PRSRT STD U.S. Postage Paid Permit No. 746 Seattle, WA
VOL 40 NO 50 DECEMBER 11 – DECEMBER 17, 2021
FREE 39 YEARS YOUR VOICE
Courtesy of Washington State Archives
How Steve Hobbs won the Secretary of State job
Initial count shows Sawant recall ahead An attempt to recall Seattle City Councilmember Kshama Sawant is passing in early results. As of press time, the recall is succeeding by a 53.1% to 46.9% margin. Kshama Sawant, 48, an Indian immigrant and an economics professor, is the longest-tenured council member. She has had an outsized influence on the tone and direction of Seattle politics since launching her political career under the banner of the Socialist Alternative party in 2012, when she ran unsuccessfully for state representative. see SAWANT on 6
Panama Hotel—testimony to a forgotten world Steve Hobbs and wife, Pam
see HOBBS on 13
New blood on ISRD board
Ryan Gilbert
Ming Zhang
Michael Le
The annual election for the International Special Review District (ISRD) Board was held by mail, with ballots tabulated on Nov. 30. Five positions were up for election and the results are as follows: Ryan Gilbert won Position #1 for a Business owner, Property owner or Employee; Ming Zhang won Position #2 for Resident, Tenant or Community Participant; Michael Le won Position #3 for a Business owner, Property owner or Employee; Andy Yip won Position #4 for Resident, Tenant or Community Participant; and Nella Kwan won Position #5 for AtLarge.
Online meeting screenshot
Eight days after the general election, Gov. Jay Inslee offered the Secretary of State position to Sen. Steve Hobbs. The former Secretary Kim Wyman, a Republican, accepted a job in President Joe Biden’s administration as
cyber security chief. The process for Hobbs to sit in Wyman’s chair would be the envy for Democrats who had challenged and ran against her since 2012. It was smooth sailing for Hobbs. Hobbs is the first person of color for the position, and he’s become the third most
Andy Yip
Nella Kwan
Due to the postponement of the 2020 election, the terms for positions 3 and 5 will be only one-year-long to retain staggered term limits. The newly-elected candidates started their terms this December. The outgoing board members are Tanya Woo, Matt Chan, Faye Hong, and Russ Williams. The special character of the Chinatown International District is recognized and protected by city ordinance. In 1973, the ISRD Board was created to preserve, protect, and enhance the cultural, economic, and historical qualities of the District. Board member terms are typically for two years, and members may serve up to two consecutive terms.
A staircase in the Panama Hotel shown during a presentation before the Landmarks Preservation Board.
By Mahlon Meyer NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY Built to resemble a Buddhist monastery, the interior of the Panama Hotel shines with dark, thousand-year-old wood that has been preserved for over a century. Appreciating such features, the city’s Landmarks Preservation Board on Dec. 1 voted unanimously to nominate the hotel, including its interior, to become a designated landmark site. “This will give another layer of protection” from developers, said Betty Lau, a community leader, who supported the nomination.
Newcastle recount highlights exclusionary tactics By Mahlon Meyer NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
BUSINESS AAPI business owner serves a latte kindness during tough times 3
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SPORTS The Layup Drill 4
PUBLISHER’S BLOG Untold stories of the election 8&9
Frank Irigon believes he lost his bid for a seat on the Newcastle City Council in part through exclusionary tactics
But in granting nomination of the site, the board was acknowledging more than just the pristine beauty of the building, although they repeatedly praised its current owner, Jan Johnson, for preserving it. Through an hour-long presentation, they reviewed what the hotel had meant to different people at different times throughout its long history, including 8,500 ordinary objects that had been left behind in its basement by people of Japanese ancestry as they headed for concentration camps. In each phase of its existence, the importance of the hotel to the see PANAMA HOTEL on 15
Photo by Mahlon Meyer
By Assunta Ng NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
Halei Watkins, King County Elections communications officer, stands in front of the secure cage were ballots are stored.
that stigmatized his history of supporting Black Lives Matter and the anti-Asian Hate movement, as well as his age. This is perhaps the first time his long history of activism has worked against him. see RECOUNT on 12
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39 YEARS
DECEMBER 11 – DECEMBER 17, 2021
■ NAMES IN THE NEWS
Minato appointed to WHEFA board
Jasmine Minato
Gov. Jay Inslee has appointed Jasmine Minato as the Washington Higher Education Facilities Authority (WHEFA)’s newest board member, effective Nov. 9. Minato has an extensive background in fundraising, higher-education development, and community philanthropy.
Kristi Yamaguchi bobblehead
The National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum released a limited-edition bobblehead on Dec. 9 of U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi. The bobblehead celebrates the 30th anniversary of Yamaguchi becoming the first Asian American woman to win a gold medal, which she won at the 1992 Olympic games. It depicts a smiling Yamaguchi, wearing black pants and a black turtleneck sweater, with her skates slung over her shoulder. The bobblehead was produced in conjunction with Yamaguchi’s Always Dream Foundation, which sales of the bobbleheads benefit. The foundation ensures children from low‑income families have access to high‑quality books and extensive family engagement support.
Omoide writing group celebrates its 30th anniversary
Omoide—which means memories—is a writing program of the Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Washington, meeting on the third Saturday
Photo provided by Joan Seko
Mary Li Hsu, who nurtured Asian American life at Yale University, died on Nov. 8 after battling neuroendocrine cancer. Hsu was 63 and she passed away in her Manhattan home. Hsu grew up in Seattle as the eldest daughter of a Northern Chinese Mary Li Hsu immigrant family. She entered Yale in 1976, when the Asian American population was so small that nearly every Asian American student knew each other. In 1992, Hsu was named director of the Asian American Cultural Center (AACC), which officially formed just a year after she graduated. Hsu was also the first AACC director to be simultaneously appointed as a Yale College assistant dean. Under Hsu’s deanship, Yale College’s Asian American population grew to 15% of undergraduates—and currently sits at 25.4%.
“At the heart of inclusive education infrastructure, I am eager to support regional campuses overcoming financial hardships patterned out by the COVID-19 pandemic,” Minato said. Most recently, as the scholarship associate advisor for the Seattle Foundation, Minato worked on a team of philanthropic advisors with a mission to empower highimpact investments led by BIPOC community leaders and stewarded resources for underrepresented college students in Washington.
of each month. It was founded by Dee Goto, Atsushi Kiuchi, Mako Nakagawa, and Janet Baba. Since 1991, it has organized and shared five publications. Omoide is now gathering stories about heritage values for Omoide VI. Guidelines for publishing Omoide include: Capturing the attention of a fifth-grade reader by relating a first person incident. Keeping a reader’s attention by writing a two-minute piece, around 500 words. Descriptive writing, including what you see, hear, smell, and possibly taste. The Omoide goal is to be reading stories and sharing more stories 100 years from today.
Durkan in the CID Photo by Assunta Ng
Yale dean Hsu dies
Mayor Jenny Durkan visited the ChinatownInternational District (CID) at the Chong Wah Benevolent Association to thank supporters on Nov. 30. Several community groups were present to talk with Durkan about the CID and other critical issues facing the city.
Your health can ALWAYS use a boost. COVID-19 booster doses are recommended for everyone regardless of which vaccination you received. If you have questions or want to schedule a vaccine appointment, call 206-684-CITY (2489), Monday - Saturday, 8:00 am - 5:00 pm www.seattle.gov/vaccine
COVID-19 vaccinations are FREE & no identification card is required.
