Episode 35: Season 2 & 3 Recap

Can’t believe we are near the end of 2020 and have finished 34 amazing episodes of @somedayisherepodcast! We had so many incredible guests this year. 

Here are just a few highlights:

• Our #sihliveevent episode with Season 1 and 2 guests (Episode 16)

• @jocekittyllama, the fabulous creator of our SIH logo shared the meaning behind the colors and symbols. She read an original poem, “I Am From”, that captures her story of being Tawainese American (Episode 34)

• From @AngieHong we learned the term “double consciousness” (Episode 19) 

• After a viral interview with the Washington Post, Eugene Cho joined us for a special edition episode on Covid-19 called “I Am Not A Virus” 

• In Episode 31, @Christineyisuh shared a family story about her great-aunt and their escape from North Korea, an excerpt from her upcoming book.

• We heard two transracial adoptee stories with @lizkleinrock (Episode 18) and @sandhyaoaks (Episode 30)

• In a rich conversation with our first Samoan guest, @etautolo, we discussed the overlap and tensions that exist with Pacific Islanders being part of AAPI (Episode 32) 

I have loved each and every conversation. I have learned so much and am so grateful for all our guests sharing their stories with us. If you haven’t had a chance, now is a great time to catch up on the episodes you may have missed. A big THANK YOU to all of you for your enthusiasm and support. Thank you for all your ratings, reviews and for sharing this podcast on social media with your friends and family. We are so excited for 2021 and Season 4!

Episode 34 w/ Nikole Lim

What a powerful and insightful conversation with Nikole Lim this week. Nikole is not only the founder and director of Freely in Hope, a nonprofit organization working in Kenya and Zambia, she is also an author, educator, advocate, photographer, and passionate leader. We talk about the importance of language and the difference between a victim of sexual violence and a survivor. We discuss the need for Asian Americans to know and name our emotions in order to heal. And how we need to own and tell our stories in order to offer the unique perspectives we bring as AAPI women. This conversation is loaded with important information so you may want to listen with a pen in hand to take notes.

Learn More About NIKOLE

Instagram: @nikole_lim
Twitter: @nikole_lim
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nikolelim

Nikole Lim is a speaker, educator, and consultant on leveraging dignity through the restorative art of storytelling. She is the founder and international director of Freely In Hope, a nonprofit organization dedicated to equip survivors and advocates to lead in ending sexual violence through holistic education, leadership development, and storytelling platforms. Nikole has been deeply transformed by the powerful, tenacious, and awe-inspiring examples of survivors. Their audacious dreams have informed her philosophy for a survivor-led approach to community transformation. Nikole graduated with a degree in Film Production from Loyola Marymount University and is currently pursuing a masters in Global Leadership from Fuller Theological Seminary. She is a native of the Bay Area and can often be found buying African fabric on the streets of Nairobi. Her vision is to equip survivors and advocates to lead in ending the cycle of sexual violence—believing that they will be the ones to bring us all into liberation. In it, her hope is that the world may be transformed by them—just as she has.

Favorite Comfort Food

• Xiao Long Bao

Leadership Lesson

• Leadership is meant to be given away. In advocacy, if we’re leading we’re actually championing the dreams of other people. So what survivors taught me was sharing your story is the first step to healing.

DID YOU KNOW?

This episode’s Did You Know may be triggering for some as it contains information related to sexual violence. Please be advised and aware of resources that may be of help to you. 

Did you know that there are memorial statues of the Comfort Women all over the world, including different parts of the United States? A couple of them are located here in California (where I’m recording this podcast), both in San Francisco and Glendale. To give some background, Comfort Women were women and children forced into sex slavery by the Japanese empire in the 1930s and through World War II. Most of these 400,000 women and children were of Korean descent and were either recruited under false advertising or violently removed and then forced to live and work in horrible, unfathomable conditions. These women lived and worked in “comfort stations,” which were sponsored by the Japanese government and were horrendous rape camps. These camps were supposed to raise the morale of Japanese soldiers as a “strategy of war” and to ironically keep them from hurting other women (CWJC). While the war eventually ended, the practice of violently using women for imperialistic gain did not. And while these comfort stations may no longer be standing, the immense pain carries on for generations. To this day there are protests and demands for redress and reparations against the Japanese government. In 2015, they agreed to pay 1 billion yen (approximately $8.3 million dollars) to support surviving comfort women, but it was unclear that the money would go directly to survivors. Activists, including survivors, demanded more––they demanded sincere apologies for the stripping of their basic human rights. They also advocated and pushed for the history of Comfort Women to be taught in schools, including U.S. schools, in hopes to keep history from repeating itself and to bring awareness to the ways in which trafficking is still rampant today. In the past few years, the Japanese government entities have continued to sever ties with various locations that have installed memorials, including Osaka’s “sister city” San Francisco. In California, organizations such as Nikkei for Civil Rights and Redress (NCRR) and the Comfort Women Justice Coalition amongst others have continued to fight for the remembrance of these stories, for the inherent dignity and strength these women had, and for the strength of these survivors, as well as those who have passed. They fight to keep memorials standing and for fair reparations to be paid for the years of pain and suffering these women endured. 

Episode 33 w/ Sandhya Oaks

“Defiant hope kept me alive.” Such a powerful, moving, and informative conversation about transracial adoption this week with the amazing Sandhya. November is #nationaladoptionmonth. So often the story of adoption is told from the viewpoint of the adoptive parents. Today we hear from the perspective of a South Asian adoptee. Sandhya covers so many important topics about growing up as the only person of color in her community and the journey of discovery from self-contempt to establishing a healthy identity formation in the midst of complexity. We talk about hurtful words and phrases asked of adoptees and helpful tips and resources for transracial adoptees. You won’t want to miss this incredible episode. Tag your friends and share this episode with people from each corner of the Adoption Triad: adoptee, birth mothers/first mothers, and adoptive parents. 

LEARN MORE ABOUT SANDHYA

Instagram: @sandhyaoaks
Sandhya’s Ted Talk
Restoration Counseling: Sandhya Oaks
Sandhya’s Post on Adopt and Mental Health

Other resources mentioned by Sandhya:

• The Adoption Triad

• Attatchments by Dr. Tim Clinton

• All I Could Ever Know by Nicole Chung

Sandhya Oaks is a passionate speaker, advocate, writer and reconciliation leader. Born in India, and adopted as a Transracial Adoptee in Wisconsin. Sandhya has been on staff with Cru for 12 years and also serves with the Lenses Institute. She holds a Certificate in Resilient Service and is pursuing a certificate in Narrative Focused Trauma Care through the Allender Center. She is also the Co-Founder of The Adoption Triad, a social media platform to connect, teach, and resource individuals whose lives have been touched by adoption and foster care. Sandhya is fiercely committed to: developing the next generation of leaders through campus ministry, learning and teaching about cultural identity and walking with people in the pursuit of freedom and healing. In her free time Sandhya loves to go camping, sip coffee with friends and create tasty charcuterie boards.

FAVORITE COMFORT FOOD

• Tandoori Chicken and Turmeric rice

LEADERSHIP LESSON

To be resilient as a leader we need rest. We need nourishment. We need care in the context of relationship in order to increase our resilience.

•  When I’m tired and or when I’m weary asking these questions:

  • “Have I honestly allowed myself to be cared for by other people? Have I given myself the opportunities to be nourished through my senses? Have I leaned into places of relationship and just inviting people to walk with me? If not, then that might be an indication of why I’m tired and why I’m weary. 

•  Curiosity can dismantle stress. But I have learned that if you can entertain and engage the pain with curiosity, it can actually dismantle some of the stress that comes with it.

DID YOU KNOW?

Context is Everything

Did you know the beginnings of transracial and transnational adoption in the United States are relatively recent? According to Ethnic Studies Professor Catherine Ceniza Choy, transracial adoption began in the 1950s and has intimate connections with World War II and the Cold War (1). Mixed-race children, produced by Japanese or Korean women and U.S. servicemen, were often looked down upon in Japanese and Korean societies for several reasons: 1) many were conceived out of wedlock, 2) they had apparent phenotypic differences, and 3) because they manifested the unequal power dynamics between the occupied and occupying countries (2). Choy argues that “although an American military presence in Japan and Korea was responsible for these children’s births, the U.S. government bore no official responsibility for the children’s or their mothers’ welfare. (3)” The mothers, often in impoverished situations with no aid and doing the best they could for their babies, believed that the best option would be adoption. Thus, the beginning of transracial and transnational adoptions by White Americans through nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) began. Another aspect that made these adoptions complicated was the negative and backward portrayal of Asian countries in the media, especially during times of war (4). Because of these portrayals, adoptions by 1950s U.S. NGOs were masked with humanitarianism and a savior complex, when more often than not, there were multiple parties to blame for the large influx of adoptable children. Many of these NGOs also did not screen their White parental applicants, thus often putting these children in traumatic and dangerous situations. While transracial and transnational adoptions have made improvements since its start and more resources have been made available, it is important to understand how the complicated history of these adoptions continue to affect adoptees to this day. 

