Drama re-watch podcast by (and for) people who don't watch Korean dramas.
Are you a fan of Korean dramas? Then this podcast is probably not for you. The Korean Drama Podcast is the K-Drama rewatch podcast by (and for) people who don't watch Korean dramas.
In season one, host Will Choi (founder of Asian AF) and I -- both self-professed Korean drama beginners -- with help and hand-holding by our resident K-Drama expert Joanna Lee, attempt to watch and discuss the 2009 megahit drama Boys Over Flowers in its entirety, episode by episode.
In this episode, a delicious ramyun scene, suspicious modeling jobs, and all around poor decision making from our heroine Jan Di as she ends up on the wrong side (again!) of the F4. We also meet a nice boy/potential love rival that seems almost too well adjusted for this show... until he suddenly becomes a creepy kidnapper...