DECEMBER 11 – DECEMBER 17, 2021
YOUR VOICE
■ BUSINESS
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Comcast business grant winner serves a latte kindness during tough times
Photos provided by Claire Sumadiwirya
By Nina Huang NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
Bellden cafe
Bellden Cafe owner Claire Sumadiwirya
It was a moment of kindness from a stranger that motivated Claire Sumadiwirya, mother of three, to open
a purpose-driven cafe. Sumadiwirya opened Bellden Cafe four years ago with a community-focused mission in mind. The cafe’s mission is simple: to build community through food, drink, and kindness. Originally from Shanghai, Sumadiwirya moved to Bellevue when she was 12. She graduated from the
University of Washington with degrees in sociology and finance, and also received her MBA from Seattle University. When Sumadiwirya and her family were living in Shanghai, her eldest son got sick and they had to stay see BELLDEN on 14
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■ SPORTS
39 YEARS
DECEMBER 11 – DECEMBER 17, 2021
THE By Jason Cruz NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY Welcome to another edition of The Layup Drill. In the last column of 2021, we take a look at the world’s concern over Peng Shuai, an attack on Sunisa Lee, and an unfortunate death in Las Vegas. CHINESE TENNIS STAR DISAPPEARS The tennis community has expressed concern over Peng Shuai’s well-being after she alleged via social media that former vice premier Peng Shuai of China Zhang Gaoli sexually assaulted her. In addition, she noted that she had a three-year consensual affair with him afterwards. After these accusations were made public on Nov. 2, the posts soon disappeared from Chinese social media. Also, Peng disappeared and was not reachable causing many to be concerned about her safety. The Chinese government did not report on or investigate the
DRILL LAYUP
claims. In fact, they seemed to censor anything about the situation. The Women’s Tennis Association issued a statement concerning Peng. “The events concerning Peng Shuai are of deep concern.” It added, “The allegations must be investigated fully, fairly, transparently, and without censorship.” The 35-year-old former number one doubles player in the world claimed that the 75-year-old Zhang forced her into a sexual relationship. On Dec. 1, the head of the WTA announced that all WTA tournaments would be suspended because of concerns over the safety of Peng. The former tennis grand slam champ re-emerged after totally being out of reach for several days. Photos and videos of the tennis star in Beijing were posted on social media and floated around by employees of the Chinese government. The circumstances of her disappearance and then her re-emergence without an answer as to where she went and if she was being held captive in plain sight arose. “In good conscience, I don’t see how I can ask our athletes to compete there when Peng Shuai is not allowed to communicate freely and has seemingly been pressured to contradict her allegation of sexual assault,”
said WTA Chairman and CEO Steve Simon in a statement on the organization’s website. Simon stressed the importance for people to speak out and had the full support of the WTA Board of Directors, as well as a “massive amount of international support.” The move was met with overall praise from the tennis community. The International Olympic Committee stated it arranged a “personal meeting” with Peng. The growing concern of Peng being silenced regarding her accusations may become a huge story as Beijing prepares for the Winter Olympics this February. OLYMPIC MEDALIST LEE PEPPER-SPRAYED IN ATTACK U.S. Olympic Gold Medalist Sunisa Lee reported that she was the victim of a hate crime in Los Angeles. While out on a night with friends, Lee stated that she was pepSunisa Lee per sprayed and called racial slurs. Lee was the first Hmong American to
win a gold medal. She filled in for Simone Biles at the Tokyo Olympics and won the all-around individual gold medal in women’s gymnastics. She also earned another two medals in Tokyo along with her gold. Lee has enjoyed the spotlight, which has opened up opportunities for the Auburn University freshman. Notably, Lee was a celebrity contestant on ABC’s Dancing with the Stars. Yet, her status meant little to someone in a passing car who yelled out slurs at Lee and her friends, who were also Asian. The group was also pepper sprayed as the car drove by. “I was so mad, but there was nothing I could do or control because they skirted off,” she said in a recent interview. UNLV STUDENT DIES DURING CHARITY BOXING EVENT Nathan Valencia, a Filipino American college student at University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), died on
Nathan Valencia
see SPORTS on 12
KING COUNTY, WASHINGTON NOTICE TO BIDDERS Sealed bids will be received for KC000390, CIVIL AND STRUCTURAL CONSTRUCTION WORK ORDER; by the King County Procurement and Payables Section, via the E-Procurement system, until 1:30:59 PM on Jan. 6, 2022. Late bids will not be accepted. The public bid opening will only be conducted on-line following the Bid Close Date and Time; see Section 00 10 00 for details. There is a 10% minimum Apprentice Utilization Requirement on this contract. There is a Voluntary Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) Goal: 6% of the Contract Price. There is a Voluntary Women Business Enterprise (WBE) Goal: 3% of the Contract Price. The scope of work for this Work Order Contract consists of furnishing all tools, equipment, materials, supplies and manufactured articles; furnishing all labor, transportation, and services for the fulfillment of civil and structural repair work issued via work order and in strict accordance with the Contract documents. Civil and Structural work includes demolitions, metal fabrication, concrete, flexible pavement such as HMA, monitoring well activities, site work, structure erection and other tenant improvement work. Not-To-Exceed Contract Price: $1,000,000 Pre-Bid: Please see Section 00 10 00 for details. Prospective bidders can view more details at: https://kingcounty. gov/procurement/solicitations Complete Invitation to Bid Documents, including all project details, specifications, and contact information are available on our web page at: https://kingcounty.gov/procurement/ supplierportal
DECEMBER 11 – DECEMBER 17, 2021
YOUR VOICE
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■ ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Asian futures, without Asians: Scary look at science fiction By Andrew Hamlin NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY 2014’s “Ex Machina,” written and directed by Alex Garland, won an Oscar and was widely considered one of the most dashing and deep science fiction films of its era. But as artist, curator, and academic Astria Suparak points out, the two Asian androids in the film, Kyoko (played by Sonoya Mizuno) and Jade (Gana Bayarsaikhan), end up being sacrificed so the white android, Ava (Alicia Vikander), can survive. Ava even removes android skin and a whole arm, from Jade, to further her getaway—a primary example, says Suparak, of Caucasians exploiting Asian skin in science fiction (SF) films and TV. Suparak’s illustrated lecture, “Asian futures, without Asians,” delivered via Zoom through the Jacob Lawrence Gallery on Nov. 30, arose from her scrutinizing roughly 400 science fiction films and TV shows. She decided to concentrate on the period from 1965 to the present, since 1965 marked the lifting of longstanding restrictions against Asian immigration, in the U.S.—paving the way, in other words, for the Asian percentages, and Asian American cultures, seen today. The lecture, lasting roughly one hour, staked out what Suparak called a “taxonomy” of eight tropes visible through this intense look at her source material. She started with “Anglicized Names,” the notion that any long name, hard to pronounce for Westerners, must be shortened. This includes Obi-Wan Kenobi being shortened to Ben Kenobi (she mentions in passing that
the famous Japanese action hero Toshiro Mifune was offered, but turned down, the part of Kenobi). Another prominent example comes in “The Fifth Element,” where an Asian-inspired character, Leeloominaï Lekatariba Lamina-Tchaï Ekbat De Sebat, becomes, simply, Leeloo. (And is played by yet another white actor, Milla Jovovich. That leads to the conundrum of whether “colorblind” casting is in any way better than whitewashing.) The second trope, “Chopsticks,” demonstrated the frequent misuse of Asian food in SF. Sushi indicates wealth and power for those eating, and Chinese food seems always low-class, served up in rainy, grimy markets. “The Fifth Element” features a decidedly un-Thai salesman serving up “Thai food” from what signifies as a Chinese eatery. Third came “Kimonos, kind of.” Suparak explored the idea of Asian-ness as a costume one can put on for the screen, similar to the Asian-as-skin notion. Western bathrobes, she noted, trace their origin to the Japanese yukata, a kind of casual kimono. But bastardized versions of robes and kimonos can be found throughout science fiction, often worn by non-Asian actors and characters—notably the Ancient One from 2016’s “Doctor Strange,” portrayed by Tilda Swinton. “Shōji screens” tracked the indiscriminate use of Japanese screens, plus different kinds of Asian arches, metalwork, and latticework. “Martial arts download” gave examples of incoherent approaches to martial arts, notably the notion that Leeloominaï Lekatariba LaminaTchaï Ekbat De Sebat, aka Leeloo, learns the entire history of hand-to-hand combat, through speed-reading.
■ BRIEFLY
Photo from Seattle PD
Kobe Terrace shooting
Shooting scene near Kobe Terrace Park on Dec. 3
Detectives are investigating after a man was shot near Kobe Terrace park in the Chinatown-International District on the night of Dec. 3. At 11:18 p.m., police responded to 6th Avenue South and South Washington
Street for reports of a shooting. Arriving officers found a man with a gunshot wound to the stomach and immediately began first aid. The 38-year-old victim was taken to Harborview Medical Center in stable condition.
“Background Buddhas” emphasized how non-Asian characters seem to obtain an “instant enlightenment,” simply by surrounding themselves with Asian artifacts and signifiers. The “American-made geisha” turn out decorative, and servile, but deadly underneath, and their Asian-ness renders them ever-treacherous. She concluded her trope list with “Giant geisha ads,” pointing out how many films, including the original “Blade Runner,” give the viewer Asian faces at a remove, plastered across video screens or rendered as holograms, but restricted to enticing, and selling, instead of fullyfleshed out characters. In her “(finale),” Suparak ventured that this overarching vision of a future world with plenty of Asian-ness, but very few actual (and fewer actualized) Asians, reflected a faith on the part of white people, that they could absorb and control any culture, or set of cultures, they wished, and leave out any aspects they wished. In a follow-up dialogue, led by University of Washington professor Chandan C. Reddy, Suparak was asked about positive portrayals of Asian characters she found in contemporary visual SF. She listed the films “Space Sweepers,” “Wandering Earth,” and “Snowpiercer”—all films, not surprisingly, masterminded by Asians. She also offered a word of advice to white makers of SF: Let Asian makers make important decisions, and support folks making work of their own culture, without trying to take over. Andrew can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.
