06.28.07
Posted in Sports, Interviews at 5:54 am by albert_lim
Gearing up for the U.S. Women’s Open in North Carolina, Michelle Wie speaks with Rhonda Glenn of the U.S. Golf Association about life in the spotlight, her wrist injury (which caused her to drop out of a tournament earlier this month) and being an ethnic role model.
On that last point, Wie says, “When I play, I don’t think about that stuff. But I hope by me playing golf I can positively influence other people’s lives and hopefully get them to play golf, pick up the golf club and experience the same happiness and joy when I play golf.”
The transcript, courtesy of ASAP Sports, includes audio.
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06.13.07
Posted in Interviews, Activism and Empowerment, FALLOUT CENTRAL Podcast at 12:35 am by admin
(**This is an exerpt from the 6/10/07 FALLOUT CENTRAL Podcast episode. Click here to listen to the full interview. Click here to become a mentor for your fellow Asian Americans)
…
Albert: What can a new mentor and a new mentee expect to get out of the program?
Lai-Wan Wong: I think a lot of folks join our programs because they want to give back to the community. They recognize that when they were growing up, people influenced them… gave them new perspectives, gave them new opportunities, and outlooks on life… that is what a new mentor can look forward to. They have a chance to change someone’s life.
…
William: There is one section of the mission statement where it says that APEX is addressing the unique needs of Asian American youth. What are those unique needs?
Lai-Wan Wong: The Asian American population is different from other ethnic groups in that they are largely an immigrant population. In New York City, close to 80% … were born outside of the country. About 1 in 3 are of limited English [proficiency.] There are some specific needs characteristic [of] the Asian American population that are different … [from other communities].
Albert: About these unique needs, would you say part of it is the “model minority” stereotype that might be artificially propping these kids up, and making them think they don’t need help, or … making teachers or other mentors less willing to help them?
Lai-Wan Wong: Within the social sector and the school system, the policies and the structures aren’t necessarily there that ensure that they have the environment to meet these particular needs.
Albert: A phrase that stuck out to me in this mission statement is that you are trying to help … “the youth embrace their Asian American identity.” What sort of mentor is most suitable to help the youth do this?
Lai-Wan Wong: … Someone who is proud of [his or her] heritage. …
…
George: I believe that most, if not all mentors, who you allow into this program should be … always ready to say, “yes, I am proud to be Asian.”
Lai-Wan Wong: Yes.
…
William: Does APEX believe that it is important for Asian American high school kids to have Asian American mentors as role models?
…
Lai-Wan Wong: The most important thing for a good match, for and adult who can work well with the youth is someone who shares similar interests. I think it’s important for … Asian American youth to have access to Asian American adult role models … on a group level, it’s really important that these kids have access to Asian American adults.
…
William: We have an audio clip of Lois Salisbury … from the documentary “The Slanted Screen.” We’re going to play this clip for you, and get some of your thoughts on that.
[begin audio clip]
Asian kids really had two different areas of sensitivity. Particularly those in our focus groups who were emblematic of the larger views captured in the polls. First, they were simply quite aware that it was very rare for them to see anybody Asian on television. And they were quite clear that that felt disempowering. That it felt invalidating. That if they didn’t see someone like themselves on television, that it really suggested that Asians were not important.
[end audio clip]
William: The only conclusion I came to [after hearing this] is that if I don’t do my job and be a mentor, there’s no other way that this kind of absence of role model is going to be filled otherwise. Do you feel that by continuing to put Asian role models out there that APEX is … filling this void for the students and the youth?
Lai-Wan Wong: I think we play a role, definitely. That doesn’t solve the larger issue of public perception and … the need for media to reflect … how we are represented truly in the population, but…
William: …in the absence of that?
Lai-Wan Wong: In the absence of that, and until we reach more visible positions, and have more public and political presence, role models on a one on one basis through mentoring programs [are] critical.
