According to this report by the National Public Radio, more Asian-Americans and Pacific Islanders are running for higher elected office such as Congress. NPR goes on to examine this new phenomena.
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#current events #news #asian american #political officeFor the upcoming presidential elections, Jason Chu made a video a month earlier reflecting on the low percentage of Asian American votes. He laments over how Asian Americans don’t really have a candidate of their own, and that there is really no candidate for the Asian American population. It is an interesting watch, and Jason Chu reveals the raw reason for why Asian Americans may be discouraged to cast their ballot.
Mazie Hirono, the first Asian American woman elected to the Senate.
Congratulations to Mazie Hirono, the first Asian American woman in the U.S Senate!
“…Asian Americans are neither newcomers nor bystanders in the struggle for equality of immigrants in the United States.” - Executive Director of South Asian Americans Leading Together Deepa Lyer on her participation in the immigrant rights rally in D.C. on April 10th.
With over 10 percent of the country’s 11 million undocumented hailing from Asian Pacific Islander (API) nations, the media can no longer present immigration reform as a solely Latino issue. Here, Lyer remarks on the little-heard stories of the AAPI undocumented and hints to the potential and power that can come through multiracial coalition building.
The Asian American / Asian Research Institute (AAARI) is accepting film submissions from students at CUNY for the 9th CUNY Asian American Film Festival on May 27, 2012.
Film submissions are due Friday, April 30, 2012 by 5 pm.
Students have been awarded over $7,000 in cash since 2004, with 44 student filmmakers recognized throughout CUNY, including City College, Brooklyn College, Hunter College, Lehman College and the College of Staten Island. Winner ($200) and runner-up ($100) prizes will be awarded in the categories of Fiction Film, Documentary Film, and Experimental Film.
In addition to the screening on May 27, 2012, winner and runner-up films will be screened at the 35th Asian American International Film Festival, organized by Asian CineVision, in July 2012.
All currently enrolled (or recently graduated in Fall 2011) CUNY undergraduate and graduate students, Asian or non-Asian, can participate. Submission requirements include having at least one Asian production member, or a theme dealing with the Asian American / Asian diaspora.
Please visit aaari.info for more information.
Courtesy of AAARI; Antony Wong, Program Coordinator
Our news feeds have been filled with countless coverage of the American election, and though it does deserve all our attention, we should still be aware of what is happening outside of our American bubble. Just a few days before our own election, South Korean President Park Geun-hye was caught in a scandal that now threatens her entire presidency. There have always been flaws in our political systems and governments, but is it now a trend to have distrustful and questionable people as leaders of powerful nations?
Let’s break this down: President Park Geun-hye was discovered to be taking advice from her close friend and unofficial advisor, Choi Soon-sil, the leader of a known cult called the Eternal Life Church. Park was also extremely close with Choi’s father, Choi Tae-Min, who founded the cult in the 1970s and called himself a “modern day buddha.”
After Choi Tae-min’s death in 1994, his daughter Soon-sil took over full time. Although she was never an official member of Park’s team, Choi Soon-sil used her close relationship with Park to manipulate many important government affairs over the past three years, essentially making Park a puppet. It is said that Choi had complete control over Park, as Park was a devoted follower and close friend of Choi.
Over the years Choi has taken bribes and donations from several big conglomerates such as Samsung, Hyundai, LG, and even the entertainment agency YG. These donations, with a total of over $68 million, went to two of Choi’s foundations. It also played a part in swaying her daughter’s admission decision to an elite university. Do we know what she used this money from foundations for? Choi has since then been arrested.
At this point, about two weeks after the unraveling of these events, there is endless discussion about impeachment and prosecution. In addition, over a million people have participated in protests throughout the country urging their government to do something about the corruption while hoping that Park will soon resign. On Thursday, November 17th, a bill was passed to allow for a prosecutor to investigate the scandal, thereby renouncing Park’s immunity and potentially her presidency. The bill for the investigation passed in the Korean Parliament by a vote of 196 to 10. To read more, please click here.
At this point there is not much more information about what will happen to Park and her position, but it is very likely that she will not see the end of her term in 2018. While Park has apologized, she has made no comment on Choi’s manipulation of important government policies, and it is likely that she still supports Choi as she has been working hard on defending and getting her friend out of prison.
If Park is impeached or steps down, a new President must be elected within 60 days. The world is watching closely to see what unfolds next.
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Identifying & Addressing the Bullying of Asian American Youth
“Address the rise in bullying of Asian American youth by joining us
for a comprehensive crash course on how to identify the different ways
in which our youth are bullied inside and outside of school and the
various responses available to us as parents, youth workers, and
community leaders.”
