Hyphen Blog

Michael Jackson, Vietnamese flags and Indian Kitsch

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 10:49:22 -0800

Here are just a few links to some interesting pieces:

+ Jeff Chang's thoughtful take on Michael Jackson. Say what you will about MJ, but he had talent. For our generation, he was a part of our childhood.

+ More protests at a Vietnamese language newspaper. A year after the paper ran a controversial photo, people are still protesting. (It's unclear what the photo included -- the OC Register reported that it was a photo of a foot spa with the colors and stripes of the South Vietnamese flag; the New America Media story reports it was a photo that included a foot on the South Vietnamese flag. Perhaps both are true. I can't seem to find the original photo that was printed). Some new things to note according to this New America Media story -- people have been red-baiting each other for decades, but now the people being called Communists are fighting back through legal avenues -- and winning.

+ A piece in ColorLines by Sandip Roy about how Indian kitsch has become cool to mainstream America. Orientalism, anyone? You can apply this to a lot of Asian cultures. Trends come and go. Remember the popular Buddha beads? Gwen Stefani? Hot Topic and Urban Outfitters? This is a centuries-old tale, though with a new group.

Author Mike Kim on 'The Daily Show'

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 08:31:25 -0800

Last night's The Daily Show with Jon Stewart featured an interview with Mike Kim, author of Escaping North Korea: Defiance and Hope in the World's Most Repressive Country.

Update: Military Board Says Lt. Dan Choi Should Be Discharged

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 21:28:46 -0800

Calling it a setback and "an opportunity to keep fighting," Lt. Dan Choi faces discharge from the Army National Guard for violating the "don't ask, don't tell policy" for gays and lesbians in the military.

A military administrative board recommended Tuesday that Choi, who outed himself on national TV in March to protest "don't ask, don't tell," be discharged for violating the policy against homosexual conduct.

President Obama had promised to repeal "don't ask, don't tell" but hasn't done anything about it so far.

It could be a year before Choi is actually discharged, so stay tuned. In the meantime, support Choi by signing his petition.

Photo

Hyphen Lynks: Brutal Regime (Watch Out!) Edition

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 15:58:24 -0800

Uh ... was anyone actually suggesting that Obama invade Iran? I mean, other than crazy mans on da streets?

Because (m)O('bettah)bama is the very opposite of a brutal regime dictator tyrant evil axis thingie. (m)O('bettah)bama is good. It is Ahmadinejad who is brutal 'n' evil. And Kim Il thingie. And, like, Angela Merkel, and Johnson & Johnson. And Metallica.

Actually, if you look around, the Brutal Regimes are everywhere. Everywhere. Wow. It's frightening.

Lt. Dan Choi Speaks Out For Gay Rights

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 11:46:16 -0800

Here's the speech Army Lt. Dan Choi gave on Saturday at the Pink Triangle unveiling ceremony in San Francisco as part of Pride weekend activities.

Choi is an Iraq war veteran, Arabic speaker and West Point graduate. Sounds great? But he is also openly gay, which the military has a problem with. Choi is fighting his dismissal from the Army National Guard for violating the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy.

The Hyphenite's Social Calendar: Poetry in the Park, Chinatown Film

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 11:24:25 -0800

Tuesday June 30th -- San Francisco

Goh Nakamura and Jane Lui Show

Bay Area singer/songwriters Goh Nakamura and Jane Lui will be teaming up for a special performance with plenty of banter, crooning and...duets!

7 to 11 pm
Cafe du Nord
2174 Market Street, San Francisco
$ 10 at the door or tickets here

Come Out to Hyphen's Family Issue Release Party

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 14:29:59 -0800

Vigil for Euna Lee, Laura Ling on Wednesday in San Francisco

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 11:40:36 -0800

If you're in San Francisco tonight, come out to a vigil in support of journalists Euna Lee and Laura Ling hosted by Academy of Art University. The Current TV reporters are being held by North Korea on charges they entered the country illegally.

The Hyphenite's Social Calendar: Kollaboration + Hay Qua!

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 10:31:52 -0800

Wednesday June 24th -- NYC

Writing and Tactics From Bangladesh to Burma

Taslima Nasrin and Ma Thida, two medical doctors and activists involved in social movements in Asia, will speak about their writing and the tactics that have enabled them to do so despite death threats, imprisonment, and exile.

