Northwest Asian Weekly

PRSRT STD U.S. Postage Paid Permit No. 746 Seattle, WA

VOL 33 NO 35

AUGUST 23 – AUGUST 29, 2014

FREE

PICTORIAL Haute couture at Seattle Keiro Garden » P. 7

32 YEARS YOUR VOICE

Dealing with death— A history of change in Little Saigon and harassment Photo by James Tabafunda/NWAW

Zelda Williams suffers from the loss of her father and internet abuse

Intersection of 12th Avenue South and South Jackson Street in Little Saigon

By Zachariah Bryan NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY When renowned comedian and actor Robin Williams committed suicide from asphyxiation, daughter and half Filipina Zelda Williams discovered a hard truth about social media. It has two sides. There’s a nice, caring side and a downright ugly side.

Zelda is the daughter from Williams’ second marriage to Filipino American Marsha Garces. Garces met Williams when she became the nanny to Williams’ son Zachary (from his first wife). Garces and Williams had two children, Zelda and Cody, before divorcing in 2010.

Initially, after her father’s death, the messages pouring in from Twitter, Tumblr, and Instagram provided warmth and support for Zelda Williams. While celebrity deaths often generate a healthy number of Internet responses, it seemed that the whole world had gathered on social media channels to provide their respect for Robin Williams.

After all, this was a comedian that several generations had grown up with, laughed with, and followed their dreams with. He was a crossdressing nanny, the genie, Peter Pan, the gay owner of a drag queen club, that guy who made Flubber.

But despite all the warm memories and despair, it’s never long until the Internet “trolls” come rolling in.

Two anonymous Twitter users, @ PimpStory and @MrGooseBuster, started sending Zelda Williams gruesome, altered images of her father, showing bruises around his neck and blaming her for his death.

“Please report @PimpStory @ MrGoosebuster. I’m shaking. I can’t. Please. Twitter requires a link and I won’t open it. Don’t either.

Please,” Zelda Williams wrote in a tweet she has since deleted.

Shortly after, she swore off social media for an undetermined amount of time. “I’m sorry. I should’ve risen above. Deleting this from my devices for a good long time, maybe forever. Time will tell. Goodbye,” she wrote in her last tweet on Aug. 12.

Zelda Williams’ cyber bullying, and the ensuing backlash from supporters, now has Twitter officials rethinking their policy to prevent similar cases in the future.

“We will not tolerate abuse of this nature on Twitter,” Del Harvey, VP of Trust and Safety, said in a statement. “We have suspended a number of accounts related to this

Like many of the city’s other neighborhoods, its first transformation took place when Seattle’s first residents and developers raised and lowered the levels of city land, known as “regrading.” It became a part of the Jackson Street regrade in 1909.

Long before it was called Little Saigon, this neighborhood’s first occupants were Jewish and African American.

Little Saigon’s current center – 12th Avenue South and South Jackson Street – used to be the location of

A tenuous road ahead for Oakland Mayor Jean Quan

Flying kicks everywhere!

{see LITTLE SAIGON cont’d on page 15}

Two martial arts expos enlighten and entertain

Influx of candidates suggest public dissatisfaction

Photo by Zachariah Bryan/NWAW

Zelda Williams and Robin Williams

By James Tabafunda NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

Seattle’s Little Saigon neighborhood has reinvented itself several times over the last 100 years. It was not always the go-to spot for authentic Southeast Asian food or the social and economic center of the Vietnamese American community.

Located at the easternmost part of the International District, it is bordered by South Main Street to the north, Rainier Avenue South to the east, South Dearborn Street to the south, and Interstate 5 to the west.

By Daria Kroupoderova NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY Incumbent Oakland Mayor Jean Quan has a tough and crowded road ahead of her. Fourteen candidates are vying for her spot as she runs for re-election in November, according to the Contra Costa Times. Originally, there were 20 candidates running in total. However Mayor Jean Quan some dropped out while others did not meet the requirement of 50 signatures when filing paperwork.

One candidate, Dan Siegel, is a former adviser to the mayor. Others include Councilwomen Rebecca Kaplan and Libby Schaaf, and San Francisco State Professor Joe Tuman. In the last election, there were

{see WILLIAMS cont’d on page 5}

{see QUAN cont’d on page 6}

A participant at the Second Annual International Martial Arts Championship at the University of Washington

By Zachariah Bryan NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY Last Sunday, there were enough punches, flying kicks, and dancing swords to fulfill every Kung Fu fanboy’s heart.

That’s because two all-day events took place, including the First Annual Seattle Martial Arts Expo at the Asian Resource Center in the International District and {see THE MARTIAL ARTS EXPO cont’d on page 14}

THE INSIDE STORY NAMES People in the news » P. 2

■

WORLD Chiang Kai-shek is mainstream » P. 5

PUBLISHER’S BLOG Horsing around... » P. 10

COMMENTARY Nickelsville to move to ID? » P. 11

412 Maynard Ave. S., Seattle, WA 98104 • t. 206.223.5559 • f. 206.223.0626 • info@nwasianweekly.com • ads@nwasianweekly.com • www.nwasianweekly.com

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AUGUST 23 – AUGUST 29, 2014

■ NAMES IN THE NEWS Seattle Times creates new job position The Seattle Times associate opinion editor Sharon Pian Chan has been named Director of Journalism Initiatives. This is a new position created by The Seattle Times to help fund journalism through partnerships between nonprofits and The Seattle Times. In creating this position, the newspaper hopes to raise nontraditional revenue Sharon Pian Chan for itself. “Anything we can do to grow nontraditional revenue to expand our journalism is of significant benefit to our community,” said Seattle Times publisher Frank Blethen.

The new position will tie in on Chan’s community engagement work for Education Lab, which is a year-long partnership with nonprofit Solutions Journalism Network and looks at promising approaches to challenges in education. Currently, Chan is responsible for guest column submissions and looks over the Times’ Education Lab opinions, engagement efforts and newsletter. Chan also serves as deputy editor of the editorial page and is a member of the editorial board. She has also served as president of the Asian American Journalists Association from 20092010 and was vice president of UNITY: Journalists for Diversity alliance from 2011 to 2012. Chan will start her new position in October. 

Korean Youth Leadership Summit held in Auburn

Hyeok Kim

Sam Chung

The Korean Community Service Center and National Unification Advisory Council held a Youth Leadership Summit from Aug. 18 to Aug. 21 at Camp Berachah in

Auburn, WA. High school students were eligible to receive up to 20 hours of community service credit. This year’s goal/theme was “United Together for a Stronger Tomorrow,” and the summit had speakers Hyeok Kim, deputy mayor of Seattle and Judge Sam Chung among others. 

KuKuRuZa opens store in Tokyo

Chef Heong Soon Park

can be traced back to San Francisco’s State Bird Provisions, which inspired Tray Kitchen. The new restaurant will be located on 4012 Leary Way NW between the Ballard and Fremont neighborhoods. 

Kids test “IRONMAN” Skills KuKuRuZa storefront

The popular gourmet popcorn store has opened its tenth location in Tokyo. The store has been experiencing long lines where customers sometimes have to wait a few hours to buy popcorn, according to Crosscut. KuKuRuZa’s headquarters are in the International District and Grant Jones and his wife Ashley run the company. KuKuRuZa has two stores in Seattle, three stores in Saudi Arabia, two stories in Egypt and now two stores in Japan. The top two popular flavors are Hawaiian Sea Salt and Classic Caramel. 

New dim-sum style restaurant opening in fall Chef Heong Soon Park will be opening a new restaurant called Tray Kitchen. Park also is behind two other restaurants, Bacco Cafe and Chan. The idea for Tray Kitchen is that carts will be wheeled around, just like in a dim-sum restaurant except there will be small plates and not the usual dumplings in the carts. According to Seattle Met’s Nosh Pit, the idea

Nathan Dang and Jaicieonna Gero-Holt give high-fives to Dr. Health E. Hound before the start of the UnitedHealthcare IRONKIDS Fun Run.

Kids from the Boys & Girls Club of King County tested their IRONMAN skills at the UnitedHealthcare IRONKIDS Seattle Fun Run at Genesee Park in south Seattle Aug. 16.

The kids, ages 3-15 had the opportunity to race on the same course as the IRONGIRLS athletes who will participate in Seattle IRONGIRLS Triathlon, which begins on Sunday. The one-mile fun run is for “triathletes to be” and aims to help stem the rising tide of childhood obesity through exercise and healthy lifestyles. 