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■ COMMUNITY CALENDAR DEC 10
AAPI UNITY CELEBRATION FOR MAYOR-ELECT BRUCE HARRELL Joyale Seafood Restaurant, 900 S. Jackson, Seattle 5:30-8:30 p.m. $45 Register by Dec. 7, at https://bit.ly/30xLRTy
11 & 12 AFRICATOWN COMMUNITY LAND TRUST IS PARTNERING WITH FRIENDS OF WATERFRONT SEATTLE TO BRING ITS SOUL HOLIDAY MARKET TO PIER 62 Pier 62 11 a.m.-5 p.m. waterfrontparkseattle. org
39 YEARS
DECEMBER 11 – DECEMBER 17, 2021
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RONNY CHIENG, STAND UP COMEDY 7:30 p.m. The Neptune Theatre $28-$33.50 stgpresents.org
14 SEATTLE CITY CLUB DIALOGUE ACROSS DIFFERENCES, WITH PRAMILA JAYAPAL, ANEELAH AFZALI, AND OTHERS 12 p.m. Online event $0-$75 bit.ly/3pevxQh
16 CLUB MEETING WITH WARREN ALLEN ON TOPIC “THE SENTENCING PROJECT” 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Free on Zoom
SAWANT from 1 She was elected to City Council the following year, and her threat to run a voter initiative drive for an immediate $15 minimum wage has been credited with pressuring business leaders and then-Mayor Ed Murray to reach a deal raising the wage to $15 over a few years. Seattle was the first major city in the U.S. to adopt such a measure. But critics say she offers more rhetoric than substance, and that her brash antics are incompatible with good governance. Seattle and other cities are banned by state law from adopting rent control, for example. And last month, a
For Zoom meeting link, contact at rotaryofseattleid@ gmail.com
18 A BONSAI SOLSTICE Pacific Bonsai Museum, 2515 S. 336th St., Federal Way 4-7 p.m. pacificbonsaimuseum. org
19 MINH CARRICO WAS LOST AND NOW HAS BEEN FOUND, “LOST & FOUND” 2-3 p.m. Via Zoom Zoom Meeting ID: 716 4280 1111 Passcode: 23x40X minhcarrico.com
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SEATTLE ASIAN ART MUSEUM FREE FIRST FRIDAY 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Seattle Asian Art Museum Free admission Advanced registration required volunteerparktrust. org/event/saam-freefridays/all
“UNITED BY CHALLENGES,” U.S.JAPAN FRIENDSHIP COMING OF AGE CELEBRATION Bellevue College and Zoom 1-3 p.m. RSVP required seijinusa.org/seijinregistration seijinusa.org
JAN 6
CLUB MEETING WITH RACHELL WONG, DISCUSS THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN HISTORICAL AND MODERN VIOLIN PERFORMANCE 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. For Zoom meeting link, contact at rotaryofseattleid@ gmail.com
federal appeals court ruled that two Seattle police officers could sue Sawant for defamation, after she claimed a fatal shooting they were involved in was “a blatant murder.” The recall question on the ballot cites three charges—a minor campaign finance violation that Sawant acknowledged and for which she paid a fine; her alleged leadership of a protest march to the home of Mayor Jenny Durkan, even though Durkan’s address was protected by a state confidentiality law due to her prior work as a federal prosecutor; and her decision to let a crowd of protesters into City Hall while it was closed due to the pandemic. Sawant denies having led the march to Durkan’s house, though she did participate in it.
Get tickets at zoo.org/wildlanterns NOW THROUGH JAN 31, 2022
PAPER DIALOGUES: THE DRAGON AND OUR STORIES National Nordic Museum, 2655 NW Market St., Seattle For hours, please check online at nordicmuseum.org
MINH CARRICO WAS LOST AND NOW HAS BEEN FOUND, “CALL ME BUDDY” 2-3 p.m. Via Zoom Zoom Meeting ID: 716 4280 1111 Passcode: 23x40X minhcarrico.com NOW THROUGH JAN. 30, 2022
WILDLANTERNS Woodland Park Zoo, 5500 Phinney Ave N, Seattle 4-8:30 p.m.
FEB 20
MINH CARRICO WAS LOST AND NOW HAS BEEN FOUND, “KINGS TO KING” 2-3 p.m. Via Zoom Zoom Meeting ID: 716 4280 1111 Passcode: 23x40X minhcarrico.com
She has defended her decision to let Black Lives Matter demonstrators into City Hall in the wake of George Floyd’s murder by Minneapolis police. She said the protesters were inside for only an hour and that it was important for them to be seen in the halls of power. The most recent ballot turn-in statistics from King County Elections (KCE) indicate roughly 41% voter turnout for the recall. That said, KCE estimates that the final turnout will likely end up being closer to 50%. To overcome, Sawant will need to win around two-thirds of the remaining ballots.
View the solution on page 14
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The only weekly English-language newspaper serving Washington’s Asian community. The NW Asian Weekly has one simple goal: “To empower the Asian community.” The Editorial Board reserves the right to reject any advertisement, letter or article. Subscriptions cost $40 for 52 weeks of the NW Asian Weekly and $30 for 52 weeks of the Seattle Chinese Post. The NW Asian Weekly owns the copyright for all its content. All rights reserved. No part of this paper may be reprinted without permission. 412 Maynard Ave. S., Seattle, WA 98104 • t. 206.223.5559 editor@nwasianweekly.com • ads@nwasianweekly.com • www.nwasianweekly.com
YOUR VOICE
DECEMBER 11 – DECEMBER 17, 2021
■ NATIONAL NEWS Asian woman beaten on train in PA By CLAUDIA LAUER ASSOCIATED PRESS PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Philadelphia transit officials say a woman was beaten by two juveniles on a train, just hours after hundreds of people gathered at a rally prompted by an attack on the train last month. The rally against Asian American hate was organized after what authorities have called a racially motivated attack on four Asian high schoolers two weeks ago, but SEPTA officials said it was unclear if the assault on Nov. 30 was also racially motivated. The assaults are the latest in a string of violent attacks on SEPTA vehicles that have spurred concerns from community members and city officials about safety on the city’s public transportation system. A spokesperson for the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority said the altercation on Nov. 30 involving a 27-year-old Asian American woman and two juveniles, ages 12 and 13, started when they bumped into each other as the
Market-Frankford Line train lurched. According to a preliminary SEPTA police report, all three boarded the train around 6:40 p.m. at 15th Street. A few stops later, the juveniles bumped into the woman as the train car jerked forward. The woman pushed them off of her and a verbal altercation occurred, escalating to each of the juveniles striking the woman in the face. The woman told SEPTA police that neither juvenile had used a racial slur during the altercation and no threats were made to her life. Police said her glasses were broken, and she suffered minor injuries including a cut to her lip and a possible scratch on her eye. The woman declined medical treatment at the SEPTA station. Officers found the two juveniles a short time later. SEPTA spokesman Andrew Busch said the two were charged with simple assault. In the attack on Nov. 17, four Black teenagers were seen in a video posted to see PA on 11
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Congratulations to Mayor-Elect Bruce Harrell!
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39 YEARS
DECEMBER 11 – DECEMBER 17, 2021
■ PUBLISHER’S BLOG
By Assunta Ng NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
“I started school as an English as a Second Language (ESL) student,” she said. “My first language was not the dominant language. I can relate to ESL students.” The Seattle School District serves 6,948 English language learners who contribute 162 languages to the total of 154 spoken by families across the district. “I understand how difficult it was for my parents to navigate public education, and being unfamiliar with the system.” She added, “I carry a disability identity as I have a disability.” She was born with hearing loss. Maritz is passionate about ethnic studies. She wanted students to know the importance of Chinese Americans building the railroads and that Japanese Americans were incarcerated during World War II. Because of her many unique perspectives, Maritz said voters resonated with her. A Harvard University graduate with a master’s in business administration, as well as a bachelor’s degree, Maritz will be the second Chinese American to be elected in the Seattle Public School District since the late Cheryl Chow.
WILL CHEN
November has been a phenomenal month for Asian Americans. The election results were totally unexpected for several local Asian American candidates. In tough races, no one knew the results until the very last vote was counted. How did they turn the tide even though some were in second place after the primary election? “The Asian candidates who have won are not ideologyoriented, they have stayed away from partisan politics,” said Y. P. Chan, one of the founders of Washington Chinese American PAC. “They are not right or left, they focus on what matters to the community and voters who are sick of partisan politics.” Another important factor was that “the Asian candidates themselves were very qualified and educated…Many graduated from Harvard and Yale University, and they have invested in the community (like volunteering and building goodwill).” On Nov. 2, former Seattle City Council member Bruce Harrell became the first Asian and second Black mayor. He won 58% of the votes. He was considered to be the least “left” among all the mayoral candidates, and more to the center.
VIVIAN SONG MARITZ
Vivian Song Maritz won a Seattle School Board seat with 72% of the vote, despite the fact that she did not receive an endorsement from the Seattle Times, a critical step for winning, especially for an unknown candidate. She and Harrell were the only Asian candidates to run in Seattle. Born in Ohio, Maritz’s immigrant parents were from Taiwan. Asked why she won so big, she replied, “I am humbled by the result. I am an unusual Asian candidate. There was no Asian representation (in the school board despite the high number of Asian students).
Will Chen made it through the primary election for his bid as Edmonds City Council member in second place. Some of his supporters were worried. And there was more drama on election day as he was trailing behind (344 votes to 397 votes) on Nov. 3. But Chen emerged as the winner. He won by 144 votes, out of the 15,474 votes cast for him and his opponent. Chen is the first person of color elected to the Edmonds City Council, a city with only 10% Asians, 3% Blacks, and 80% white. Chen credited his first successful attempt to run for office to his community involvement. “I have high name recognition,” he said. In his spare time, he volunteers to pick up garbage on the beach and grow trees in the park. Being the only Asian volunteer, he is proud of his involvement in the Edmonds marsh project, protecting fish and wildlife. He is also a member of the Rotary Club, the Edmonds Chamber of Commerce, and a commissioner of the 24-member Edmonds Housing Commission, in which he is one of two Asian Americans. Chen announced his candidacy after he saw the rising anti-Asian hate crimes nationwide and in Washington state. Quickly, he organized one of the anti-hate crime rallies in Edmonds. “I know I will make it as I have been through a lot in my whole life,” he said. Chen came a long way from poverty and his native China. His parents were farmers, where he was homeless at the age
of 10. An accountant, Chen has a master’s degree in accounting and an MBA degree from Western Washington University.
TOSHIKO HASEGAWA Toshiko Hasegawa, 33, won the Port of Seattle Commission seat as the first Asian American woman see BLOG next page
YOUR VOICE
DECEMBER 11 – DECEMBER 17, 2021
Toshiko Hasegawa (left) with her supporters Abriel Johnny (center) and Bre Jefferson.
