Olympics 2022: Chloe Kim says, 'I'm going to go off.'

CHLOE KIM

 

With the Beijing Winter Games just days away, snowboarder gold medalist Chloe Kim is peaking at the right time.

Last week she won her  fifth snowboard halfpipe X Games title in Aspen, Colorado despite taking a year off to attend classes at Princeton.

“I really was not expecting to podium,” Kim while being interviewed by ESPN. “Really just wanted to go into this season with a new mindset, have fun and try new runs.”

Never lacking confidence, in separate interviews, the 22-year old said she's also very good playing golf and tennis and playfully warned tennis legend Serena Williams and golf icon Tiger Woods of her interest in their sports.

Chloe Kim made the cover of Time Magazine.

Kim exploded onto the sports world in 2018 when she won gold in her event, the half-pipe freestyle. She is the only woman athlete to complete back to back 1080s; that's three full rotations.

At 17-years old, Kim's enthusiasm and sense of humor caught the attention of media and she became a sought-after interview during and after the games leading to a stint on The Masked Singer. But all that attention came at a price, a loss of privacy and the pressure of great expectations.

She felt she needed to take a year off to just be a college student at Princeton. Kim said taking that break from training and competition "was really important," to step back and have fun again.

This fall, at the age of 22, she interrupted her studies to train for the Olympics and girded herself for expected media spotlight. She made the cover of Time Magazine prior to the Games in which she revealed her plans to unveil three new tricks during in Beijing.

“I’m so excited,” says the native Californian. “They’re an upgrade from everything I’ve done.” She won’t say more, which makes sense, but also demurs when asked more generally about the Winter Games. “Don’t have too many expectations,” she says softly. “Just let me vibe. I’m just trying to chill.” 

She pauses a beat, revealing a comedian's sense of timing. 

Then, in a change of tone, Chloe Kim gets deadpan serious: “No, I’m just kidding. You just expect a lot out of me. I’m going to go off.” No lack of confidence, indeed.

If Kim wins, she'll become the first to earn both multiple and consecutive golds in women's halfpipe.

Women's half-pipe competition begins Feb. 8 at 8:30 p.m. ET on NBC. Finals are the next day. All events can be live-streamed on  Peacock., on the NBC Sports app or on NBCOlympics.com.

RELATED:

Born and raised in San Francisco, Eileen Gu will represent China

Five AAPI skaters named to USA Figure Skating team.

NBC puts Nathan Chen and Chloe Kim in the spotlight to promote their coverage

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AAPI perspective, follow me on Twitter @DioknoEd.

Olympics 2022: NBC spotlights Nathan Chen, Chloe Kim to promote Winter Games and Team USA

Nathan Chen and Chloe Kim will represent the USA at the Beijing Olympics.

In case you've been living under a rock, or you've been living on social media platforms, you've probably missed these promos for NBC's Olympics coverage featuring men's figure skater Nathan Chen and freestyle snowboarder Chloe Kim.

Coming at a time when Asian Americans are being targeted by ignorant haters, NBC's promotion of the athletes as representatives of America is refreshing and ironic at the same time. The message it sends counters the movement hate depicting AAPI as perpetual foreigners.

For the last several years, Chen has been the world's best male figure skater, consistently winning international competitions since his disappointing third-place finish in PyeongChang, South Korea in 2018.

If the 22-year old Yale student can maintain his athletic performance for the Olympics -- he's the only competitor to complete six quads in his long routine -- Chen is almost a lock for a medal.

Kim's skill on the half-pipe snowboard event and her bubbly personality and sense of humor did the 17-year old well after South Korea appearing on talk shows and performing surprisingly well on The Masked Singer.

All the attention and the loss of privacy took its toll, though. To get her head straight, Kim took time off to attend Princeton University trying hard to be just an ordinary college student.

Now 22-years old, Kim took a break from her studies last year to train for this year's  Olympics. She quickly gained her old form, winning three gold medals at the X Games.

Both of these athletes representing the U.S. and AANHPI everywhere, are expected to medal in their respective events in the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing, which begin Feb. 3.

Chen and Kim are two of the 13 Asian American athletes at the Games representing, not only the U.S. but the Philippines and China, too.

RELATED:

Born and raised in San Francisco, Eileen Gu will represent China

Five AAPI skaters named to USA Figure Skating team.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Watch for more Olympic coverage when the Games start. For additional commentary, news and views from an AAPI perspective, follow me on Twitter @DioknoEd.

Education policies need to address the unique needs of individual AA and NHPI communities.

First-grade students in St. Paul, Minnesota, perform folk poetry on Hmong American Day.

While Asian American and Pacific Islander communities in the United States have grown at a dramatic pace in recent years, much of the discussion surrounding education policy overlooks the diversity between and within these two communities and their specific needs. 

“The practice of lumping the Asian American and the Pacific Islander communities together ignores the diversity within and between these two unique communities, perpetuates harmful stereotypes such as the ‘model minority’ myth, and dilutes the ability to distribute resources to the students and families who most need them,” said the study's co-author Roby Chatterji, senior policy analyst for K-12 Education at CAP.