When: Tuesday, March 15 from 6-8PM
Where: 120 Wall Street, 9th Floor, New York, NY 10005
Check out the EventBrite page to register today! Take a look at AAF’s website for more information and to be updated on future events~
It is truly heart breaking that natural disasters like the recent earthquake in Tainan, Taiwan are becoming more and more frequent. There’s not one disaster that’s worse than another, because a life is a life and when one life is lost, it should still be remembered.
Instead of ringing in the Lunar New Year, citizens of Tainan were (literally) shaken by a magnitude-6.4 earthquake. Today, the remains of the final person reported missing was found. There are suspicions of shoddy construction of the 17-story Weiguan Golden Dragon apartment development, which completely collapsed in the quake. The emerging pictures of tin cans built into walls used as construction fillers in beams in have caused outraged citizens to immediately call for an official investigation into the accident. Lin Ming-hui, the developer of the Golden Dragon complex, as well as two building architects have been detained, in an investigation which will hopefully find justice on behalf of the tragically deceased.
It’s very unfortunate that the reason for the number of casualties from natural disasters in China and Taiwan have been due to corrupt businessmen, trying to find shortcuts and increase profits at the cost of citizens. We hope that all of our Generasian readers who have relatives or loved ones in Tainan are safe and were unaffected. Our hearts and prayers go out to everyone.
6 new Asian American Pacific Islander members of Congress were elected yesterday! Did you vote? Tell us here: http://18millionrising.org/vote/
Congrats to you - and them - for proving that we are 18 million rising!
Great to see Asian American faces in the U.S Congress. Congratulations to them!
NYU’s Creative Writing Program hosts a weekly Reading Series.
On November 11th, Kundiman and the Asian American Writers Workshop are co-sponsoring a fiction and poetry reading. Guests will include Asian writers, such as Janine Oshiro, Samuel Park, and Jessica Hagedorn.
Event info:
Location: Lillian Vernon Creative Writers House, 58 West 10th Street, between 5th and 6th Avenues
Time: November 11th, 2:00 pm-4 pm
Cost: Free!
Check out NYU’s Creative Writing Reading Series website for more information!
So, the 60th Annual Grammy Nominations were announced yesterday morning, and somehow it left me with more mixed emotions than I’ve felt in a long time. On the one hand, we have many reasons to celebrate this year–the 2018 list of nominees is the most diverse group in all of Grammy history, especially when it comes to Black and LGBTQIA inclusion. Jay-Z, Childish Gambino, Kendrick Lamar, and more were all (deservedly) nominated for record of the year. Kesha and Lady Gaga were both nominated for two Grammys each, and out songwriter Justin Tranter was nominated for his first award as well.
When it comes to inclusion in the entertainment industry, we’ve come a long way, and these nominees are just one example of that. Unfortunately, this progress has not been reflected within the Asian American community, as you can clearly see by the lack of Asian nominees for the 2018 Grammys. I can’t say I’m surprised, considering there aren’t really any huge Asian American names in the music industry. But it’s not because we’re not trying–it’s because those who run the system aren’t listening. This year I got the chance to discover Alice Gao, Niki Zefanya, Yaeji, and several other incredible Asian artists whose music deserves recognition–but none of them are getting the attention they deserve.
While Grammy nomination entries can by submitted by any artists/record companies with commercially released music, all submissions are reviewed by a group of over 350 experts in the fields of jazz, R&B, rock, classical, new age, and more. These experts within the Academy go through several rounds of screening, being advised to vote in up to 15 categories in their areas of expertise as well as the 4 general categories (Record of The Year, Album of the Year, Song of The Year, and Best New Artist). Unfortunately, if you are a lesser known artist in the US (aka most Asian American artists) signed to a label with more well known artists, your label will most likely submit their song/album to be considered for Grammy nomination over yours. At the end of the day, it’s pretty much a self fulfilling prophesy. Since Asian American artists are almost never well known enough to qualify for the final rounds of nomination, their work is not often submitted. As a result, Asian Americans are continuously left out of the mainstream. The whole thing is a cycle that seems to have no end.
Don’t get me wrong, I believe we should celebrate the victories we achieve, but I’m honestly so tired of writing and complaining about Asian American representation. You guys have heard it all before and I’m not here to preach the same message all over again, but my soul is tired y’all. While we should celebrate and cheer on our fellow POC, let’s remember that the entertainment industry is still far, far, from being the all inclusive community that we so desperately need.