George: It’s obvious that there [is] a lack of Asian American role models in the media. Darrell Hammomoto, Professor at UC Davis talks about this in “The Slanted Screen”
[begin audio clip]
It affects their behavior it affects the way they view themselves. It affects who and how they want to associate with certain groups. Some of them will consciously stay away from other Asian Americans because of some hurtful conclusions that they’ve come up with. Some of them experience, or indicate, a high degree of racial self-hate. And it comes from these images of perhaps Asian American men as being powerless, impotent, and de-sexualized. It comes from these notions of notions of white men… white people, being in control and in charge.
[end audio clip]
William: Do you have any mentoring success stories that indicate that this perception is slowly changing and being chipped away at?
…
Lai-Wan Wong: … There are definitely stories of how our youth have opened their eyes to other paths and other opportunities, … Those are the kinds of things that we hear about all the time [from our mentors and mentees]. … [mentoring] really does have a long reach, and I think that’s what’s really powerful about APEX. We hear from people in their twenties and thirties, and saying, “hey, you know, it really changed my life in this way. I didn’t know it at the time, but, looking back on it, it opened these doors,” or “it gave me new ideas.”
(**This is an exerpt from the 6/10/07 FALLOUT CENTRAL Podcast episode. Click here to listen to the full interview. Click here to become a mentor for your fellow Asian Americans)
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06.09.07
Posted in Interviews, FALLOUT CENTRAL Podcast at 10:44 pm by admin
(**This is an excerpt from the 6/3/07 FALLOUT CENTRAL Interview with Yul Kwon. Click here to listen to the full interview.)
…
George: Moving on to your life after [Survivor: Cook Islands]… now you have a million dollars in your pocket… Most people would just put it in the bank, get interest, and live a very carefree life, away from the spotlight and all troubles. … You’ve decided to put yourself in the spotlight even more and to help out the community, of all things to do. … What do you have to say to those who think you’re crazy for doing this?
Yul Kwon: I feel a sense of responsibility and obligation to use that to try to raise issues within the community, to try and represent the community in a positive way. … I basically made a promise to myself … that if I were ever in a position where I could make a difference, that I would, … so I’m trying to leverage my exposure to not only raising awareness for minority bone marrow donors, but really to draw attention to issues within our community that have often been overlooked in the media.
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05.17.07
Posted in Interviews at 5:33 am by albert_lim
Right: Wong on the set with Norah Jones.
The Hollywood Reporter talks (or e-mails) with Wong Kar Wai, whose “My Blueberry Nights” just opened the 60th Cannes Film Festival.
Wong says of the film, “I consider it a sort of homage to the American cinema and literature that influenced my decision to become a filmmaker. It’s very different from ‘Spider-Man 3.’”
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05.14.07
Posted in Interviews at 1:02 am by albert_lim
Film fan site CountingDown.com has an exclusive interview with Jon Hurwitz, co-writer and co-director of “Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle” and the upcoming “Harold & Kumar 2.”
Hurwitz riffs on multicultural entertainment and offers a tease about the sequel, which he describes as “a hard-hitting look at the war on terror with more nudity than any comedy in recent history.”
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05.03.07
Posted in Interviews at 5:58 pm by albert_lim
George Takei talks to IGN.com about his role as Masi Oka’s dad in “Heroes,” improv comedy, being gay in Hollywood, and the new “Star Trek” movie (a prequel that will feature younger versions of the Enterprise crew).
Interestingly, Takei says that Sulu wasn’t meant to be Japanese, but somehow pan-Asian: “(”Star Trek” creator Gene Roddenberry) wanted a character to personify Asia, but Asian names are nationally specific. … So he looked at a map of Asia for a name that would represent the whole of Asia and found in the South Seas, right off the Philippines, the Sulu Sea. And he thought ‘Ahh, the waters of a sea touch all shores.’ And so that’s how Sulu came about, so he’s not Japanese, he’s Asian.”
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