Amazing Women Mentors Volunteering as a way of life

Friday, September 19, 2014 • 11:30 a.m.—1:30 p.m. • China Harbor Restaurant • 2040 Westlake Ave. N., Seattle

Honorees

Sponsors

Grace Kim

Architect Schemata Workshop Inc.

Carole Carmichael

Assistant Manager Editor The Seattle Times

Lourdes Salazar

Volunteer Program Coordinator City of Bellevue

PLANNING COMMITTEE: Elizabeth Younger, Kiku Hayashi, Bonnie Miller, Connie Sugahara, Diane Martin, Francine Griggs, Kathy Purcell, Leny Valerio-Buford, Winona Holins-Hauge, Assunta Ng, Shoko Toyama, Rosa Melendez, Jaime Sun, Sonia Doughty, and Carol Cheung

Isabelle Gonn

Administrative Manager Nordstrom Technology

Emcee Jean Hernandez

President Edmonds Community College

Regina Glenn

Vice President Seattle Metropolitan

Diane Ferguson

Interim Director Central Area Seniors Center

Luz Iniguez

Director of the Migrant Program University of Washington

CO-CHAIRS: Charlene Grinolds and Gladys Romero

Kirstan Arestad

Director Seattle City Council’s Central Staff

RESERVATIONS FOR LUNCHEON: Discounted price of $35 if purchased by September 15. Full price of $45 after September 15. Walk-ins $50.

Student price of $25 with I.D. before September 15; $30 after September 15; student walk-ins $35. No tickets will be mailed; confirmation is by e-mail only. $350 for a table. To sponsor the event including logo online and print and table is $1,000.

(For details, visit womenofcolorempowered.com).

Men are welcome!

To purchase tickets, call us at 206-223-0623, or email rsvp@nwasianweekly.com. For more information, visit womenofcolorempowered.com.

Name: ___________________________________________________

Deborah Guerrero

Social Worker Muckleshoot Child & Family Services

Lillian Hayashi

Community Volunteer Elder Care & Service Advocate

Patricia Lally

Director Seattle Office for Civil Rights

Hazel Cameron Executive Director 4C Coalition

Address: __________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ Telephone: ________________________________________________ Fax: _____________________________________________________ Email: ___________________________________________________ Organization: _____________________________________________ Title (if applicable): _________________________________________ Name of guests: ___________________________________________ _________________________________________________________  Mastercard

Estela Ortega

Executive Director El Centro de la Raza

check

us out!

Deborah Lee

Program Director Nisqually Tribe Head Start

Bonnie Glenn Director DSHS

Stephanie Bowman Commissioner Port of Seattle

 Visa

Card no.: _________________________________________________ Exp. date: ____________ Signature: ___________________________

To reserve your space, fax this form to 206-223-0626 or email to rsvp@ nwasianweekly.com or mail the form along with check to: Women of Color Empowered, P.O. Box 3468, Seattle, WA 98114.

32 YEARS YOUR VOICE

AUGUST 23 – AUGUST 29, 2014

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AUGUST 23 – AUGUST 29, 2014

■ COMMUNITY NEWS

Police chief meets ethnic media

By Daria Kroupoderova NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

New Seattle Police Chief Kathleen O’Toole sat down with the ethnic media on Aug. 12 at the Rainier Beach Community Center to answer questions and discuss how she plans to work with Seattle’s diverse communities. O’Toole, appointed in June, is Seattle’s first female police chief.

“I started my career in the Boston Police Department...it’s a very diverse community there,” O’Toole said. “As a young police officer, I was assigned to the district that included Chinatown and represented other international populations as well.” O’Toole later became Boston’s first female police commissioner between February 2004 and May 2006. She also worked as Chief Inspector in Ireland. O’Toole comes to Seattle with over 30 years of experience in policing.

“Policing is about providing service to people in the community,” O’Toole said, pointing out that it’s not what TV shows make it look like. She said she felt that the police force needs to reflect the community

Detective Drew Fowler and Police Chief Kathleen O’Toole

it serves by being diverse.

Diversity is one of the similarities Boston and Seattle have, according to O’Toole. She said she hopes to collaborate with other city

■ NATIONAL NEWS

departments to work on issues the city is having problems with.

“The police alone will not solve the complicated issues that we are all facing,”

O’Toole said. However, she thinks that Seattle is “ahead of the curve” because of the neighborhoods’ community spirit and communities harnessing the resources available to them.

Two of her top priorities are prevention and intervention. O’Toole said she wants more preventative measures so police are seen in a positive light and a group that communities can trust compared to how mostly people run into the police in a negative environment.

“We need to do a better job on educating our police officers on cultural differences so that they appreciate and understand the different cultures that they are interacting with on a day-to-day basis,” O’Toole said.

O’Toole hopes that this is one of many opportunities the ethnic media and her can get together and talk.

After speaking with the ethnic media, O’Toole went on the fifth “Find It, Fix It” community walk, which started at the community center. 

Schatz wins over voters in tough US Senate primary in Hawaii

By Cathy Bussewitz ASSOCIATED PRESS

PAHOA, Hawaii (AP) — Incumbent U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz won a tense Democratic primary election in Hawaii, proving that he is no longer just a senator who was appointed to his seat—he has captured the confidence of Hawaii voters.

The dramatic race to finish the term of the late Sen. Daniel Inouye was tinged with emotional residue from the past. Schatz was challenged by U.S. Rep. Colleen Hanabusa, who at one point said that he wasn’t a true incumbent because he had been appointed by Gov. Neil Abercrombie after Inouye’s dying wish that Hanabusa replace him.

Now, after an election that stretched over nearly a week because Tropical Storm Iselle knocked out power and closed polling stations, Schatz has carried his slim electionnight lead to a victory. ``This was obviously an extremely hardfought race. But we’re gratified that the voters heard our message and recognized that I’ve been working hard for the people of Hawaii,’’ Schatz said in an interview with The Associated Press late Friday.

Schatz edged out Hanabusa, capturing 48.5 percent of the vote, compared with Hanabusa’s 47.8 percent.

Schatz had outspent Hanabusa by $1 million during his campaign, and his ads—which emphasized his endorsement by President Barack Obama—dominated TV and radio.

The election was held Friday for two rural precincts on Hawaii’s Big Island that were closed on Election Day because of damage from Iselle. In the days leading up to Friday’s makeup primary, Hanabusa tried to delay the election to give area residents more time to recover from the storm, but she lost a court challenge.

In an interview with reporters late Friday, Hanabusa thanked her supporters for their

Sen. Brian Schatz

U.S. Rep. Colleen Hanabusa

help conducting a campaign with a ``major money deficit.’’ ``That is one of the most humbling and phenomenal things about elections, it’s the relationships that we make, the relationships that we

earn,’’ she said. ``And I just want to say `Mahalo’ to everyone who has given their heart and soul to this election.’’

Iselle threw an unexpected twist to an already unusual campaign battle, turning the spotlight on Puna, an often neglected part of the state that was in the unlikely position of deciding the likely winner of the U.S. Senate race. Schatz will face Republican candidate Cam Cavasso in November, but Schatz is expected to cruise to victory in the heavily Democratic state.

With hundreds of downed trees and power lines sending the region into chaos, thousands of voters couldn’t get to the polls. Both candidates got to work handing out food, water, and ice to storm victims and giving the decisive voters a chance to judge them up close. {see HAWAII cont’d on page 13}

32 YEARS YOUR VOICE

AUGUST 23 – AUGUST 29, 2014

■ WORLD NEWS

5

Mao’s archenemy Chiang Kai-shek part of mainstream

By Louise Watt ASSOCIATED PRESS

BEIJING (AP) — Photos of Mao’s archenemy Chiang Kai-shek adorn the walls of a Beijing restaurant, and his face looks up at diners from the menu. Online, the deposed Chinese leader’s image is used to sell the kinds of lamps and swords he might have used. A liquor brand has patterned its bottle on Chiang’s memorial in Taipei.

Twenty years ago, Chiang was considered an enemy of the people on mainland China. Today, he has become part of mainstream culture—sort of.

There has been a grudging acceptance of Chiang’s historical role in fighting against Japan following its invasion in the lead-up to World War II. Chiang later lost to Mao Zedong’s Communists in the Chinese civil war and fled in 1949 to Taiwan, where he ruled until his death in 1975.

His revival on the mainland points to how China’s Communist Party uses history to make points about present-day politics. Chiang is doubly useful in that sense because China’s relations with Taiwan have been warming, while those with Japan are in steep decline.