BLOG from previous page ever to be elected in that role. Together, with Commissioner Sam Cho and the newly-elected Hamdi Mohamed of African descent, the Port Commission (with five seats total) will have people of color as the majority for the first time in history. Hasegawa’s race was a tough one because she was unseating a wellknown and well-liked incumbent, Peter Steinbrueck, also a former Seattle City Councilmember. Detractors attacked her age as a sign of inexperience. As the daughter of state Sen. Bob Hasegawa, Hasegawa has her own advantage. “I am the daughter of labor.” Her father works for the union and is a progressive. Her strategies are focused not only in Seattle, but in South County and the Eastside. “I won all 17 Democrat legislative districts. From labor, Democrats to environmentalists, my message resonated with voters.” One group of voters Hasegawa didn’t mention was her appeal to working moms. When she decided to run at the beginning of the year, her daughter was just 3 months old. The new normal with Zoom meetings has become an advantage to win the election. Hasegawa attended over 150 Zoom meetings during the campaign. If she had to attend inperson meetings, Hasegawa said it would be impossible for her to juggle childcare and family and her career. Hasegawa is the executive director of the Washington State Commission on Asian American Affairs, Gov. Inslee’s cabinet member. But she said the support of her family and husband, who shares equal responsibility with their daughter, makes a huge difference.
former governor, and Obama appointee, and he’s a prominent member of the Asian community.” Nelson said she picked endorsers who represent a large number of people. She built relationships with people of color during her campaign and Warden has a strong voice in the Black community and is concerned about public safety.
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The Gary Locke stamp of approval
“As a business owner, I represent voters’ values, and voters finally had enough with false narratives.” Nelson and her husband own Fremont Brewing. On Locke’s endorsement, Davison’s campaign stated, “All endorsements are important, and with this one coming immediately following the primary as
GARY LOCKE—THE INFLUENCER Former governor Gary Locke may not have run for any office in the November election, but his name and photos were in many campaign brochures. And it matters. Locke had endorsed many important Seattle City races, including Seattle Mayor-elect Bruce Harrell, Seattle City Council member-elect Sara Nelson, and Seattle City Attorney-elect Ann Davison. They all won. Nelson won by 8 points and Davison won by 4 points. Nelson’s campaign flier consisted of only two endorsers, Locke and Rev. Harriett Warden. Nelson said she had reached out to Locke for his endorsement because “he’s a respectable leader in the community,
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it did, he (Locke) and former Governor Gregoire gave my campaign an invaluable push.” Assunta can be reached at assunta@nwasianweekly.com.
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at Jade to the first mural that painted life. They seem The artists their way of ent to a people and , what we lived through!” sparked a movem a testament the walls of were here!” “Look stenciled on a say: “We EN on 11 a series of hands cave has the image of see JADE GARD Sulawesi are rs A neighboring years. Schola cool, damp cave. back roughly 39,900 bear ani art. The murals sa, dating ive LY Babiru By Janice Nesam figurat human T ASIA N WEEK them the first NORT HWES island of call the Indonesian the world on Halfway around
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, S.C. (AP) COLU MBIA Carolina — Former South Haley took Gov. Nikki crats during aim at Demo ng slot at a prime speaki National the Republican (RNC) on Convention ho she says 24—w Aug. ca as racist: label Ameri America is “That is a lie. y.” not a racist countrNimrata Born Gov. to Indian Former South Carolina Randhawa Haley served Nikki Haley immigrants, Donald ent as Presid ambassador Trump’s first criticizing Nations. of her speech g Trump, to the United spent much and praisin While she Biden Joe heritage and candidate immigrant Democratic d her Indian hite world” as she also invoke n girl in a Black-and-w the countr y “Brow way of uniting position as a a constr uctive she argued for . coming racial hatred symbolism added in the face of on notes. took al Convention with sticky Haley’s speech were added cratic Nation n where ideas of the Demo Black woma g again on ut sessions la Harris, a on the heels d to get movin Jackson done in breako s, for vice ation of Kama 2016, decide brainstorming eath I-5 at (DNC)’s nomin Jamaican immigrant parent Example of in place since area undern the and e with Indian plans to improv . feedback the United States. as one of the rising president of seen for By Kai Curry ASIA N WEEK LY and King Streets has sought community been in s herself long survey ittee ST Haley has be positioning The Comm NORT HWE close to 300 stars who may the United Nations until it collected ts as to their in the 1960s, lican when , built residen t Repub at was before y She served ational Distric (I-5) freewa unattractive unused space a next step. “When the 2016 from Intern to do with this mostly unity, a very on 10 blighted comm community in half.” see HALEY ts on what concer n. it created a the the first thoughan aesthetic and safety also cleaved Tom Im, began space, and it that is on 9 , spoken by pass Park weekly.com RPASS PARK These words the I-5 Under Delayed • www.nwasian see I-5 UNDE meeting of weekly.com Interim CDA. community • ads@nwasian has been unity, part of nweekly.com Steering Comm ic, the committee, which • editor@nwasia pandem the 3.0626 due to • f. 206.22
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“King Virus”
The art of separation and anxiety
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By Andrew Hamlin NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY Up until recently, the notion of spending an evening in an art gallery alone, forcibly sequestered from anyone else while you regard the exhibits, would have seemed at least mildly far out. But that’s what Kenneth Huntington, purveyor of Pioneer Square’s Phantom Realms gallery, proposes, as a crucial bit of what he’s dubbed the “King Virus” exhibit. The COVID-19 epidemic played havoc with Huntington’s original schedule. He wanted to open on March 5—as much as it has with anything else in Washington state. The rescheduling gave him time to think on the state of affairs in China, where several of the exhibit’s artists reside. “I was following the news and social media about the virus since the day Wuhan was completely quarantined,” he explained. “I wasn’t surprised to see how quickly Seattle started issuing guidelines to contain the spread. “I was also alarmed to learn how strong censorship is in China. It’s clear that Chinese voices are not being fully heard. Instead of backing down, I decided to use this unfortunate circumstance as a strength… We live in a hyper-connected world with needless barriers to our communication and I’ve seen firsthand how many people in the Asian community in Seattle have been hurt socially here in Washington. I want to welcome artists in the Chinese community to participate and be welcome, along with other people from around the world. The name ‘King Virus’ is a play on words because ‘corona’ means ‘crown’ in Latin.” The curator reached out to some Chinese artists he’d known before the outbreak. Xiaoyuan Shan, a Wuhan resident, used her six-week quarantine as an opportunity to create illustrations. In addition to her art career, she owns a small Western restaurant in Shuhan, which allows her some perspective on Western ways and means. Theophile Signard, a Frenchman living
in China for 12 years now, focuses his imagination and his powerful images on the personal protective equipment we see healthcare workers wear when dealing with the virus. He’s featured prominently in the promotional materials for the show. Mark Montgomery, a longtime resident of Shanghai, found himself stuck in Vietnam due to travel restrictions. He’s currently working with only one sketchbook and his smartphone. All three artists discussed their situation with Huntington over the computer, and all three contributed written statements to go along with their work. Huntington allows that he isn’t sure how the installation will open, given current restrictions. But, he added, “We’re looking at the possibility of doing 360-degree photography, live streaming, and investigating what digital environments are available. It all depends on the technologies we choose.” As for the sequestering, he continued, that’s another possibility on the line. “If city guidelines continue to allow, we will keep selling tickets on our website where we’ll ‘quarantine’ you in the gallery for an hour if you want to be one of the few to visit in person while event restrictions are in place.” The cost of such social distancing: $50 or so. Asked how he’s coping personally with the current situation, Huntington mentions a lot of hand-washing and “finally seeing the value of taking my shoes off at the door.” But he’s happy to do whatever he can, to encourage global communication through
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art. And he’s satisfied to have connected with such promising artists—the three mentioned earlier, plus a number of local talents, to be named later—in the course of his mission. “I have been excited at how meaningful it’s felt working with the international community. When the world normalizes, I will continue to reach out and think globally as an art curator. International artists have been an absolute joy and
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inspiration to work with!” The “King Virus” exhibit opened on April 2 at the Phantom Realms gallery, 214 Alaskan Way South. For the latest updates and more information, visit phantomrealms.wordpress.com. Andrew can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.
Have you been financially impacted by COVID-19?
Seattle Public Utilities and Seattle City Light Are Offering Customer Assistance Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) and Seattle City Light (SCL) will keep utility services on during the COVID-19 Civil Emergency in Seattle. This will provide immediate utility relief for customers, both residential and commercial, financially impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak.
During March, the self-certification form will be available online, on the City's UDP website:
Effective immediately, all SPU and SCL customers (residential and commercial) can set up payment plans if their financial stability has been jeopardized by COVID-19.
http://www.seattle.gov/humanservices/services-and-prgrams/affordability-and-livability/utility-discount-program
http://www.seattle.gov/light/paymybill/arrangements.asp - Seattle City Light (electric) http://www.seattle.gov/utilities/services/my-account/payments-and-bills - Seattle Public Utilities (garbage, water, sewer)
** Utility Discount Program (UDP) Self-Certification for COVID-19 Emergency During the month of March, income-eligible residential customers can self-certify to enroll in the Utility Discount Program (UDP). This allows qualified customers to access
Dr. Ming Xiao, D.C.
heavily discounted utilities by simply completing and signing a short form on household income, rather than having to provide proof of income at this time.