Works Cited

Choy, Catherine Ceniza. “A History of Asian International Adoption in Amerca.” In Global Families, 15-46. New York: New York University Press, 2013. https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt9qfj0j.6 

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1. Catherine Ceniza Choy, “A History of Asian International Adoption in America,” in Global Families (New York: New York University Press, 2013), 15, https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt9qfj0j.6

2. Ibid, 15.

3. Ibid, 16.

4. Ibid, 27.
   
   
   

Episode 32 w/ Emma Tautolo

This week on the @somedayisherepodcast we have our first Pacific Islander woman leader, the incredible @etautolo! Emma is a leader I deeply respect. We dive into the challenges and tension of Pacific Islanders being lumped into the Asian American category, as well as the overlap we share. The episode is loaded with helpful insights and history on Polynesian and Samoan culture and practical leadership lessons. I thoroughly enjoyed this refreshing conversation and I know you will, too. Tag your friends and invite them to listen along.

LEARN MORE ABOUT EMMA

Instagram: @etautolo
Lenses Institute: http://lensesinstitute.com

Emma Tautolo is a Southern California native who loves the ocean, pit bulls, and 90’s-00’s R&B. She got involved with a sports ministry called Athletes in Action (AIA) as a student-athlete at UCLA and has been serving on staff with AIA for 10 years now - the last 7 of those years in Arizona at Arizona State University and most recently as regional director in the Pacific Southwest giving leadership to Arizona, California and Hawaii. She serves as a ministry resident at Redemption Church Tempe where she just loves participating in the life of the local Church and is also an executive leader with the Lenses Institute (LensesInstitute.com), a development platform that equips the people of God to fight for oneness by influencing the way Christian leaders see, understand and act in our ethnically and culturally diverse world. Emma is currently pursuing a masters degree in Missional Theology through Covenant Seminary’s Missional Training Center.

FAVORITE COMFORT FOOD

• Spam Musubi

• Fa’i (Samoan green banana side dish)

LEADERSHIP LESSON

“What I learned about leadership is that it can’t be done alone. It has to be done communally. I think the way I just see leadership is it is just communal. I love shared leadership.”

“Proximity helps you make wise decisions. Proximity helps you feel what the people you are leading feel. We can’t lead well without (it).”

DID YOU KNOW?

Disaggregate the Data!!! 

Did you know that in the 2000 U.S. Census, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders were recognized by the government as two different racial identities? Previously identified in the Census as Asian Pacific Americans, these two communities are now recognized as having very different and complex histories that at times have intertwined. And yet, they are still often conflated to this day. While there is value in bunching these communities for solidarity purposes––as seen in institutions such Ethnic Studies Programs at universities and non-profits, or to address issues of violence and poverty––there are also serious complications that must be taken into consideration.

First, data must be disaggregated. Not only is it dangerous, harmful, and inaccurate to create a narrative that supports a homogenous Asian American community as the model minority, it does not account for the vast amount of Asian American communities who are living all over the socioeconomic spectrum, and especially those who are living under the poverty line. Even more so, to also include Pacific Islander data as homogenous with Asian American, it erases the unique histories and the specific issues that are prevalent within Pacific Islander communities, while creating unrealistic expectations for both Pacific Islanders and Asian Americans. This issue tangibly manifests when these already underserved communities are not provided any or cannot afford the resources to get them out of their situations.

Secondly, what complicates this matter even more so is that in many places, such as Hawai`i, Asian Americans are actually seen as settler colonialists, meaning they have not only displaced indigenous people from their land, but contributed to the loss of indigenous language, history, and practices. It is important that Asian Americans also recognize the ways in which they have oppressed others.

The question is how do we advocate for and become allies to Pacific Islander communities as Asian Americans? How do we not only make space for them at the table, but how do we show with our actions that their histories matter to us? This is especially important in an increasingly globalized world where we are, more often than not, are interconnected with one another.

Resources

The Wedge: Samoans for Black Lives

"How data disaggregation matters for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders" by Christian Edlagan and Kavya Vaghul

“Invisibility is an unnatural disaster”: Why funding the 2020 Census matters for Pacific Islanders by Charmaine Runes 

"Who Gets To Be 'Hapa'? : Code Switch" by Akemi Johnson 

Book Recommendations:

• “Transoceanic Flows: Pacific Islander Interventions across the American Empire” | AMERASIA JOURNAL

• Asian Settler Colonialism: From Local Governance to the Habits of Everyday Life in Hawaii by Candace Fujikane and Jonathan Y. Okamura 

Episode 31 w/ Christine Yi Suh

This episode with @christineyisuh is packed with so much fire and heart. Christine is a leader to know and follow. Her writing is full of substance, empathy, and passion. You’ll be moved by an excerpt from her upcoming book about her great aunt escaping North Korea. We cover so many important topics: the model minority myth, the importance of knowing our history, shining and shrinking, and so much more. The future is bright because of leaders like Christine! Can’t wait for you to listen to our conversation!

LEARN MORE ABOUT CHRISTINE

Instagram: @christineyisuh

Christine Yi Suh is a writer, pastor, spiritual director, and creative. She is the former Pastor of Spiritual Formation at Fellowship Church in Monrovia, CA where she oversaw soul care initiatives, discipleship curriculum and facilitated racial reconciliation workshops. Prior to her role, she was the Assistant Director of Spiritual Formation and Care at Pepperdine University, where she provided oversight for the Spiritual Life Advisor program for six years. She received her M.A. in Theology from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in 2010, her B.A. in Intercultural Communication from Pepperdine University, and is a graduate of the Renovare Institute for Christian Spiritual Formation. Her forthcoming book, Forty Days on Being a Four releases with Intervarsity Press in Fall 2021 and explores the intersection of her Asian American ethnic identity, womanhood, activism, and faith formation in light of being an Enneagram Four. She and her spouse David have been married for ten years and live outside Los Angeles with their two young children Sammy and Ellie.

FAVORITE COMFORT FOOD

Naengmyeon (Korean cold noodles)

LEADERSHIP LESSON

“I want to instill a sense of pride within my children. Their voice matters. Their story matters and that their story isn’t compartmentalized” outside of me, Dave, their grandparents, their great-grandparents; but that their story spans legacies and generations of history of our people being resilient and our people overcoming. Yes, we experienced oppression, but we have moved forward.”

“I want them to know the hardship that my family has experienced. Not just my family, but also the Korean community. Not just the Korean community, but the broader Asian community.”

DID YOU KNOW?

Sisterhood as Resistance

Did you know that created communities of Korean American military brides can be seen as a form of resistance? Between 1950 and 1989, 90,000 Korean women entered the United States as U.S. military brides, representing 13% of Korean immigrants between that time. (1) In an essay written by historian Ji-Yeon Yuh of Northwestern University, she argues that the communities of Korean military brides formed during this time experienced a “complex struggle for survival” in which she characterizes as “everyday resistance.” (2) Yuh defnes everyday resistance as a means of resistance “that is woven into the fabric of daily life, often covert, usually subtle, and rarely identified as resistance.” (3) For the communities of Korean military brides, this looked like navigating the tension between understanding a new family, culture, and society, the pressure to Americanize, dealing with pre-existing notions within the Korean immigrant community of military brides, and maintaining a sense of self affirmation. (4) It was in these created spaces of sisterhood where they were allowed to freely express themselves through language and support one another, while maintaining a sense of truth to oneself. What made these communities extensive and even global was their ability to maintain connections, thus allowing for their networks to overlap as they took care of each other wherever they went. They were able to find each other jobs, exchange imitation recipes, and connect each other to churches or friend groups because of personal ties and mutual friendships (5). There is much to learn and glean from these Korean American communities of women who leaned on each other not only as a form of support in spaces that were not built to serve immigrant women like themselves, but as a form of everyday resistance. Their existence and ability to thrive became their resistance. May we continue to form bonds of sisterhood! 

Works Cited

Yuh, Ji-Yeon. “Imagined Community: Sisterhood and Resistance among Korean Military Brides in America, 1950-1996.” In Asian/Pacific Islander American Women: A Historical Anthology, edited by Shirley Hune and Gail M. Nomura, 221-236. New York: New York University Press, 2003. 