A new issue brief released Friday (Jan. 28) by the Center for American Progress presents six areas where new research could uplift the lived experiences in public education of both communities.

This research will advance CAP’s work to apply an explicit racial equity lens to K-12 education policymaking and ensure that all children have access to a quality education. A central component of this research will include speaking with Asian American and Pacific Islander educators, students, and family members, as their insights and experiences will help inform CAP’s policy recommendations.

The six key areas identified in this issue brief for further exploration and policy development in CAP’s future work are as follows:

• Improving data disaggregation and the effective use of disaggregated data. Looking at student outcomes or student experience trends for Asian American and Pacific Islander students as a whole masks differences within these groups and allows certain subpopulations to struggle unnoticed. CAP will be intentional about using disaggregated data where possible and parsing how specific racial and ethnic subpopulations within the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities experience various education challenges.

• Recruiting and retaining Asian American and Pacific Islander educators and school leaders and centering their experiences. Asian Americans make up only 2 percent of teachers and 1 percent of school principals. Pacific Islander educators comprise less than 0.5 percent of U.S. teachers and school principals. CAP has an opportunity to speak directly with Asian American and Pacific Islander educators and school leaders about their experiences, including their interest and awareness of the teaching profession while they were in high school.

• Supporting Asian American students and families who are immigrants, English language learners, or have refugee status. About 57 percent of Asian Americans, including 71 percent of adults, were born outside of the United States. Some Asian American immigrants came originally as refugees: Southeast Asian Americans from countries including Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos represent the largest resettled refugee population in the United States, and unfortunately, this population struggles with economic insecurity, low educational attainment, and high rates of post-traumatic stress disorder. CAP could speak with school leaders and educators in schools to see what challenges are present and determine what strategies have worked best to support these students and engage with their families.

• Ending disproportionate discipline and increasing college readiness for Pacific Islander students. Nationally, only 1 percent of Asian American students and 3.4 percent of white students are suspended, compared with 4.5 percent of Pacific Islander students, including 6.2 percent of Pacific Islander boys. CAP could provide tailored recommendations for schools to better support their Pacific Islander students in preparing for college and beyond.

• Preserving traditional languages of Native Hawaiians and other Indigenous groups. Preservation of their native language is a critical issue for Indigenous communities such as Pacific Islander students and their families. CAP could investigate what kinds of support and services are needed to ensure that Hawaii’s immersion schools and language preservation efforts remain successful.

• Promoting the mental health of Asian American and Pacific Islander students. Asian American and Pacific Islander student communities are sometimes left out of these policy conversations, due to the perception that these populations do not require support given their academic success as an aggregate and overall lower reported prevalence of mental illnesses. Yet in 2019, suicide was the leading cause of death for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders ages 15 to 24. CAP could meet with specific groups within these communities that have particularly negative experiences at school and might need targeted mental health support.

The Asian American and the Pacific Islander communities in the U.S. are growing at a dramatic pace. Recent data from the 2020 census as well as a recent Pew Research Center analysis show that Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders are two of the top three fastest-growing racial or ethnic groups in the country. 

Presently numbering about 23 million ,according to the Census, at the current rate of growth, Asian Americans are projected to become the nation’s largest immigrant group by 2055, with roots in some two dozen countries. 

While some Asian American and Pacific Islander communities represent relatively new immigrant groups to the U.S., others have a longstanding and deep history in this country going back to before the U.S. was born, This diverse ancestry means that the cultures, lives, and challenges of individual Asian American and Pacific Islander communities and families vary widely. 

However, much of the discussion surrounding education policy overlooks the diversity between and within these communities, as well as their specific needs.

“As an Asian American myself, I’m often frustrated by how dominant narratives about my community sometimes ignore the huge variety of perspectives and experiences found within it,” said co-author Jessica Yin, policy analyst for K-12 Education at CAP. “I’m excited that this new body of work will be grounded in the lived experiences of both Asian American and Pacific Islander students, educators, and families to ensure that all proposed policies are meeting their diverse educational needs.”

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AA and NHPI point of view, follow me on Twitter @DioknoEd.

Housewives: Reality shows clash with real racism; Asian American women have not fared well

Jennie Nguyen was fired from the reality show.

 

The popular "Housewives" television franchise has its problems when casting Asian American women in their Bravo-produced reality series.

Jennie Nguyen was fired Tuesday from “The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City” following backlash from a series of past controversial social media posts that sher posted years ago. and recently resurfaced.

Backlash began after fans discovered numerous posts on Nguyen’s Facebook page that appeared to mock the Black Lives Matter movement and protests.

Nguyen, 44, posted and reposted memes and photos that included phrases like “BLM Thugs” and “Violent Gangs.”

One post, allegedly shared by the 44-year-old “Housewife” in September 2020, reads, “I’m sick of people saying cops need more training. You had 18 years to teach your kids it’s wrong to loot, steal, set buildings a blaze, block traffic, laser people’s eyes, overturn cars, destroy buildings and attack citizens. Who failed who?”

Tuesday, Jan. 25, Bravo released a statement: “We recognize we failed to take appropriate action once her offensive social media posts were brought to our attention. Moving forward, we will work to improve our processes to ensure we make better informed and more thoughtful casting decisions.”

