A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of attending the opening night of Grace Kim and the Spiders from Mars. In short the play was delightfully awesome. I laughed, I ached, I related and I thoroughly enjoyed every bit of the play. I’m beyond impressed with this original play written by Philip W. Chung. The play was perfectly cast and I can’t say enough good things about it. I’ve taken the liberty of telling any friend who will listen, how AWESOME this play is.
If you haven’t watched the play yet, GO GO GO! You’ll regret it if you miss it. It closes on December 20, so do yourself a favor and GO. Did I mention that they are offering their tickets for their 1999 ticket fees? There is no reason to miss this awesome play.
Now that I’ve urged as best I can for you to take in the wonderfulness that is “Grace Kim and the Spiders from Mars,” I’ll move onto a little tribute about a wonderful theatre ensemble that is bidding us farewell.
Grace Kim and the Spiders from Mars is the last production for The Lodestone Theatre Ensemble and I for one am very sad about it. Yes, they are bidding us farewell with Grace Kim. For 10 years, Lodestone has given Asian Americans a wonderful place to unleash their creativity, whether as an actor/actress, writer, director or spectator. And Lodestone has had an impressive 10-year-run. It’s put on “over 80 main-stage productions, special events and Yellow Box readings/workshops of both new and established works.”
Chung’s desire was a write something “accessible and funny” but at the same time a play that would appropriately reflect the history of Lodestone. I believe he achieved his desire in his original play and can’t help but be ecstatic that Lodestone is ending on a high note.
If you’re in LA, you only have this weekend and next weekend to catch it.
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Shopping With GASP!
If ever you felt the urge to curse or talk dirty in another language – now you can in Mandarin thanks to NiuBi!, a recently published book by Eveline Chao.
NiuBi! (Awesome!) In a very weird related/ yet unrelated tangent – NiuBi! is available for in store purchase in Toronto where as I Love Yous are for White People isn’t. Strange indeed.
The 8Asians tumblr highlights Asians [& uber talented non-Asians] who draw, dance, build, film, sing, write, invent, paint, teleport, and of course, tumble. It’s curated by Jun, Moye and Ernie.
Friendster — seriously, remember them? — is like the Coolio of social networking services; like the rapper, the website was once hip and edgy, but after a series of poor financial decisions is relegated to do desperate things to get the attention of, well, anyone. In Coolio’s case it’s to star on reality shows and make a cooking show on YouTube; in the case of Friendster, it’s a desperate play to keep loyal the one social group on Friendster that has not left Friendster for other networks like MySpace or Facebook in droves: Filipinos, Malaysians and Singaporeans.
Whereas previously, Friendster was branded as just your regular social networking site with a — wink wink, nudge nudge — very Asian fan base, their acquisition by Malaysian company MOL Global yesterday flips that on its head, revealing a branding campaign where Friendster is a friendly, personal site especially for you — if you’re 19-24 year old Filipino living in Asia, of course. The new branding campaign isn’t surprising to anyone who is paid to keep tabs of the social networking industry, but this will be particularly jarring to old members of Friendster, not the least of which includes Asian Americans. (And gay men. And Burning Man attendees. And veteran dot-commers.)
But who cares; you’re too busy taking care of your virtual farm on Facebook, right? Right.
(Full disclaimer: I work in the web industry; more specifically, in the social networking space.)
APAPA
Asian Pacific Islander American Public Affairs Association Community Education Foundation (APAPA-CEF)
Empowerment of Asian Pacific Islander Americans
Cordially invites you to our Annual Holiday Mixer
Location:
Friends of Children with Special needs – FSCN
2300 Peralta Blvd
Fremont, CA 94536
Free Admission! All are welcome! Refreshment Provided!
