"What do you mean you don't vote? How can you not vote?" - NAM EthnoBlog

We came up over the rise as the highway curved and my breath caught in my throat. The Washington Monument. The Jefferson Memorial. So beautiful and serene in the morning mist.

My uncle was driving me into Washington DC for the day, and I suddenly realized that I have not been here since I was a child. I quickly flashed through my memory of our family photo albums and I recalled that photo of me and my cousins and aunties standing on the steps of the National Zoo after seeing the pandas. My brother was in a stroller, so I must have been nine, at most ten. “I don’t think I’ve been here since that last family reunion in 19-when-was-it?” Could it be? My uncle and I flipped through our collective memories of family reunions past. We recalled another family reunion for my grandparents’ 50th wedding anniversary, but that was in suburban Maryland, so we never went into the city.

But Washington always seems so present; like the cousin you never see but whose mom constantly keeps you up-to-date.

click on link for whole article: "What do you mean you don't vote? How can you not vote?" - NAM EthnoBlog

"We're a Culture not a Costume" campaign by Ohio University's Students Teaching Against Racism in Society (STARS)

Remember last year's great "We're a Culture not a Costume" poster campaign by Ohio University's Students Teaching Against Racism in Society (STARS)? They're back! This year's message: "You wear the costume for one night. I wear the stigma for life." Six powerful new posters. http://www.ohio.edu/orgs/stars/Poster_Campaign.html

Poster Campaign

Chicago is the World » “What do you mean you don’t vote? How can you not vote?”

idealistic musings, washington adventure stories, shoutouts to get out the vote folks:

We came up over the rise as the highway curved and my breath caught in my throat. The Washington Monument. The Jefferson Memorial. So beautiful and serene in the morning mist.

My uncle was driving me into Washington DC for the day, and I suddenly realized that I have not been here since I was a child. I quickly flashed through my memory of our family photo albums and I recalled that photo of me and my cousins and aunties standing on the steps of the National Zoo after seeing the pandas. My brother was in a stroller, so I must have been nine, at most ten. “I don’t think I’ve been here since that last family reunion in 19-when-was-it?” Could it be? My uncle and I flipped through our collective memories of family reunions past. We recalled another family reunion for my grandparents’ 50th wedding anniversary, but that was in suburban Maryland, so we never went into the city.

But Washington always seems so present; like the cousin you never see but whose mom constantly keeps you up-to-date.

click link for whole article: Chicago is the World » “What do you mean you don’t vote? How can you not vote?”

Events - Asian & Pacific Islander American Vote - Michigan

APIAVote-Michigan event today: A Community on the Rise: Asian Pacific Islander Americans in Metro Detroit Today Friday October 12 2:30-5:00 pm. Keith Center for Civil Rights, Wayne State Law School

Events - Asian & Pacific Islander American Vote - Michigan

On Pvt. Danny Chen on Huff Post Live

thanks to the inimitable Jen Wang, I was able to take part in a panel discussion on HuffPost Live today (between cello/piano lessons and crew practice) on the Pvt. Danny Chen case with OCA-NY's Liz Ouyang and teen blogger @ErrieWirriams (both of whom are really great here). http://live.huffingtonpost.com/r/segment/504fdccc78c90a6f4000029b

Chicago is the World » Mooncakes and Yo-Yos

Getting ready for the moonfestival this Sunday with mooncakes and YoYos at Chicago is the World:

We were going to have an moonlit picnic at the park — teriyaki chicken musubi, steamed little dragon buns, a thermos of hot jasmine tea, and of course, plenty of mooncakes. Thirteen-year-old Hao Hao had already written up a grocery list (which suspiciously includes “Pocky — 1,000,000 boxes”). We had four pink and green paper lanterns and candles from Vietnam, one for each of the kids. It was going to be a rare Saturday night with everyone together, just to sit and eat as a family and look at the beautiful full moon, the Harvest Moon, while composing a poem or two for the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival (basically, Chinese/Vietnamese/Korean Thanksgiving or Oktoberfest … but without the beer).

But then rain was forecast.

click on link for whole article: Chicago is the World » Mooncakes and Yo-Yos

2012 Advancing Justice Conference "The Vincent Chin case: Made in Michigan."

2012 Advancing Justice Conference Screening of "Vincent Who?" followed by discussion with Michigan AAPI leaders, moderated by Curtis Chin, Friday 11:30-1:00

Working lunch warm up to the afternoon’s plenary session. Get up to speed on the details of the Vincent Chin case from American Citizens for Justice and the folks who were there at the time. Why did the Vincent Chin case happen in Michigan? What legal changes have occurred because of the case? What are the lessons learned, especially regarding media and coalition building? What are the demographics and changing identity of the Michigan AAPI community, then and now? What are the unique challenges of being AAPI in Michigan today? What are Michigan AAPI leaders doing today? Focus on Michigan. Detroit. Local. Autos. Then. And Now.

Remembering Vincent Chin: "The Vincent Chin case: Made in Michigan." Advancing Justice 2012 Conference Vincent Who? Screening