Resources

More Works by Ji-Yeon Yuh 

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1. Ji-Yeon Yuh, “Imagined Community: Sisterhood and Resistance among Korean Military Brides in America, 1950-1996,” in Asian/Pacific Islander American Women: A Historical Anthology, eds. Shirley Hune and Gail M. Nomura (New York: New York University Press, 2003), 222.

2. Ibid, 221.

3. Ibid, 221.

4. Ibid, 221.

5. Ibid, 226.

Episode 30 w/ Nancy Wang Yuen

You’re going to love this conversation with @nancywyuen, author of “Reel Inequality: Hollywood Actors and Racism,” sociologist, and pop culture expert. We cover so many important and helpful topics: what it means to be 1.5, the use of identifying as Asian American, #oscarssowhite, the importance of role models, practical components and steps for organizations seeking to make true change, #representationmatters, and so much more. Nancy is a brilliant thinker and communicator and a great leader worth following. Can’t wait for you to listen to this episode!

LEARN MORE ABOUT NANCY

Instagram: @nancywyuen
Twitter: @nancywyuen

Nancy Wang Yuen is a sociologist and pop culture expert. She is the author of 'Reel Inequality: Hollywood Actors and Racism' and co-author of 'Tokens on the Small Screen: Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in Prime Time and Streaming Television.' She has appeared on PBS, NPR, BBC World TV, Dr. Phil, New York Times, Washington Post and Los Angeles Times. She is a guest writer at Newsweek, Elle, HuffPost, and Self.

FAVORITE COMFORT FOOD

Scallion Pancakes!

Leadership Lesson

“Don’t think that there’s only one type of leadership or think that the whole kind of idea that we are more communal and less individual but sometimes I feel like we box ourselves in.”

“I try to communicate in ways that aren’t accusatory. I try to communicate truth. I don’t water it down necessarily. I’m not afraid of hurting feelings but I don’t do it in a way where I feel like is necessarily trying to make people feel bad for the sake of feeling bad.”

DID YOU KNOW?

Representative Was, Is, and WIll Always Be Important 

Did you know that Beulah Kwoh helped found East West Players in Los Angeles? A life led by someone like Beulah Kwoh has helped pave the way for future Asian American representation in the media and on stage. An advocate for Asian American representation, Beulah also had to face the tension of working in a field that glamorized whiteness while also fighting for representation. Beulah Kwoh was born in Stockton, California in 1923. (1) A Cal Berkely and University of Chicago alumni and sociologist by training, Kwoh did not start her acting career until she was in her 30s. At the time she was teaching sociology at Los Angeles Community College after returning from working abroad at a University in China. (2) Her husband and her had been teaching there for a couple years and fled with their newborn after the Communist party took over. (3) While she was working at LA Community College, a friend referred her to director Henry King who was in need of a dialect coach to teach white actress Jennifer Jones how to speak with a British Chinese accent in the upcoming film, Love is a Many Splendored Thing (which… there are some super cringey YouTube trailers). (4) However, King instead casted her in a small role and her acting career took off. As she trained and took on more roles, she became more and more aware of the inequities that Asian American performers faced, and the flat, one-sided, stereotypical roles they were being given. (5) In response, she co-founded East West Players in the 60s, an Asian American theater company that is still thriving to this day. Through East West Players, aspiring actors of color were (and still are) encouraged to explore their talents while portraying multidimensional characters. (6) She didn’t stop there, shortly after in the 70s she also helped co-found the Association of Asian Pacific American Artists to fight against Asian American stereotyping in the media. (7) Today, East West Players continues the legacy of Beulah Kwoh and her co-founders as they “inspire and advocate for a world free of racism and discrimination through transformative artistic works.” (8)

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1. Stewart Kwoh and Mary Ellen Kwoh Shu, “Breaking the Color Line in Hollywood: Beulah Ong Kwoh, Actor,” in Untold Civil Rights Stories: Asian Americans Speak Out for Justice, ed. Stewart Kwoh (Los Angeles, California: UCLA Asian American Studies Center and Asain Pacific American Legal Center, 2009), 56.

2. Ibid, 56.

3. Ibid, 56.

4. Ibid, 56.

5. Ibid, 57.

6. Ibid, 57.

7. Ibid, 59

8. “Mission and History,” East West Players, Accessed September 30, 2020, https://eastwestplayers.org/about-us/.

Works Cited

Kwoh, Stewart and Mary Ellen Kwoh Shu. “Breaking the Color Line in Hollywood: Beulah Ong Kwoh, Actor.” In Untold Civil Rights Stories: Asian Americans Speak Out for Justice, edited by Stewart Kwoh, 54-63. Los Angeles, California: UCLA Asian American Studies Center and Asain Pacific American Legal Center, 2009. 

“Mission and History.” East West Players. Accessed September 30, 2020. https://eastwestplayers.org/about-us/.

Resources 

"Breaking the Color Line in Hollywood: Beaulah Ong Kwoh, Actor" by Stewart Kwoh and Mary Ellen Kwoh Shu

 Read the rest of Untold Civil Rights Stories: Asian Americans Speak Out for Justice HERE 

East West Players

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Episode 29 w/ Larnie Boqurien

In the midst of having so many of our plans disrupted I’m learning to be grateful for the times when rays of sunshine break through the darkness. The postponement of the Tokyo summer olympics made it possible for me to meet and have a conversation with Larnie Boquiren, the Sports Medicine Manager for the USA Women’s Water Polo team. We talked about her Filipino heritage and her path to becoming an athletic trainer as well as having perspective and gratitude for what we have. October is Filipino American History month. There’s so much most of us don’t know about Asian American history. For example, did you know the first Filipnos arrived in Northern California in October of 1587? The history and stories of AAPI’s is varied and are often unknown. I’m grateful for the privilege of interviewing and learning from leaders like Larnie.

LEARN MORE ABOUT LARNIE

Follow along the USA Women’s Water Polo team!
IG: @womenswp_usa

Larnie Boquiren, currently serves as the Sports Medicine Manager for USA Women's Water Polo. She earned her bachelor of sciences degree in Kinesiology with an emphasis in athletic training at Cal State University, Fullerton, master's degree in Sports Health Care from A.T Still University in Mesa Arizona and completed an athletic training fellowship with the New Hampshire Musculoskeletal Institute in Manchester, New Hampshire. Prior to working with the Women's Water Polo team, Larnie was a middle school physical education teacher for 9 years, in addition to her athletic training responsibilities of caring for middle school and high school athletic programs. During her summers, Larnie served as a seasonal assistant athletic trainer for USA Men's and Women's Indoor Volleyball over 6 seasons. As an athletic trainer, Larnie is responsible for the day to day care of athletes from acute care, prevention, rehabilitation, manual therapy. But is a part of a greater village of multi disciplinary health care providers, coaches, and staff that serves to keep athletes healthy as they pursue their Olympic Dreams.

FAVORITE COMFORT FOOD

• Chop Silog: Filipino garlic fried rice (sp?) 

• Pandesal: Filipino bread rolls 

• Bulalo: oxtail soup

• Adobo & fried fish 

• Calamansi juice

LEADERSHIP LESSON

Prepare for the “what ifs”.

DID YOU KNOW?

And the Gold Medal Goes To...

Did you know Victoria Manalo Draves was the first Asian American woman to win an Olympic gold medal? Draves competed in the 1948 London olympics in both the springboard and platform events and won gold in both (1). Draves was born in the 1920s in Northern California when anti-miscegenation laws had been overturned but interracial marriages were still socially frowned upon (2). Because of that, Draves, being of both Filipino and English descent, faced prejudice for her mixed race identity in her swimming career. Growing up, she was only allowed to use the pool on either “International Days” or the one day out of the week when communities of color were allowed to swim, after which the pool would be drained and cleaned (3). The coach of the women’s team she applied to created a separate swimming club for her to represent as a woman of color (4). He also required her to change her last name from Manalo (her maiden name) to Taylor (her mother’s maiden name) in order to appear more white (5). When she competed for gold in London, her coach and future husband Lyle Draves was adamant about Victoria competing as Victoria Manalo (6). Manalo took home the gold the same year as Sammy Lee, the first Asian American man to win Olympic gold medals in diving (7). Draves was admitted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 1969 and in 2005 had a park in San Francisco named after her (8). 

Works Cited

Draves, Victoria Manalo. Olympic Oral History Collection. By Margaret Costa. LA84 Foundation, December 1999. 

Litsky, Frank. “Victoria Manalo Draves, Olympic Champion Diver, Dies at 85.” New York Times, April 29, 2010. https://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/30/sports/olympics/30draves.html.