Chiang’s rehabilitation has been ``really remarkable to observe from the outside’’ and likely was undertaken initially as an attempt by China’s leaders to tempt Taiwan into reunification by being ``a bit more accommodating about their version of history,’’ said Rana Mitter, author of the book ``China’s War with Japan, 1937-1945: The Struggle for Survival.’’

Chiang Kai-shek

“Now, of course, Chiang’s role as someone who fiercely opposed the Japanese during the war is politically very useful,’’ Mitter said.Chiang came to power as head of the Chinese Nationalist government in 1928 and much of his rule was spent fighting the Japanese and Mao’s Communists. For more than two decades after the Communists took over, many in the West still considered Chiang the face of China.

His shift on the mainland has been noticeable, if unstated. Over the past decade, Chiang’s Nationalist soldiers, known as Kuomintang or KMT, have gone from being portrayed in TV dramas as little more than corrupt and greedy characters to evincing patriotism and even courage as they fight the Japanese.

In Mr. Chiang’s Mainlander Res-

{WILLIAMS cont’d from page 1} issue for violating our rules and we are in the process of evaluating how we can further improve our policies to better handle tragic situations like this one. This includes expanding our policies regarding self-harm and private information, and improving support for family members of deceased users.”

The issue is hardly unique to Zelda Williams. Cyber bullying has been around since the very first chat room was invented. A large majority of the victims have been women or people from a minority background. In September of 2010, a college student at Rutgers University advertised a livestream of his roommate, 18-year-old Tyler Clementi, kissing another man. Though the livestream never took place, Clementi left a note on Facebook saying he was going to commit suicide by jumping off the George Washington Bridge.

His body was found in the Hudson River on Sept. 29, 2010.

In 2012, British Columbia teenager Amanda Todd was convinced by a stranger to become topless on video chat. When that stranger continued to stalk her relentlessly and used the photo as blackmail, circulating it on the Internet, she eventually created a YouTube video detailing the events leading up to her suicide.

The video reached over 17 million views and she committed suicide by hanging herself on Oct. 12, 2012.

In October of 2013, two teenage girls were

taurant in Beijing’s central business district, renamed earlier this year, Chiang’s face is drawn on the bright yellow cover of a menu and reprints of Chiang photos are pasted on the wall, including one of his wedding day. The 15 yuan ($2.40) specialty rice with stewed diced pork is made from a secret recipe that was shared with the restaurant by the offspring of friends of Chiang’s family, said restaurant boss Ren Zuxiang.

Though the photos on the wall can make customers smile, Ren said, many people still don’t feel at ease to give an honest assessment of Chiang the way they might about Sun Yat-sen, the founder in 1912 of a constitutional republic in China that put an end to more than 2,000 years of imperial rule.

“When talking about Sun Yatsen, it’s no problem, but the political conditions here are not so relaxed as in Taiwan, so someone who didn’t know you well wouldn’t say they liked Chiang,’’ said Ren. ``Not many ordinary people dislike him, though.’’

The shift on Chiang has not been a complete rehabilitation and is unlikely to become one. It would be hard for the ruling Communist Party to allow public discussion of his fierce anti-communism, for example.

“We haven’t seen any official documents carrying very positive comments on Chiang Kai-shek.

The most is that Chiang had played some roles in resisting the Japanese aggression,’’ said Chen Hongmin, director of the Center for Chiang Kai-shek and Modern Chinese Studies at Zhejiang University.

Chinese university students who

arrested on aggravated stalking charges when their cyber bullying was believed to contribute to the suicide of 12-year-old Rebecca Sedwick.

A Google search will reveal many cases of cyber bullying leading to suicide. According to the Centers for Disease Control, the suicide rate for teens went from 9.7 in 2007 to 10.5 in 2010, the highest rate it’s been in more than a decade. While it’s hard to pin the number entirely on social media and cyber bullying, many agree that it is certainly a new element in today’s world.

In a long, checkered history of bullying on the Internet, abuse on Twitter is just the latest trend.

Take Jennifer Pozner, executive director of Women in Media and News, for example.

While she was all too familiar with facing harassment, she had one especially adamant pursuer who would make new anonymous Twitter accounts every day to harass her. In an interview with the Washington Post, she said, “The worst one was he put my name in his Twitter handle — ‘JennPoznerFan’ — and he would steal my pictures from Flickr, or [on his feed], there would be my face photoshopped onto porn images of women being humiliated.” In her research, she has encountered rape threats, threats against people’s families, and racial slurs on Twitter, especially against women and people of color.

“Zelda has become this poster child, but what that overlooks is that Twitter, in particular, has become a place for abuse, and for

study an introduction to modern Chinese history read a description of Chiang as the ``representative of bourgeois or black forces’’ —and that hasn’t changed much in 60 years, Chen said.

But controls on research into Chiang and his period have loosened on the mainland, Chen said. This, as well as the opening of Chiang archives in Taipei in the late 1990s, has allowed academics to refute the common belief on the mainland that Chiang failed to fully resist the Japanese, Chen said.

“In the past, we used to say that the Communist Party forces dominated the resistance in the occupied areas, but the documents show that Chiang also attached great importance’’ to this effort, devoting many soldiers to it and ordering the generals on the front line by telegram to fight until death, he said.

Academics have concluded that Chiang’s anti-Japanese resistance and his economic development of Taiwan were positive aspects and ``it seems that the government doesn’t object to those,’’ Chen said, though he warned that changes in Beijing-Taipei relations could affect future academic work on Chiang.

The revival of Chiang as an antiJapanese patriot points to the wider issue of nationalism in China.

Whereas class warfare made Mao’s China tick, the present-day Communist Party has turned to nationalism ``as an alternative way of binding people together,’’ said Mitter, who is also a professor of Chinese history and politics at Oxford University. In Mao’s time, Taiwan was the enemy. Japan had been greatly weakened after its World War II

defeat, and China had an interest in trying to pry Japan from the Cold War embrace of the United States.

While Beijing still considers the self-governing island of Taiwan a part of its territory that eventually must be taken back —by force if necessary —relations between the two have warmed in the past decade, as they have focused on improving trade.

At the same time, while China and Japan are linked by billions of dollars in trade, investment, and aid, their relations are at their worst in years. Both are building up their militaries and accuse the other of growing assertiveness, including in a dispute over uninhabited islands in the East China Sea. Both countries also have fanned memories of war. In response to what China calls the denial of war crimes by Japanese politicians, the State Archives Administration has been publishing old confessions of Japanese war criminals —one per day since the beginning of July.

Last month, President Xi Jinping gave a speech to mark the 77th anniversary of the start of a war with Japan in which he warned against people who ``beautify the history of aggression.’’ His words also evoked the image of Chinese sticking together.

“The great war of Chinese people’s resistance against Japanese aggression brought the awareness and unity of the Chinese nation to a level never reached before,’’ Xi said.  Associated Press researchers Yu Bing and Henry Hou contributed to this report.

women and people of color in particular. The company knows it and has done precious little about it,” Pozner told the Washington Post. 

Zachariah Bryan can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

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AUGUST 23 – AUGUST 29, 2014

■ COMMUNITY CALENDAR SUN 8/2- TUE 8/24

SAT 8/23 / SUN 8/24

SAT 9/6

SAT 9/6 & SUN 9/7

MON 9/8

WHAT: 40th Anniversary CancerLifeline’s Flea Market WHERE: Dorothy O’Brien Center, 6522 Fremont Ave. N., Seattle WHEN: 2-5 p.m.

INFO: 206-832-1273, jlamont@ cancerlifeline.org

WHAT: Seattle Center Festál – Tibet Fest WHERE: Seattle Center Armory WHEN: 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.

COST: Free INFO: washingtontibet or 206684-7200

WHAT: Seattle Japanese Garden presents Moon Viewing with light up lanterns, luminaries and floating boats WHERE: Seattle Japanese Garden, 1075 Lake Washington Blvd. E., Seattle WHEN: 7-10 p.m.

COST: $15/general admission, $25/admission with tea ceremony TICKETS: brownpapertickets. com/event/822035 INFO: seattlejapanesegarden.org

WHAT: Free screenings of a documentary from Japan WHERE: Bellevue College, Room C164, 3000 Landerholm Circle SE, Bellevue WHEN: 9/6 at 3 p.m. and 9/7 at 1:30 p.m.

WHAT: Koto Jazz, piano by “Kenji” WHERE: The Royal Room, 5000 Rainier Ave., Seattle WHEN: 8-9 p.m.

