Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Speaking of Gwen Stefani at our book club discussion that one time, I came across this video. Has anyone else seen it before? Aren't Asians great?

Sunday, November 23, 2008

New York, I'm not loving you so much right now.

So, there's this film called Paris, Je'Taime [translates into 'Paris, I love you] which I saw this past summer and while there were some films I was kinda iffy about, some of them were rather cute/good.
Essentially, it's a collection of short films by a bunch of well-known directors from around the world and they all take place in Paris. Anyway, following the success of Paris, Je'Taime, they are now coming out with a 'New York, I love you' in 2009. Same concept except all the short films take place in New York [durr].
So while procrastinating on homework as per usual, I decided to check out the trailer on YouTube. At first I was really excited about it [and hoped that a Chicago, I love you was in the works] buuuuut now I'm not so sure.
While watching the trailer, there are indeed a few Asian faces in there [yay!]. But my excitement was shortlived as they seemed to be rather stereotypical depictions. Granted, what I saw of these faces was only a few seconds but oh that was enough.
One of the scenes that made me raise my eyebrow was when the the voice over narration was saying how the thing they love about new york is that everyone comes from somewhere else. and during that, the second image they show is of an Asian girl. Okay, maybe they didn't do that intentionally. Maybe they just wanted to show how diverse New York is. blahblah. Okay. Maybe I'm overreacting. Keep watching.
The second one is when Maggie Q is walking out of a dry cleaners and the guy after her [i know him!! just can't remember his name. dammit] says 'same to you' in what I believe is cantonese.
Maybe she was speaking in Canto to the guy working at the cleaners so he thought he'd try to impress her with his Canto, I dunno. But really, was that necessary? Don't assume that every Asian you see speaks an Asian language, buddy.
And the next scene, is when Ethan Hawke is talking to Maggie Q on the street and he asks her what she does and she says she's a hooker.
Okay, that made me GROOOOANNNNN. Dammit! Why, Maggie Q, WHY? Why does she have to be a hooker?! Perpetuating the notion that all Asian women are hyper-sexual and/or all they want to do is have sex and/or all they're good for is sex. Waaahhhh.
Anyway, again, like I said, it's a trailer. So I could have interpreted these scenes completely wrong because they're out of context. But STILL. WHAT THE FUCK.

It also made me chuckle in a 'durr' kind of way that they listed Shu Qi as a 'Chinese woman.' Well, right.
And come to think of it, I don't think I saw one Asian male face in the trailer. Except for the possibility of the taxi cab driver. But I'm not sure.

Anyway, check out the trailer and let me know what you think.

Monday, November 17, 2008

Lack of posts

Sorry for the lack of posts, everyone. It's not that I haven't had a lack of ideas for starting blog entries, as there are currently six drafts sitting on here waiting to be finished. Whether they ever see the light of day, we cannot say for sure.

I'll try to post some stuff this week. I hope y'all consider doing so as well.

Thursday, November 6, 2008

Stop being such a hater. Sheesh.

found this article thanks to steve adler. it's a pretty great piece so you should definitely take a look. i've been so irritated with people these last few days who feel like this election was a whole joke and that obama being president means nothing because it's not like he represents real change.
true, obama is not nearly as progressive as most people think. he has his flaws. but to say something like him being elected president means nothing is plain disrespectful and untrue. if you were in grant park tuesday night alongside 250,000+ other obama supporters, you know that this elections means something.

this particular quote resonated with me:
"If you are incapable of mustering pride in this moment, and if you cannot appreciate how meaningful this day is for millions of black folks who stood in lines for up to seven hours to vote, then your cynicism has become such an encumbrance as to render you all but useless to the liberation movement. Indeed, those who cannot appreciate what has just transpired are so eaten up with nihilistic rage and hopelessness that I cannot but think that they are a waste of carbon, and actively thieving oxygen that could be put to better use by others."

now go read, yo.

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Well that's just something else, isn't it

This is not a partisan blog, nor is AACC an overtly partisan organization, but considering how we feel about certain things I can't help but think that at least some of us feel pretty alright (to put mildly) about the results of the presidential election last night.

A person raised by a single parent and his extended family will be President of the United States.

A Hawaiian-born Chicagoan raised in Jakarta and Honolulu will be President of the United States.

A community organizer will be President of the United States.

A person of color will be President of the United States.

It's a new day.

Monday, November 3, 2008

November 4th is the Day!

I can't believe nobody has posted this yet, but tomorrow is election day and anyone who reads this blog should go out and vote!

Go OBAMA!

P.S. My Shortcoming "review" will eventually get posted once, I get my thoughts gathered.

-DMEI

Sunday, November 2, 2008

Godspeed Studs

A Chicago institution, Studs Terkel passed away last week at the age of 96. He was a long time Chicago guy (moved to the city at age 8), and his presence will be missed immensely.

But what role does Studs Terkel play on a blog for an organization such as this?

My first experience with Studs Terkel was at a Day of Remembrance event back...oh, a while back, I can't remember the year exactly. Day of Remembrance is a day in the Japanese American community where we look back on the signing of Executive Order 9066 and the experiences that came from it, usually on the weekend closest to February 19, when EO9066 was issued. At my young age I wondered "well, wait a second. This is a Japanese American thing. What does that old white guy have to do with any of this?"

What I learned that day was that Studs was a man who got it.

He challenged the notion that World War II was the "good war," and was a time of great national unity. He was a great listener, and actually listened to people who were affected by internment, and others who experienced extreme hardships during the war. He cared about the working class, and chose to look at the 20th century United States from a wider range of economic and racial spectra, as opposed to the prevailing narrative that was often written by the white and wealthy.

He truly believed in progressive causes, was a long time workers' rights advocate, opponent of excessive government surveillance (he himself was blacklisted during the McCarthy era), and more than just listening to those who often went unheard, he actually took their stories and gave them a voice. From the Tribune:

It would be wrong to say Terkel was colorblind. He was deeply curious, deeply intrigued, about all the colors of the rainbow, whether in skin tones or political stripes or philosophical shadings. His only bias was on behalf of the powerless, the oppressed and the unheard.

As a Chicagoan, as an Asian American, as a progressive, and as a human being, I will miss Studs Terkel. I'm just sorry that I wasn't more appreciative of his work while he was around. He will be missed, maybe not by all, but almost certainly by those to whom he listened.