* Flexible Payment Plans for COVID-19 Emergency
Seattle Chiropractor OVER 20 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE 659 S. Jackson St., Seattle, WA 98104 206-621-7501 206-621-2668
Summary of Utility Relief for COVID-19 Impacted Customers Utility Relief Policies for Customer Assistance in response to COVID-19 Suspending utility disconnections for non-payment Allowing for more flexible payment plans, including on the amount of down payment and the length of repayment* Allowing eligible residential customers to self-certify for the Utility Discount Program enrollment** Reaching out proactively to small businesses with delinquent accounts to offer to set up flexible payment plans Waiving interest charges on delinquent balances (pending emergency legislation)*
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Antiviral drug, tested at UW School of Medicine, shows promise in fight against COVID-19
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of flowers being familiar buckets truck, can be unloaded from a neighborhood found in different and even gas convenience stores the around Seattle and stations to sight vibrant A familiar and festive Market Eastside. It’s easy to spot the Place d to pull Pike and feel compelle behold in Seattle’s of iconic flower colors nowhere near the energy : It’s is sadly missing. The over. daily crowds still inspiring stands that draw massive a public market, but empty. and eerily sit daffodils year of fragrant at this time of s of buckets buckets different tulips Where are the hundred cheerful array of daffodils? The a focal flowers for their filled with tulips and of make up the full Family stuffed . bouquets ant white paper sleeves s? What about extravags of Xai Cha’s Farm, masked sumptuous blossom member these stalls: the waved a friendly, the people tending and wearing gloves, Filipino farmers? What would you like?” Hmong, Mien, and working from “Hello! don’t mind They’re around still Like the market, they they’re all still have a look. dusk till dawn, but having people just For do. to is bulging what white paper sleeve trying to figure out farmers who Each s in various blossom l the 30-40 small flower beautifu their sole means in flowers, foliage, rely on the Market as combinations of be to had have making each one of income, many Dr. Helen Chu and filler accents al potential assertive to keep more individu and the as creative Medicine so you may as unique Looking for something UW School of r. their businesses afloat ted in ted locations custome researchers who participa ged find them at unexpec Garden encoura on 12 Angie Vang of Cha Doua Lor’s a clinical trial are see LOCAL FARM outside of their farms. g that the up with VOL 39 NO by data indicatin White tents, propped 28 JULY 11 vir can treat – JULY 17, trial drug remdesi 2020 FREE 38 YEARS YOUR COVID-19. VOICE 1 granted The FDA on May ation authoriz emergency use that it can be for remdesivir, so ized severe used to treat hospital ary Prelimin COVID-19 patients. l Institutes Nationa a ni from results By Janice Nesama ponsored of Health (NIH)-s NORTH WEST ASIAN patients who study showed that WEEKLY remdesivir—originally took usually the state tested against Ebola— four Classrooms across days, and restaurants recovered after 11 are empty, malls those who than s and parks faster days deserted, while freeway Beneath The UW of life. didn’t take the drug. show only a trickle of e was one the state’s School of Medicin this eerily quiet cover, storm to By Kai Curry trial. NIH a the up in the sites NORT HWES youth are stirring assistant T ASIAN WEEK Washington Dr. Helen Chu, LY reach out and help. e at the is an initiative He’s been known professor of medicin e, said Youth for Masks as that handso four students at star from Singap me UW School of Medicin that was started by ore’s Triple Nine decreased aim is son of Seattle and the the drug not only High School. Their ’s own Grandm Issaquah d improve aster S. S. Leong. But to health care recovery time, it also what is foremo John to source face masks Robin s st on s. Leong’ frontline the outcome on s mind these mortalit y days is workers who are being a dad. changer pandemic. “It’s really a game of the COVID-19 “Becoming first of all a Chin, a father, for the field to know my priorities The idea came to Angelin that drug change antiviral d,” Leong told having an the North9 real clinical west Asian see MASKS on works to prevent on Youth for Weekly. clinical on behalf of Washingt “Every thing to UW Medicine outcomes, to improve I do hand over the masks important.” now is for my and Rudramurthy outcomes is just so kids, Chin, Lee, Kang and that’s not masks a bad 12 thing—that’s see COVID -19 on a great
Cervical Spine Manipulation/Adjustment Exercise Counseling Lifestyle Modification Counseling Massage Therapy
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“Riz” Reyes
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relin Sicu de ed by protes ly students to pro ts, Issaquah teens ral abandoned rkers wo e car h alt by police, he masks for AA
Robin Leong honors fatherhood an d Chinese tradit ion with a new children ’s book
PI business for return of es yearn safety
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Ng
n
: API Virtual celebration Heritage Month
U:Don Fresh
By Mahlon Meyer NORT HWES T ASIAN
were l difficulties, and there have any major technica eating none. By John Liu the Hum Bow WEEKLY The highlight was NORTH WEST ASIAN ion was virtual, all ion. Since the competit own ion went competit acquire his and her Celebrat to had Month ors Seattle’s API Heritage viewers nine competit the competition—from Safeway, for with more than 2,300 virtual on May 3 Facebook hum bow while streaming on GE on 12 tuning in on Zoom prepared see API HERITA Month committee Live. The API Heritage sure the show would not make to hours for many
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Tak Kurachi still The area is still can’t get customers to come. blocka “It’s like an exchan ded. ge of hands,” 41, owner of said Kurachi, U:Don Station, in a telepho Fresh Japanese Noodle ne interview.
eating
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Man goes on against Asia racist rant n dining at rest family aurant
Celebrati
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A video of a man racially abusing diners a restaurant in Carmel Valley, at the holiday weeken California over d has gone viral retweeted by after it was “The Voice” judge Kelly Clarkso Jordan Chan originally shared n. Instagram on the video July 6, showin g the man cursing on gesturing with and his middle finger at the family at Bernardus Lodge the and Spa’s Lucia restaurant. Chan said the man “relentlessly family while they were celebra harassed” her birthday. ting her aunt’s “Trump’s gonna f*** you! You leave... f***ing f***ers need to Asian piece of heard saying to s**t,” the man Chan’s family is in the clip. A waitress at the restaurant is seen steppin and ordering the g in man “You do not talk to leave. now,” she is heard to our guests like that. Get out Image from saying. “They Jordan Chan’s You are not allowed are valued guests. Instagram account here ever again.” Chan said, “I’ve where somebo never on that scale. dealt with racism as well, dy completely but Never on that unprovoked level to the point felt see RACIST RANT on 9
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Bellev ue Colleg e’s Interim President Gary Locke has approved a one-tim from the preside e allocation nt’s discretionary account to 91.3 KBCS-FM, and save the jobs of the News Director and Program Directo r. KBCS is affiliated with Bellev ue Colleg college’s Board e, and the holds the broadc of Trustees ast license for the radio station . Suppor ters of Yuko Kodam had started an a online petition to save her job as News and Public Affairs Directo r. was set to expire Her contract on June 30. Yuko Kodama The petition on Change.org said, “Yuko is a critical voice team in our local often media market … underserved focus on the most Her stories, 412 Mayna along with populations in rd Ave. S., those of her volunte our Seattle, WA er/student news 98104 • t. 206.223.5559 • f. 206.223.0626 see KODAMA on 4 • editor@nwasia nweekl
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fries fight “Do your french the ad asks. climate change?” katsu or What about pork a thing— egg rolls? Yes! It’s become low fryer grease can Affordable, fuel. clean carbon healthy? and sustainable, rs are Some think so. Supporte the passage campaigning for (HB) 1091, of House Bill fuel standard proposing a clean intensity to reduce the carbon Used fuel. the ID on Feb. 24. of transportation Fuels Now rally in become a hot Supporters of Clean cooking oil may future. and dispose.” commodity in the s of “take, make, coalition of Gov. Jay production companie On Feb. 24, a Last December, all Biofuel used groups, an ambitious environmental have been collecting Inslee announced ted slogan the oil from food-rela package for 2021– holding signs with gathered cooking s and turning them into climate policy reduce 35% of “Clean Fuel Now,” aiming to lot of businesse A By keeping 2023, in the back parking Avenue clean fuels for years. emissions by 2030. longer, carbon 6th of the loop” the on is “in ya oil Uwajima the used fuel standard part “Circular” tes minimizes clean South to celebrate the circular process package and necessita The event resources policy to sell cleaner oil Restaurant Week. the use of limited It is a fuel suppliers Chinatown30 eliminates waste. highlights (ID) and on 8 le approach District International preferred sustainab see CLEAN FUELS economy participate in linear l who s traditiona businesse to the oil recycling. waste cooking
es in on committee participat
thing. I love fatherhood. I think I was born to be a father.” With fatherhood as inspira tion, Leong has written a childre n’s book, The Kung Fu Force and the Tower of Doom, publish ed by Epigram Books. The book, which will be part of a series,
Station
Sometimes the sentries outside Hill Occupied the Capitol Protest (CHOP ) zone would him in. Other times, they’d let questio Now that the police have reclaimn him. ed the area,
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VOL 39 NO 43 OCTOBER 24 – OCTOBER 30, 2020
Endorsements FEDERAL
President/Vice President Joseph R. Biden / Kamala D. Harris
Congressional Distric U.S. Representative t 7, Pramila Jayapa l Congressional Distric U.S. Representative t 8, Kim Schrier Congressional Distric U.S. Representative t 9, Adam Smith Congressional Distric U.S. Representative t 10, Marilyn Strickl and
STATE RACE Governor Jay Inslee
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Lt. Governor Denny Heck Secretary of State Kim Wyman State Treasur er Duane Davids on State Auditor Pat (Patrice) McCar
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Attorney Genera l Bob Ferguson Commissione r of Public Lands Hilary Franz
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Here are the Northwest Asian publisher's choices Weekly November election for the Nov. 3, 2020 ballot.
