Ark Chin, noted architect and philanthropist, passed away on November 13, at the age of 87. For those who knew him, his life was marked by countless examples of charity and benevolence, in addition to his impressive personal accomplishments. “Ark was a person of integrity, principle, and sincerity. He was a leader, a farsighted visionary,” [...]
A new Japanese confectionary shop called Umai-do (which means “delicious way”) opened on South Jackson Street in the International District recently. The store, owned and operated by Arthur Oki, will feature both baked and steamed confectionary treats called “wagashi,” each handmade daily by Oki himself. This new venture for the retired accountant is more than [...]
Explore the culinary traditions of Asian Pacific Islanders in the newly opened food exhibit at the Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American Experience. Entitled “From Fields to Family,” the exhibit investigates the process of food-making in the API community, from growing and gathering ingredients in the field to preparing the food for consumption. [...]
For Nari Baker, the process of putting together her exhibit “Talking to Ghosts: Waiting in River Between Worlds” was as much a journey of discovery as it was for the participants she interviewed. Featured at Jack Straws New Media Gallery, the exhibit presents eleven adopted Korean Americans, including Baker herself, addressing their birth parents in [...]
Claire Suguro – Tough Love “We had a lot of Asians during that time, but all the teachers were white,” says Cheryl Chow, a former student of Claire Suguro, who was the first Japanese American teacher for the Seattle School District. Chow, now the assistant director of outreach at the Girl Scouts of [...]
Many people look back on their first jobs with a mixture of longing and nostalgia. After all, your first job is where you learned basic values such as responsibility, hard work, and respecting your boss. But many of these entry-level jobs also carry a stigma: employees who work in movie theaters, fast food restaurants, and [...]
Even though male Asian Pacific Islander American teachers are a relative rarity, both in terms of ethnicity and gender, many in the Seattle area find their identity and experience as minorities allow them to relate to diverse students, including those who come from disadvantaged backgrounds. IE had a chance to talk with two teachers, Garrett [...]
Ellen Suzuki – IE Business Manager – Incarcerated during WWII didn’t stop her family’s dream. As Asian Pacific Islanders living in the United States, we have all asked questions relating to our immigrant past: how did we get here? What is our relationship to the motherland? And more importantly, how do we make sense of [...]
A new film about the 1982 killing of Vincent Chin aims to preserve the memory of the tragedy to a new generation of APIs. The film, “Vincent Who?”, commemorates a murder that galvanized the API civil rights movement, but as its title suggests, inquires into the case’s lack of awareness within the community.
My mother remembers it clearly.
I was unconscious at the time, so I cannot recall the details of what happened. I only remember the point of impact as my body collided with the car, a hellish scream emanating from my throat as I faced certain death. Then, according to my mother, my body flew about fifteen feet into the air, only to be hit by four more cars on the way down.
The Vietnamese American community in Seattle is becoming increasingly stigmatized as more Vietnamese American marijuana growers are busted for their involvement in the growth and trafficking of marijuana in the Pacific Northwest. The publicity comes on the heels of numerous drug busts. In one investigation, organized by the South Snohomish County Narcotics Task Force, along [...]
Go back in time about 125 years ago. It’s between 1885 – 1886 in the Puget Sound region. In Tacoma, Seattle, and Bellingham, white “native” rioters force Chinese immigrants to flee their homes because of competition for jobs and the economic downturn. Chinese immigrants suffered discrimination on an unprecedented scale that engulfed the entire region. In Bellingham, media and civic leaders gave the Chinese a deadline of November 1, 1885 to permanently leave the area. The reason for the expulsion, which has relevance in today’s economic and anti-immigration climate: the Chinese immigrants were perceived to be taking away jobs from the majority. In an effort to preserve the economic supremacy of the majority in the region, white leaders organized an all-encompassing plan to rid the area of Chinese immigrants. The exact number of Chinese expelled is unknown, but it is estimated that 200 Chinese in Seattle (a significant number in the region during that time) were forced to leave on ships bound for China, leaving 150 Chinese immigrants stranded in the area.