Peng, Sherry. “The Golden Friendship Between the Two First Asian American Olympic Champions.” NBC News, May 22, 2019. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/golden-friendship-between-two-first-asian-american-olympic-champions-n100619.1.

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1.  Frank Litsky, “Victoria Manalo Draves, Olympic Champion Diver, Dies at 85,” New York Times (New York, NY), April 29, 2010, https://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/30/sports/olympics/30draves.html.

2.  Litsky, “Victoria Manalo Draves…”  

3.  Sherry Peng, “The Golden Friendship Between the Two First Asian American Olympic Champions,” NBC News, May 22, 2019, https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/golden-friendship-between-two-first-asian-american-olympic-champions-n100619.1

4.  Victoria Manalo Draves, interviewed by Margaret Costa, Olympic Oral History Collection, LA84 Foundation, December 1999.  

5.  Draves, interviewed by Costa. 

6.  Peng, “The Golden Friendship Between the Two First Asian American Olympic Champions.” 

7.  Peng, “The Golden Friendship…” 

8.  Litsky, “Victoria Manalo Draves, Olympic Champion Diver, Dies at 85.”
   
   
   

EPISODE 28 w/ Michelle Reyes

Many of you will remember Michelle Reyes from the Someday Is Here Live Event. I absolutely loved my conversation with her this week. We covered many important topics: cultural identity, the difference between ethnicity and nationality, and how she can simultaneously feel like “every Indian, some Indians, and no other Indians”. Michelle also shared how growing up bicultural has given her a high radar for others in liminal spaces. You will want to follow Michelle and track with the many places she is representing AAPI women leaders, especially in the areas of racial tension and healing.

LEARN MORE ABOUT MICHELLE

Instagram: @michelleamireyes
Twitter: @drmichellereyes
Editor & Contributor: theartoftaleh.com

ARTICLES ON INDIAN AMERICAN IDENTITY

Hope Community Church
The Art of Taleh
“It’sTime to Pass the Mic,” (in)courage, September 2019.
“JesusNever Mistakes My Identity,” (in)courage, August 2019.
“WhatDoes the Word ‘Racism’ Trigger in You?” SheLoves Magazine, March 2019.

Dr. Michelle Reyes is the vice president of AACC, Asian American Christian Collaborative, as well as a church planter, pastor’s wife, author, speaker, and activist in Austin, TX. In 2014, Michelle and her husband co-planted Hope Community Church, a minority-led multicultural church that serves low-income and disadvantaged communities in East Austin. She also serves as the local CCDA Austin Networker. Michelle has a forthcoming book with Zondervan on cross-cultural relationships. Her writings on faith and culture have appeared in Christianity Today Women, ERLC, Missio Alliance, Faithfully Magazine, and Patheos, among other publications. She and her husband have two young kids aged four and one.

FAVORITE ASIAN COMFORT FOOD

• Kheer (Rice pudding)

Leadership Lesson

Know your history and background so that you can take more pride in who you are

DID YOU KNOW?

Living Out Beliefs in Public and in Private

Did you know that Kartar Dhillon was a South Asian American activist, writer, and artist  in the 20th century? Born in Simi Valley in 1915, Dhillon’s father was one of the first to immigrate to the United States from Punjab. In her autobiographical works, “Parrot’s Beak” she gives a condensed glimpse of what it was like for her growing up in the early 20th century as an Asian American woman, the discrimination she faced, and the tense relationship with her mother. In her work she also highlights her experiences with racism in hospital settings, in particular as a pregnant woman and being denied health care because of her race. She also addresses issues of gender, and how she navigated her parents’, in particular her mother’s, cultural expectations and the culture surrounding her in Northern California. As she grew older, she made it a point to advocate for gender equity in both the public and private sector, starting with her home. In her autobiography, she talks about how she made it a point to ensure that she created an equitable home environment for both her son and two daughters by having them “help her according to their ability” rather than what was expected of their gender. She went on to organize for movements such as the Black Panther Party, farm workers’ rights, and the Indian Independence Movement to name a few. For her work, compassion, and tenacity, she was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Punjabi American Heritage Society. 

Resources

Asian American Feminist Zines

The Brown Asian American Movement: Advocating for South Asian, Southeast Asian, and Filipino American Communities

Works Cited

Dhillon, Kartar. “The Parrots Beak.” South Asian American Digital Archive. Asian Women United of California, October 4, 2012. https://www.saada.org/tides/article/the-parrots-beak

“Kartar Dhillon.” The Daily Journal, July 12, 2017. https://www.smdailyjournal.com/obituaries/kartar-dhillon/article_d9b99ef3-42ab-5e86-93cc-67b0dabad214.html.

“Kartar Dhillon.” Pioneering PUnjabis Digital Archive. The Regents of the University of California, 2016. https://pioneeringpunjabis.ucdavis.edu/people/pioneers/kartar-dhillion/.

Episode 27 w/ Grace Cho

Today’s guest is the fabulous @gracepcho. I’ve loved everything I’ve ever read written by Grace. Her words, both written and spoken, move me to tears. We have such a great conversation about her writing process, her unique experience growing up overseas speaking Russian, the strength and beauty of women linking arms rather and so much more. Grace is an articulate communicator, a deep thinker, and a woman of substance and integrity. Can’t wait for you to listen to our conversation.

LEARN MORE ABOUT GRACE

Instagram: @gracepcho
Facebook: @GracepCho
Twitter: @gracepcho
www.gracepcho.com

Read Grace’s blog post on Ann Voskamps site ‘When Life is in the Midst of a Fallow Season’ here

Grace P. Cho is a writer and the Editorial Manager at (in)courage. In the middle of her years in church ministry, she sensed God moving her toward writing, to use her words to lead others in a broader context. She coaches writers, mentors leaders, and believes that telling our stories can change the world. Find her online at @gracepcho and gracepcho.com.

FAVORITE ASIAN COMFORT FOOD

• Jook (rice porridge)

• Kalbi (Korean BBQ short rib)

LEADERSHIP LESSON

“What does it look like when, one, women come together to lead. Also when we fully bring ourselves as Asian- American women and say that we don’t need to be tokens in a setting. We can link arms and be communal and we’re actually stronger that way.”

DID YOU KNOW?

Clay Walls and the Korean American Experience

Did you know Gloria Hahn published a book in the 80s about the Korean American experience in Los Angeles? Under her pen name Kim Ronyoung, Hahn wrote Clay Walls, which explores the complexities of growing up in Koreatown, Los Angeles with immigrant parents who had fled Japanese-occupied Korea. She explores the complexities and the tension of growing up second generation and having both strong eastern and western influences and how these two, at times, clash. Her book also powerfully displays the overarching yet intimate ways in which the violence caused by Japanese colonialism, imperialism, and expansionism affect not only a large group of people, in this case Korean immigrant communities and families, but also the psyche of generations to come. Scholars also suggest that through her exploration of reconciliation and restoration amidst the family, these themes are also inherently intertwined and reflective of history. Clay Walls was the first published book to speak into the Korean American experience and was also nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.

Resources

25 Amazing Books by Asian American and Pacific Islander Authors You Need to Read

Consider Buying From Eastwind Books of Berkeley

Works Cited

Oh, Sae-a. ‘"Precious Possessions Hidden": A Cultural Background to Ronyoung Kim's Clay.’ MELUS 26, no. 3 (2001): 31-49. https://www.jstor.org/stable/3185556.

Episode 26 w/ Margaret Yu

Margaret Yu is one of my oldest friends. We have known each other for over three decades. I’ve watched Margaret lead firsthand in various capacities over the years. She currently serves as the National Director for Epic Movement, the Asian American ministry of Cru and also as the Executive Director of Ethnic Focused Communities of Cru. Margaret leads in the complexities of helping develop multiethnic leaders while maintaining the priority of caring well for the people in her life. I loved our conversation today focused on leadership and the importance of how knowing our Asian American history helps to ground us as leaders. Excited for you to listen to our conversation. And as always, we are so grateful for how you continue to subscribe, share, rate and review the Someday Is here podcast. 

LEARN MORE ABOUT MARGARET

Instagram: @epicmyu

Margaret Yu is the National Director of Epic Movement, the Asian American ministry of Cru and the Executive Director of Ethnic Focused Communities of Cru.   Margaret has served with Cru’s Campus Ministry for over 30 years. Her campus experiences span the globe from Milwaukee to Berkeley, to East Asia to Uzbekistan or to Los Angeles where she currently resides. Margaret loves college students. Her passion is to see God form many more culturally competent leaders for the kingdom of God. (Hence, she holds a Master's Degree in Global Leadership from Fuller Theological Seminary.) Her interests include mentorship or leadership development, talking shop about the NBA, and being at the beach.