The next day, Nguyen appeared on Instagram Live to give her side of the story. She  said:

"I just want you to understand my point of view and where I come from, and what's going on during that time. I mean it's an old post on my account, it's in 2020. I just want you to understand, during that time I had a team of people that were helping me. Whether they post it, I post it, it doesn't really matter at this point. For me, it's on my account, and I take full responsibility and accountability for what was posted.

"I know I hurt a lot of people. I know my viewpoint during that time in 2020 was emotional. And it brings back a lot of memories during that time when we went through such a tragic, terrible year. And I just want to let you know that I am taking full responsibility and accountability for the things that were posted on my account, whether it was me or somebody else. It's on my account and I'm big enough to understand that those posts are very sensitive and inappropriate, to the point where it is disgusting," Nguyen continued.

"But I want you to understand that my political stance, I still support that. I am very proud to be a Republican. I am proud to be able to say I have the freedom of speech to choose and to have an opinion. I respect your opinion, I respect your political stance. We are different," she added. "But we need to respect each other and we need to understand that we live in this country, where we have the freedom to speak our mind, as well as we have a freedom to choose."

"I don't tolerate violence. But I do support my law enforcement. I know with every profession, there's good and there's bad. I don't support the bad, I don't support the brutality of Black people or with any race. But I do support my law enforcement. But that doesn't make me racist. To support my political stance, that does not make me a racist. And I want you to understand that. And whether I remember the posts in 2020, I don't remember whether it's on my account or not. We don't remember what we ate yesterday, let alone two years ago. But like, again, I take full responsibility," she said.

Dr. Tiffany Moon 

While Nguyen is being accused of being racist, another Asian American "Housewife" was the victim of. racist remarks from her castmates.

Dr. Tiffany Moon, mother of two and an anesthesiologist,  joined "Real Housewives of Dallas," in its fifth season but was not met with open arms by the rest of cast. The racial clash leaves the future of the show uncertain.

Brandi Redmond, whose 2017 Instagram story in which she affected an Asian accent had gone viral in the months before production of the fifth season. Redmond told Moon she wasn't comfortable when Moon was present.

In the reunion show last May, all the apparently repressed racism poured forth. Moon’s castmates made racist comments about Asian food, and prominent Dallas socialite Kameron Westcott accused Moon of being racist toward Asians on her TikTok.

That prompted relatives of Westcott to join the Moon-bashing on Twitter where they made fun of Moon being "woke" and called her anti-racist sentiments another form of racism. In another tweet they described Moon being drunk in one instance.

After the reunion fiasco, a lawyer for Moon gave a statement to Variety on the Westcott's tweets, calling their comments “reckless, defamatory and appalling.” “These attacks on (Moon's) character will not be tolerated,” said attorney Andrew Brettler. “The Westcotts would be well advised to keep mentions of Dr. Moon out of their social media feeds.”

The Westcott's later deleted the offending social media remarks.

Bravo also replied with its own statement supporting Moon. Without naming the Westcotts, specifically, the network posted on social media: “Anti-racism is, in fact, not a form of racism and the network stands by Dr. Tiffany Moon and her advocacy against racism and violence.”

"There are many reasons I would love to be on again if offered the opportunity," Moon told E! exclusively. "But there are also a lot of reasons that I hesitate to have a resounding, ‘Yes, I would love too!' accept that invitation. I have a lot of reservations because there was a lot of emotional expenditure that came because of the show, both good and bad things that came out of it. And also it took a lot of time away from my job and my family and I don't know if I have the capacity to do it again."

Bravo, for its part, emphasized that the show has not been officially canceled but was just on hiatus.

Justice rallies mark anniversary of deadly attack on the Asian elder that pushed the AAPI community into action

 

RATANAPAKDEE FAMILY

Vicha Ratanapakdee, right, and his daughter Monthanus Ratanapakdee

A year ago, a vicious unprovoked attack killed 84-year old Vicha Ratanapakdee and gave birth to a movement.

A security camera showed the Thai immigrant  on a morning walk on Jan. 28, 2021 in his San Francisco neighborhood when a man came out of nowhere and shoved the Thai immigrant to the sidewalk, his head bouncing off the sidewalk, knocking him unconscious. His attacker raised his arms up in victory as if he had just scored a game-winning touchdown.

The grandfather, who had a heart operation nine months earlier, never opened his eyes again. A few days later, the hospital was pronounced him dead from brain injury. 

Nineteen-year old Antoine Watson was later arrested and charged for the homicide. 

The video angered the AAPI community who was just starting to feel the impact of racism hurled at them. The pandemic had hit the U.S. for a year earlier and health measures affected the economy and fueled a pent-up frustration and anger among Americans forced to stay at home, quarantine and wear masks. 

The growing hate against AAPI was fueled by the Donald Trump administration's rhetoric using racially disparaging terms calling the coronavirus the "Wuhan Virus," the "China Virus" or the "Kung Flu."

That same week, attacks against elderly Asian Americans in other cities were videotaped and shown on television news reports: a Filipino American man's face was slashed while riding a New York subway, a frail elder was violently shoved to the ground in Oakland and an elderly woman was hurt when she was attacked in San Jose in a robbery attempt.