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First Korean Am erican congres swoman?
By Kai Curry NORT HWES T ASIAN
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“There is a lot to economic recover be done. COVID-19 y, racial inequit humbling to y. It’s see that, for my candidacy as a woman who is half Korean and half Black, the beyond the districtenthusiasm extends finally have represe …What it means to deal that sometim ntation—that’s a big Marily n Strickla es gets overlooked,” nd told the Northw Asian Weekly est . The for Washington’s Democratic hopeful District is running 10th Congressional for the seat, which being vacated is by Denny Heck, now running who is for Lieutenant Governor. If elected, Strickla nd will be the first Black woman from the Pacific Northw the first Korean est American womanand Congress. in “You’re represe nting your district your state, but and your presence at the table see STRICKLAN D on 12 Marilyn Strickland
King County on early vote Elections r Keep ’em co turnout: ming!
THE INSIDE STO RY
Superintendent of Public Instruc Chris Reykda tion l
KUNG FU and TAI CHI classes for men, women, and children
Insurance Comm issioner Mike Kreidl er Legislative Distric t 1, State Representative Pos. 1 Davina Duerr Legislative Distric t 11, State Senator Bob Hasegawa Legislative Distric t 11, State Representative Pos. 1 Zack Hudgin s Legislative Distric t 32, State Representative Pos. 1 Cindy Ryu Legislative Distric t 33, State Representative Pos. 2 Mia Su-Ling Gregerson see ENDORSEM
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ON THE SHELF
Book recomm endations: Encounters with other worlds
King County Elections (KCE) on Oct. 20 that tweeted your it picked up an 164,000 ballots estimated this.” vote and our elections. We’ve from drop got the first five boxes in days after mailing Featuring an ballots. 18-inch ballot, out the year’s this election is compri “That’s more sed of 64 races, including a total than 10x the of record and is AMAZING. previous candidates. There 118 federal and state Keep 'em coming! We're 16 local and six are 22 measures, with now picking state. Include up at least twice a day at d are state, county, city, all boxes with school, more for our higher traffic and special purpos district measur locations,” it e said. es. KCE mailed If you haven’t out ballots to register nearly 1.4 million already receive ballot, call KCE at 206-29 d your County last week ed voters across King (8683). Ballots 6-VOTE must be postma election. King for this year’s general Election Day, County is Nov. 3, or returne rked by projecting 90% for this of the 73 ballot election, or approx d drop box location to one 1,287,000 ballots imately the s across county. returned. This be a recordwould breaking turnout The deadline to register to previous high with the is vote online of 85% in 2012. Oct. 26. Voters can register and Director Julie through 8 p.m. Wise on Election Day vote layers upon layers said, “Our state has of KCE’s Vote Center location at any security measur of physical and cyber King County s around es in place . to protect
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Social media is abuzz since a Dec. 3 editorial in The Seattle Times, announcing that “Seattle and King County have deserted Little Saigon.” “Centered a few blocks around 12th Avenue South and South Jackson Street, Little Saigon is beset with overflowing trash cans, litter, dirty sidewalks, and open-air drug dealing,” it read. While we are grateful for the new spotlight by the newspaper that has Washington state’s largest circulation— for those of us who live and work in the Chinatown-International District (CID), this is old news. Crime, including robbery, theft, assault, and gun violence, is high in the area. Walk around the neighborhood and you still see many businesses boarded up. The CID needs help, especially since the devastating impact on businesses from the pandemic, followed by damage from splinter groups during the Black Lives Matter protests. Most recently in August, the Northwest Asian Weekly interviewed Seattle Police Chief Adrian Diaz, who told us thieves have been breaking into businesses and selling the merchandise at an outdoor flea market on 12th and Jackson. The market
Photo by George Liu
■ EDITORIAL CID problems falling on deaf ears?
From left: Michael Itti, Mayor Jenny Durkan, Tanya Woo, and Police Chief Adrian Diaz on 12th Ave. S and Jackson
comes and goes, he told us, and now, it appears that it is ramping up. Diaz said, “We have been doing community roll calls with a couple squads of our officers in the CID, Little Saigon, and 12th and Jackson, trying to address the [situation].”
The situation hasn’t improved since then and we feel as if we are banging our heads against the wall. Indeed, “Little Saigon is the Seattle neighborhood that government forgot.” “Mayor Durkan and County Executive Constantine represent this neighborhood.
So do Seattle Councilmembers Kshama Sawant and Tammy Morales and County Councilmember Girmay Zahilay. To all of them: This is on you,” The Seattle Times editorial board stated. We should also add that state Rep. Sharon Tomiko Santos’ district includes the CID—a neighborhood that her late husband, Bob Santos, championed. This community has contributed much to the rich history, economic growth, and diversity of the city. Yet, the CID has been a dumping ground for the city’s problems long enough—problems that other “nicer” parts of the city don’t deal with. City, county, and state leaders: are you listening? Perhaps you could all work together to create solutions. We have been overlooked for so long. We are tired of public hearings and empty promises from elected officials. It’s time for less talking and more doing. We need action *now*—not in a few months or, God forbid, a few years. We have been asking for years and Is anyone listening?
■ LETTER
I am writing to protest the deplorable situation at 12th and Jackson in Seattle’s Little Saigon business district. Most of us have, no doubt, witnessed the loiterers, pushers and users, sellers of questionable goods, and unbelievable filth and garbage. This area has a King County Metro bus stop, but you wouldn’t know it because it has been co-opted by so much unfortunate street activity. Not only Metro patrons but the small businesses right here—the herbal shop plus the businesses in the Ding Hao Plaza—are being adversely affected. The small business plaza across the street had to erect a security fence to discourage drug sales and garbage proliferation. Pedestrians are also being thwarted—the sidewalks are crowded, full of litter and overflowing garbage dumpsters, and the Metro stop is otherwise unusable. It is also completely dark at night here. How are Metro transit customers supposed to use this stop at night? I lay the blame for this situation with the DESC Navigation Center around the corner at 606 12th Avenue South. I am told that small businesses adjacent to the Navigation Center have complained of theft, vandalism, and unlawful campers. I suspect that the people who are using the Center are being drawn to and involved in this activity at 12th and Jackson. A King County sheriff told me that the Chinese noodle shop in the Ding Hao Plaza was buying stolen meat and the money was being used to buy or push drugs at this corner. I suspected no good would come out of the City's
PA from 7 social media yelling slurs at three Asian American students. A fourth Asian American student, Christina Lu, who spoke at the rally against hate on Nov. 30, stepped in to ask the girls to stop. The video shows the Black teens, ages 13 to 16, banging Lu’s head on the subway
Photo provided by Patricia Fong
Citizen demands attention to “deplorable situation”
Overflowing garbage cans at Little Saigon bus stop
Navigation Center. I remember going to community meetings where neighbors and parents (there is a school near the Center) met out of great concern—founded on the lack of trust and belief in the competence or commitment by the City—not just to install a temporary low barrier shelter but to ensure it really worked. Looks like our concerns were amply justified. Regardless of whether or not the Navigation Center is the source of the problems at 12th and Jackson, the City and the County/Metro must take immediate action to rectify the intolerable situation. This area is a serious problem, which is impacting people and businesses in Little Saigon and ultimately the Chinatown-International District (CID) . I call on City Councilmembers Kshama Sawant, Tammy Morales, and County Councilmember Girmay Zahilay to give this deplorable situation their immediate attention and
door and hitting her as she lay on the ground. The teens were charged with ethnic intimidation and other assault charges. Lu, an 18-year-old high school senior, called for unity at the rally, saying that regardless of race or other characteristics, all people want “public safety in the city of Brotherly Love.” The attack on Lu and the other Asian
action. It has often occurred to me that the CID and Little Saigon are easy targets for politically unpopular social experiments. No other neighborhood would take them but when they fail, the people responsible for putting them here in the CID (the City) are suddenly indifferent and unresponsive. We can see that for a long time, dating back to previous administrations, the City has not cared for nor about the International District and does not to this day. The problems are not just at 12th and Jackson—the problems are also growing violence involving shootings and property damage. Tents are appearing again on Jackson under the freeway, along with garbage. There is graffiti all over many buildings. There is no street cleaning service as there is in downtown. This historic neglect and inaction by the City amounts to outright racism and I protest. Part of this area is a Historic Neighborhood of immigrants, but you would never know it in spite of the Councilmembers’ “socially progressive” rhetoric about protecting (recent) immigrants. It’s time for the City, the County, and Metro to act in good faith and fix the problems here for the businesses, bus patrons, pedestrians, and seniors who are being intimidated and forced out of their neighborhood.
American students was one of a handful of violent interactions on public transportation that also prompted a joint City Council committee hearing to address safety on SEPTA vehicles. SEPTA officials noted they had placed a police officer at the Olney Station on the Broad Street Line—where the teens had boarded from separate high schools—during school dismissal times.
Sincerely, — Patricia Fong Seattle, WA
But with other attacks including a June shooting on a moving train, the rape of a woman within view of other passengers in October that drew international attention and an attempted rape at 69th Street Station in Upper Darby just a few days later in October, community members and transit workers are calling for more measures systemwide to increase safety.