LEADERSHIP LESSON

“Know your history. Know yourself because the hardest person to lead is actually yourself so stewarding yourself will make you a better leader.”

FAVORITE ASIAN COMFORT FOOD

Noodle soups & Mango with sticky rice

DID YOU KNOW?

Dr. Mabel Ping-Hua Lee Would Want You to Vote!

Did you know that at 16 years old, Dr. Mabel Ping-Hua Lee was at the forefront of the women’s suffrage movement in New York in the early 20th century? Despite the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, Mable Ping-Hua Lee and her family were able to immigrate from Guangzhou to New York because of a scholarship she received when she was nine. Her dad, having immigrated prior to the rest of the family, was a Chinese missionary living in the United States to pastor the Baptist Chinese Mission in New York’s Chinatown. Living a life full of faith and action, Mable Ping-Hua Lee became a notable suffragist and leader by the age of 16 as she lead thousands of women in the streets of New York to advocate for their rights despite the fact that Chinese Americans could not vote because of the Chinese Exclusion Act, which barred all Chinese immigrants from becoming citizens. Her work surrounding equal voting rights for women extended into her college career when she attended Columbia’s all-female counterpart, Barnard College. Throughout her time at Barnard, she was an active leader in the Chinese Students’ Association, she wrote feminist essays on voting rights for a college newspaper, and she gave speeches on voting rights for women and the importance of the involvement and education of Chinese American women of all ages. After Barnard, she became the first Chinese American woman to receive her PhD in Economics at Columbia, became the director of Baptist Chinese Mission after her father’s passing, wrote a book on the economic history of China, and established the Christian Chinese Center which served and empowered Chinese immigrants by providing resources such as English classes, health clinics, kindergarten, and vocational training. While researchers and historians are unsure if she ever attained citizenship and her right to vote, her legacy ensured that ALL women to come were able to. Don’t forget to register to vote ;) 

Resources

Dr. Mabel Ping-Hua Lee & Other Suffragists You Should Know (US National Park Service)

Primary Source Archive of Chinese Students' Association Articles

Primary Source: New York Tribune (1912) feat. Mabel Ping-Hua Lee

Shall Not Be Denied: Women Fight for the Vote | Exhibitions at the Library of Congress

How to Register to Vote

Works Cited

Alexander, Kerri Lee. “Mabel Ping-Hua Lee.” National Women’s History Museum, Accessed September 2020. www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/mabel-ping-hua-lee.

Li, Grace. ‘“Chinese Girl Wants Vote": The Asian-American Suffragette Mabel Ping-Hua Lee.’ Constellations 11, no. 2 (2020). doi: https://doi.org/10.29173/cons29419.

Episode 25 w/ Laura Izumikawa

Thoroughly enjoyed my conversation with the talented and down-to-earth, Laura Izumikawa (aka Naptime With Joey). Loved learning about her being mixed race and how she honors all of who she is with her Korean, Japanese, and Chinese heritage. We talked about the racism that can take place between different Asian groups and the importance of representation and the kind of future Laura wants to help build for her daughters. I really appreciate Laura’s focus on using her social media platform for good and how her talents and gifts as a photographer and videographer bring joy and meaningful content to her followers. Can’t wait to hear your feedback and what stood out to you from our conversation!

LEARN MORE ABOUT LAURA

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lauraiz/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lauraizchoi/
Blog: http://lauraiz.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/lauraiz
Twitter: @lauraizumikawa

LEADERSHIP LESSON

“What attracts people to you is learning how to support others and doing more than just enough.”

Laura Izumikawa, a professional photographer and videographer, began creating photos and videos of her adorable napping daughter, Joey, dressed up in pop-culture costumes as a cheeky way to make her friends and family laugh. What began as a way for Laura to find the light humor in parenting turned into a viral phenomenon after Laura began posting photos of her deep sleeping, costume-clad baby on Instagram. Laura has amassed a loyal audience who follow her for numerous reasons; her humorous approach to first-time parenting, her informative tips on how to raise a toddler (from packing for travel to fun ways to keep her imagination stimulated), her relatable approach to talking about her home and lifestyle, to teaching her daughter the importance of spreading kindness - all told through the lens of a down-to-earth and candid mother. Naptime With Joey was published in 2017 by Simon and Schuster, and will make you LOL for its witty and topical pop culture costume references. Laura and Joey have been featured on USA Today, ABC News, Huffington Post, and BuzzFeed, and recent partnerships include Canon, Samsung USA, Target, Huggies, Mattel, Alaska Air, and Whole Foods. Laura, Joey, and Laura's husband Allen live in Los Angeles. The family includes husband Allen and second daughter, 1 year old Casey.

FAVORITE ASIAN COMFORT FOOD

PHO!

DID YOU KNOW?

Asian American: Who Started It?

Did you know that the term “Asian American” was originally coined in the 1960s by activist and historian Yuji Ichioka as a political term to unify Asian American communities? The Asian American movement was largely inspired by the Civil Rights Movement and scholars have since then argued the pros and cons of maintaining the term Asian American as a panethnic term, meaning it encompases many Asian American identities. A limit of the term is that its broadness ignores the unique stories and struggles of specific Asian American communities. For example, the Japanese American story and the Indian American story, while there may be similar themes that come up, are very different. It also ignores issues of colorism that are still prevalent within Asian American communities. It also paints a monolithic story of each unique identity. For example, the Japanese kibei story is much different than those who are Nisei. Kibei JAs, while technically also second generation, were born in the United States but sent back to Japan for reasons such as schooling or war. The Nisei are the second generation Japanese Americans most closely associated with the Japanese American incarceration camps. A pro to the term is that it creates a sense of unity within differences and similarities. It creates a sense of common ground and solidarity with one another in times of distress. More recently during the COVID-19 times, the term has been useful in standing in solidarity with one another against hate crimes and readdressing common themes and sources of discrimination and racism.

Resources

Mountain Movers | Asian American Studies Center at UCLA

AAPI History: Activist Origins of the Term 'Asian American' | Time

Yen Le Espiritu Asian American Panethnicity: Bridging Institutions and Identities 

EPISODE 24 - Jocelyn Chung

Wow! Season 3 is finally here! Welcome back, everyone! I’ve been waiting patiently for two seasons to interview Jocelyn Chung. I’m thrilled she is the first guest for this season. When you hear our conversation you’ll know why. Jocelyn is a lettering artist and graphic designer and the brains and talent behind the Someday is Here logo. We talk about her inspiration behind the logo, her journey as the daughter of Taiwainese immigrants. We packed so much substance into our conversation. Be sure to follow her on Instagram and consider supporting her work through her patreon and ordering her stickers and lettering art. You’re in for a treat today!

LEARN MORE ABOUT JOCELYN

Instagram: @jocekittyllama 
Twitter: @JocelynSChung 
Website: jocelynchung.co/

Jocelyn Chung was born and raised in Southern California. She is the proud daughter of Taiwanese immigrants and auntie to two nieces. She is a graphic designer, lettering artist, writer, and in ministry with a global non-profit organization to care and mentor the next generation of leaders of color to live embodied and authentic faith in Jesus. She believes in the importance of storytelling, cultivating empathy, and living in the intersection of faith, art, and anti-racist work. She is a life-long learner who believes in using her voice to be a truth-seeker and truth speaker.

FAVORITE ASIAN COMFORT FOOD

Taiwanese braised beef noodle soup and Taiwanese braised pork over rice

LEADERSHIP LESSON

• Devote yourself to learning how to apologize properly to really hear and to grow in emotional awareness and understand how to ask for forgiveness. Understand how to claim when you have messed up, when you have caused harm. Whether or not you have intended it, just acknowledge, empathize, and repent.”

• “The best leaders are humble leaders. The best leaders know how to give a proper apology”

DID YOU KNOW?

Boba: More than what Meets the Eye

Did you know that the first U.S. boba shops were established in California in the 90s? The love for boba has exploded in recent years. There are sometimes even several boba shops in one shopping center in various ethnoburbs such as the San Gabriel Valley. Recent scholarship in the past 15 years has revealed what many of us as Asian Americans may have felt, but never been able to fully put into words. These boba shops have not only been significant places for Taiwanese American youth, but have also developed to reflect Asian American youth culture. It has become a safe space where the vast, complex, and multifaceted Asian American youth community can come together to learn and share about the beautiful and at times painful complexities of being Asian American. While we often think about transmission of history, culture, and identity as a vertical movement between generations, boba shops have allowed for the horizontal dissemination of stories and experiences as Asian American youth learn from each other what it means to navigate life as an Asian American. As Angel Trazo states in her M.A. Asian American Studies thesis, boba shops help facilitate conversations about the “salience of race and place in shaping how Asian American young adults negotiate their self-identity, community belonging, and cultural imaginaries.” 

