Asian Outlook | Fall 2017 Issue 1

ASIAN OUTLOOK Vol. XXXIII, Issue 1

Filipino American History Month • Trump Repeals DACA • Hurricane Hell Photo by Rena Schild / Shutterstock

ASIAN

Volume XXXIII, Issue 1

contents OUTLOOK 2

ASIAN OUTLOOK

opinions 4 | Trump Repeals DACA | Alyssa Boyle 6 | Tunnel | Htat H Ei 8 | Filipino American History Month | Tram Duong 10 | New Censorship in China | Mengshu Ye 12| Hurricane Hell | Benny Louie

arts & entertainment 14 | Ai Weiwei’s Art and Activism | Camille Guo 16 | How to be Bruce Lee | Michael Messina 18| Habits of a College Student | Darren Yu

conscience 23 | Cartoons

letter from the editor...

Dear Readers, It’s hard to believe that we’re already halfway through the semester! This year so far has been especially tough for all marginalized communities, including the Asian-American community. The current presidential administration continues to disregard the lives of ordinary American citizens through repeals of protections for various vulnerable parts of society such as healthcare, the environment, and LGBT folks. Undocumented immigrants all over the nation wonder whether they’ll be deported next; the attempts to repeal DACA particularly hurt many young people who know no home besides America. Our leaders also condemn peaceful and lawful protest over systemic racial injustice, like NFL players kneeling for the national anthem, while remaining silent over violent displays of white supremacist sentiments such as the rallies in Charlottesville.

I would like to take a moment to remind everyone that this nation of ours was born out of protests. Tradition and loyalty are legacies of our national heritage. However, protests are an American tradition. True patriots call to attention the issues within their country and work to improve them for a better future despite the opposition resisting change. You may feel weary of all of the terrible news in our country that constantly bombard our daily lives and begin to despair or grow numb.

That’s exactly what our silencers want us to do: they want us to give up fighting for so that they’ll have full control. Please don’t lose hope. We need to continue holding them accountable for their actions. We need to protect our most vulnerable members of American society. If we want change, we need to be able to stand together and act. Not just together as the Asian-American community, but also with everyone else in the country.

Knowing is half the battle, and Asian Outlook has always been committed to sharing relevant information about the world today, especially regarding the Asian-American community.

America has always been a multiethnic nation and we’re all committed to doing our part to keep it that way. All that said, it’s unhealthy to constantly think about everything wrong in the world, so Asian Outlook always makes sure to include some fun stuff too. I thank my E-Board and our contributors for working hard to put this issue together for all of you to read. I also thank the Asian Student Union and all of its other subgroups (Chinese American Student Union, Binghamton University Japanese Association, Korean American Student Association, Philippine American League, Taiwanese American Student Coalition, and Vietnamese Student Association) for continuing to support our endeavors. Most importantly, I thank you, the readers; if it weren’t for you all, Asian Outlook wouldn’t exist in the first place.

ASIAN OUTLOOK EXECUTIVE BOARD FALL 2017 editor-in-chief

Nina Ocampo Secretary Michael Messina copy editors Benny Louie Brandon Ng Alyssa Boyle layout editors Camille Guo Michelle Pao Mengshu Ye business manager Tiffany Tung publicity manager Htat H Ei

EDITORIAL POLICY Asian Outlook is the art, literary and news magazine of the Asian Student Union of SUNY’s Binghamton University. Originally conceived and created to challenge, redefine, re-imagine and revolutionize images and perceptions associated with Asians and Asian Americans, Asian Outlook also serves to protect the voice of those in the minority, whether by ethnicity, gender, and/or political orientation. All matter contained within these beautiful pages do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial board. Asian Outlook reserves the right to edit submissions and publish work as deemed appropriate. Prospective contributors are encouraged to discuss their work with the editors prior to submissions.

Articles may be submitted as an e-mail attachment to ao.editor@gmail.com. All artistic and literary pieces may be submitted to aoconscience@gmail.com.

CONTACT POLICY Uninvited contact with writers and contributors is forbidden under punishment of pain. Please direct all questions, comments and complaints to ao.editor@gmail.com. interested in contributing?

E-mail us at:

ao.editor@gmail.com

For more info check us out on facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/asianoutlook/

Look at our past issues on Issuu: https://issuu.com/asianoutlook

Nina Ocampo Editor-in-Chief, Fall 2017

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Photo by David McNew / Getty Images.

