VOL 38 NO 8 | FEBRUARY 16 - FEBRUARY 22, 2019

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

VOL 38 NO 8 FEBRUARY 16 – FEBRUARY 22, 2019

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37 YEARS YOUR VOICE

Record snowfall beautiful, but disruptive

A very snowy new year! Snow pig photo by Claudine Toh

Seattle’s metro area has already been hit by three snowstorms in February, making it the snowiest month in Seattle in more than 50 years. The snowiest month on record was January 1950 when the region received 57.2 inches. Photos by George Liu/NWAW

At Rotary lunch, AG Ferguson defends Washingtonians Washington State Attorney General (AG) Bob Ferguson is a snake. He was born in Year of the Snake in the Chinese zodiac. On the third day of the Lunar New Year, Feb. 7, Ferguson defied ancient customs of staying home on this day. Instead, he attended the Seattle-International District Rotary Club (SIRC)’s luncheon meeting at Ocean Star Restaurant in Chinatown-International District. His goal is to speak to Rotaries in “all corners of the state” and to hear from Washingtonians. The SIRC visit was his 143rd. With his sleeves rolled up and boy-next-door giddiness, Ferguson noted the presence of former Washington State University and NBA basketball player

Photo by Becky Chan/NWAW

By Becky Chan NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

Bob Ferguson at the Seattle-International District Rotary Club on Feb. 7

James Donaldson, a new SIRC member. As a young boy, Ferguson played basketball, watched

the Sonics, and attended former Sonics player and coach Lenny Wilkens’ basketball camp. One

of his prized possessions is a Player-of-the-Day plaque that he received at the camp when he was a 7th grader. He hopes for an autograph from Wilkens, via a message to Donaldson. Ferguson compared his office to the Rotaries, “We both provide service to the community.” His office renders legal advice to state agencies and also to protect Washingtonians. With 13 offices around Washington, the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) is the state’s largest law firm, employing over a thousand people, with many choosing to serve the community rather than work elsewhere for more pay. Could Ferguson have made more money somewhere else? Perhaps as a professional chess player? Ferguson is an internationally rated chess master. After

INSIDE

THE LAYUP DRILL Beating cancer and clearing the way to win more Olympic medals.

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SCI-FI BLOCKBUSTER Why moviegoers are flocking to see this Chinese movie.

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see FERGUSON on 15

Wuhan honors a native son A new international academic exchange center in Wuhan will honor the late chancellor of the University of California (UC) at Berkeley. It will teach ChangLin Tien’s values of community service. Wuhan native Dr. Chang-Lin Tien led UC Berkeley from 1990 to 1997, and earned many honors. The campus named a library for him after his four decades teaching there. But Huangpi, Wuhan’s ChangLin Tien Center is not only the first time a local Chinese government is honoring one of the most famous Chinese American scientists and a national champion of

Photo by Mahlon Meyer

By Mahlon Meyer NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

Professor C.C. Tien writes a proverb taught to him by his mother, “If you don’t get the position, you still have your degree.” It means, “go for it!”

affirmative action, it is intended to extoll the family values that gave rise to Tien’s success in the

United States and thus serve as a site where young Chinese can be transformed.

“What we are doing,” said brother C.C. Tien, of Seattle, “is also creating a museum to display the Tien family history and teachings.” C.C. Tien is the surviving elder brother of the chancellor, who died in 2002 from brain cancer. Before he died, Chang-Lin achieved the distinction of being the first Asian American to lead a top tier research university. And if not for the outright racism and bigotry of the time, he would have been the first Asian American to serve in a cabinet position. “They want to honor our family teachings. They want people to understand the origins and values of a family that could give rise to an immigrant like my brother,” said Tien. “My brother believed see TIEN on 15

PUBLISHER’S BLOG A snowy Lunar New Year and the impact on Seattle’s Chinatown.

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COMMUNITY NEWS » 2–3

CALENDAR OF EVENTS »6

EDITORIAL Is Blackface ever ok?

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VOL 38 NO 8 | FEBRUARY 16 - FEBRUARY 22, 2019 by Northwest Asian Weekly - Issuu