Resources

'"Wanna Get Boba?": The Bond Between Boba and Asian American Youth in San Jose, California' by Angel Trazo

"Te De Boba: Food, Identity, and Race in a Multiracial Suburb" by Natalie Santizo

"Fill My Cup Half Full: Boba Stories" by Steven Cong

Eater Article by Jenny G. Zhang

Works Cited

Trazo, Talitha Angelica. ‘“Wanna Get Boba?”: The Bond Between Boba and Asian American Youth in San Jose, California.’ Master’s thesis, UCLA, 2020.

---

1.  Talitha Angelica Trazo, ‘“Wanna Get Boba?”: The Bond Between Boba and Asian American Youth in San Jose, California,’ (master’s thesis, UCLA, 2020), 15.

2.  Trazo, 1.

EPISODE 23 w/ Susie Gamez

You might remember her as a host from the Someday is Here LIVE EVENT we had in February. The brilliant @susiekgamez is our final guest for Season 2. Listen to get to know Susie better and hear our conversation about her ethnic journey while growing up in Canada. We bonded over growing up with our Grandma’s, some of the unique challenges raising kids who are mixed race, and how seeing someone who looked like her as a keynote speaker shifted her mindset for what was possible #representationmatters. Susie is such a gifted leader who brings a wealth of experience working in multi-ethnic spaces. Can’t wait for you to hear our conversation!

LEARN MROE ABOUT SUSIE

Susiegamez.com
IG: @susiekgamez
APU Chapel talk on Diversity

Susie is Canadian by birth, Korean by heritage, Mexican by marriage and American by immigration. She is passionate about matters surrounding reconciliation, justice and the Gospel. Susie and her husband Marcos met at Fuller Theological Seminary while getting their M.A. in Intercultural Studies and now have 4 beautiful LatAsian babies. After serving as a youth pastor and church planter in South Central Los Angeles for 14 years, Susie now lives in Long Beach, CA where she serves on staff with Light and Life Christian Fellowship. 

FAVORITE ASIAN COMFORT FOOD

Korean street food like Tteokbokki (spicy rice cake)

LEADERSHIP LESSON

• “Don’t go looking for the world to tell you what to do or for what it needs for you. Recognize the inherent value that you have and hopefully that’s rooted in the right things for them and know that you have something to offer.”

• Howard Thurman: “Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”

DID YOU KNOW?

Susan Ahn Cuddy was a trailblazing Korean American woman in the U.S. military. Her parents were the first married Korean couple to immigrate to the United States after the U.S. opened up the country to Korean Immigration. After initially being rejected for being “Oriental”, she was later accepted into the U.S. Navy. She became the first Asian American woman to become a WAVE, a program that allowed women to become enlisted officers for the duration of the war to free up men for combat positions. Susan worked for the United States Naval Reserve as a link trainer and became the Navy’s first gunnery officer. 

Outside her career in the military she continued to blaze trails. In her personal life, she defied miscegenation laws by marrying a white man, which was illegal in Virginia where she lived at the time. Cuddy became an intelligence officer breaking codes for the Navy and later joined the NSA, where she ran a think tank of 300 linguists and other experts gathering Russian intelligence. During the civil rights movement when her travels took her to the segregated South where she could have “passed”, she instead would demonstrate solidarity by sitting in the back of the bus with black people, using colored bathrooms, and comply with Jim Crow laws to make a statement about her race and support those who did not have a choice.

Susan Ahn Cuddy is remembered as a secret-keeper, a brave officer and a community icon, one of a generation of Asian-Americans who rushed to serve their country despite the racism they faced at every turn.

RESOURCES MENTIONED

Parasite article:
https://tropicsofmeta.com/2020/02/17/reading-colonialism-in-parasite/

EPISODE 21 w/ Jensine Lee

So enjoyed my conversation today with Jensine Lee. We talked about the legacy and influence of her grandfather, a leader in San Francisco who escaped the Cultural Revolution in China and eventually ended up in the US after studying tailoring in Europe. We also talked about what it was like moving to South Carolina from Northern California and going for weeks without seeing another Asian and being the only one in her community. Jen shares about how her life was enriched and expanded as she moved beyond her Asian world and developed relationships with people who were different than her. I love Jen’s encouragement about having influence wherever we are. Excited for you to listen to our conversation today!

LEARN MORE ABOUT JENSINE

IG: @jensane + @penandpagegals

Jensine is a wife and mother, Instagram gal, bibliophile and sports enthusiast. She believes we all have influence right where we are, whether our platform is 20,000 Instagram followers or two toddlers following for snacks.  She desires to see social media bring the beauty of words and images and real grace together to reflect our true light and life in Jesus. While she currently lives in the SF Bay Area, she is always planning her next trip across the country or around the world.

FAVORITE ASIAN COMFORT FOOD

Boba, Soup & Rice (jjigae)

LEADERSHIP LESSON

You have influence wherever you are.

DID YOU KNOW?

America’s first Chinatown was born in San Francisco, which means “Gold Mountain”, which emerged in one of the most desirable locations of the city. Many Chinese immigrated to America at the height of the California gold rush in the mid-1800s. Unfortunately, they were met with laws sanctioning their labor, housing, workplaces, interrogations and isolation. An earthquake on April 18 1906 caused widespread fires to break out among the thriving community. Attempts by soldiers to create a firebreak backfired, and devastated the community by creating fires that lasted for days. It is estimated that over 30,000 people were displaced during that time. While there was much debate and resistance to Chinese being allowed to return back to Chinatown. For more than 60 years, the Chinese Exclusion Act created a “bachelor society”, but finally in 1943 it was repealed ending decades of legalized racism and discrimination. Finally, Chinese immigrants were legally allowed to become citizens and own property. Today, San Francisco’s Chinatown has developed cultural autonomy which sustains many activities: dance, musical groups, a children's orchestra, artists, a Chinese Culture Center, and the Chinese Historical Society of America. 

Episode 21 w/ Judy Wu Dominick

I admire and appreciate this week’s guest, Judy Wu Dominick. Judy is such a gifted writer and a sharp thinker. We cover so many important topics from trauma, to Taiwanese history, Asian invisibility, the resilience of our immigrant parents, the importance of looking at and understanding our history, and engaging in racial justice. Her commitment to growing and learning with a humble posture is so refreshing and necessary (shout out to Be the Bridge). Judy is a woman of integrity and one to know and learn from. Excited for you to listen to our conversation this week.

LEARN MORE ABOUT JUDY

Wordpress: https://www.lifereconsidered.com
Twitter: @judydominick
Instagram: @judy.dominick

Judy Wu Dominick is an essayist, poet, and musician focused on equipping Christians with the tools they need to engage more thoughtfully, lovingly, and effectively across societal divisions. She was born and raised in Houston, Texas by immigrant parents from Taiwan. Her work has been published in Christianity Today, Faithfully Magazine,Good Grit Magazine, Fathom Magazine, A Moment to Breathe: 365 Devotions That Meet You in Your Everyday Mess, and the (in)courage Devotional Bible. She is also a content developer for Be the Bridge, a non-profit organization that empowers small groups of racially diverse Christians to explore and address the root causes of racial division in the United States. She worked as a physician assistant from 2000-2007 at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. She holds a Master of Science in epidemiology from the University of Texas School of Public Health (1997) and a Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies (1999) from Baylor College of Medicine. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in history at Rice University in 1994.

FAVORITE ASIAN COMFORT FOOD

Dimsum & Dumplings !

DID YOU KNOW?

Early Taiwanese immigrants sought refuge in America during an era of martial-law in Taiwan from 1949 - 1989 known as the Kuomingtang party’s White Terror or the 228 Incident. It started when the Agents of the Tobacco Monopoly Bureau struck a Tawainese widow suspected of selling contraband cigarettes. As a result, protests erupted nationwide. During this time, Taiwanese citizens were terrorized by the military and government. It’s estimated over 18,000 people were killed during this period. Since then, Taiwan’s past presidents and politicians have openly acknowledged and apologized for the 228 Incident. 

Notable Taiwanese Americans include renowned journalist Lisa Ling, Eric Lui, a speechwriter for President Bill Clinton, and NBA player Jeremy Lin. Also, Nobel Prize winner Dr. Yuan T. Lee, who is particularly recognized for his efforts in combating threats to freedom of speech and other rights integral to the practice of science.