Trump Repeals DACA 4

ASIAN OUTLOOK

By Alyssa Boyle

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ARLIER THIS MONTH, PRESIDENT TRUMP ANNOUNCED HIS intention to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program (DACA). This program was passed by the Obama administration in 2012 and was intended to protect DREAMers, or young undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as children. Those who are eligible to apply for DACA must have been under the age of 16 when they came to the US and under the age of 31 when the legislation was passed on June 15, 2012. Applicants also must have a “mostly clean” criminal record and either be enrolled in school or have served in the military. DACA did not offer permanent citizenship to these young immigrants, but it did offer them work permits and a temporary “degree of relief” from deportation for a renewable 2-year period in order to continue their education, work, and other forms of personal development. Currently, this program is protecting about 800,000 DREAMers.

On September 5, 2017, the Trump administration rescinded the continuation of the program, and no new applications are being accepted.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the rescission under the pretense that DACA has “denied jobs to hundreds of thousands of Americans by allowing those same jobs to go to illegal aliens.” Statements like these make immigrants out to be no more than “aliens” who steal jobs from “real Americans” rather than real people who are trying to make a life for themselves. In reality, America is a country founded on the immigration of people from any and all backgrounds, and what it means to be “American” is entirely a social construct.

Although this program was originally an executive order passed by Obama through the Department of Homeland Security and can be rescinded

by Trump without the approval of Congress, Trump has decided to defer to Congress the decision of what will become of the DREAMers registered under DACA as well as plans for future immigration laws. Trump recently stated that “this is a gradual process, not a sudden phase out. Permits will not begin to expire for another six months, and will remain active for up to 24 months.” In delaying complete rescission of these permits, Trump is essentially opening a “window of opportunity” to act and preserve the rights of DREAMers.

Over the next six months, the House and Senate will have to work together and come to a consensus to establish future legislation laws regarding immigration and to protect these DREAMers who were brought here through no decision of their own and are working, studying, and building a life for themselves. House Speaker Paul Ryan expressed hope that this legislation “ensures that those who have done nothing wrong can still contribute as a valued part of this great country.” http://www.npr.org/2017/09/05/546423550/trump-signalsend-to-daca-calls-on-congress-to-act https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/05/us/politics/trumpdaca-dreamers-immigration.html http://www.marketwatch.com/story/text-of-attorney-generalsessions-statement-on-rescinding-daca-2017-09-05 https://qz.com/1069843/trump-rescinded-daca-but-congresscould-still-approve-dream-act/

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TUNNEL O

NE DAY AFTER SCHOOL, I WAS RIDING the subway to Manhattan on the D line with my friend when she pointed out a crinkly poster plastered behind a foggy glass wall which looked as if it had been worn down with time spent underground. Posing in front of a Manhattan community college, a young girl who was around our age smiled toward us nonchalantly with books in her hand, ready to pursue higher education and not have a single care in the world.

At least this was what DACA promises to those who apply.

Sponsored by New York City, the poster targeted toward young immigrants who were brought up in the country without legal documentation to apply for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA. It promised work authorization, state ID, opportunities to access higher education, and more importantly --- hope. Hope to live in this country like a regular citizen, hope to be like everybody else.

However, hope was something my friend was not seeing at all in a while.

After she pointed out the poster, she sighed heavily and told me how thankful she was toward the Obama administration for giving her a social security number and a life without any trouble so far. As grateful as she was however, she resigned quietly back into her seat, because we knew in a year or so with a heavy heart, she will be sent away to North Carolina to begin her training as a U.S. army soldier.

It was during the senior year of High School amidst painful college rejections and life-changing decisions when she confided in me that almost all the colleges she applied to have considered her as an International student. I knew she went to all-American public schools since Kindergarten, but then it suddenly dawned onto me that she wasn’t born here. Even though this was the only ground she’s ever known of walking on, to these so-called higher institutions, she was an alien to the American soil.

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By Htat H Ei

To her peers and community, she was an American raised under thirtythree amendments with the rights to freedom and equality. This was probably because she didn’t fit the public perception of what an illegal alien is supposed to be. She was not brown nor was a law-breaking rapist and murderer who steals people’s jobs and lives off others lazily. I admit though that she can be lazy sometimes, not because she’s illegal but rather because she’s a teenager --- like you and me. Amidst all the geniuses & future Noble Laurates in my High School, she was one of the strongest and hard-working people that I’m glad to have befriended. I know it’s cliché to be biased about your friend, but it’s true. When she wasn’t busy taking care of her siblings whose parents were out working most of the time, she was volunteering, caring for the school’s animals at the Animal Room and helping others out with her kind words & gentle smile.