7 pm
The Workshop
16 West 32nd St, 10th floor, New York
$ 5 suggested donation

Maestro Ali Akbar Khan (1922 - 2009)

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 21:30:16 -0800

Maestro Ali Akbar Khan, considered by many to be among the greatest musicians of our times, passed away in San Rafael, CA on June 18, 2009. He was in many ways a true embodiment of Asian America and was one of India's most important musical ambassadors to the west. His father, the mystical music genius Baba Allaudin Khan, trained Ali Akbar Khan rigorously and instructed him to take classical north Indian music to the West. Khansahib carried with him the open spirit of his father, who made it possible for any one, regardless of background, to learn classical north Indian music from a master. He established the Ali Akbar College of Music in San Rafael, CA in 1967, and went on to teach thousands of students.

You can watch a brief video of Ali Akbar Khan demonstrating the sarode here.

The following obituary was written by Teed Rockwell:

Ustad Ali Akbar Khan
1922 - 2009

Swara Samrat Maestro Ali Akbar Khan passed away peacefully, surrounded by his family on June 18, 2009. Khansahib (as he was affectionately and respectfully addressed) had been a dialysis patient since 2004, and had been enduring numerous health issues ever since. He continued teaching publicly at the Ali Akbar College until just weeks ago, and taught music at home until the day he died.

The obituaries throughout India and the rest of the world have rightly stressed that Khansahib was a musical genius of the stature of Beethoven and Mozart. However, those of us in the Bay Area are especially grateful for another of his great accomplishments. This was not something he directly created, but rather something that he inspired in others. Students of Indian music came to the Bay area solely because he was here, from Japan, South America, Europe, even India itself. Other great Indian teachers followed, and the result was a community devoted to classical Indian culture that deeply influenced the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. The early issues of India Currents were devoted almost entirely to calendar listings of concerts by these students and teachers, and Khansahib remained the central inspiration of that community for decades. He was admired and loved, and will be greatly missed.

Khansahib was famous for his performances at the world greatest concert halls, and for his many recordings. Eight months of every year, however, he gave himself entirely to his students. We were constantly inspired by Khansahib¹s example of artistic dedication and compassionate patience, and anyone who tried to master the profound intricacies of his lessons was forever changed by that experience. These lessons contained centuries of tradition seamlessly interwoven with his own unique genius. No one learned how to play them as well as he did, but everyone learned how to listen, and shared their enthusiasm with friends, and friends of friends. The result was an audience for Hindustani music which was unmatched for both ethnic diversity and devotion to artistic excellence. It is both heartbreaking and inspiring to realize that this community can and must now go on without him.

The memorial service and burial was held at Mt. Tamalpais Cemetery Sunday, June 21st at noon. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Ali Akbar College of Music (AACM) for the Ali Akbar Khan Library. Online donations can be made at http://aacm.org

Teed Rockwell
Music Critic, India Currents.
2419A Tenth St.
Berkeley CA 94710
www.myspace.com/teedrockwell

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to AACM for the Ali Akbar Khan Library.

__________________

Robin Sukhadia
Mr. Hyphen 2006/2007

H.P. Mendoza's 'Fruit Fly' at Frameline33

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 15:04:25 -0800

Attendees of this year's Frameline San Francisco International LGBT Film Festival will be able to catch a screening of Fruit Fly: the newest film written, directed, composed, edited, and probably catered by H.P. Mendoza, he of Colma: The Musical fame.

Gender Selection Rises in Asian American Communities

Fri, 19 Jun 2009 23:49:44 -0800

Photo source.

A new study shows that sex selection is creeping into Asian American communities.

Lee Isaac Chung's 'Munyurangabo' on DVD

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 15:20:21 -0800

Currently making the rounds and garnering rave reviews at film festivals is Lee Isaac Chung's Munyurangabo, a tale following the eponymous hero's mission to avenge his father's death with the help of his friend Sangwa. Munyurangabo (or 'Ngabo for short) is Tutsi and Sangwa is Hutu, facts that don't complicate their friendship until their families cross paths and the reminders of years of genocide begin to bubble up.

More On Asian Sexual Fetishes: Laura Miller on 'The East, the West, and Sex'

Wed, 17 Jun 2009 16:11:34 -0800

It seems, in fact, that now somebody's written a book about them ... that somebody being a white dude married to an Asian woman. Sigh.

The Hyphenite's Social Calendar: Arty Happy Hours, Walk for Rice

Tue, 16 Jun 2009 16:56:34 -0800

Tuesday June 15th -- NYC

Novels of Heartbreak and Folly

Romesh Gunesekera

Booker prize finalist Romesh Gunesekera will read from his most recent novel The Match, about a Hamlet-esque Sri Lankan cricket player on a mission to find love. Debut novelist Tania James will read from Atlas of Unknowns, following two sisters' disparate romantic journeys in Kerala and New York.

7 pm
Asian American Writers' Workshop
16 West 32nd St, 10th floor, New York
$ 5 suggested donation