The hate was real and the attacks continued; so was the growing anger felt by the AAPI communities. That anger felt in the AAPI communities turned into calls for justice and for law enforcement and officials to take these unwarranted attacks seriously. The attack on Ratanapakdee and his death launched a movement.

Celebrities used their social media platforms to raise money for awards for information about the attackers, they appeared in news programs and dogged media to begin reporting these attacks as hate crimes.

Civil rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize nominee Amanda Nguyen posted an Instagram video showing the viciousness of the attacks on helpless elders she called on national media outlets to better cover the wave of anti-Asian violence targeting elderly residents from the San Francisco Bay Area to New York City.

Actors Daniel Dae Kim and Daniel Wu offered thousands of dollars as awards for information leading to an arrest of the attacker in an Oakland incident.

Soon AAPI celebrities, politicians and activists were on talk shows telling viewers about the horrible incidents and how they were personally affected. Some were even brave enough to admit that they too, suffered the slings of bias. The message they shared was: "the hate is real, notice us, take us seriously, help us fight racism."

A community group, Stop Asian Hate, began collecting reports of anti-Asian hate in March of 2021. Since then, nationwide there have been over 10,000 incidents of hate, ranging from verbal abuse to the fatal shooting spree that killed Asian spa workers in Georgia.

In several U.S. cities, Rallies for Justice will be held this weekend commemorating Ratanapakdee's death and the thousands who have suffered and died from the hate directed at them. Click here to find a rally near you.

Ratanapakdee's daughter Monthanus said she and her family continue to bear unspeakable grief from the killing of her father.

Her husband Eric Lawson told the Marina Times, “When Antoine Watson pushed my father-in-law hard into the sidewalk and killed him, he showed no humanity at all. His killing of our father was just like Derek Chauvin putting his knee on George Floyd’s neck to kill him.”

Meanwhile, the attacks against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders continue. San Francisco police department data shows anti-Asian hate incidents soared from nine in 2020 to 60 in 2021, a 567% increase. Police believe the number of hate incidents is probably higher because, often times, the victims do not contact the police.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AAPI perspective, follow me on Twitter @DioknoEd.

Conservative Supreme Court could sound death knell of affirmative action

REGIONAL STUDIES EAST ASIA PROGRAM, HARVARD

Recent graduates celebrate during Harvard University's commencement ceremonies.

ANALYSIS

The US Supreme Court added affirmative action to it's hit list of progressive positions it wants to undermine or eliminate. First it gutted the Voting Rights Act, then added provisions that practically abolished Roe v. Wade in some states and now, on Jan. 24,  the Supreme Court decided to take on affirmative action.

For over a half century, the Supreme Court and almost all the lower courts have affirmed the need to take into account race as a factor in school admissions. But this is not a moderate court. The Republican controlled Senate and the GOP's rightwing has taken over the highest court in the land, now controlling six of the nine Justices. This is a new court, prone to making decisions on a partisan basis instead of relying on precedent and the Constitution.

And Asian Americans are right in the middle of this scrum that will decided the future of affirmative action, a keystone policy that has guided the US towards equity in school admissions and job opportunities for over a half-century.

"Affirmative action, diversity, and anti-discrimination programs are essential to opening up opportunities for women and people of color, including Asian Americans, in all aspects of public life, including higher education, and have been foundational building blocks for a more just and equitable society," said a statement from Asian American Advancing Justice, a coalition of five AAPI legal aid organizations.

On Jan. 24, the high court decided to hear the arguments in the cases of Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard University, and SFFA v. University of North Carolina.

In both complaints, SFFA contends that the admissions processes of the universities discriminated against qualified Asian Americans.

SFFA, a front for anti-affirmative action activist Edward Blum, purports to represent Asian American students who were allegedly denied admission to these schools in favor of less qualified students.

“Harvard and the University of North Carolina have racially gerrymandered their freshman classes in order to achieve prescribed racial quotas,” said Blum in a statement. “Every college applicant should be judged as a unique individual, not as some representative of a racial or ethnic group.”

Lower courts and in two previous decisions by the Supreme Court have recognized the need to consider race as one factor in the school admission process in order to open its campuses to groups that have been underrepresented. The courts have admitted the necessity to retain affirmative action, which was first introduced in 1965 and received its first legal challenge in 1978.

The last time the High Court ruled on affirmative action was in 2016 involving the University of Texas admission procedures. At the time, the Justices ruled in favor of using race as a factor in admissions.

But that was then. Today, the Supreme Court is ruled by six conservative majority, including three who were appointed by Donald Trump. The Supreme Court will likely hear oral arguments on the case in October this year and render a ruling in 2023.

In order to avoid the appearance of "reverse discrimination," a flaw that plagued Blum's other attempts to prove affirmative action discriminated against White students, he convinced disgruntled Asian American applicants who failed to get admitted to Harvard to join a complaint against Harvard.

The legal complaint was filed in 2014. Although lower courts filed in favor of Harvard, Blum persisted and appealed the case to the U.S. Supreme Court in 2020. The Justices deferred hearing the case, but asked the U.S. Solicitor General to give Biden administration's position and recommendation. The Solicitor General last November recommended that the Justices  reject Blum's appeal.