However, being smart and kind means nothing if your box is not checked U.S citizen or Permanent Resident.

It didn’t give her the same opportunities you and I got --- to attend college as an in-state student, to receive scholarships, to take out loans regularly to pay for university, to not have to worry about risking financially on your siblings and parents. For her, when it came to college, rejection was not an issue, but rather, the acceptance. Because there is a limited job market for those without legal documentations, her parents were only able to take on jobs that only put food on the table and clothes in the back. Growing up frugal into a large family, she had to consider if she can even afford and accept higher education if she wants her younger siblings to also go to college. Although she did choose Binghamton University in the end, her benevolent heart did not allow her siblings to thread the same path as she did --- not being able to afford schools and get scholarships just because they couldn’t check the U.S citizen box --- so she did what no other person would ever do: she sacrificed her college career to enlist in the U.S army.

It was the only way for her siblings to gain citizenship and live normally in this country.

Back to the underground tunnel, we began talking about our lives and what our future holds ahead for us. We were on our way to my gym where she’s taken advantage of my bringing a guest pass to begin training for the army.

She wanted to be fit at least, she said, before they can break her first. While I talked about classes that I will be taking in college, she was thinking of the training regimes she will have to go through at the army. For her, the future was unguided and dim like the dark shadows that cast on our faces when the train passed by disruptive constructions in underground. With the election happening then, we did not know what the future was going to be like for her and her family. In the silence, we became lost in our own thoughts.

All we could do was pray for the train to surface once more to the light at the end of the tunnel.

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By Tram Duong

FILIPINO AMERICAN HISTORY MONTH T

HE FILIPINO-AMERICANS COME TOGETHER TWICE A YEAR TO honor their history and heritage, to celebrate their Independence Day in June, and to commemorate Filipino American History Month (FAHM) in October, which marks the first recorded presence of Filipinos on U.S. soil in 1857. First introduced by Filipino American National Historical Society in 1982, the Heritage month was federally recognized in November 2009.

So why do we need a whole month to celebrate Filipino-American history and heritage? Because despite being the first Asian Americans to step foot on US soil in 1587 (three decades before the 1620 arrival of the Pilgrims on Plymouth Rock), they are the only Asian group to be included in US colonial history was entangled with racism, colorism, assimilation and mental health issues, and are currently the second largest Asian American group in America (occupying 20% of Asian American population in the US). Filipino Americans have been struggling to forge a unique and visible social identity and seek acknowledgement for their historical and contemporary contributions within the US, thus the introduction of FAHM. While Asian Americans are considered a minority within the US, Filipino Americans are considered ‘a minority within a minority,’ overshadowed by other majority East Asian identities and their ‘model minority stereotypes.’

Being double marginalized, Filipino Americans’ social identity is repressed by the dominant majority group and at the same time, marginalized within its own Asian-American minority. Historically, Filipinos bear more similarities to Black, Latinos and Native Americans due to their colonial history and discriminative and denied justice in history. But Asian Americans’ identity and associated ‘model minority’ stereotypes erase Filipinos’ histories of oppression, colonialism, flattens their diversity and devalues their power and historical contributions within the US. There are various reasons attributed to the invisibility and lack of acknowledgement for Filipino Americans. One major factor is the lack of scholarship and institution support from schools and organizations, in which students seldom learn about Filipino-Americans or their history. The lack of Filipino American representations in textbooks urge the youngsters of

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Philippine Commonwealth Army personnel during World War II

Filipinos to lump themselves together with the pan-ethnic Asian Americans, at least until their adult years, during which they fully learn and embrace their distinctive heritage when given more opportunities to learn about their heritage and partake in Filipino cultural ethnic clubs and organizations in high school and college. Even when mentioned in history textbooks, Filipinos are only portrayed during periods in which western powers dominate the Filipinos, forming an oppressed & inferior role for the latter. Being written off US history and scholarship, as well as misrepresented and underrepresented by the mainstream media, Filipinos Americans are also excluded from the halls of political powers and influences.

The Filipinos being written off history dates back to the bloody 15-year Philippine-American War started in 1899, which killed hundreds of thousands, some say 1.4 million, Filipinos, that’s largely unknown of in US history books.