INFO: 206-200-2733, kotojazz. com/events

SUN 9/7

THU 9/11

WHAT: Seattle Center Festál – Live Aloha Hawaiian Cultural Festival WHERE: Seattle Center Armory, Mural Amphistheatre, & Fisher Roof WHEN: 11 a.m. – 7 p.m COST: Free INFO: seattlecenter.com or 206684-7200

WHAT: The ethnic media meets and greets candidates WHERE: Sun Ya Restaurant, 605 7th Ave. S., Seattle WHEN: 5-7:30 p.m.

SAT 8/23 WHAT: Outdoor Summer Film, “Awesome Asian Bad Guys” WHERE: Hing Hay Park, Seattle WHEN: Movie start at dusk COST: Free

SUN 8/24 WHAT: Celebrate Little Saigon WHERE: 1200 S. Jackson St., Seattle WHEN: 11 a.m.-6 p.m.

INFO: friendsoflittlesaigon.org

TUE 8/26 WHAT: Chinatown-ID Public Safety Open House WHERE: 409 Maynard Ave. S., Suite P3, Seattle WHEN: 9 a.m.-7 p.m.

INFO: www.cidbia.org

FRI 9/5 WHAT: Inclusion Fusion WHERE: The Foundry, 4130 1st Ave. S., Seattle WHERE: 5-9 p.m.

COST: $125/person INFO: edi@ediorg.org

Have an event to promote?

Please send us the details at least 14 days in advance to info@nwasianweekly.com.

{QUAN cont’d from page 1} 10 candidates running.

This influx of candidates is being attributed to Quan doing a poor job while in office. The Oakland Tribune asked Quan in an editorial to not run again, citing polls showing how low her popularity is and comparing her to the last mayor, Ron Dellums, who had similar ratings and opted out of running for a second term—a cue that Quan should take, according to the newspaper.

Quan is the first Asian American woman to be mayor of Oakland. According to The New York Times, Quan has said her poor ratings are due to negative media coverage of her while she was dealing with problems she inherited, such as the budget deficit.

The most recent poll done by the Jobs and Housing Coalition, an Oakland pro-business group, showed Quan winning 20 percent of the vote, with Schaaf right behind her with 15 percent.

Oakland will be using the ranked-choice system for the second time. The ranked-choice system allows voters to rank their top three candidates. A candidate wins if the vast majority of first-rank votes are for the candidate. It is mathematically impossible for the runner-up to win with votes being tallied from voters’ second picks. If it is possible for a runner-up to win based on first and second choice votes, then the second choice votes are counted and distributed.

This is how Quan won the last election.

Quan’s opponent, Don Perata, was leading, but was 16 percent points short from winning the vast majority. When the second choice votes were tallied, Quan was declared winner with 51 percent of the vote. Some, including Perata, thought this was an unfair win.

As mayor, Quan has raised money to fund over 3,300 jobs for youths during the summer and restarted Operation Ceasefire, a data driven approach to lowering crime rates. After the program started, homicides in Oakland were reduced by 28 percent.

With so much information flying around in local newspapers and online community forums, Oakland residents have a tough decision to make this November.  Daria Kroupoderova can be reached at info@ nwasianweekly.com.

WHAT: Mid-Autumn Festival Celebration WHERE: Seattle Public Library, 1000 4th Ave., Seattle WHEN: 2-4:30 p.m.

SUN 9/21 WHAT: Shamisen, Koto & Kokyu Concert WHERE: Poncho Concert Hall, Cornish College of the Arts WHEN: 7-9 p.m.

COST: $15-$25 INFO: Cornish.edu/presents

32 YEARS YOUR VOICE

■ PICTORIAL

AUGUST 23 – AUGUST 29, 2014

7

FASHION fête An afternoon of haute couture

A

cosmopolitan afternoon of fashion benefited Nikkei Concerns last Saturday at the Seattle Keiro Garden.

More than 50 volunteers helped and there were over 60 guests in attendance. The highlights included a runway show which featured local and national designers. Gei Chan had a collection of handcrafted happi coats, a fun take on Japanese festival attire. Anne Namba presented her contemporary clothing incorporating kimono, obi, and silks. Linda Horshide also had a unique Japanese perspective with her line of jewelry and scarves. Bo Choi created wearable art repurposed from tents—an interesting comment on clothing’s necessity and comfort. Sandylew’s fall looks incorporated fun colors and textures, and Momo man presented international menswear style, curated for the northwest. Mieko Mintz showcased her signature line of jackets, made from sari kantha. The finale was presented by Huntress & Haute, with a collection inspired by the Seattle Keiro Garden itself.

The runway show was preceded by a marketplace where attendees could purchase and sample clothing, fragrance, jewelry, wine, and tea. It was a chic, glamour-filled afternoon! 

From left: Jeff Hattori with designers, Gei Chan, Bo Choi, Linda Hoshide, and Anne Namba

Gei Chan Kian Liddell

Sage Liddell

Kaye Ostgard in an Anne Namba ensemble.

Kami Bolinger models an Anne Namba design.

Hannah Hsu and Scott Moy models designer Gei Chan’s contemporary happi coats.

Angie Okumoto models an Anne Namba bridal design.

Hannah Hsu wears a dress made from tents, designed

by Bo Choi.

Max Chan and Sage Liddell (age 3) model happi coats designed by Gei Chan.

Laura Brauner in a contemporary dress available at sandylew.

Angie Okumoto modeling for sandylew.

Kian Liddell, Althea Chow and Sage Liddell in Bo Choi’s designs.

Hollie Marovich in a Bo Choi design created by tents.

Kami Bohlinger models for sandylew boutique.

Max Chan Ron Youmans and Katie Kelley

Photos by George Liu/NWAW

Denise Quash in an Anne Namba design.

Laura Brauner models an Anne Namba creation.

asianweekly northwest

8

AUGUST 23 – AUGUST 29, 2014

■ ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Jazz and the Panama The Layup Drill

Photo by Doris Kogan

Upcoming jazz suite highlights the hotel’s unique history

NBA, Naho, Nakase, and more

Natalie Nakase

Milo Petersen, Steve Griggs, Susan Pascal, Jay Thomas, Phil Sparks

By Andrew Hamlin NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY Local saxophonist and composer Steve Griggs composed a jazz suite, “Panama Hotel Jazz,” focusing on Japanese-American history in Seattle, as reflected by the ups and downs of the historic Panama Hotel. Upcoming performances of the suite include performances Sept. 7, 14, 28, and Dec. 8 at various Seattle Public Library branches.

NWAW: How have your impressions of Seattle changed over the years?

Steve Griggs: Coming from New York, Seattle seemed very homogenous and youthful.

One day on a lunch break, I stepped into an office supply store down the street that was going out of business. The older man who was closing the store told me that Immunex building was originally an ice house for the livestock slaughtered and shipped from the waterfront.

That small exchange opened my eyes to the rich trove of stories behind all of my surroundings that I had taken for granted. I

Thank you for recycling this newspaper!

learned about the birth of the United Parcel Service on the waterfront, the cruel treatment of Chief Seattle’s daughter, the important architecture of Minoro Yamasaki in downtown, and the many jazz musicians with connections to Seattle. I learned about the economic booms that grew Seattle and the self-interest that limited investment in infrastructure. I now think of Seattle as a very young city that is not in touch with its history.

NWAW: Who were your finest music teachers, and what lessons did they leave with you?

Griggs: In Seattle, I learned how to arrange and orchestrate music with Jim Knapp. His lessons were so powerful that when I was working on an assignment, I would still be saying “Wow” to myself two weeks after we met. He taught me how to write music away from any instrument. I remember writing a big band chart on an airplane and then hearing it performed just the way it sounded in my head. {see PANAMA HOTEL cont’d on page 12}

By Jason Cruz NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY Welcome to another edition of The Layup Drill. In this month’s issue, we look at the possibility of a woman coaching in the NBA, a standout player for the Reign FC, and a UW golfer in the British Open.

A woman coach in the NBA?

While it went unnoticed to most, the NBA World Champions San Antonio Spurs hired former WNBA star Becky Hammon as an assistant coach for this season, which gave hope to Natalie Nakase. Hammon became the first woman to become an assistant coach for an NBA team. Nakase, currently an assistant video coordinator for the Los Angeles Clippers, aspires to be on the Clippers bench as a coach.

Nakase had the chance to be an assistant coach for the Clippers during its summer league games. Nakase has the court knowledge to be a coach. Although standing at 5’2”, she was a highly decorated high school basketball player in Southern California and played college basketball at UCLA. She played professionally overseas and was the first Asian American to play in the National Women’s Basketball League.

After she suffered a knee injury which

ended her playing career, another basketball opportunity opened. In 2011, she was assigned to serve as head coach for the Saitama Broncos in Japan. Nakase was the first female head coach in the Japanese men’s pro league. Nakase is a third-generation Japanese American.

Despite her short stature compared to the NBA players she works with, Nakase is not intimidated. “If I say the right things and things that can help them, then they’ll listen, no matter how tall I am or if I’m a female, Nakase recently told NPR.com in an interview.

If Nakase makes it as a coach in the NBA, it would make her the second female coach and first Asian American woman to coach in the NBA.

Kawasumi earns honors in first year with Reign FC

The Reign FC, the women’s professional soccer team in Seattle, is having a stellar season and sits atop the National Women’s Soccer League. Heading into the playoffs, it has 16 wins, one loss, and six ties. Nahomi “Naho” Kawasumi has been a big part of the team’s success. This year, she was voted NWSL’s Player of the Week. She currently {see SPORTS cont’d on page 13}

32 YEARS YOUR VOICE

AUGUST 23 – AUGUST 29, 2014

9

for his White House appointment as National Deputy Director of the US Minority Business Development Agency at the US Dept of Commerce Hon. Gary & Mona Locke State Representative Gael Tarleton Rep. Sharon Tomoko & Bob Santos King County Assessor Lloyd Hara Ruth Woo Joan Yoshitomi LaVerne Lamoureux Nancy and Bill Biery Evelyn P. Yenson

Yen Lam & Chris Steward Lam’s Seafood Dr. Jill Wakefield Retail Lockbox, Inc. Louis Watanabe Will Lew Al Sugiyama Sue Taoka Harold S. Taniguchi

Frank Lemos Lawrence Pang Hector Pang Taylor Hoan Doris & James Cassan Dollar Rent A Car Jane Nishita Elaine Kitamura Leslie & Nate Miles

Lan & Tim Wang Jeffrey Hattoria Nikkei Concerns City Fish Desiree & Sal Panelo Elaine Ikoma Ko & John Foz Rita Brogan PRR Teresa Yoneyama

Attendees at the event with Hon. Gary Locke and wife Mona

From left: Joan Yoshitomi, Albert, and King County Assessor Lloyd Hara

From left: Constance Rice, Albert, Sue Taoka, and Norm Rice

From left: Tim Wang, Albert, and Lan Wang

From left: Hector Pang, Albert, and Lawrence Pang

Albert and Rita Brogan

Albert and LaVerne Lamoureux

Frank Lemos and Albert Evelyn Yenson and Albert From left: Al Sugiyama, Will Lew, Albert, and Louis Watanabe

Photos by Assunta Ng/NWAW. This ad was sponsored by men and women in the community.

Albert and City Fish owners’ Desiree & Sal Panelo

Albert Shen and Dr. Jill Wakefield

asianweekly northwest

10

AUGUST 23 – AUGUST 29, 2014

OPINION

■ PUBLISHER'S BLOG Horses are crowd-pleasers in the ID…

Harvest was allowed to peek into Uwajimaya.

Meet Dozer, a horse. Dozer also works for the City of Seattle Police Department. See the badge he proudly displayed when he and his partner Harvest patrolled Uwajimaya’s storefront with Sgt. James Scott and Officer Mark Wubbena.

Young and old adored Dozer and Harvest.

Some patted them, while many gathered around with phone cameras, curiosity and affection. I was surprised by how well Dozer and Harvest were behaving—they didn’t reject any of attention and handled it with discipline.

Why, horses? For our police department?

“If we (officers) were inside a patrol car, no one wants to talk to us,” said Sgt. Scott.

So it seems, with a horse, everything seems to be less intimidating: It is a way to introduce authority (and a friendly horse named Dozer!) to the people and community.

Dozer and Harvest have fans.

I learned that like how a police dog needs training, Dozer receives over a thousand hours of training. Scott said the department started Dozer’s training when he was about five years old. We use dogs because of their incredible sense of smell—to sniff suspicious objects or people (whether it’s drugs or if the suspect might be hoarding extra leftover chicken). But horses serve a different purpose.

“We use them for crowd control,” said Scott.

Remember the May 1 protests? Seattle po-

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lice used horses to form a shield to stop the protesters from advancing and confining them.

Moving on to more serious topics: “Are these animals toilet trained?” I asked Scott.

Not really. Scott pointed to a bag he mounted on Dozer. There was a shovel inside and Scott is able to scoop up poop anytime. And he doesn’t mind doing it.

Dozer is 18 years old and Harvest 11. The mounting patrol will be in Chinatown/International District, Pioneer Square and Pike Place Market from Wednesday to Saturday once a day for the next 9 weeks.

The Seattle Police Foundation funded the mounting patrol in addition to other programs. A fundraising breakfast for the Seattle Police Foundation will be held on Sept.

8 at the Seattle Sheraton. Seattle Police Chief Kathleen O’Toole will speak.

ter and enthusiasm of the crowd was a contrast to his two fundraising events for the Seattle City Council seat—when there were much smaller crowds and not much fanfare. Where were these folks at the going-away party when Albert was running for office last year?

The reverberation and example of these two events are apparent. As one Chinese proverb reflects, it’s easy to be “icing on the cake” and “basking in the glory of someone’s success” vs. offering timely and critical support, and “providing coal to someone who’s in need during a cold winter.”

Albert is always cheerful and optimistic, and I can tell he harbors no bitterness from the time he lost his campaign, while constantly fighting for his engineering firm and supporting other minority contractors. His political campaign brought him visibility and recognition. The White House recognizes leadership, talents and smarts. See where he landed? We couldn’t be more proud!

Photos by George Liu/NWAW

Photos by Assunta Ng/NWAW

Equines get more attention than the police officers!

From left: Jane Nishita, Sandra Madrid, Cheryl Roberts, Carolyn Kelly, and Nate Miles hosting and enjoying the reception at the Ranier Club

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Hon. Gary Locke and Albert Shen

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Albert Shen’s appointment as national deputy director of the Minority Business Development Agency, a division of the U.S. Dept of Commerce, has been inciting much excitement in our community.

Political guru Ruth Woo asked Joan Yoshitomi and LaVerne Lamoureux to organize a farewell party for Shen last week at Amber Lounge before he started his new position in D.C. It was packed. The noise, applause, laugh-

After serving seven years as president at Chemeketa Community College in Salem, Cheryl Roberts is the new president of Shoreline Community College. Shoreline is one of the most diverse community colleges, with 55 percent enrollment of minority students.

A former Seattleite, Roberts grew up in Tacoma. Her father, LeRoy Roberts, Jr., was a member of the Tuskegee Airmen and a decorated African-American fighter pilot in WWII. Her mother was an academic librarian.

Roberts graduated from Seattle University with a Bachelor of Arts in psychology. She earned a master of arts in student personnel administration in higher education from the Ohio State University, and a doctorate in educational leadership from Seattle University.

Her husband R. Miller Adams is general counsel and executive vice president at Boeing and also president of the board of Rainier Club. 

Want to get the inside scoop on the latest happenings of Seattle’s Asian American community? Follow Publisher Assunta Ng’s blog at nwasianweekly.com under the Opinion section.

32 YEARS YOUR VOICE

AUGUST 23 – AUGUST 29, 2014

11

OPINION

■ COMMENTARIES Nickelsville is moving to 10th and Dearborn

By Sharon Lee FOR NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

Seattle has a housing crisis. There is simply not enough affordable housing for families and individuals. The most recent One Night Count of homeless people in January 2014 showed over 3,100 men, women, and children sleeping unsheltered on the streets of Seattle and King County. Another 6,171 people are staying in shelters and transitional housing waiting for a permanent place to call home.

When all the emergency shelters are full and there is not enough low-income housing, Nickelsville offers families and individuals a sense of community and a safe place to live. Too many people have died (26 people since January 2014) from violence and exposure from living on the streets of Seattle.

In June 2013, the Seattle City Council threatened to evict Nickelsville, a tent city in city-owned land in south Seattle. Nickelsville worked closely with the Mayor’s Office to find alternative locations. In September 2013, the Low Income Housing Institute (LIHI) partnered with Tabernacle Missionary Baptist Church to host Nickelsville on LIHI-owned property at 2020 S. Jackson Street for up to a year. This site is next to our apartments for seniors at Ernestine Anderson Place. It is across the street from Washington Middle School, Franz Bakery, SVI, and Pratt Fine Arts Center.

If you get a chance to walk or drive by, you will see that Nickelsville includes simple wood sleeping structures (painted pink), tents on platforms, a community kitchen and dining area, artwork, garden planters, and a children’s play area. A fence surrounds Nickelsville and there is one entrance with a security hut that everyone has to sign in.

The Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd hosted another location at 22nd and Union.

About 56 people live at both locations.

Nickelsville has been a success. Since a year ago, over 100 men, women, and children have moved into permanent housing, transitional housing, or shelters – including many into affordable apartments owned by LIHI. The community is self-managed by the residents with everyone taking turns and responsible for cleaning, cooking, security, litter patrol, bookkeeping, donations, tent maintenance, and other tasks. Social services are provided by the churches, the public health nurse, LIHI, and others. No drugs, alcohol, or weapons are allowed. Residents have strict rules they must follow.

Nickelsville serves many homeless families with children. Night after night, homeless families arrive with no place to go. Many have infants and small children.

Many are people of color or immigrants/

By Assunta Ng NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

Tents on platforms in Nickelsville

refugees. Battered women and single mothers with children show up to sleep in a tent. While this should not happen in a wealthy city like Seattle, this is the current reality. Nickelsville also houses many seniors, veterans, and disabled individuals and couples.

Now that one year has passed, Nickelsville will move from their two current locations by September 1. Coho Real Estate has graciously offered Nickelsville a place for up to 40 people at 1001 S. Dearborn Street.

This is a vacant piece of land on Dearborn, between 10th and 12th Avenue South, across from the entrance to I-5 North. The Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd will be the religious sponsor of this new location.

There will be an informational meeting to be held on Tuesday, Aug. 26 at 7:00 p.m. at 2010 South Jackson Street.

The meeting will take place in the community room at Ernestine Anderson Place.

Residents will be there to make a presentation and answer questions. A tour will be given of Nickelsville next door.

The Seattle International District Rotary Club and Seattle Goodwill are supportive of Nickelsville.

“Members of the Seattle International District Rotary Club visited Nickelsville on South Jackson Street last December. It was cold outside and many families and individuals were living in tents and wood sleeping structures because emergency shelters are filled to capacity. Our club was impressed with the residents and how organized they

were with chores and other responsibilities to keep Nickelsville clean and safe. Seattle International District Rotary Club donated tents, children and adult clothing, equipment, and food. Our club raised over $9,000 to help pay for supplies, case management services for the residents, and utilities for Nickelsville.” — Shannon Woodman, President, Seattle International District Rotary Club “Seattle Goodwill welcomes Nickelsville to our Dearborn Neighborhood. We provided one of Share/Wheel’s 30-person communities with a shelter space in one of our underutilized buildings, before it was demolished to make way for improvements to our campus at Dearborn and Rainier. They were a well-organized community with requirements that included a zero tolerance for drugs and alcohol. They were self-managed, providing their own security and cleaning.

Though providing only temporary solutions for homeless families and individuals, today, Nickelsville homeless sites provide a necessary service for those struggling in our community. Goodwill looks forward to working with those of our new neighbors who are in need of job training and education services.” — Catherine McConnell, Vice President, Seattle Goodwill Industries

For more information, please contact Sharon Lee at 206-443-9935 x111 or SharonL@ LIHI.org, or Scott Morrow of Nickelsville at 206-450-9136 or Scott@nickelsville.works.

■ LETTER

Supporters of Little Saigon were shocked by Nickelsville’s (also known as “Tent City”) intent to relocate to the International District.

Residents of the ID are concerned that the neighborhood is already rife with crimes.

In June, there was a shooting close to the Seattle Deli on 12th Ave. S. and the recent stabbing on S. Main St. from another homeless ground. Already, there are approximately 30 homeless people living under the freeway in the ID. With Nickelsville moving to the area, it will double the homeless population in the ID (adding more than 40 to the homeless population).

Don Blakeney, executive of the CIDBIA, Chinatown/International District Business Improvement Association, said he received a call on Friday from Sharon Lee about the Nickelesville transition.

Blakeney responded: “We just found out about this late last week, so we have been rushing to gather information. Considering that this deadline has been on the radar for over a year, this Sept. 1 move date emergency feels largely like an avoidable drama. Community members in Chinatown and Little Saigon are tracking this closely. We have a follow up meeting with the City, today, and LIHI on Thursday. We are hoping to extend the timeline so this isn’t a rushed decision.”

Lien Dang, owner of Huong Binh Restaurant, said the quick move of Nicklesville’s planning committee has been in the works for sometimes, and yet, they didn’t give notice early enough to allow the community to understand and learn and respond. She feels it has disregarded Friends of Little Saigon’s (FOLS) efforts for the past years to make this a more vibrant neighborhood.

Blakeney also added, “How do you expect to relocate this program in two weeks?”

Another member of FOLS said, “The process is broken. This is not working for the community.”

FOLS is preparing a response, but it was not available at press time. 

Have a story idea that you

RE: You just got anime-eyed!

Anime eyes aren’t really portraying “Caucasian” eyes if that’s what the reader is implying or thinking. And even if they were, they’re not associated with caricatures of “whiteness” or “white people.” They’re simply the character’s eyes in that anime, etc. It’s a mere body part. On the flip side, yellowface (brownface/blackface) is two

A community response to the Nickelsville move to the ID

things: (1) portraying a race or ethnicity with stereotypical features that historically were used to dehumanize the person (just think of Nazi diagrams pointing out typical “Jewish” facial features and how those features represented negative characteristics like slyness or dishonesty and so on); and (2) associating with a set

of group characteristics that is believed to be shared by every member of that race or ethnicity regardless of individual humanity and is often intended to represent that group’s inferiority aka strangeness, foreignness, alienness, and so on. 

— Julie Chen

think would fit perfectly in Northwest Asian Weekly?

We want to know about it.

Send it to us at info@nwasianweekly.com.

asianweekly northwest

12

AUGUST 23 – AUGUST 29, 2014

{PANAMA HOTEL cont’d from page 8} My greatest teacher was drummer Elvin Jones. It wasn’t anything he said, it was just being in his presence and interacting with him musically on a recording session in 1998. I felt that we could communicate directly through our instruments.

Griggs: KPLU disk jockey Jim Wilke introduced me to the novel “Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet” by Jamie Ford. By coincidence, a classmate in a writing program knew Jamie from a program where he wrote an essay that was the genesis for the novel. It was about the sign “I am Chinese” that his father made him wear during WWII to distinguish him from the ostracized Japanese. I found the story and local history very important and interesting.

When 4Culture (public development authority) designated the Panama Hotel as a site for Historic Site Specific art, I envisioned a music program to be performed there based on the building’s history and the proximity to the Jackson Street jazz scene. At the time, I was writing an article for “Earshot Jazz” about applying for grants, so I decided to use the 4Culture opportunity as a way to get real-life experience for the story. I was delighted to get the grant and pursue my idea.

Photos by Steve Griggs

NWAW: How did you first become interested in the Panama Hotel and its history?

Panama Hotel entryway

NWAW: How did you go about studying the history of the Panama Hotel? Who taught you the most about it?

Griggs: I scoured the web and libraries for memoirs and historical accounts of Japanese Americans in Seattle. The newspaper accounts that mention the Panama Hotel are very colorful — they describe robberies, murders, and suicides linked to tenants. On a larger scale, the oral histories at densho.com are amazing. The UW Special Collections has essays written by children in camps. One was by a girl born on Dearborn, who visited her father while he was detained at the INS building on Seattle Avenue South.

The memoir that struck me most was “Looking Like the Enemy” by Mary Matsuda Gruenewald. Even though she has no direct connection to the Panama Hotel, her writing was unusual in its depth of emotion and interior exploration about the events surrounding the artifacts in the Panama Hotel basement. I chose to use an excerpt in the show and at one of our shows in 2013, she recited the excerpt herself. Getting to know Mary is a great honor. She is 89 and going strong!

I met Jan Johnson, the current owner of the Panama Hotel and read all of the books about the building’s significance. Jan really impressed me with her hard work and passion to preserve the building and its history.

I corresponded with Jamie Ford. Jamie introduced me to the Holden family. I interviewed two of Oscar Holden’s sons in the Panama Hotel Tea Room and they both played the piano there. Although they did not have direct connection with the building, their family history is rooted in the Jackson Street scene and was used in Jamie Ford’s novel.

NWAW: What is the hotel’s history and significance to the Chinatown-ID neighborhood and Seattle, generally, over the decades?

The hotel has been in operation for more than a century.

The jazz suite will have performances in September and December

The history and significance of the building is best described in the book “The Panama Hotel: National Historic Landmark Nomination” by Gail Dubrow and Connie Walker. One of the best books is “Sento at Sixth and Main” by Gail Dubrow and Donna Graves. I think the building stands as a physical link to our cultural history. Its function as a haven for immigrants in the heart of Nihonmachi with communal bathing in the basement is a monument to some of the vital roots of Seattle. Jamie’s novel has brought attention to it from around the world, even though many Seattleites are unaware of its significance.

NWAW: How did the idea of representing this history in music come about?

Griggs: The 4Culture opportunity was the spark. I enjoy writing and performing music with specific intent, like musical portraits of my bandmates and mentors. Switching from the history of a single person and their work to a single building and its significance was not that difficult. The major change was the enormous scope of Japanese American experiences.

NWAW: How did you go about constructing the suite?

Griggs: It began with a focus more on the history of jazz in Seattle. As I learned more about the Japanese American experience, the jazz focus dimmed.

When I came across scenes, information, and stories that opened my understanding to a significantly deeper insight, I

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For more information about Steve Griggs and the “Panama Hotel Jazz” suite, visit http://www.stevegriggsmusic.com/ panamahotel.htm.

Andrew Hamlin can be reached at info@nwasianweekly. com.

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posted a summary on my blog at panamahoteljazz.blogspot. com. Later, I came back to these posts and created a sequential thread through the ones I found most interesting. Some posts would inspire a germ for music that would abstract and expand on a theme.

For example, I found a story of a Japanese farmer reciting poetry to the sound of rain. That provided a rich source for sounds and would be vivid for the audiences’ imagination. Because Japanese poetry uses phrases of 5 and 7 beats, I wrote 5-note and 7-note descending arpeggios to represent falling raindrops as a canvas for jazz improvisation.

The program is complete, but continues to evolve. After seeing the play “Hold These Truths” by Jeanne Sakata, I want to include words and music about George Hirabayashi. George’s story of insisting on rights granted by the Constitution, while they are being ignored by the government during war, holds a lesson for all of us.

The main work left for me is to extend the life and reach of this program. I now have funding through the National Park Service Japanese Confinement Sites Program to present it 34 times in the Seattle area over the next 2 years. I need to find matching funds to access this federal support.

There is a King County Community Engagement Grant that will support a performance at Vashon Island Allied Arts in November and Earshot Jazz is underwriting presentations for Seattle high schools. I am searching for schools that are interested in presenting this to their students.

I am always on the lookout for ways to reach new audiences and compensate the musicians as best as I can. I was awarded a grant through the Chamber Music America Residency Partnership Program with the Seattle Public Library.

The program premiered at the Panama Hotel in 2013 with seven performances funded by 4Culture. Earshot Jazz funded performances for Puget Sound Community School and Garfield. Earshot Jazz sponsored a performance for Art of Jazz at the Seattle Art Museum. Jim Wilke recorded the concert and aired excerpts on his KPLU show, “Jazz Northwest.”

At all of these performances, I have met people wanting to share personal stories. Others are grateful to be introduced to this chapter in history. At some performances, audience members sang along quietly with the melody of the Japanese National Anthem. At schools, students have very thoughtful questions about what happened to children of their age. The intimate interaction I have with the audience about the important themes in the suite is one of the most satisfying aspects of this project. As an artist, I want to connect with people, places, and stories. Seattle is a rich source for this intersection.

Through a King County Community Engagement grant, we are planning a performance at Vashon Island Allied Arts.

Through the National Park Service grant, I plan to present the program monthly at the Panama Hotel and annually at the Bainbridge Island Japanese American Exclusion Memorial, Temporary Detention Facility at the Immigration and Naturalization Service, and Puyallup Camp Harmony Monument. 

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32 YEARS YOUR VOICE

■ ASTROLOGY

AUGUST 23 – AUGUST 29, 2014

13

For the week of August 23–August 29, 2014

By Sun Lee Chang

Rat — Despite the amount of pressure you are under, you know how to get the deal done without buckling under the weight of it.

Dragon — What you perceive to need improvement could be viewed by another as just right. Depending on who it is for, you may both be correct.

Monkey — Before you head out for vacation or even a short trip close by, take a moment to straighten up a bit for you will be thankful to come back to a clean home.

Ox — Are you trying to figure out which is the better of two options? Go with the one that feels the most natural to you.

Snake — Is the story you are being told not quite ringing true? Consider whether the speaker has something to gain by not being completely honest with you.

Rooster — An in-person meeting confirms what you have been thinking all along. Your prior impressions are right on target.

Tiger — A spirited exchange has your interest piqued for what lies ahead. You will not be disappointed with what is around the corner.

Horse — Now that you have had time to really think things through, you are starting to realize that the whole picture is much less complicated than you originally thought.

Dog — There are people wanting to see you, but you have other plans. Your time is valuable, so focus your efforts on scheduling in people who you really want to be with.

Goat — Are you trying to squeeze in too much in a limited time? Overbooking yourself could lead to more trouble than it is worth.

Pig — Whatever the reasons are for where you have landed, make the most of it while you have to be there.

Rabbit — If you are trying to sell an idea to someone who has been lukewarm to it initially, then your best bet is to make a well crafted pitch in person.

What’s your animal sign?

Rat 1912, 1924, 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008 Ox 1913, 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, 2009 Tiger 1914, 1926, 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998, 2010 Rabbit 1915, 1927, 1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999, 2011 Dragon 1916, 1928, 1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000, 2012 Snake 1917, 1929, 1941, 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001, 2013 Horse 1918, 1930, 1942, 1954, 1966, 1978, 1990, 2002, 2014 Goat 1919, 1931, 1943, 1955, 1967, 1979, 1991, 2003 Monkey 1920, 1932, 1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004 Rooster 1921, 1933, 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005 Dog 1922, 1934, 1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994, 2006 Pig 1923, 1935, 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007

*The year ends on the first new moon of the following year. For those born in January and February, please take care when determining your sign.

{HAWAII cont’d from page 4} Some voters preferred Schatz’s way of handling the situation. ``He looked like a Puna boy with his Levis and baseball cap, and he was just working hard passing out supplies,’’ said Sharon Turner, owner of Island Edges Beads in Hilo. ``Then when I saw Hanabusa, she was passing out chili. But all the people around her had their campaign hats on.’’

Other voters lamented that Friday’s makeup primary came too soon after Iselle, and they appreciated Hanabusa’s efforts to delay voting. Some had difficulty getting to polling places because of downed trees that had yet to be removed after the storm. There was a sense of confusion at the polling station on Friday, with some voters saddened because they thought they could vote, but then were turned away because they didn’t live in the precincts that were allowed to vote on Friday.

{SPORTS cont’d from page 8} has nine goals for the season.

This past week, Naho’s mother flew from Japan to see her play for the Reign for the first time. With the added incentive, Naho scored two goals in the first half of the game against Houston and then added an assist in the second half.

“Naho’s class. She’s just class,” Seattle coach Laura Harvey told the Seattle Times. “I

``They made a big deal that `Yay, Puna has a say,’ but the reality is people are in an absolute state of crisis,’’ said Christina Bryan, 41, a teacher who lives in an area where the polls were open during the Aug. 9 primary but her road was blocked, preventing her from voting. Even so, she said Hanabusa’s legal challenge ``felt a little phony.’’

Turnout in the two precincts was down nearly one-third compared with the 2012 primary, with about 3,000 people casting ballots during early voting and on Friday.

Schatz said there’s no doubt that that the storm impacted voter turnout, but ``we decided early on that we’re the players on the field, not the referees, so we were prepared to compete in the election whenever and however it was conducted.’’

Despite the drama of Iselle, many voters in the Big Island’s Puna region still had the drama of Inouye’s dying wish on their minds.

Aina Campbell, a retired caregiver, said she would have

think at the start of the year, it took us a while to work her out a little bit and just how she plays. ... Over the last maybe month or so, it’s just massively clicking with her.”

The Reign FC enters the playoffs with a home game at Memorial Stadium in Seattle on Aug. 24th. It will be televised nationally on ESPN 2. Here’s hoping that Naho and the rest of the team bring a title to Seattle.