Over the years, technology has become an important part of young people’s lives. From text messaging on cell phones to communicating via Facebook, young people now have many ways to find entertainment and engage with others on the internet. As technology becomes increasingly present in children’s lives, however, questions arise regarding the effects of technology [...]
There are approximately fifty thousand households in the United States who do not use banks. Many of these unbanked households are comprised of low-income, minority families that see no need to open a bank account. The reasons these households are hesitant to use banks are many, but several studies have been conducted by financial institutions [...]
On December 31, 2007, Seattle Parks bought property adjacent to Hing Hay Park to expand the current .33 acre park to .64 acres. The acquisition was made as a result of the Parks and Green Spaces Levy that was approved by voters in 2008. As part of an effort to “greenify” the neighborhoods in and [...]
If you are, like me, a relative newcomer to science writing, then you may find Carol Kaesuk Yoon’s “Naming Nature” the perfect introduction to a genre that may at first seem suited for those more scientifically minded. Far from esoteric, Yoon makes accessible the highly technical nature of her subject matter by focusing squarely on [...]
To better inform the public about crimes being committed in Seattle, the city and the Seattle Police Department released in June an online interactive crime map that details the types of crimes being committed in neighborhoods in and around Seattle. The SPD and the city created the map as part of an effort to raise [...]
From July 20 – 26, the Wing Luke Museum will host an interstate trip that will explore Chinese American history first-hand as experienced by the pioneering Chinese immigrants in the American West. The time periods covered in the tour will span from the mid-1800s to the early 1900s. Starting in Seattle, where a pre-event dinner [...]
Korea is no stranger to traumatic events. From Mongol subjugation during the Koryo Dynasty to cultural genocide by the Japanese in the twentieth century, Korea has experienced horrors that have affected people long after the traumas have passed. So pervasive have these traumas been that a word has been coined to describe the emotional turmoil [...]
On April 17, 2010, a freelance photographer captured on videotape a scene in which Seattle police officers beat and stomped on a Hispanic man, who had supposedly participated in an armed robbery that had occurred earlier that night. In the video, police officers can be heard shouting racial epithets at the Latino man as he [...]
Despite the city’s predictions that light rail would benefit the local economy, Asian-owned businesses have keenly felt the unexpected negative consequences of light rail. Especially for the Vietnamese community, business owners have had to endure a slew of difficulties, resulting in a decline of business by thirty percent in some areas. The city approved construction [...]
Not many people would consider farming a typical profession for contemporary Asian Pacific Islanders living in the Northwest, yet there is a rich history behind API farmers extending back to the nineteenth century, when the first wave of API immigrants began farming in Seattle and surrounding communities. Especially on Bainbridge Island, an increasing number of [...]
The next performance of Pork Filled Players, an Asian Pacific Islander comedy troupe, is more sizzlin’ than fresh bacon on a frying pan. With subjects ranging from stereotypes of Asian Pacific Islanders to the absurdity of heterosexual norms, the show will feature skits that are themed around pulp movies of the past. Even though the [...]
When Antonette Mantanona first heard that her daughter, Kinescia, suffered from Ebstyne’s anomaly, a congenital cardiovascular defect that affects the heart, the mother was both shocked and fearful. “When they told me that replacing her valves was no longer an option and she needed a heart transplant, I feared for her. I was in denial,” [...]
For some Asian Pacific Islanders, it might be surprising to find out the prevalence of Hepatitis B Virus among the API population in the United States. With approximately five to fifteen percent of Asian immigrants diagnosed with HBV (compared to .05 percent for Caucasians), the disease has impacted the API community in multiple ways, the [...]
On March 15, 2009, Alonso Chehade, an undocumented immigrant from Peru, was arrested at the US/Canada border for unlawful presence in the United States. After remaining in the detention center for two weeks, Chehade was later released with the assistance of his family, who posted a $7,500 bond to free him from prison. For undocumented [...]