It dates back to how the leadership and initiatives of Larry Itliong, Philip Vera Cruz and other Filipino farmworkers, who instigated The Delano Grape Strike of 1965, fostered the creation of the United Farm Workers Union (UFW) and played instrumental roles in the most significant labor movement for social justice in modern history, is often a forgotten piece of history and overshadowed by the celebrity of Cesar Chavez, whose Chicano legacy as a labor and civil rights leader grew over the years.

It dates back to how President Franklin Roosevelt pledged citizenship and full military benefits for the Filipino soldiers who fought side-by-side with the US military, but – shortly after war – voided the promise and recognition with the 1946 Rescission Act, leaving the Filipino veterans in economic struggles during their early and retirement years.

The earlier generation of Filipino Americans, perhaps due to their English fluency, were less inclined to cluster in enclaves or neighborhoods, such as Chinatown, Little Tokyo or Little Saigon, and dispersed among themselves, thus resulted in a lack of specific ethnic geographic locations and outward presence compare to other Asian ethnicities.

Filipino Americans invisibility is most recently exemplified by New York Times’ 2016 seven-minute film of their “Conversations on Race” Op-Doc series, featuring stories and conversations with 12 different Asian Americans and touching upon foreigner stereotypes, ‘model minority’ myth, racism experiences, English accent, immigration… Of the 12 Asian American, not one was a Filipino American, whose population occupies one-fifth that of the Asian American community.

This marginalization coming from one of America’s national newspaper depicts the painful reality that Filipinos have been historically forgotten and continually ignored. However, with the younger generations of FilipinoAmericans and their access to media and representation in a globalizing world, along with the annual celebrations of their Heritage Month, Filipino Americans will be able to shed ‘The Invisible Minority’ label in the near future.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/unseen-and-unheard/201604/why-are-filipino-americans-still-forgotten-and-invisible http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/why-we-celebrate-filipino-american-history-month_us_ 57f564a7e4b087a29a54856a Oreiro, Brandon Napenias, “Overcoming Panethnicity: Filipino-American Identity in a Globalized Culture” (2014). Global Honors Theses. 15. http://digitalcommons.tacoma.uw.edu/gh_theses/15

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CENSORSHIP IN CHINA

By Mengshu Ye

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HINESE NOBEL PRIZE WINNER LIU XIAOBO DIED ON JULY 13, 2017, OF LIVER CANCER IN A HOSPITAL PRISON. As a democracy activist, Liu Xiaobo participated in the drafting and signing of the Charter 08, a document that calls for an “end to some of its essential features, including one-party rule, and their replacement with a system based on human rights and democracy;” it was a call for a “constitutional, democratic China.” In 2009, Liu Xiaobo was imprisoned for challenging the state power. Mao Zhixu, a friend of Liu, shared in an interview after receiving the news of Xiaobo’s cancer, “My ideas were highly overlapped with his ideas. But today I hardly believe those ideas anymore. In fact, the first time I realized the door of engagement with the system has already closed was when Xiaobo was sentenced to eleven years in prison.”

Nine years later, censorship in China amongst news, book publications, media productions, and internet access has been increasingly harsh. Take the internet as an

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example. For years, the Chinese government has blocked the majority of its people from certain internet access, such as Facebook, Google, and any website containing “sensitive” information. However, there are some methods and tools to break through this Great Firewall. Virtual private networks, or VPN, is a private network through which people pay to reach the outside world. This method is very useful and has been tolerated for over a decade.

However, over the past two months, many VPN apps have been shut down and removed from the online store, signaling the Chinese government’s shifting attitude towards the online censorship system. At the same time, one of the most popular sites offering foreign movies and television shows had been relaunched, left with only limited Chinese movies and television shows that passed the censor’s standard.

Similarly, writing publications experienced an aggressive new censorship. The evolution of censorship in China has shifted from vague and secret to direct

and strong. In the 2000s, the instruction of censorship often was not put into writing. Officials were instructed to remove articles that violated censorship rules via telephone. In the era of Xi Jinping, however, the instructions became increasingly bold and harsh, stating that the state power is stronger than ever.