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RECOUNT from 1 “I wasn’t about to renounce my values and beliefs,” he said. Because of the 0.30% difference in total votes that separated Irgon and his opponent and ultimate victor Paul Charbonneau, it triggered a mandatory machine recount. The recount determined that Irigon fell short by 10 votes. Irigon supported increased public safety and was opposed to new taxes, and he said there was such stigmatizing of him that prevailed with voters. Charbonneaut’s campaign platform, for instance, included the phrase, “The young can do it,” said Irigon. “That’s ageism.” Charbonneau graduated in 2020 from Occidental College, where he was on the varsity football team. During a debate on Oct. 19, Charbonneau said, “Given my age, I don’t have the luxury of not planning for the future.” Charbonneau later offered what he said was an “apology” on his Facebook page. But it also seemed to reinforce a disparaging message. “I realized after further thought that me using that phrasing during the forum with our two images next to each other and given our age difference was suggestive of something more… morbid, and potentially came across as about you and not about me like I intended,” Charbonneau wrote the following day. “I would never intentionally speak about you or your health in that way.” Irigon was a revolutionary leader at the University of Washington (UW) where he transformed the student government, promoting inclusion of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI). While a member of the ROTC, he attended anti-war protests. He also led protests to save the Chinatown-International District and founded the pan-Asian periodical, “An Asian Family Affair.” Later, Irigon served in leadership positions in prominent AAPI organizations for over 20 years, including one that helped with substance abuse in the community. After winning many awards throughout his life, he has been awarded the UW’s Odegaard Award for individuals who have led the community in promoting diversity. Although Irigon lost by only 10 votes, he does not plan to run again. He noted he was asked by several prominent politicians to run. Instead, he will continue his activism, such as advocating for affirmative action plans in the Bellevue School District. Still, Irigon does not think stigmatizing candidates as veteran social activists is the way of the future. “This is not a harbinger of things to come,” he said. “For us Democrats or even mainstream Republicans, we all share the same values of diversity, equity, and inclusion, but we have to work harder to educate people.” Perhaps one way to do so would simply be encouraging them to vote—for local races. THE RECOUNT Given the closeness of the race, the law mandated a recount, which revealed that 154 ballots had been left empty in the sections for this particular race.
“This means that all those people didn’t vote for either Paul or myself,” said Irigon. But Irigon, who joined the U.S. Army directly after high school, never gave up hope. At 10 a.m. on Nov. 30, he watched staff of King County Elections check every “undervoted” ballot on a pair of computer screens. Undervoted ballots come in many different forms. Sometimes, a square might contain a stray mark, like a diagonal line. When that happens, the controller at the computer pulls back from his careful vigil, his colleague stops also, and he magnifies the entire ballot, so that the rectangle is no longer isolated. In one case a reporter witnessed, a voter had simply drawn giant Xs over parts of the ballot, indicating he wasn’t even taking the trouble to vote for those races. Zooming in again, the ends of those Xs became fragments of lines in the individual rectangles—a classic undervote. In the Newcastle recount, Irigon watched as the computer software system zeroed in on the boxes in each ballot where the voter failed to fill in a choice. The empty boxes scrolled in columns down the screen as the staff members ran their eyes over one. The recount took only 15 minutes. A recount is triggered by the difference in the number of votes. A machine recount occurs when there is a difference of less than 2,000 votes and less than ½ of 1% of the total number of votes for both candidates. For a hand recount, there must be a difference of less than 150 votes and less than ¼ of 1% of the total number of votes for both candidates. In the race for the Newcastle City Council Position, seat No. 6, Irigon had 1,662 votes, Charbonneau, 1,672. That made a 0.30% difference in total votes cast—rendering it a machine recount. “As you observed, for machine recounts, our team is going to confirm undervotes but not actually count anything by hand,” said Kendall LeVan Hodson, Chief of Staff at King County Elections, in an email. THE SYSTEM The ballot counting system is intended to capture the vote of anyone willing to cast a ballot—so long as the intention is clear. Recently, for instance, a voter mistakenly filled out a page from the voters’ pamphlet and mailed it in. King County Elections carefully examined it according to law and determined it was valid. Recounts are likewise accessible to almost anyone. Any candidate, political party, or even a group of five voters can ask for a recount—no matter the difference in votes. But when asking for a recount, the charge to the requester is 25 cents per voter. Securing each vote is also paramount. Fifty security cameras hang overhead along with numerous webcams. “We consulted banks and casinos,” said Halei Watkins,
communications officer for King County Elections, who was the guide. Each ballot runs through one of a pair of sorting machines, which are as long as school buses. Named respectively by staff members “Stars” and “Stripes,” each machine can handle 40,000 ballots an hour. They scan for any irregularity in the signatures on the outside of the envelope in which a voter mails in a ballot. If any occurs, the envelope is set aside for a staff member to examine by comparing it with a signature in an electronic database matched with his voter registration or application for a driver’s license. The envelopes that are found to be sound are milled open by the machines so that the previous ballots can be extracted. The next phase is bundling all ballots onto carts and trudging them into a secure cage the size of a small building. The cage consists of a floor-to-ceiling chain link fence, thick with hanging security cameras, and is accessed only by doors that require the simultaneous use of a security card and the pressing of one’s fingerprint into a flange. Eventually, the naked ballots are fed into another scanner in another room. Here, their images are recorded so that an electronic facsimile can be transferred to a set of ultrasecure servers in a sealed room. The secure servers sit behind thick glass windows and a doubly-sealed door. When not in use, the door has a tiny red zip tie with a yellow number on it that loops between the door and its frame. If the seal is broken, staff will immediately know someone has entered the room without authorization. To further prevent unauthorized entry, the number on the zip tie is recorded by the last person to use the room in a log that resides on a table besides the door. When a hand recount is required, workers enter the cage where old ballots are stored—law requires they be securely kept for 60 days in local elections—and pull them out. “And teams of two actually count all of those ballots by hand and confirm they match what the scanning equipment tabulated,” said Kendall Hodson, Chief of Staff, King County Elections. The facility, which was formerly a Boeing plant, has attracted countless visitors. Outside the complex is a large world map beside a map of the United States. Both maps are dotted heavily with clusters of cut-out circles of paper indicating the geographical origins of visitors to the facility. Worldwide, it appears the only country from which King County Elections has not received a visitor is Russia. Recounts, like general elections, must be certified by a canvassing board, which includes Director of Elections Julie Wise, a representative from the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, Kevin Wright, and from the King County Council, Janine Weihe. In the case of the Newcastle race, the mandatory recount was certified on Dec. 6. “But there’s still a lot to be optimistic about,” said Irigon. “Younger people are moving in, and they have a strong sense of social justice,” he said. Mahlon can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.
SPORTS from 4 Nov. 23 after participating in an amateur boxing “fight night” in Las Vegas. The 20-year-old never had any proper training in the sport, but was participating in the boxing charity event organized by a local fraternity. Valencia collapsed following his match and was taken to a local hospital. He died of internal bleeding several days after being hospitalized. His mother recalls how she did not want her son to participate, but he wanted to do it for charity. The family’s attorney noted that there were “multiple safety measure failures” that UNLV and the fraternity overlooked—one of which was the lack of medical professionals at the venue. There was also mention that the referee in the ring with the participants had no experience. In comparison, the state of Washington requires that there be medical professionals as well as an ambulance on site of a combat sports event. The charity boxing event was an annual, school-sanctioned event, according to the family’s attorney. Jason can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.
KING COUNTY, WASHINGTON NOTICE TO BIDDERS Sealed bids will be received for KC000421, GEOMEMBRANE INSTALLATION AND REPAIR WO 2022; by the King County Procurement and Payables Section, via the E-Procurement system, until 1:30:59pm on 01/06/2022. Late bids will not be accepted. The public bid opening will only be conducted on-line following the Bid Close Date and Time; see Section 00 10 00 for details. Synopsis: Construction work will be on an on-call, work order basis. Work may include but is not limited to repair or replacement and installation of landfill cover systems that may require cutting, grinding, heat sealing and vacuum and pressure testing of landfill liner materials, pipe penetration boot welding and repair with vacuum. Work will occur primarily at Cedar Hills Regional Landfill and other King County Solid Waste Facilities. Estimated contract price: $1,000,000 Pre-Bid: Please see Section 00 10 00 for details. Prospective bidders can view more details at: https://kingcounty.gov/procurement/ solicitations Complete Invitation to Bid Documents, including all project details, specifications, and contact information are available on our web page at: https://kingcounty.gov/procurement/ supplierportal
DECEMBER 11 – DECEMBER 17, 2021
YOUR VOICE
■ ASTROLOGY
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Predictions and advice for the week of December 11–December 17, 2021 By Sun Lee Chang Rat—Don’t be too quick to act on a rumor. Further digging could reveal that it is actually far from the truth.
Dragon—If the substitute is not an acceptable replacement of the original, keep looking elsewhere.
Monkey—Are you tired of watching from the sidelines? The moment has come for you to get in the game.
Ox—Have you recently taken on a leadership role? If so, you will find that you are well suited for it.
Snake—Preoccupied with something from your past? Bring yourself back to the present and be mindful of what is happening now.
Rooster—Do you currently have too many projects? Finish the ones you have before taking on any new ones.
Tiger—As you attempt to untangle a messy situation, try to identify what key issues need to be addressed.
Horse—As the dynamics start to shift in your relationship, do your best to stay ahead of the anticipated changes.
Dog—Much to your relief, an area of concern will likely be reduced to nothing more than a distant memory.
Rabbit—In assessing whether an opportunity is right for you, consider the timing and whether it matches your goals.
Goat—There is no reason to be shy about leveraging what you bring to the table to get the best deal.
Pig—While the last chapter was certainly interesting, the next one should be quite an adventure.