NEWS & LINKS

Christianity Today: Love Your Political Frenemies

TED TALK: The Danger of a Single Story : Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: The danger of a single story

Episode 20 w/ Anjuli Paschall

I really loved my conversation this week with brand new author, Anjuli Paschall. Her book “Stay: Discovering Grace, Freedom, and Wholeness Where You Never Imagined Looking” is PERFECT for all of us who are stuck at home to #shelterinplace. Anjuli is the founder of The Moms We Love Club and a writer for Dayspring’s (in)courage. She shares her biracial ethnic journey and the experience of understanding more of her father when she visited Thailand, but feeling more comfortable in white spaces than Asian spaces. Her questions and desire to learn more about the Asian American experience was honest and authentic. Anjuli also talked about walking through hardship and her leadership lesson was so timely. I can’t wait for you to hear this episode!

LEARN MORE ABOUT ANJULI

@lovealways.anjuli 
@themomsweloveclub
https://www.anjulipaschall.com/book
https://www.themomsweloveclub.com/

Anjuli (An-Julie) grew up as a missionary kid in San Diego county secretly wondering, “Why does everyone else understand this Jesus thing, but me? She studied Psychology at Point Loma Nazarene University and earned her graduate degree from Talbot Seminary in Spiritual Formation and Soul Care. It wasn’t until she ran into her fears instead of from them, that Anjuli found her gritty and glittering voice and the love of God meeting her there. She has been married for nearly 15 years to her childhood friend, Sam. They have five wildly beautiful children: Manoah, Samuel, Noelle, Hannaly, and Mea. Anjuli is the founder of the @themomsweloveclub, a social media campaign designed to raise prayers and financial support for moms enduring long term hardship. As a pastor’s wife, writer and busy mom, She learned that prayer is like breathing and pain is a pathway to freedom. Her first book, Stay: Discovering Grace, Freedom, and Wholeness releases March 31st! Weekends are spent renovating their little home in Southern California and taking adventures to the nearby ocean. Anjuli is passionate about speaking hope into the longings of Christian women’s hearts. She loves chai tea, Instagram and the color orange.

FAVORITE ASIAN COMFORT FOOD

Panang curry (thai curry)

“Thai spaghetti”- thin noodles with Thai curry and Indian spices 

Mango and sticky rice

LEADERSHIP LESSON

36:49 “Don’t build a platform, dig a well.”

DID YOU KNOW?

Some 40,000 Thai soldiers volunteered to serve along American troops during the Vietnam war as a part of the “Free World Forces”. Subsequently, with Thailand as an ally, between 1960 and 1970, many Thai started immigrating to America. Famous people of Thai descent include model Chrissy Teigen, actress Brenda Song and pro golfer Tiger Woods.

EPISODE 19 w/ Angie hong

I am thrilled to have the fabulous and fierce Angie Hong as this week’s guest on Someday is Here. Angie is a gifted communicator, knowledgeable, and fun. Her leadership lesson nails it, especially as it relates to being an Asian American woman living in both eastern and western worlds. I really appreciated how we talked about new terms like double consciousness and hybridity as it relates to our ethnic journey. She also shares how southern culture is so similar to Asian culture. We talked about Asian leaders who have gone before us and then deep-dived and discussed fun topics like the popular show “Crash Landing On You.” I loved this conversation and I think you will too. Thank you for listening!

LEARN MORE ABOUT ANGIE

IG: @angiekayhong
Twitter: @angiekayhong
Website: :www.angiekayhong.com 

Angie Hong is a worship leader, writer, and speaker.  She has written about her personal identity and healing from abuse journey in Soul Bare (Cara Sexton, ed., Intervarsity Press, 2016). Angie has also written extensively about worship and diversity and her most recent article was with Faith and Leadership magazine. She is a contributor to Christianity Today Women and speaks about ministry and leadership as it intersects with diversity. She now studies at Duke Divinity School, and you can follow her at www.angiekayhong.com , and @angiekayhong on instagram, youTube, twitter, facebook, , linkedin, tiktok, and snapchat.

FAVORITE ASIAN COMFORT FOOD

Korean food- Yukgaejang (spicy beef stew) 

Chinese food- Zhajiang mian (black bean noodle)

South Indian food- Dosa

LEADERSHIP LESSON

We have more agency than we think we do. When you walk into spaces and are questioning who you are in that moment, don’t give your brain away. Your thoughts are valid.  Your feelings are valid. You are not crazy and you are not alone.

DID YOU KNOW?

Yuri Kochiyama, was a tireless political activist who devoted her life to social justice and human rights movements. As a child, her family was relocated to an internment camp after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Her work with her husband Bill Kochiyama, included pushing for reparations and a formal apology to the Japanese Americans who had been incarcerated during World War II, leading to the Civil Liberties Act of 1988.

NEWS & LINKS referred to in the episode:

“Double Consciousness” in The Souls of Black Folk - W.E.B. DuBois 

“Honorary White” reference in Racism Without Racists by Eduardo Bonilla-Silva

Don't hire people of color as worship leaders and expect them to change your church | By Angie Hong 

Amid the coronavirus outbreak, Asian-American students like my son face racist taunting. Let's change that.

SPECIAL EPISODE “I Am Not A Virus”

We are living in uncharted territory as the entire nation shuts down in order to #flattenthecurve and slow the spreading of COVID-19. Individuals, families, communities, businesses, and entire cities are experiencing firsthand how utterly reliant we really are on one another. 

Another difficult reality we face as Asian Americans is the continual “othering” and blame due to the virus originating in China. Many friends, their children and family members have experienced verbal harassment, bullying, and worse. The fear of being mistreated and even harmed simply being Asisan is real. 

I am so grateful and honored my friends would rally on short notice to tape this special edition episode. Eugene, Helen, Seana, and Judy are all seasoned leaders in their fields and bring needed perspective, expertise, and validation to what is happening in our communities and abroad as a result of COVID-19. 

Thank you to our listeners of all backgrounds for your willingness to learn, your support, understanding, and voice in confronting the misdirected fear, blame, and harmful words that hurt our Asian community. For our Asian American friends, I hope this episode is helpful to validate your experience and give you resources to help speak out against prejudice directed not only at our community, but also other marginalized communities.

Thank you for taking the time to listen to our conversation and please share this special episode with your friends!

Helpful Terms:

Epidemic: When a disease spreads over a wide area and many individuals are taken ill at the same time

Pandemic:  a global outbreak of a disease

Perpetual foreign syndrome: when members of ethnic minorities will always be seen as the “other” in the White Anglo-Saxon dominant society of the United States which may have negative implications for them. 

COVID-19: abbreviation “coronavirus disease 2019” is a respiratory disease caused by a new coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2.

SARS-CoV-2: A the virus that has its origins in bats that causes COVID-19 

OUR EPISODE’S GUESTS

Eugene Cho

Eugene has been honored as one of 50 Everyday American Heroes , a recipient of the Frederick Douglass 200 – included in a list of 200 people around the world who best embody the spirit and work of Frederick Douglass, one of the most influential figures in history—and also the recipient of the 2017 Distinguished Alumni Award from Princeton Theological Seminary. He is the founder and visionary of One Day’s Wages (ODW) – a grassroots movement of people, stories, and actions to alleviate extreme global poverty. Eugene is also the founder and former Senior Pastor of Quest Church – an urban, multi-cultural and multi-generational church in Seattle, Washington. He has recently taken on the role as President-Elect of Bread for the World.

Learn More About Eugene:
Website: Eugenecho.com
Twitter: @EugeneCho
IG: @eugenecho
Eugene’s Book new book, “Thou Shalt Not Be A Jerk”
President-Elect of: Bread for the World

Helen Lee

Helen has a B.A. in bioethics from Williams College, an MBA, Babson College, and an M.A. from Wheaton College is an award-winning author and writer. She is the Associate Director of Strategic Partnerships and Initiatives for InterVarsity Press, and the director of content and resource development for Missio Alliance. She has previously served as an editor and marketer at IVP and acquired, edited, and marketed numerous books, in particular those by authors of color.

Learn More About Helen:
Twitter: @helenleebooks
Instagram: @helenleebooks
Facebook: @helenleeprofile
www.helenleebooks.com

Judy Wu Dominick

Judy is a cross-cultural bridge builder. She holds a B.A. in history from Rice University a M.S. in epidemiology from the University of Texas School of Public Health, and a M.S. in Physician Assistant Studies from Baylor College of Medicine. She previously worked as a physician assistant at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.