On August 18, under the request of Chinese censors, 315 articles were removed from The China Quarterly’s website in China. The China Quarterly is one of the most reputable academic journals that focuses on Chinese studies, published by Cambridge University Press. The Chinese government requested to delete these articles because they contained the sensitive topics of the Chinese Communist Party, including Tiananmen, Tibet and Taiwan. China’s crackdown on academic freedom has elicited strong reactions from Chinese scholars; Chinese Quarterly editorial member Yang Guobin commented, “This is one of the most important international publications in contemporary Chinese studies, yet it’s subject to such restriction… This is unheard of. Isn’t the Chinese government trying to promote contemporary Chinese studies?”

Cambridge University Press eventually decided to

withdraw the decision of deleting the articles and stated in an email, “China signed up to the International Publishers Association last year, and one of the body’s guiding principles is that of freedom to publish. The issue of censorship in China and other regions is not a short-term issue and therefore requires a longer-term approach. There are many things we can’t control, but we will continue to take every opportunity to influence this agenda.”

In an essay he wrote in 2006 about how the Chinese communist party’s lead ended up being a disaster during the Cultural Revolution, Liu Xiaobo stated, “If the Communists succeed once again in leading China down a disastrously mistaken historical road, the results will not only be another catastrophe for the Chinese people but likely also a disaster for the spread of liberal democracy in the world.” China’s new censorship has not only been increasingly harsh, but it has also been extending its influence beyond its border. Whether it’s the censorship throughout the Internet or the restriction on academic freedom, this phenomenon has certainly become worthy of attention and awareness in Chinese society today.

https://qz.com/1056938/cambridge-university-press-china-quarterly-complies-withcensorship-removes-300-articles-on-topics-like-tiananmen-and-tibet-in-china/ https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/03/business/china-internet-censorship.html https://www.nybooks.com/daily/2017/09/05/beijings-bold-new-censorship/ https://www.nybooks.com/daily/2017/07/14/liu-xiaobo-the-man-who-stayed/

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Hurricane Harvey

Hurricane Hell

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ATURAL DISASTERS ARE NOT UNCOMMON. Over the past couple of years, there have been a decent amount of hurricanes and earthquakes occurring worldwide. After each of these disasters, a great deal of resources and money is spent cleaning up the aftermath. Since these disasters often happen separately over time, we manage to recover before the next one hits, but what happens when the disasters pile up? How do we recover from a barrage of disasters that won’t give us room to rest? Within the past month, disaster after disaster has struck. In particular, a number of hurricanes have been unrelenting in their destruction.

The first to strike was Harvey. Born in the Caribbean, Hurricane Harvey started out as a tropical wave originating from the African coast. Very soon, it grew into a tropical storm before evolving into the hurricane that killed around 82 people. Catastrophic flooding devastated Houston, Texas, and the estimated cost for repairs was $180 billion. Unfortunately, this was not the end of the horror.

While Harvey was wreaking havoc in Texas, Hurricane Irma started its very own wave of destruction. With winds reaching 185 mph, Irma has caused 102 confirmed fatalities as of September 21st. Together with Harvey, their repair costs are estimated to be anywhere between $150 billion and $200 billion. If only that was the end of it all.

By Benny Louie

After all the death and destruction caused by Harvey and Irma, you would think the world has suffered enough.

Hurricane Jose proved otherwise, threatening to finish off the destruction left by Irma. As the longest surviving hurricane of 2017, we are still unsure whether or not the death toll will continue to rise.

The alphabet storm continued. Hurricane Katia came and left quickly, causing a small amount of minor destruction. Tropical Storm Lee, a recent storm, is still under close observation just in case it develops into a hurricane. In a single month we have already had four storms, three of which were major hurricanes, and that is still not the end! We still haven’t gotten to the current huge disaster threatening our lives. With its currently rising death toll, the devastation of Hurricane Maria may be no less than Harvey or Irma. At its peak, Maria grew into a Category 5 Hurricane and ranked as the 10th most intense hurricane ever recorded. As of September 22nd, the death toll is already 39, and 22 are missing.

Five storms devastated us within the span of a month; as one goes away, another one takes its place. Which hurricane is going to hit us next?

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The Washington Square Park (NYC) installation that makes up part of Ai Weiwei’s Good Fences Make Good Neighbors project protesting Trump’s border walls .

Photography by Jason Wyche, courtesy Public Art Fund, NY

By Camille Guo

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MODERN CHINA’S ACHILLES’ HEEL: AI WEIWEI’S ART AND ACTIVISM

“I think those technology platforms constant put the government on trial. And every event, every policy they make, people will laugh about it, and they will make fun about it.