Of the 2,230 first-year students accepted at Harvard in the fall of 2021, 25.9% were Asian American; Blacks made up 15.9%; Latinos, 12.5%; Native American, 1.1%; Native Hawaiian, 0.5%. Whites made up about 45% of the class of 2025, still the largest ethnic group.

“Race continues to unfairly limit educational opportunities for students of color,” said. Niyati Shah, director of litigation for the group Asian Americans Advancing Justice, after the court announced its decision to accept the case. “Race-conscious admission policies provide the chance for the student to tell their whole story, inclusive of their race, ethnicity, and lived experiences, in addition to their academic achievements.

Shah added: "Asian Americans are being used as a wedge in these cases to try to dismantle race-conscious admissions policies, but the fact is 70% of Asian Americans support affirmative action. ... We reject the use of Asian Americans as proxies to attack the constitutionality of race-conscious programs. Race-conscious programs should not be conflated with racial quotas or other forms of unlawful discrimination.”

EDITOR'S NOTE: I was admitted to the University of California, Berkeley under the affirmative action program. For additional commentary, news and views from an AAPI perspective, follow me on Twitter @DioknoEd.

AANHPI communities have benefited in Year One of the Biden Presidency

WHITE HOUSE

President Biden and Vice President Harris met with leaders from the AANHPI communities.

A year ago this week, President Biden and Vice President Harris took office, facing a divided country, a global pandemic and an economy under severe stress. 

In just one year, the AANHPI communities have received an unprecedented amount of attention from any White House and have greatly benefited from the programs, policy decisions and appointments created by President Biden's leadership and awareness of issues and concerns facing the AANHPIs, including the wave of hate directed at the diverse communities of AANHPIs. 

The Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities recognized early on that this administration would be different and more responsive to their needs and concerns than other administrations with the selection of Kamala Harris as Vice President, who is of Black and Indian American heritage.

Starting in the first week and during the ensuing months, Biden's administration moved quickly to deliver results for the AANHPI communities and has kept women and families at the center of it's agenda.  

Although the AANHPI communities expressed disappointment and concern that no Cabinet Secretary is of AANHPI heritage, community leaders have been appeased and pleased with the appointment of top decision-makers have been appointed to key positions in the Biden government.

Biden-Harris administration advances equity, opportunities for AAPI

This list of senior officials includes United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai, Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Rohit Chopra, Surgeon General of the United States Vice Admiral Vivek Murthy, Chair of the Federal Trade Commission Lina Khan, Director of the Office of Personnel Management Kiran Ahuja, and Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy Rahul Gupta.

The President has also taken action to ensure diversity is emphasized throughout the administration: 15% of all agency appointees are AA and NHPI, far exceeding their 7% share of the total U.S. population.  In the White House itself, 17% of all staff and 26% of the President’s commissioned officer staff identify as AANHPI. 

Native Hawaiian leadership of the White House Initiative on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders. In May, President Biden appointed Krystal Ka’ai to serve as the Executive Director of the Initiative. Ka’ai is the first Native Hawaiian to serve as head of the WHIAANHPI.

Nominating AANHPIs to Federal judicial positions might be the best example of Biden's determination to make sure that the federal judiciary reflects the country's increasingly diverse population. 

The Biden-Harris Administration has nominated 16 AA and NHPI federal judicial nominees so far, which represents 18 percent of all federal judicial nominees. This includes several historic appointments, nine of whom have been confirmed by Congress, including:

• Lucy Haeran Koh (9th Cir.), the first Korean American woman to serve on any federal appeals court.

• Jennifer Sung (9th Cir.), the first Asian American judge from Oregon on the Ninth Circuit.

• Angel Kelley (D. Mass), who, at the time of her confirmation, was the second African American judge and the second Asian American judge actively serving on the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts.

• Zahid N. Quraishi (D.N.J.), the first ever Muslim American federal judge in the United States and the first Asian American judge in the District of New Jersey.

• Sarala Vidya Nagala (D. Conn.), who, at the time of her confirmation, was the only woman of South Asian descent on the District of Connecticut.

• Regina M. Rodriguez (D. Colo.), the first Asian American to serve as a district judge in the state.

• Florence Y. Pan (D.D.C.), the first Asian American woman on the district court for the District of Columbia.

• Tana Lin (W.D. Wash.), the first Asian American federal judge in the Western District of Washington, which is particularly notable since Asian Americans are the largest minority group in Seattle, comprising approximately 14% of the city’s population. Lin was born in Taiwan and immigrated to the United States at age 3.

• Shalina D. Kumar (E.D. Mich.), the first federal judge in Michigan of South Asian descent.

• John Chun (W.D. Wash.), who, if confirmed, would be the first Asian American man on the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington, and just the second Asian American federal judge to serve in the district.

• Jinsook Ohta (S.D. Cal.), who is the first Asian American woman to ever sit on the Southern District of California bench.

• Dale E. Ho (S.D.N.Y.), who, if confirmed, would be just the third Asian American federal judge on the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York and the only AA or NHPI man actively serving on that court.

