A message for the presidential candidates: Asians vote, too.
Tag Archive for 'race'
This is the interview taken from the August 26th, 2008 show of the Colbert Report. The guest is John McWhorter, who wrote the recently published book All About the Beat: Why Hip-Hop Can’t Save Black America.
But the interview is less about the book and more about why a social conservative thinks that Obama would be a better president than McCain. The reason is race. Seeing an African-American president will change perceptions of African-American people, especially for youth. That is why McWhorter thinks that an Obama presidency is extremely important.
Also, this is one of the funniest interviews on the show in a long while. McWhorter calls himself reserved, but he can really roll with the punches.
Every Friday, I used to post links that I found during the week that I haven’t yet posted. Then my summer jobs started, and my time slowly turned more to research than feeds. I’m nearing the end of my research, so I’ve had some time to collect interesting news. So here’s to Fridays.
(You can also be sure that most of these came from Laurie.)
- State of the Web: Summer 2008. A hilarious pictorial look at the Internet. Because we Internet junkies live off Twitter and Firefox and Facebook and our iPhones.
- Meet Yoda, the four-eared cat. Kitty’s doing well and is perfectly healthy, but his ears still look like a bad Photoshop job.
- Magpies are self-aware. There is evidence with mirror tests that magpies are aware of their own bodies.
- White supremacists hope an Obama win will prompt racial backlash. There is a small population in the United States that believe a “white revolution” is long overdue, and Obama is just the trigger for it.
- In a generation, minorities may be the majority. America is growing more ethnically diverse due to higher birth rates among minorities and immigration. (Those poor, poor white supremacists.)
- Paris Hilton responds to McCain’s campaign ad. McCain said that you shouldn’t elect celebrities for president, like Barack Obama or Paris Hilton. Let’s see what Paris has to say about that. (McCain, you have been p4wn3d!)
- Russian judge rules sexual harassment okay because it ensures humans to breed. I thought that sexual harassment prevents future generations.
- The United States take third place in the International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO). The IMO is an annual event for pre-collegiate students. The US team has done well in the past but often competes closely with China and Russia. That said, first and second place this year go to China and Russia, respectively. (Those math problems remind me of those fond high school days.)
- Growth factor receptor governs neurogenesis and sensitivity to antidepressants. There is a direct link between a receptor found on the hippocampus and the effectiveness of certain antidepressants—SSRIs and tricyclics—that exert their influence through neurogenesis. This study may change the view on depression as an imbalance of chemicals in the brain. If the symptoms of depression can be alleviated with neurogenesis, then depression may be a mild degenerative disease.
I have a problem calling certain racial demographics “white” and “black”. It makes me feel like I should call myself “yellow”, and that’s absolutely ridiculous.
May is Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. Since I lack the time or money to travel to the various festivals around the country, I’ve spent my time commiserating at the Asia Society YouTube channel, where names such as Giant Robot founder Eric Nakamura, actress Sandra Oh, and Senator Daniel Inouye, speak about their experiences, thoughts, and hopes as Asian Americans. The stories vary in topic and scope, but all touch upon community and the desire to have more representations, in all forms, of Asians living in a Caucasian-dominated society.
I nodded to each video, amused at the absurd assumptions—Asian Americans have to be immigrants from Asia, not born in America—and saddened at the memories of discrimination. Each story mirrored a thought or experience that I have had myself, but I especially identified with those that spoke about alienation and stereotypes.
Growing up in New Hampshire, I lacked an Asian community. Everyone else was Caucasian. All my friends were Caucasian. I was twelve before I met another person of Asian heritage who was not immediate family. I identified largely with mainstream Caucasian America, and was shocked when I learned that I was not part of that culture. I was different—nerdy and industrious, shy and submissive, a chink, a dangerous dragon lady. I was alien.
I couldn’t believe that those stereotypes were all that I was. I still don’t believe it. I won’t accept the people have the audacity to tell me who I am or who to be. I don’t want to see any more effeminate Asian men. I don’t want to see any more nerdy Asian women with large unattractive glasses. I want to see people—real or fictional—that move me, not because they are Asian or American, but because they are human.
That is what this month is for. It’s not just about the celebration of an ethnic identity. It’s about connecting Asia America to America. It’s about Asian Americans exercising the right to define themselves, as a group or individually. It’s about understanding that America—including Asia America—is rich and diverse. It’s so easy to get lost in the stereotypes. These are the times when we remind ourselves that we don’t have to listen, that we could be so much more.
In celebration of National Poetry Month, I will share a poem that I love every day. Enjoy.
I, too, sing America.
I am the darker brother.
They send me to eat in the kitchen
When company comes,
But I laugh,
And eat well,
And grow strong.
Tomorrow,
I’ll be at the table
When company comes.
Nobody’ll dare
Say to me,
“Eat in the kitchen,”
Then.
Besides,
They’ll see how beautiful I am
And be ashamed–
I, too, am America.
– Langston Hughes
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(via 8Asians)
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