This is amazing for the younger generation.”

- Ai Weiwei -

Sunflower seeds exhibit at Tate Gallery.

Tate Photography.

B

ORN IN BEIJING ON MAY 18, 1957, AI WEIWEI IS now China’s leading conceptual artist. He spent his childhood in exile due to Mao Zedong’s antiintellectual campaign. As a result, he learned many practical skills that he would later apply to his art. As a child, he was not shielded from the hardships his father faced as a poet accused of being a counterrevolutionary.

China’s lack of human rights and freedom of speech left a deep impression on Ai Weiwei. His family returned from exile 20 years later after Mao Zedong’s death in 1976.

He began studying the arts at 19, attending the Beijing Film Academy for animation and involving himself with the unofficial Beijing art scene. He started to merge his political activism with his art when he joined The Stars, a political group of artists who believed that art is a form of self-expression.

His career is centered around making political art.

One of his most famous exhibitions, Sunflower Seeds (2010), epitomizes his opinion of Mao Zedong’s Cultural Revolution. Sunflower Seeds is a sculptural representation of millions of porcelain sunflower seeds that were handpainted by hundreds of skilled artisans. The unique strokes on each seed mirrors the distinct personalities of every human. This form of ‘ready made’ art (the manipulation of objects to suit the artist’s intentions) is poured into a space at the Tate Gallery in Britain. The view of a floor covered in seeds symbolizes the depersonalization of oppressive regimes that enforce conformity upon the individual.

Visitors were expected to walk across “the giant carpet of seeds” and then pick them up to examine them. They would then toss them away much like how Mao tossed away people’s lives. In 1966, Mao Zedong’s revolution left a legacy of torment and violence in China’s politics and society. During this revolution, it was commonplace for propaganda images to display Chairman Mao as the sun and the people as sunflowers turned towards him. On the other hand, Ai Weiwei’s representations of sunflower seeds are of “human compassion, providing a space for pleasure, friendship and kindness during a time of extreme poverty, repression and uncertainty.” The effort of mass production and the personal narrative of his work provides an outlook on the history that China’s government hides in fear of opposition.

Ai Weiwei has also created a strong social media presence in spite of China’s censorship. His popular blog and Twitter feed repeatedly challenges Beijing for human rights abuses. Both platforms were shut down by Chinese officials in 2009, but nonetheless, Ai continues to participate in underground documentaries that he films with collaborators and posts online where they can be viewed for free. The art of Ai Weiwei lives on through both his lifestyle and the questions and conversations that he elicits online.

Barnaby Martin, Hanging Man: the Arrest of Ai Weiwei (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2013) http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/08/tech/innovation/ai-weiwei-documentary-poptech/ index.html Vol. XXXIII, Issue 1 15

Photo: Bruce Lee Enterprises, LLC; All Rights Reserved

I

NTRO PARAGRAPH? C’MON, YOU KNOW WHO we’re talking about here. You’ve seen the films, heard the quotes, and mimicked that iconic “WA TAAAA!” Hell, even Uma Thurman channeled her inner-Bruce for her film Kill Bill. The man who was born in America, raised in China, and overcame a troubled childhood to become an Asian-American Hollywood Superstar. But beyond the action and action-figure physique resides enough wisdom to raise the question: What can we learn from this legend’s tragically short life? In short: a whole lot. So grab your nunchucks (and don’t hit yourself swinging them) as we examine three core aspects of the dragon himself: learning, technique, and cultivation.

Ladies and gentlemen, this is: How to Be Bruce Lee. Learning. “The idea is that flowing water never goes stale, so just keep on flowing.” A poet, deep thinker and cha-cha champion, Lee was a layered man who loved water metaphors. He pushed himself and others to continually evolve like a running stream. When it came to learning new things, martial arts or otherwise, he always stressed action. Although an avid reader, he was also an avid doer.

“Knowing is not enough, we must apply… we must do.” He encouraged his students, colleagues and family to “absorb what is useful… reject what is useless.” Nothing embodies this mantra greater than Jeet Kune Do, Bruce Lee’s own

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martial art, an amalgamation of styles both Eastern and Western. Nicknamed the “style of no styles,” Lee insisted JKD to be ever-evolving, always changing, flowing, like water.

After training in Kung Fu from a young age, Lee experimented with Judo, Fencing, Western Boxing, and many other combat arts. Along his martial journey, Lee examined new information in relation to himself. He found his own way, just as he thought everyone should. He began to know himself through these experiences, stating “all knowledge is ultimately self-knowledge.”