• Cindy K. Chung (PA-W) was sworn in as the first Asian American person to serve as U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania.

• Robert Huie (S.D. Cal.), who, if confirmed, would be the third Asian American ever to serve on the Southern District of California.

• Judge Nina Wang (D. Colo.), who, immigrated from Taiwan as a child and, if confirmed, would be the second Asian American to serve on the United States District Court for the District of Colorado.

• Nusrat Choudhury (E.D.N.Y). who, if confirmed, would be the first Bangladeshi-American, the first Muslim American woman, and only the second Muslim-American person to serve as a federal judge.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AAPI perspective, follow me on Twitter @DioknoEd.

Wisconsin bill would require that AAPI history be taught in public schools

Wisconsin Representative Francesca Hong

Wisconsin may be the third state to mandate the teaching of Asian American history, culture and contributions to United States.

A bipartisan group of legislators introduced legislation to update the state’s statutory educational goals to require “at all grade levels, an understanding of human relations, particularly with regard to…Hmong Americans and American Pacific Islander Desi Americans (APIDA),” according to a press release from the office of State Rep. Francesca Hong, one of the bipartisan group of lawmakers who introduced Assembly Bill 381 last summer

“The stories and experiences of these vast and diverse demographics are intrinsically linked with the story of Wisconsin, and this bill will help us ensure that is reflected in our classrooms. Hmong American and APIDA lives, cultures, and contributions to our state, nation, and local communities deserve this attention, commemoration, and respect,” Hong said in a statement.

If approved, Wisconsin would join Illinois and New Jersey in requiring the inclusion of Asian American history in its public schools. Other states considering adding curriculum to include Asian American and Pacific Islander topics include Ohio, New York, Florida and Connecticut.

Wisconsin is home to one of the largest Hmong American communities, refugees fleeing Vietnam and Laos when the the U.S. military left Vietnam.

“Our Hmong American and Asian Pacific Islander Desi American neighbors enrich our state with their presence and culture,” added Sen. Eric Wimberger. “Their stories are uniquely American, but often unheard, and our students will certainly benefit from learning about their experiences.”

President says Kamala Harris will remain his Vice President if he runs for a second term

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have each other's back.

ANALYSIS

Despite the GOP media machine's attempts to sow seeds of discord among Democrats, President Biden hinted that he will run for President in 2024 and confirmed that Vice President Kamala Harris will remain by his side.

A reporter asked Biden if Vice President Kamala Harris would remain his running mate in 2024 when he runs for reelection, Biden said, "Yes, and yes."

When asked to elaborate, Biden responded, “There’s no need to.”

“She’s going to be my running mate, number one,” he said. “And number two, I did put her in charge. I think she’s doing a good job.”

Biden's remarks are contrary to attempts by conservative media such as Fox News, New York Post, the Wall Street Journal, the Sinclair Media Group and a host of other publications, radio and TV stations posing as neutral outlets, to create a schism between the two. (Sinclair is the owner of the largest number of TV stations in America.)

Like her male predecessors, as vice president Harris usually remains in the background working and advising the behind-the-scenes as the President takes the spotlight. However, the President has given Harris some of the most high profile and difficult assignments to seek policy solutions on voting rights, immigration and border security. Because of an apparent lack of progress on these issues (mainly due to GOP opposition), she has given  fodder to her Republican critics who see her as the Democrats' most likely successor to Biden in 2028, or in 2024 should Biden decide not to run for a second term.

As the media did with Hillary Clinton when she ran for President, the almost daily barrage of unflattering headlines from conservative media has sucked in other media outlets to follow with their own articles along the same negative vein. The GOP strategy it appears is repeat the lies often enough and people will begin to believe them to be true.

If his earlier remarks wasn't clear enough, he left know doubt about his support for his Vice President during a Democratic National Committee grassroots event Friday where  began his remarks by thanking Harris after she introduced him. 

"Hi, Kamala. I love you," Biden said. "You always have my back. You're really amazing. You're the best partner I could imagine." 

Biden's remarks are contrary to attempts by conservative media such as Fox News, New York Post, the Wall Street Journal, the Sinclair Media Group and a host of other publications, radio and TV stations, to create a schism between the two. Sinclair is the owner of the largest number of TV stations in America.

Biden's response when questioned about his plans for 2024 seems to indicate that he will go for a second term if: 1. the GOP pick Donald Trump as their candidate; 2. His health. In 2024 he'll be 83 years old, the oldest candidate to run for one of the world's most rigorous jobs and a campaign that will most likely be the most roughest and physically demanding that he'll face. 

The relentless attacks against Harris have had an effect. Harris poll numbers have gone down in the year the Biden administration has been in office and she was basking in her historical accomplishment for being the first Asian American and Black woman to be sworn in as Vice President.

After the new administration's honeymoon period and Americans finished patting itself on the back for its progress on racial equity as evidenced by Harris position as Vice President, the press' overall negative portrayal of Harris has had an effect. Her favorability rating now is lower than former Vice Presidents Mike Pence, Biden, Dick Cheney and Al Gore, according to Five Thirty-Eight,

Harris' poll numbers raises the question if she is being judged differently by the voters and the media than the aforementioned male VPs: as a woman and being a woman of color.