Please RSVP to
Tim Tran (408-799-5290; [email protected]) or Mike Liu (510-364-7986; [email protected])
Oh, Tila Tequila: it’s been a while since we’ve blogged about you, hasn’t it? But after your weird choking incident with ex-boyfriend Shawne Merriman, your rants involving tampons on UStream, your new engagement to an equally batshit crazy heiress, you’ve officially joined that elite group of celebrities where it’s almost cliche to make fun of, and now just sad: you know, it’s kinda like making fun of Whitney Houston and Amy Winehouse, where it’s easy to make a crackhead joke, but then you’re like, eh, they were good singers. Tila is like that too, without, you know, any of the good qualities.
By Alex
I had a chance to watch A Good Day to be Black and Sexy (2008) earlier today; let me definitely say “Thank you Netflix!” If it wasn’t for you, I would never have the fortune to find completely random stuff like this that I would come to enjoy. I’ll admit, before I watched the film, I was expecting something along the likes of Soul Plane, a ‘unique’ (if not utterly ridiculous) film, exemplifying (and exploiting) the over-the-top hip-hop archetypes of material worship and what some would call misogyny. In stark contrast, Black and Sexy is a delicate film depicting six related vignettes to show an interesting cross section of individuals and relationships in different states of stress as they go about defining moments. I particularly enjoyed Tonight (Part II), and American Boyfriend, both of which I thought showed rarely depicted yet universally understood relationship interactions. The latter, which I’ll speak on here, deals with the only interracial couple throughout the film, with Jesse (Alphonso Johnson) being the illicit black boyfriend of Jasmine (Emily Liu), who is a second generation Chinese-American.
Contrary to many films dealing with an Asian character in a supporting role, especially one in an “African-American romance” film, I felt that Jesse and Jasmine’s interactions, particularly the interracial quirks of a Black/Asian couple, surprisingly authentic. It’s beauty lies in the subtleties of the acting, and both performers play it well off each other (if not with each other). While the scene in the first half is ridden with mildly race-related undertones, it is done under the pretext of flirtatious banter and is certainly not an unnatural concept.
The interesting bit comes in the second half when her first-generation parents come home, and Jesse is hidden in Jasmine’s room. After failing to sneak Jesse out, she ends up going downstairs for dinner, leaving Jesse upstairs in her room to call a friend to discuss what he perceived as the ridiculousness of the situation. Meanwhile, Jasmine downstairs is confronted by her parents about her affair, and while she attempts to dodge most questions, finally concedes when asked “is he Chinese or American?” If it wasn’t understood already, Jasmine’s mother asks if he is a blue-eyed blond, making it clear that by “American,” Jasmine’s parents are clearly referring to “white.” Almost as if it was a cop-out, she says “American,” which is technically, if not semantically, true. While progressive minded second generation Asians may cringe at the exploration of this theme, it is likely an experience that every Asian raised in North America can relate to. “It” being the ever-present, either subtly or overly, racist undertones against those of African descent, ironic given the near universal recognition of Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods among sports-watching native Asians.
So how did this come to be? It’s hard to say, given that at the turn of the last century, there was just as much dislike of those of European ancestry. Perhaps it had to do with the various military incidents of Okinawa, the tales of the Rodney King riots in LA, the transported stereotypes from their native lands as multiculturalism takes root, or, perhaps more interestingly, transmuted stereotypes from American culture finding interpretation among Asia. Regardless, racism of various forms directed at blacks are a reality among many first and zero generation Asian immigrants. Now, I’d like to make a clear distinction between racism of first and second (and beyond) generations. The vast majority of second generation Asians know full well the history of race relations in America, and are more prone to play racist among decidedly American stereotypes, though, I’d have to say, at a less overt level than that among white or black Americans (when is the last time you saw a group of Asian people yelling racist slurs at a passerby? Probably a lot longer, though the reasons are debatable).
In any case, the struggle that Jesse and Jasmine are facing will be distinctly familiar to those of either decent, and I remember actually watching American Boyfriend in great suspense as I wondered how this conflict would flare up. As Jasmine is becoming more at ease with her “American boyfriend” story, Jesse becomes increasingly agitated as the minutes wear by. He finally snaps, he starts dribbling his basketball in an overt rejection of his covert status, and Jasmine becomes increasingly flustered attempting to divert the discussion somewhere else. Finally, he marches downstairs in an overt disruptive show, stomps around the dinner table and makes a point to kiss Jasmine right in front of her shocked mother, before storming out with a grin.
I really enjoyed this scene for what it depicted, a smack in the face at traditional-minded racist views of an oppressor. Yes, part of me wasn’t entirely happy with Jesse’s rejection of the subtleties of Asian/Black race relations, but I’ll admit, he was right to. Much to the director’s credit, the depiction of the stress in Jasmine and her family felt authentic, and the righteous exit of Jesse was well justified. It did make me wonder though, about why race relations between blacks and Asians are so tense and undefined in an allegedly “post-racial” society.
Now, I’m not saying that there aren’t other sources of tension and mutual struggles for legitimacy in a society that is still very white-centric, but I need to ask: what factors contribute to the particular Asian/Black interaction? In particular, what is different that characterizes Asian/Black interaction versus Asian/White or Black/White race relations in America?
Alex is a native of Chicago and Seoul, now living in and loving Seattle. More so than kimchi, he lives, breathes, and bleeds tech, and considers his life calling to improve the world and peoples’ lives with the blessings of human technology
Don’t miss KSW’s last event of the year! Join us for a holiday book launch reception, and a preview of KSW’s performance tour “SF Thomassons” featuring Allan Manalo.
WHEN: Friday, December 18; 6 – 9 pm
WHERE: PariSoma, 1436 Howard St. @ 10th
ADMISSION IS FREE
In the 80’s Japanese conceptual artist Akasegawa Genpei released HYPERART: THOMASSON, a book investigating and describing an urban architectural phenomenon called a “Thomasson.” (Read more about Thomassons here) To celebrate Kaya Press’ publication of the first English translation of HYPERART: THOMASSON, KSW is producing “SF Thomassons,” a two-phase project that includes a set of photographs by KSW artists of local Thomassons and a guided performance tour of a selection of these Thomassons.
The complete guided tour will be performed January 23 & 24. To launch the book, we are holding a holiday reception, with music, an opportunity to buy the book, and a short preview of the tour. Come drink some punch with SF’s Asian American arts community before we break for the holidays, and do a little last minute gift shopping!
I’m not going to even comment on Sarah Palin. It is too easy. I try not to pick on people who are intellectually inferior. What I do want to discuss is her (and other people’s) conceptions of Hawaii.
First, let’s do a mind exercise. Imagine you are in Hawaii. Honeymoon. Vacation. Whatever. Look around you. What do you see? Palm trees? Beaches? Clear skies? Paradise, right? Now focus on the people. What do they look like? More specifically, what race are they?
According to the article, Sarah left Hawaii because “the presence of so many Asians and Pacific Islanders made her uncomfortable.” Now think back to my mind exercise. Clearly, before Sarah moved to Hawaii she must have imagined paradise full of Caucasian people. This made me think.
When most people close their eyes and imagine Hawaii, do they see it full of Caucasian people too? Or is this just a Sarah thing?
I’m afraid of the answer. I’m afraid that Sarah isn’t the only one. I’m afraid that most Americans are like her. The reality is of course that Asian/Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islanders/Hapas Americans make up more than half of the Hawaiian population. What a shock it must be when people who think like Sarah visit there. Do they feel like they are still in America? Or do they feel like they’ve left the country and are traveling in some far away (and dare I say, exotic) land?
Why does this happen? Simple. Look at movies, books, and/or television shows that take place in Hawaii. The Hawaii being portrayed is Sarah’s Hawaii and not the reality. I’m dreaming of a day when people will see Hawaii for what it is… a paradise full of people that look more like me than the Bradys.