Technique. Technique is essentially the art of the clash, two opposing forces meeting head on. To Lee, the first step in mastering technique was knowing oneself, a recurring theme in his philosophy. As a boy, Lee was a troublemaker and street gang member with a violent temper. He has recalled being beaten in the street by other boys - a far cry from the one-inch punches, two-finger push-ups, and badass triple threat of mind, body, and soul that we so fondly remember today. He recognized himself, refined himself into something wholly unique. However, as you know, fights do not happen with one person, but between two. The next component of technique is knowing your opponent.

Lee knew his opponents well, as they were often

How to be Bruce Lee

By Michael Messina intimately linked to his roots. Struggling to land lead roles in Hollywood, Lee knew the reason: America was not ready for an Asian action hero. Criticized for teaching Kung Fu to Caucasians, Lee knew the reason: traditionalists were not ready for his radical new way forward. Once two opposing forces meet you must “be like water,” Lee believed, “slipping its way through the cracks.” One must observe and internalize, finding the path of least resistance. With yourself and your opponent known, only one aspect of technique remains: the combat test.

When fighting Hollywood, Lee found a backdoor: becoming a star in China so big that America could not ignore him. When fighting Chinese traditionalists, a much more direct approach was needed: Lee would fight traditionalist Wong Jackman in an all-out, no rules match. Lee won in three minutes according to his widow Linda Lee Cadwell. However, Lee was not satisfied with his victory. He began refining his fighting style and body, merging modern fitness with martial arts like never before, preparing for the next combat test, finding cracks and existing always in a state of flow.

Cultivation. “Be formless, shapeless, like water.”

Cultivation is, in a way, the art of taking ideas you have learned and techniques you have mastered, internalizing them, and making them your own. Remember that bit

about all knowledge being self-knowledge? How about the one about absorbing what is useful? Cultivation is where it all comes together to create something truly unique: you.

This is more than just getting good at kicking, more than just memorizing facts; it’s about letting your experiences shape you, just like a cup or teapot shapes water. There’s a reason why we remember Bruce Lee before any other Asian martial artists, why we remember his name before the names of the characters he’s played: Lee was himself.

Completely, unapologetically and overwhelmingly.

The funny thing is, despite this article’s title, Bruce Lee would not want his fans striving to be him. He would want his fans to discover themselves. With that said, the legacy of Lee comes full circle: the yin and the yang, the east and the west, the flashy film and the brutal street. Even his birth name, “Lee Jun-Fan,” means “Return Again.” His spirit returns after death through film, through philosophy, and through us as we continue to examine ourselves, flowing and crashing like water. After all, “The meaning of life is that it is to be lived.”

“Be water, my friend.”

I am Bruce Lee - Documentary Film https://www.brucelee.com/ https://bruceleefoundation.org/ http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/29/us/brucelee-philsophical-legacy/index.html

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HABITS OF A COLLEGE STUDENT

By Darren Yu

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EAR READERS, I’M WRITING THIS IN THE HOPE THAT IT WILL CONNECT WITH SOME OF YOU, AT LEAST SOMEWHAT. Anyway, I hope you’re doing well. I’m Darren Yu, a BU senior majoring in business consulting and leadership (minoring in comparative literature and global studies). You may know me from beatboxing, a bad habit that turned into something I now occasionally do for gigs. Besides that, my interests include creative writing, video games, and bucket lists.

Do you ever get the feeling that life as a BU student slowly turns you into a more eccentric individual? I didn’t notice it while it was happening – only when I looked back to younger days and realized I didn’t always enjoy pineapple on pizza. According to some friends, the fact that I do now apparently makes me a monster, but I digress.

As you could guess, I’ve acquired a series of strange habits through my time as a BU student. Fortunately, they strongly complement my lifestyle of attending classes that I don’t pay attention in, jobs that I’m surprised I haven’t been fired from yet, and extracurriculars that serve as a method of procrastinating other work with less guilt.

This is the written outlet for my habits, in a record keeping sense. I haven’t had many opportunities to talk about them, with one exception. I’ll start with that one.

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“In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule.�

- Friedrich Nietzsche -

Vol. XXXIII, Issue 1 This is sources, volkorn 8pt

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Eating Alone. When I talk about why I eat alone, I’m usually not the one to start the conversation. In a public space or eatery, a college student typically eats with friends, or with their studies. I bring neither on my end, which is why I’m often asked about it.

It doesn’t make too much sense to others, but it makes a lot of sense to me. Eating is an introvertive activity for me that I do at my own pace, but I also enjoy people watching. The best balance between the two is finding a space in a cafe from where I’m distant from others and can think to myself while still being able to see most of the people. I recommend it.

Of course, that perspective isn’t for everyone. Many of our upbringings involved eating with family and friends, so it became a norm. My upbringing was no exception, but I turned out preferring to eat alone for some reason.

When I enter restaurants alone, which is not too dissimilar from entering a movie theater alone, I’m often asked “Just you?”. You can tell it’s an uncommon occurrence to them. In the long-term though, it helps me identify which places I’d bring my friends or family too, and which menu items to recommend.

When alone, I also enjoy…

20 ASIAN OUTLOOK

Night Walks. If you reach midnight, the experience is even better.

Oftentimes, the reason you have trouble sleeping is because you haven’t had enough time during the day to process your experiences.

Night walks are perfect for that. They give you the opportunity to think about your day with less pressure, and provide your brain the quiet it needs.

Occasionally, I’ll invite someone to take a night walk with me, but I need to be sure they’re the right person for it. If they’re going to add more noise to my brain, I’d hope it feels like music.

Other nights, when I’m feeling a little more outgoing, I like to bring…

Sharpies at Bars. If you were sober and I asked to draw on you with a sharpie, you’d probably say no. If you were drunk, it’s a different story.

That’s why it’s a hit at bars.

In the bars, I like to give ‘temporary tattoos’ to friends, or sometimes, even people I just met. I bring different colors each time too, for the sake of variation.

I’ve come to realize that these temporary tattoos don’t wash off easily. I let a few people draw on me, and it took a few days to completely wash off the flower and Batman logo on my arms. In those same days, friends would bring it up to me, saying they can’t wash off my eye tattoos. One of them even told me it was mistaken as a gash on his arm due to my choice of color that night.

Bad choices make good stories, right? Speaking of…

I’ll end on this note - bad habits make good stories. It’s a dangerous, overused mantra primarily for the purpose of justifying shenanigans, but it makes you a hell of a lot more relatable.

Thanks so much, readers.

P.S. If you need a performer, let me know. I do beatboxing, spoken word, and flash fiction.

- Ghost -

Improv Plans. If I make plans, they’re usually for something in a couple of hours. At that point, for some people it’s not even planning anymore. It’s improvisation.

I rarely make plans, and if I do, they’re usually the same day. This comes from a series of aggravating experiences which I’m sure you and many college students might be able to relate to. Ever been flaked for a plan you made more than a week in advance? Yeah, it sucks, and it has happened to me countless times. The reasons are never good either. “I have to study”, “I’m tired”, “I overslept”.

Those shouldn’t work when it’s in advance.

So I’ve resorted to making plans the day of, which often serves as a great method of procrastination.

These hangouts, usually intended for an hour or so, are often tripled in time. A good conversation topic goes a long way in stalling a hangout from ending. Conversation topics like creative projects, mutual friends, hypotheticals, and…

Beatboxing. Well, at least for me, it’s a good conversation topic if it’s with another beatboxer. Except you don’t really have a conversation about it. You pretty much just do it.

It’s much more preferable than having a conversation about music.

Unless everyone who’s involved is into the same kind of music, it usually becomes an awkward, one sided conversation in which one individual goes on and on about their specific preferences of Chainsmokers music, or argues for the viability of country music by playing specific country songs for me through their low quality iPhone audio.

I’ve definitely been the culprit before though, so I try to avoid talking about it unless it’s prompted in some way, and the same goes for beatboxing.

For beatboxing, it’s always brought up though, presumably because I do it a lot. It really is a bad habit since I do it in public spaces, or at professional settings like work. I even did it for an interview once (I passed that round, I didn’t get the offer in the end though).

I alluded to it before, but something that started off as a bad habit of impulsively generating bizarre noise from my mouth became a spark for countless interactions. I’ve come to develop a character of being a beatboxer, performer, and familiar face at BU open mics. I’d be lying if I said this isn’t what I want, even though I didn’t know that in the beginning of college.

Vol. XXXIII, Issue 1

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22 ASIAN OUTLOOK

“If gun was a type of drug”

Vol. XXXIII, Issue 1

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