WHAT’S YOUR ANIMAL SIGN? RAT 1912, 1924, 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008, 2020 OX 1913, 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, 2009, 2021 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, 2015 MONKEY 1920, 1932, 1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004, 2016 ROOSTER 1921, 1933, 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005, 2017 DOG 1922, 1934, 1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994, 2006, 2018 PIG 1923, 1935, 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007, 2019
*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.
powerful politician in state government behind the governor and lieutenant governor. Washington state might be the only state with Asians accounting for 10% of the population, and yet Asian Americans have held and currently hold the top three jobs in the state. Gary Locke as the first Asian American governor 1997-2005, Cyrus Habib as the first Asian American lieutenant governor 2017-2021, and now Hobbs as Secretary of State. Of Japanese descent, Hobbs, a moderate Democrat, was just as surprised as other Asian community members that he got the job. It was his colleagues who encouraged him to apply. You think that it would be a process of filling out application forms, a formal interview with the governor, and an extended form of vetting. But there were no forms to fill out, no formal interviews, nor letters of recommendation. Instead, it
Courtesy of Washington State Archives
HOBBS from 1
Steve Hobbs (left) and Gov. Jay Inslee
was a simple phone call Hobbs made to the governor the same day as Wyman’s announcement of her new job on Twitter. The call was short. How short? “Ten minutes?” I asked. Hobbs paused to recall. “Five minutes?” I asked again. “No, a minute or two, it’s not that long,” Hobbs said. Perhaps, the governor had not even heard the news that Wyman was
leaving, he said, “He (Inslee) just said, ‘Thanks for your interest.’” Hobbs was not the only one surprised that Inslee gave him the job, so was his wife and Japanese immigrant mother. Hobbs thought the appointment was “incredible” because he and Inslee don’t agree all the time. “We don’t agree on a lot of things, like the tax policy, but we agree more than disagree.” On Nov. 10, Inslee was attending the World Climate Change Conference in Scotland. At 11 o’clock in the morning, Hobbs got a call from Inslee’s chief of staff, “You got the job.” At 12:04 p.m., the Northwest Asian Weekly received a video announcement from Inslee’s press office. Inslee announced Hobb’s appointment on that video. The Asian Weekly had asked Inslee’s office how many people applied for the job. Inslee’s office told us they spoke to half a dozen candidates.
Hobbs said he learned from news reports that four or five people were interested in the job. And it didn’t include anyone from the legislature. Hobbs also doesn’t know if any Republicans approached Inslee for the job. Hobbs was asked if he had people lobby on his behalf? “No,” he said, as he was “concentrating on the Senate transportation budget. I am the chair negotiating the next year’s budget.” In addition to representing the 44th Legislative District in the state Senate since 2007, Hobbs is also a Lieutenant Colonel in the Washington State National Guard and has been with the agency for 32 years. The Secretary job couldn’t be more timely as Hobbs just graduated from a nine-week course offered by the Department of Defense information school, which taught him how to combat false information. During last year’s election, former President Trump claimed voter fraud. Hobbs said the course taught him how to deal with false information and outreach. Cyber security related to national security has always been Hobbs’ interest. Since Hobbs is fulfilling the last year of Wyman’s term, Hobbs has to run for re-election next year in the middle of the busiest time of the Secretary of State office— congressional districts’ elections. “It’s not the worst,” he said. He had seen the worst in the national guard. Hobbs has already started his reelection campaign. And he proudly told the Asian Weekly, “I already have Gary Locke’s endorsement.” Hobbs said his mom would probably be campaigning for him, too. “She was the first one to show me a copy of the Asian Weekly with my story on it.” Assunta can be reached at assunta@nwasianweekly.com.
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CLASSIFIEDS EMPLOYMENT NEED WOK CHEF AND DIM SUM CHEF -Decent English required. -Great work ethic. -Team work. -Good Pay. -Good benefits. Call 206-227-8000 AP COORDINATOR WANTED: please inquire at urbanrengroup. com/careers/ for further details. Great benefits! Dental, vision, & health, 401k Match, 16 PTO days, & 11 paid holidays!
OPERATIONS SUPERVISOR 2 Oversee assigned area(s) of transit ops ensuring efficient, safe, courteous and reliable service. Req: HS/GED, 3 yrs transit ops exp. incl. 1 yr lead/supv. exp., 2 yrs driving a vehicle with Class B CDL w/Airbrake removed & Passenger Endorsement or 2 yrs Behind-the-Wheel CDL Instruction. Ability to obtain a PSNS security pass, valid WA CDL w/Airbrake removed & Passenger Endorsements or greater, and an excellent driving record. Sal: $5,964.42 - $8,025.33. Job details, appl. incl. benefits info: http://kitsaptransit.appone.com/. Deadline: 4:00 PM, 12/31/21. KITSAP TRANSIT IS AN EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER
DONE RITE
CARPET CLEANING
206-487-8236
KING COUNTY, WASHINGTON NOTICE TO BIDDERS Sealed bids will be received for KC000390, CIVIL AND STRUCTURAL CONSTRUCTION WORK ORDER; by the King County Procurement and Payables Section, via the E-Procurement system, until 1:30:59 PM on Jan. 6, 2022. Late bids will not be accepted. The public bid opening will only be conducted on-line following the Bid Close Date and Time; see Section 00 10 00 for details. There is a 10% minimum Apprentice Utilization Requirement on this contract. There is a Voluntary Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) Goal: 6% of the Contract Price. There is a Voluntary Women Business Enterprise (WBE) Goal: 3% of the Contract Price. The scope of work for this Work Order Contract consists of
BELLDEN from 3 at a hospital. Hospitals in Asia and Europe don’t always have cafes like they do in the United States, so she found herself lonely, sleep-deprived, and hungry, but there was a generous janitor at the hospital who took care of her and bought her coffee. SERVING CUPS OF KINDNESS When they moved back home to Bellevue, she was motivated to open a cafe and donate as much as she could to charity. The little boy featured in the cafe’s logo is Sumadiwirya’s son because he is the reason she has been inspired to be kind to others. She chose Bellevue for her cafe location because it was the place where she was welcomed into right away. “I feel like Bellevue, even though it looks affluent and clean, there are still so many needs that people don’t see or realize,” she said. The cafe works with a variety of charities and community partners, including the Overlake Hospital Foundation, Visit Bellevue, Bellevue Downtown Association, and Jubilee Reach. Sumadiwirya said that the cafe features custom drinks dedicated to different charities and their mission. For example, Home for the Holidays is a drink that is made up of condensed
milk, clove, and cinnamon. “It literally tastes like Christmas. The idea is when people are in the hospital, we want them to feel like they’re being taken care of,” she said. Another example is the Vision House drink called Springtime Latte that is made with lemon, lavender, and honey, which exemplifies giving people a second chance to renew for a better future. Twenty-five percent of the sales will go to their respective charities. And on top of that, 10% of proceeds will also go to a variety of charities. In addition to drinks, the cafe also serves food like acai bowls, avocado toast, and other tasty seasonal refreshments. PERSEVERING THROUGH CHALLENGING TIMES At the peak of the pandemic in March 2020, the cafe lost 90% of its sales and Sumadiwirya thought she was going to have to close her business for good. She told her team that there was a chance they may have to close, but that they’d close with a purpose by helping as many people as they could. The cafe held fundraising events like diaper and food drives, and even hosted vendors to sell in the cafe, to help support the community. She wanted to turn the challenges into a positive moment to help other people. But luckily, they persevered and continued to stay open to serve the community.
furnishing all tools, equipment, materials, supplies and manufactured articles; furnishing all labor, transportation, and services for the fulfillment of civil and structural repair work issued via work order and in strict accordance with the Contract documents. Civil and Structural work includes demolitions, metal fabrication, concrete, flexible pavement such as HMA, monitoring well activities, site work, structure erection and other tenant improvement work. Not-To-Exceed Contract Price: $1,000,000 Pre-Bid: Please see Section 00 10 00 for details. Prospective bidders can view more details at: https://kingcounty.gov/ procurement/solicitations Complete Invitation to Bid Documents, including all project details, specifications, and contact information are available on our web page at: https://kingcounty.gov/procurement/supplierportal
GROWTH OPPORTUNITY Laura Clise from The Intentionalist reached out to Sumadiwirya and told her about the Comcast RISE grant for small business owners. At first, Sumadiwirya was hesitant to apply because she didn’t want to take the opportunity away from others. However, she recently received some hate mail that changed her mind. She described it as a very cruel email targeting her because she was an Asian woman. The police even got involved. She reflected on the incident and decided that she needed to turn this into a positive situation. Many immigrant business owners have faced similar challenges during the pandemic, and she knew that taking it in silence wouldn’t be OK. Sumadiwirya decided to apply for the grant, and thought that if she got it, she would use the funds to help create a training and educational program to support other minority business owners. “Through this pandemic, we’ve seen a lot already. I’ve seen extreme kindness from customers and then from that email, extreme hate and disrespect. I just want to provide support for the community.” Sumadiwirya described Bellden Cafe as a very safe environment and her team works hard to build positive team morale and ethics. She currently
has about 15 people on her staff. She also pays them to volunteer up to eight hours a month. With the $10,000 grant, Sumadiwirya hopes to create more training programs for her team and amplify the power of giving. Currently, she plans to provide internships for sex trafficking survivors to help them develop skills to be more confident going into the workforce. “With the grant, I’m hoping to reinvest in the community to do better because there are so many marginalized groups out there who could benefit from this,” Sumadiwirya said. