PRSRT STD U.S. Postage Paid Permit No. 746 Seattle, WA
VOL 33 NO 36
AUGUST 30 – SEPTEMBER 5, 2014
FILM Infinity and Chashu Ramen » P. 9
FREE 32 YEARS YOUR VOICE
Chen loses retrial of racial discrimination case By Jason Cruz NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY A 12-person jury which included one Asian American determined that former Medina police
Chief Jeffrey Chen was not a victim of racial discrimination which forced him out of his job. The U.S. District Court of Western Washington verdict contrasts the original jury decision which awarded
Chen $2 million. Although a jury found in Chen’s favor in the original trial, the judge in charge of the case determined that Chen’s lawyer violated a pretrial order during the
{see CHEN cont’d on page 12} Jeffrey Chen
South Korea astronaut has landed in W. Washington
Nickelsville holds public meeting before move to ID
Photo by James Tabafunda/NWAW
By James Tabafunda NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
By Kari Plog THE NEWS TRIBUNE
Peggy Hotes does bookkeeping for Nickelsville and spoke at the panel
Korea Herald
TACOMA, Wash. (AP) — Puyallup isn’t out of this world, but Soyeon Yi will take it. Sitting in a cafe off East Main Avenue, Yi looks like an average 36-year-old resident. But she doesn’t have an average career. She is an international icon after becoming the first South Korean to travel to space. Yi was chosen from 36,000 applicants in a 10-month, highprofile selection process. She never imagined she would be a finalist, and never dreamed as a young girl of being an astronaut. “It’s not my lifetime goal,” Yi told The News Tribune. “I just tried.” Since moving two months ago, Yi said it’s refreshing not to have all eyes on her, as was the case in her home country. The most attention she gets is at The Museum of Flight in Seattle, where she volunteers to speak. She moved to Puyallup to live with her husband, a local optometrist, after finishing her master’s degree in business at University of California, Berkeley. She is a permanent
Soyeon Yi
resident after obtaining her green card six months ago. She loves her new city. It’s the right mix of urban, suburban, and
rural, she said. After growing up in a farming area in rural South Korea, she said the “green environments” feel familiar.
But adjusting to life as an {see ASTRONAUT cont’d on page 12}
With the fast-paced turn of events surrounding Nickelsville’s September 1 move to the International District – the 23rd in its history – supporters and residents of the tent city took time to meet with both concerned as well as supportive community members. About 10 Nickelsville residents took turns sharing their personal experiences at the encampment, one specifically created for individuals and families of all ethnicities in Seattle without stable and permanent housing. They spoke to an audience of about 50 people at an August 26 informational meeting – organized by the Low Income Housing {see NICKELSVILLE cont’d on page 14}
Twisp mayor leads during town crisis “I had no aspirations to be the mayor,” recalled Twisp’s mayor, Soo Ing-Moody. Yet, the former sociologist and bed and breakfast owner has spearheaded the effort to help the citizens of this small town in Okanagan county back from the devastating July Carleton complex fires and subsequent flooding that has ravaged the area. Soo Ing-Moody was once a graduate student in Germany
working for a professor that studied fire ecology. Ing-Moody states that none of the work she did on the study and origina- Soo Ing-Moody tion of fires and international fire management {see TWISP cont’d on page 15}
Sue Misao
By Jason Cruz NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
Looking east toward the Loup Loup Pass, from the highway between Twisp and Carlton
THE INSIDE STORY NAMES People in the news » P. 2
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COMMUNITY New restaurant ratings? » P. 4
WORLD Thai baby factory? » P. 5
PICTORIAL Fun and pho in Little Saigon » P. 7
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