Learn More About Judy:
IG: @judy.dominick
www.Lifereconsidered.com
Twitter: @judydominick

Seana Reavis

Seana is an Epidemiologist, health coach, and author. She has a B.A. on sociology and human nutrition from the University of Florida and an MPH in Epidemiology from University of South Florida College of Public Health and a clinical research background in infectious disease with National Institutes of Health, Moffitt Cancer Center, and Florida Dept of Health.

Learn More About Seana:
IG: @seanareavis 
Twitter: @seanareavis
http://www.seanareavis.com

Links & Resources

WHO: Best Practices for Naming Diseases
https://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/notes/2015/naming-new-diseases/en/

Eugene Cho’s interview with the Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/religion/2020/03/17/evangelical-leader-denounces-trump-calling-coronavirus-chinese-virus/

Real-time COVID-19 updates: https://www.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/bda7594740fd40299423467b48e9ecf6

Reuters Univ has a live blog full of tracking data and live updates.
https://www.reuters.com/live-events/coronavirus-6-id2921484

John Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center:
https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/

How to Talk to Your Kids About COVID-19 | Dorina Gilmore
https://dorinagilmore.com/how-to-talk-to-your-kids-about-covid-19/

1. "Confronting Anti-Asian Discrimination During the Coronavirus Crisis," by Ed Park, March 17, 2020. https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/confronting-anti-asian-discrimination-during-the-coronavirus-crisis

2. "Conservatives Try to Rebrand the Coronavirus," by Thomas Levenson, March 11, 2020. https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/03/stop-trying-make-wuhan-virus-happen/607786/

3. "Commentary: No, China's Fresh Food Markets Did Not Cause Coronavirus," by Christopher St. Cavish, March 11, 2020. https://www.latimes.com/food/story/2020-03-11/coronavirus-china-wet-markets 

4. "Reducing Stigma." Centers for Disease Control. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/symptoms-testing/reducing-stigma.html

5.  "Stigmatization Complicates Infectious Disease Management," by Phil Perry and Fred Donini-Lenhoff. https://journalofethics.ama-assn.org/article/stigmatization-complicates-infectious-disease-management/2010-03

6. "Don't blame 'China' for the Coronavirus--blame the Chinese Communist Party." https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/global-opinions/dont-blame-china-for-the-coronavirus--blame-the-chinese-communist-party/2020/03/19/343153ac-6a12-11ea-abef-020f086a3fab_story.html

EPISODE 18 W/ LIZ KLEINROCK

This week’s episode I interview Liz Kleinrock @teachandtransform. Liz is a Korean American adoptee and shares with us her story of learning to embrace her ethnic heritage as well as some of the challenges of feeling imposter syndrome of not being seen as a “real Asian.” An award winning teacher, writer, trainer and 2019 TED talk presenter, Liz shares excellent principles of leadership and how conversations around diversity these days are not diverse unless the voices and experiences of Asian Americans are included. I so enjoyed my conversation with Liz and can’t wait for you to hear our conversation!

LEARN MORE ABOUT LIZ

https://www.teachandtransform.org/
Instagram: @teachandtransform

FAVORITE ASIAN COMFORT FOOD

Soondubu (Tofu soup)

Liz Kleinrock is an anti-bias and anti-racist educator of both children and adults, and creates curricular content for K-12 students around issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion, specializing in designing engaging and accessible units of study for all ages of learners. She began her career in education as an AmeriCorps volunteer teacher in Oakland, California in 2009, and has since served as both a classroom educator and diversity coordinator in Los Angeles, California. Liz also works with schools and districts throughout the United States to develop workshops and trainings for adults that support culturally responsive practices that fit the needs of specific communities. In 2018, Liz received the Teaching Tolerance Award for Excellence in Teaching, and her lessons on teaching consent and personal boundaries to students have gained international media attention. Liz has written articles for numerous publications on destigmatizing privilege, trauma informed teaching, and cultivating relationships with students and families. Most recently, Liz is proud to share her 2019 TED Talk, “How to teach kids to talk about taboo topics” on building foundations of equity with young learners, and is working on her first book with Heinemann Publishing.

Liz can be reached through her website, www.teachandtransform.org, or through her Instagram @teachandtransform

LEADERSHIP LESSON

Don’t minimize what you’re experiencing, but you’re going to exhaust yourself if all your energy is going towards something you cannot control.

DID YOU KNOW?

Today Asian Americans are the fastest growing population, and classrooms are more diverse than they’ve ever been. However, Asian American educators make up less than 2% of teachers  and Asian American history is widely left out of US History books. One of the first individuals to make changes to both those statistics was Alice Fong Yu.

Alice Fong Yu was San Francisco’s first Aisan American school teacher. Born on March 2, 1905, her family owned the Omega Mine in Nevada County, California where they were one of two Chinese families living in the town. She was the first of her siblings to graduate high school and made it her personal goal to become a public school teacher. She was hired as San Francisco’s first Chinese public school teacher in 1926 at Commodore Stockton Elementary School where she taught for 34 years. Her roles included counselor, administrator, nurse and clerk--writing and translating Chinese. In an interview towards the end of her teaching career, she said she “sought to show her students how to manage a dual culture, not only appreciating their ancient Chinese culture but also learning how to be modern and progressive.”

With the birth of her son, who was born with Cerebral palsy, she went back to school at 57 and received credentials in special education and speech therapy from UC Berkeley. Along with working with those with speech disabilities, she arranged educational trips to China, and established the country’s first Chinese-immersion program. Her contributions to education remain influential even today. She was awarded the Phoebe Apperson Heart Medallion as one of San Francisco’s Distinguished Ten for her broad spectrum of contribution and accomplishments, as well as courage for pursuing her dreams in a hostile and xenophobic environment. 

Episode 17 w/ Dorina Lazo Gilmore–Young

You are going to LOVE my guest this week! Dorina and I cover so many important topics. We dive into being mixed race, ways her family keeps her late husband’s memory alive, the importance of representation, and so much more. An author and speaker, Dorina, is a woman of grace, kindness, strength and generosity. Can’t wait for you to hear our conversation!

LEARN MORE ABOUT DORINA

Facebook: Dorina Lazo Gilmore, Author
Instagram: @DorinaGilmore
Twitter: @DorinaGilmore      
Pinterest: @DorinaGilmore

www.DorinaGilmore.com
www.DorinaKidsBooks.com

FAVORITE ASIAN COMFORT FOOD

Lumpia (Filipino egg roll)

Dorina chases God’s glory as a mama, foodie, runner, and a weaver of words. Her essays have been published at (in)courage, Kindred Mom, For Every Mom, The MOPS blog and in more than 20 newspapers. She specializes in helping people navigate grief and flourish in community.

Dorina is passionate about raising up women from diverse backgrounds to thrive in their God-given callings. For more than 12 years, she has been leading Bible studies and developing leaders. Her gift is delivering authentic, Biblically-sound messages that engage audiences through story. She has published two Bible studies, Glory Chasers: Discovering God's Glory in Unexpected Places and Flourishing Together: Cultivating a Fruitful Life in Christ.

With an MFA in Children’s Literature, Dorina has published three multicultural children’s books and a collection of poetry. Her book, Cora Cooks Pancit, received the Asian American Librarians Association Picture Book of the Year. One of Dorina's joys is speaking in the schools, teaching kids about multiculturalism using her book and modeling how to make Filipino food. 

Dorina is the granddaughter of Filipino-Hawaiian-Chinese and Italian immigrants. Raised in Chicago, she was transplanted to Fresno, California in 1999. She considers herself a California girl now as she raises three daughters to love the cultural diversity, wonder-filled landscapes and unique food of the state.

After her husband died from cancer in 2014, Dorina married a long-time friend, Shawn Young. They still consider themselves newlyweds dancing in the beauty that rises from ashes. When Dorina is not writing or spending time with family, she’s out on the trails running marathons and chasing God’s glory. Dorina and Shawn are currently working on a book project together. Walk, Run, Soar: A 52-week devotional for runners will be published in September 2020 by Bethany House Publishers/Baker Books.

DID YOU KNOW?

Did you know there were Chinese who served in the American Civil War? In 1845, Edward Day Cahota was just a little boy discovered on the merchant ship Cohota, bound for Massachusetts from Shanghai, China. He was adopted by Sargent S. Day, the captain of the ship. He attended school with the captain’s other children and later joined the 23rd Massachusetts Infantry. He served in the Army for 30 years. All that time, he thought he was a U.S. citizen and believed his Civil War service qualified him for the right. However, with the passing of the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 he learned he was not a citizen and could not become one. Cohota died at the Battle Mountain Sanitarium for Veterans in Hot Springs, S.D. in 1935.

LEADERSHIP LESSON

Collaboration over Comparison, Diversity over Division, Presence over Pride