The traits most people associate with politicians — for example, competence, ambition, aggressiveness, confidence, toughness — are linked to masculine behavior, writes Five Thirty-Eight.  Numerous studies have found despite polls saying most voters would vote for women, subconsciously, people tend to believe men are often assumed to be viable candidates from the get-go, while women must work to be taken seriously. “Men have a leg up in politics because there’s a basic assumption that they’re qualified to run,” said Nichole Bauer, a professor at Louisiana State University who studies political psychology.

While the Democrats tout their accomplishments in their first year -- ie. infrastructure, record number of jobs, climate change and low unemployment -- the media seems to be following the lead of the right-wing media and seem to be more focused on what the Biden administration has not accomplished in the areas of voting rights, immigration, all of which were opposed by Republicans.

2024 is three years away, but the the GOP is already in campaign mode by undercutting the credibility and qualifications of Harris. Democrats are more worried -- as they should be --  about the midterms which could determine if Congress will determine if Biden's and Harris' will have the wins or roadblocks for the rest of their  term. Biden's latest statements indicate he and Harris will rise or fall together.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AAPI perspective, follow me on Twitter @DioknoEd.

U. of Pennsylvania professor's racist remarks stir up calls for her dismissal

SUN NGUYEN

University of Pennsylvania professor Amy Wax

Law professor Amy Wax is being rebuked by the University of Pennsylvania for anti-Asian racist remarks she made during an interview but that might not curb the calls for her immediate dismissal.

The dean of the University of Pennsylvania Carey School of Law said he would seek sanctions against tenured law professor Amy Wax over racist remarks she made about Asian Americans.

The UP professor said early this month that the U.S. is “better off with fewer Asians and less Asian immigration.” Dean Ted Ruger said in a statement Tuesday that he had received multiple complaints since 2017 citing Wax’s behavior as disruptive to students and the school community.

“Professor Amy Wax has repeatedly made derogatory public statements about the characteristics, attitudes, and abilities of a majority of those who study, teach, and work here,” Ruger wrote. “The complaints assert that it is impossible for students to take classes from her without a reasonable belief that they are being treated with discriminatory animus.”

However, the law school's action may not satisfy community groups and UP students who asked for Wax's dismissal.

In a letter delivered to Penn President Amy Gutmann and Ruger, OCA called for the university to take “appropriate steps” to “ensure her immediate removal.” While Penn has cited Wax’s tenured status in the past as reason for her continued employment, the nonprofit argued that “to allow her to hide behind [tenure] without any repercussions is simply unacceptable.” 

The full letter is available here.

“Penn Law has already acknowledged that Amy Wax’s xenophobic, racist views harm its Asian American students, faculty, and staff. Yet the school has offered little transparency around how students are being protected,” said Linda Ng, National President of OCA-Asian Pacific American Advocates. “It is stunning that in 2022, an openly white supremacist professor continues to teach at a prestigious American university, with the school claiming it is powerless to stop her.”

Ruger released a statement on the university’s website two weeks ago condemning Wax’s comments as “thoroughly anti-intellectual and racist.” A spokesperson for the university declined to comment further.

“At this time, as required by the University Handbook, and to preserve the integrity of the process, we will not make any public statements about the charges and proceedings until they have been completed,” the spokesperson said in a statement to NBC News.

Wax has a history of making increasingly bigoted remarks thinly disguised as academic speech, writing in a 2017 op-ed that “all cultures are not equal,” arguing without evidence in 2018 that Black law students “rarely” graduate at the top of their classes, and stating at a 2019 conference that the U.S. would be “better off with more whites and fewer nonwhites.”

In a December 2021 podcast, Wax stated: "As long as most Asians support Democrats and help to advance their positions, I think the United States is better off with fewer Asians and less Asian immigration.” Wax also baselessly claimed that people of South Asian descent “just love to bash America” and that Asian Americans possess “lack of thoughtful and audacious individualism.”

It was in an interview last month on the economist Glenn Loury’s website, Bloggingheads.tv, that Wax made her comments about Asians immigrating to the U.S.

“If you go into medical schools, you’ll see that Indians, South Asians are now rising stars. In medicine, they’re sort of the new Jews, I guess, but these diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives are poisoning the scientific establishment and the medical establishment now,” said Wax.

While Wax was barred from teaching mandatory first-year law courses in 2018, she is scheduled to teach at least two courses during the spring 2022 semester and reportedly retains a vote for faculty hiring. Neither the University of Pennsylvania nor Penn Law have indicated that she will face further, meaningful disciplinary action—raising questions of whether students are being adequately protected.

"Free speech should no doubt be protected in all settings in America, and vigorous debate that stems from opposing viewpoints is the lifeblood of the academic experience," said Norman Chen, Chief Executive Officer of The Asian American Foundation. "But academic institutions should not be havens for hate. Dean Ruger was right when he said this week that Professor Wax’s comments were ‘anti-intellectual,’ ‘racist,’ and ‘denigrating.’ "

New opera based on 100-year old diary of Filipina American girl

The San Francisco Girls Chorus

An opera based on the diary of an 11-year old Filipina immigrant will have its world premiere this summer.

