Continue reading "The Revolution Starts in the Kitchen"
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There was a really great article comparing the same-sex marriage struggle to the fight against anti-miscegenation laws in the Pacific Citizen.Continue reading "The Right to Get Married"
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Photo by Ari Simphoukham
I have been meaning to blog about last week's student actions in response to the recent agreement signed between the U.S. and Vietnam, allowing for thousands of folks currently living here to be deported.
Here's a story in the Daily Bruin about last week's student demonstrations, which included UCLA, UCSD, UC Davis, and other campuses.
According to Rhummanee Hang, a Cambodian American student at UC Davis who's a member of Southeast Asians Making Immediate Change (SEAMIC), last Wednesday's demonstration at her campus had a turnout of 200. There was a march, speakers and performers, spoken word artists, emcees, dancers, and signing of postcards to representatives.
This is how she explained, in an email, why students, particularly Southeast Asian students, are speaking up against the pact:
"Southeast Asians came to the United States as a result of the wars in Southeast Asia (Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos). Many of the 1.5 generation are the ones at risk of getting deported because of these policies. They came here when they were very young, grew up in this country, and their lifestyle, their way of thinking and being is very "American". Many of these people are not fluent in their native language and know little about the country where they were born. To send them back to a country that they are unfamiliar with and are still suffering from the affects of the war is unfair.
The current policies itself are unfair, because it offers no second chance. There is no due process for nationals who sign their rights away. But there are numerous reasons for why they might do that. Because this affects my community, I feel it is important. We speak up because they can't do it themselves."
Continue reading "Vietnamese Deportation"
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Here's one for the bay area know-it-alls. Join the CAA staff for a drink after work today as they gather to watch the next democratic candidate debate. The prime-time televised debate in Philadelphia is in advance of the April 22 Pennsylvania primary and moderated by ABC News Anchors Charles Gibson and George Stephanopoulos.
Continue reading "Watch the Democratic Debate with Chinese for Affirmative Action"
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Until a couple of days ago, I didn't pay that much attention to what was going on in San Francisco with the Olympic torch situation.
But seeing how big the demonstrations were, and how much media attention they've garnered, and how huge the Beijing Olympics are going to be, I realized that I have to say something.
I've read the various media accounts of the protests, most of which were framed as "anti-China," "pro-China, "pro-Tibet," or some other form of "anti/pro" dichotomy.
The fact of the matter is, it's much more blurry and complicated, at least for me. I think many more Chinese Americans feel torn or conflicted rather than "pro-China" about the Olympics and about the Tibet issue. There is no monolithic Chinese American community, or voice.
There are in fact many ties between the Chinese and Tibetan communities. Though many prominent Chinese Americans like torchbearer/activist/writer Helen Zia, scholar Ling-chi Wang, and actor/director Joan Chen have voiced their perspectives, I would like to add mine to the milieu of growing voices out there.
Probably like the folks mentioned above, I have a sense of ethnic and national pride in being Chinese. I also detest the hateful and unnecessary Chinese/China-bashing that has been around, since, oh, Chinese people first landed here in America.
But I also sympathize with the struggles of Tibetan and Burmese, and ethnic minorities from Burma like the Karen people.
Continue reading "Before It's Too Late"
Posted by momo at 5:28 PM | Comments (8) | TrackBack (0)
I loves me a good protest.
When it was clear that it was only a matter of days before the current Iraq war became official, I made sure that my boss and co-workers knew that I would not be coming into work. And when it was, I yelled my way through the early morning to midnight.
When I get swept up into a random march, my pulse races.
I cry at footage of mai '68.
And yet, there's something about the news of the Olympics protests in London and Paris that makes me... sad. Though my affection for the sports extravaganza has not gone beyond gymnastics circa 1984, and for all the revelations of performance-enhancing drugs shattering the athlete mythos, the fact that the torch has to hide out on a bus, extinguished, is an epic bummer.
Continue reading "They Might Not Be Giants -- Olympic Torch Conundrums"
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The front of the March 19, 2008 Strength in Unity contingent led by members & friends of ILPS, BAYAN USA, and Arab Resource & Organizing Center. Photo by Jamison Boyer (http://www.jdbcreativity.com).
Strength in Unity - Five Years Later, We March for Peace and for Each Other
by Tony V. Nguyen
When you think of the U.S. peace movement what comes to mind? Cindy Sheehan? Code Pink? Berkeley?
This individual, this group, and this city are all important players in the current U.S. movement for peace in Iraq, and their brave and tireless contribution should be commended. But there are many, many others around the country who have also been voicing their desire for true peace and justice since before the war on Iraq began.
And not all of them are white.
Continue reading "Why We March"
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CNN is taking some heat for its very superficial Feb. 8 report on "Anderson Cooper 360" about why Asian American Democratic voters are favoring Hillary Clinton over Barack Obama.
Continue reading "CNN blasted for report on Asian American voters"
Posted by harry at 8:25 PM | Comments (9)
Guest blogger Carmina Ocampo
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Immigration reform has forever been one of those make or break issues for Asian Americans. To put things way too simply, the Chinese Exclusion Acts of 1882 told Chinese people to stay the heck away while the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act let everyone and their Asian mothers in. Given how fundamental immigration reform has been in constructing the varied racial/ethnic/sexual identities of Asian Americans, it's no understatement to say that the outcome of the immigration reform bill currently being debated by the Senate really matters.
It matters who stands to benefit from immigration reform. You'd think immigrants would benefit the most from immigration reform but that might not be the case. Unfortunately, the interests of big business and concern for furthering American global domination have wielded too much influence over the current immigration bill so far. Corporations are divided over what immigrants they prefer. Some corporations have advocated for reform that will yield highly skilled professionals while other corporations want greater access to lower skilled workers.
Continue reading "Where's the API Immigrant in Immigration Reform?"
Posted by rebecca at 8:53 AM | Comments (7)
Guest blogger Carmina Ocampo
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Amidst tense negotiations and angry protests, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority board of directors voted to increase bus fares Thursday in a decision that will hurt the poor communities of color. The plan came as a result of a compromise proposed by Supervisors Gloria Molina and Zev Yaroslavsky, after the Board rejected the Mayor's plan that called for lower fare hikes.
The LA Times reported that under the new MTA plan, bus fares will increase from $1.25 to $1.50; the daily pass will go from $3 to $5 on July 1 and $6 in 2009; and the monthly pass will go from $52 to $62 on July 1 and $75 in 2009. (The original proposal was much more devastating, proposing to raise the fare from $1.25 to $2 and the monthly pass from $52 to $120 over the next two years).
According to the Bus Riders Union, most of MTA's 500,000 bus riders are members of the black and Latino working class who rely on public transportation on a daily basis. According to the MTA, the median household income of a bus rider is $12,000. Given these facts, the new plan will no doubt have a devastating impact on the poor people of Los Angeles, who struggle to support their families, commute long hours to work, and face a lack of affordable housing.
The bus fare issue has also concerned API community groups, considering that there are many API immigrants, especially undocumented immigrants, that rely on the bus for daily transportation. One Filipino careworker I recently met told me that she relies on the bus to commute to work everyday and attend meetings at the Pilipino Workers' Center.
Continue reading "Bus Rider Blues"
Posted by rebecca at 1:54 PM | Comments (0)
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