LeBron chooses hometown over

voted for Hanabusa, but couldn’t get to the polls on Election Day. ``For the governor who lost to ignore the request on a dying man’s bed — I don’t believe Schatz earned the position yet, and Hanabusa has,’’ Campbell said.

But in some cases, sentiments of the past didn’t work in Hanabusa’s favor. ``First, you’re invoking Inouye’s name, now you’re invoking Iselle,’’said Leonard Feliciano, 60, who voted for Schatz on Friday. ``Don’t play on our hearts. We need to move on.’’  Cathy Bussewitz can be reached on Twitter at http://twitter. com/cbussewitz.

Associated Press Writers Oskar Garcia and Jennifer Sinco Kelleher in Honolulu and Karin Stanton and Marco Garcia in Pahoa contributed to this report.

Coach Spo, Heat

You can go home again. The biggest news in the NBA this offseason was a homecoming. LeBron James is returning his “talents” to Cleveland. As you recall in 2010, James spurned his hometown team to “take his talents to South Beach,” as he famously told the world in the ESPN-televised “The Decision.” This time, there was not a television program to state where he will play basketball next season. Instead, he penned an article in Sports Illustrated detailing the reasons to return home. Those that burned his jersey in effigy in 2010 are looking to purchase a new one.

When he went to Miami, James won two rings for the Heat and Coach Erik Spoelstra. However, last season, the Heat could not get ring number three as they fell to the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Finals.

James opted out of his contract with the Heat to return back home.

As for Spoelstra, he’ll have to make do without the best player in the game. We’ll have to see a lot more from his coaching skills as the team will be in transition. Of course, he’ll now have to deal with playing LeBron and a vastly improved Cleveland Cavaliers team.

Returning to Cleveland was not the only thing James did this summer. He visited China, where he met pianist Lang Lang.

The two exchanged gifts with James giving Lang basketball shoes and Lang giving James an album of his own music. James’ trip to China was sponsored by Nike.

Filipinos angered over cancelled NBA exhibition game

The Philippines is a country that loves its basketball. Filipino icon Manny Pacquiao once delayed one of his fights because he

wanted to watch the end of a playoff game.

He now is a coach for a team in the Phillipine Basketball Association. So when it was advertised that an exhibition would take place with NBA players, many jumped at the chance to watch players in person. Some spent as much as $530 per seat to watch. But, at the last second, there was an announcement that the players would only perform practice drills and not play a game as advertised. This was due in part to an NBA warning that “5-on5” games with NBA players were prohibited.

Many shouted for a refund after learning of this last minute switch.

Certainly, the episode reeks of a “bait and switch” unless the NBA had informed the organizers well ahead of time. The NBA played an official exhibition game last fall and Filipinos had hoped they could have seen more NBA action with the exhibition.

UW golfer makes history

Cheng-Tsung Pan made history this past July when he played at the British Open in England. Pan qualified to play in one of the four PGA major championships with a second place finish in an Asian regional qualifier in March. Although Pan “missed the cut” – did not make the necessary score to advance to the final rounds – it was a big win for Pan and the UW golf team. Previously, Pan qualified to make the 2013 U.S. Open Championships.

Pan, a senior at the University of Washington, is No. 51 in the World Amateur Rankings.

Originally from Taiwan, Pan has been one of the best Husky athletes in recent history and his appearance in the British Open reflects the fact that he has a great professional career ahead of him.  Jason Cruz can be reached at info@ nwasianweekly.com.

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AUGUST 23 – AUGUST 29, 2014

{THE MARTIAL ARTS EXPO cont’d from page 1}

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the Second Annual International Martial Arts Championship (SIMAC) at the University of Washington IMA Gym. The Martial Arts Expo took the form of a demonstration, rather than a tournament. Some were aggressive, as if they were on their way to beat up some thugs on the street. Others were more peaceful, displaying the meditative and health qualities of martial arts.

As a special treat, making an appearance were grandmasters Norman Chin of the praying mantis style, famed Hong Kong singer Alice Lui, and “Enter the Dragon” co-star Bob Wall.

Over at SIMAC, students of varying ages from elementary school to college competed in a tournament-style event. It was a demonstration of the values instilled by martial arts, as young children displayed just as much discipline—if not necessarily as

much athleticism—as the young adults jumping, spinning, and flying in the air.

The SIMAC event helped raise over $35,000 net for the Seattle Children’s Hospital, Kin On Health Care, and the Yunnan earthquake relief fund.

For David Leong, owner of NW Kung-Fu and Fitness, martial arts is a lifelong education. No matter how much a person refines his or her technique, how many decades devoted to it, there is something new to learn.

“I tell students, don’t be in a rush to get to the end. There is no end. It keeps going, it gets deeper and deeper,” he said. “It’s like reading a 10,000-page book.

You can’t wait to get to that last page, and finally you get to it, but guess what? When you turn that last page, there’s another 10,000 pages.”  Zachariah Bryan can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

32 YEARS YOUR VOICE

{LITTLE SAIGON cont’d from page 1} one of the city’s many jazz clubs.

Entrepreneurs Russell “Noodles” Smith and Jimmy Woodland opened the Entertainers Club at this intersection in 1920.

At that time, South Jackson Street also became a social hotspot for Filipino, Chinese, and Japanese residents.

World War II changed the neighborhood as more African Americans moved in, as defense jobs became available.

Instead of defense jobs, Japanese residents received orders to move to relocation camps under President Franklin Roosevelt’s Executive Order 9066 in 1942.

Little Saigon underwent another major renovation in the early 1960s. The state of Washington built Interstate 5, creating Little Saigon’s western boundary.

Over the next few decades, Seattle city planners and real estate developers transformed the neighborhood once again, adding such suburban features as large block sizes and strip malls to replace Little Saigon’s once popular jazz clubs.

By the end of 1975, 2,000 Vietnamese lived in Seattle after the fall of Saigon on April 30th of that year. According to the 2010 census, almost 12,000 people now live in the city.

They were joined by immigrants from Cambodia, Laos, and other areas of Southeast Asia. The second wave of Vietnamese, Cambodian, and Laotian refugees took place in 1978.

Little Saigon earned its nickname in 1984 when Southeast Asian merchants created their own commercial center east of the International District. Three years later, the third wave of Vietnamese immigrants, refugees, and Amerasian children took place.

Born and raised in Vietnam until the age of 8, Theresa Reyna once worked in Little Saigon and is now the vice president

AUGUST 23 – AUGUST 29, 2014

of Friends of Little Saigon, an organization created to promote the neighborhood’s economic development and cultural activities.

Her family opened its jewelry store – Kim Ngoc – in Little Saigon in 1986, becoming the second such business in the neighborhood’s early days. There were challenges along the way, but she says the economy eventually prospered and the neighborhood had 14 jewelry stores in 2000, all within walking distance of each other.

She worked as a sales associate for her family business, but now runs her own language-service agency, Interpret This, Inc., in Bellevue.

Reyna says there was cooperation among Vietnamese business owners in Little Saigon in the 1980s. “They were able to grow together. We had that sense of community,” she added.

Over time, customers would come from far away for not only jewelry, but also authentic Southeast Asian food, foot massages, and even affordable haircuts at Little Saigon’s beauty school.

She said, “People knew us and had come as far as Pasco, Wash. to just drive up for the day to shop with us.”

Diversity is one of Little Saigon’s strengths with a Taiwanese restaurant now open. It will also be featured at the Celebrate Little Saigon festival on Aug. 24, which highlights the three regional cultures of Vietnam.

“We love the diversity in this community,” Reyna said. 

For more information about the Celebrate Little Saigon Annual Summer Festival, go to http://friendsoflittlesaigon.org/flsevents/celebrate-little-saigon/. For more information about Interpret This, Inc., go to www.interpretthisinc.com.

James Tabafunda can be reached at info@ nwasianweekly.com.

Presented by Northwest Asian Weekly and Northwest Asian Weekly Foundation

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PLANNING COMMITTEE: Joan Yoshitomi, Kiku Hayashi, Buwon Brown, Teri Wong, Karen Tsuo, Seungja Song, John Liu, Assunta Ng, Rebecca Ip, and Carol Cheung To reserve your space, fax a copy of this form to 206-223-0626 or send a check by December 3 to: Northwest Asian Weekly, Attn: Diversity at the Top, P.O. Box 3468, Seattle, WA 98114 Name: ___________________________________________________ Address: __________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ Telephone: ________________________________________________ Fax: _____________________________________________________

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