Breaking news: According to the NY Post and nymag.com, Juju Chang will replace Chris Cuomo as newsreader on ABC’s Good Morning America. Cuomo is reportedly leaving the morning news show, though no word yet on whether he will remain with ABC. Chang would join co-anchors Robin Roberts and George Stephanopoulos (who replaces Diane Sawyer as she moves to World News) and weatherman Sam Champion in the revamped GMA team. Chang is a New York-based, Emmy-winning correspondent for ABC News’ 20/20, GMA and Nightline.
I never thought that we’d ever have a reason to write about Sarah Palin on this blog, but here it is. With the release of her book “Going Rogue,” come opportunities for her to put a few things out for the record– and for people to correct her.
In the New Yorker review of the book, Sam Tanenhaus writes that Palin’s own father suggested that Sarah left Hawaii because there were too many Asians. Not surprisingly, this contradicts Palin’s own description of her reasons for leaving college in Hawaii after only one semester.
Palin, though notoriously ill-traveled outside the United States, did journey far to the first of the four colleges she attended, in Hawaii. She and a friend who went with her lasted only one semester. “Hawaii was a little too perfect,” Palin writes. “Perpetual sunshine isn’t necessarily conducive to serious academics for eighteen-year-old Alaska girls.” Perhaps not. But Palin’s father, Chuck Heath, gave a different to account [Scott] Conroy and [Shushannah] Walshe [authors of another bio, "Sarah From Alaska"]. According to him, the presence of so many Asians and Pacific Islanders made her uncomfortable: “They were a minority type thing and it wasn’t glamorous, so she came home.” In any case, Palin reports that she much preferred her last stop, the University of Idaho, “because it was much like Alaska yet still ‘Outside.’ “
Two things to note about the passage above:
1) The italics above are from Isaac Chotiner of The New Republic, who was the first to point this out and ask “Why–and readers should weigh in–has this gotten absolutely no media attention?”
2) Most articles about this have been quoting the passage above without the final sentence, the one that reads: “In any case, Palin reports that she much preferred her last stop, the University of Idaho, “because it was much like Alaska yet still ‘Outside.’ ”
It’s that final sentence that I think tells the real story. It’s easy to write a headline like, “Sarah Palin is Racist Against Asians,” but the more accurate headline might actually be, “Sarah Palin Did Not Like Being a Minority.”
I’m no Sarah Palin fan– but I’m coming to the defense of Sarah Palin on this one. I don’t think that Sarah Palin left Hawaii because she was “afraid of Asians” or “racist against Asians.” I think that she didn’t like being in a place where “people like her” aren’t the norm. Railing against Sarah Palin about that– her unwillingness to live in a place where she could learn from people different than her– is a much better discussion than simply pulling the race card. I think the fact of the matter is, an 18-year-old Sarah Palin wouldn’t have wanted to live any place with a lot of people that were different from her– period. Just a guess, and I may not be giving Palin enough credit here, but she probably would have quit school if she’d gone to a school in a predominantly African-American area, too. Does that make her racist? Not necessarily.
When I visited Alaska for a couple of weeks last year for a governmental project I was working on (no, I did not work with the State of Alaska or have any dealings with the Governor herself), I took the opportunity to learn about the population of the state. A lot of people don’t realize this, but as a percentage of the state’s population, there are more people of Asian descent than in many other parts of the U.S. In fact, an Asian American (Scott Kawasaki), is a member of the Alaska House of Representatives. Outside of states with large Asian/Asian American populations, most states don’t have any Asian American representation. Although the vast majority of people in Alaska are indeed white, it’s not as if Hawaii was the first place she’d ever encountered an Asian American!
We all know that as most kids are growing up, they just like to “fit in” to their surroundings. Maybe Sarah Palin hadn’t outgrown that by the time she went off to college? Maybe she never did?
But that doesn’t necessarily make her “scared of Asians.”
Original photo by geerlingguy, used & modified under Creative Commons License
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