Angeles Monrayo began writing her diary in 1924 after she immigrated to the United States because, “I would like to read about me — what everyday things happen to me — when I am an old woman,” she writes.

The diary, “Tomorrow’s Memories: A Little Manila Diary,” is the inspiration of a newly commissioned choral-opera by Matthew Welch to be performed by the San Francisco Girls Chorus June 22-25 this year.

The world premiere of the first Filipino American opera will debut at the Magic Theatre. Forty singers and soloists, ages 14 to 18, will tell and sing to bring Angeles' story to life. Featured guest artists for this program include stage director Sean San José, guitarist Florante Aguilar, violinist Patti Kilroy and percussionist Levy Lorenzo.

The music will employ elements of kundiman, the Filipino tradition of love songs, and other Filipino songs sung in Tagalog.

Angeles' story was edited by her daughter Rizaline Raymundo and published by the University of Hawai’i Press in 2003. The diary begins with her life in a Hawaiian intervention camp and continues as she moves to California. 

The diary tells with the joys and sorrows of a young girl growing up in a migrant family in the 1920s and the poverty and racism immigrants experience while trying to adjust to life in the U.S. and the role Filipino Americans had in the history of the U.S.

In the months leading up to the premiere of Tomorrow’s Memories, group discussions led by a variety of historians and community members about topics relating to Filipino heritage, immigration, music history, and more will be held. 

All sessions are free and depending on the event, will be held in-person or online.  It is recommended, but not mandatory, for attendees to puruchTomorrow’s Memories  at Arkipelago Books, here at University of Hawai’i Press or here on Amazon.

The first of five planned events will be held 11 a.m. Sunday, (Jan. 23) at Kapwa Gardens, 967 Mission St. in San Francisco's Filipino Heritage District. Speakers include Lily Ann Bolo Villaraza, PhD, Department Chair, Philippine Studies History Professor, Fides Enriquez and Joanne Boston.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AAPI perspective, follow me on Twitter @DioknoEd.

China Initiative: US drops charges against a Chinese American MIT professor

MIT

Charges against MIT professor Gang Chen have been dropped.

In a sign that the controversial China Initiative may be on its last legs, US prosecutors dropped charges against Gang Chen, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor who has been accused of hiding his ties to China in federal research grant applications.

The indictment against Chen, a Chinese-born mechanical engineer and expert in nanotechnology, is one of several that have been brought under the  China Initiative, which was launched during the Trump administration but, according its critics, has resulted in racial profiling of Chinese and Chinese American academics and researchers.

AAPI community groups, political leaders, scientists and researchers have called for the end of the program.

“The China Initiative has had chilling effects on U.S. academic research and unjustly targeted Chinese American researchers through racial profiling,” said Zhengyu Huang, President of Committee of 100. “The China Initiative has ruined the lives of innocent Americans and hurts America’s ability to lead in scientific research and innovation. Even when cases are dismissed, many Chinese and Asian Americans have their lives, careers, and health greatly affected."

Many of the cases against Chinese researchers working for US companies or teaching at college campuses involve errors made in the convoluted process in applying for federal grant applications.

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) released guidance Jan. 14 to all federal agencies on updating the federal grant application process to create a uniform grant application across the federal government.

These grant applications frequently require disclosures about ties to foreign governments, but the lack of uniformity and clarity of procedures for completing these applications has resulted in researchers inadvertently making errors.

Chen had pleaded not guilty to the allegations, while MIT indicated that the funding in question -- $25 million -- was for the university, rather than for Chen personally.

“The China Initiative, launched by the Trump administration, is supposed to help stop espionage, but instead it has simply been an exercise in racial profiling, with just one conviction from over 150 defendants and at least 77 cases.," said Rep. Judy Chu, D-CA. "In fact, instead of finding evidence of espionage, most of the investigations under the China Initiative have been based on discrepancies in grant applications."

The threat of espionage is a real one that the government must remain vigilant against. But because the China Initiative prioritizes indictments of people with Chinese ancestry, what are often just paperwork mistakes are instead being used to ruin careers and lives.

Members of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) met with Department of Justice’s Assistant Attorney General Matt Olsen Wednesday, to express CAPAC’s concerns about the China Initiative, which is under review by the Department. 

“CAPAC has long been calling for an end to the China Initiative, a Department of Justice program that began in the previous Administration, said Chu, CAPAC chair. "In the meeting, CAPAC members expressed their views that this initiative has fallen far short of its stated goal of addressing economic espionage, and has instead resulted in numerous false accusations against Chinese researchers and scientists based on their ethnicity."

Committee of 100 president Huang stated: "We support and sympathies go to Professor Chen and his family as they work to rebuild their lives. Committee of 100 supports the protection of our national security, but not at the expense of our cherished civil liberties. For too long, Chinese Americans and the AAPI community have been seen as the perpetual foreigner – strangers in our own homeland. Today, we are all Gang Chen and stand united.”

EDITOR'S NOTE: This is a developing story. Check back later for any updates. For additional commentary, news and views from an AAPI perspective, follow me on Twitter @DioknoEd.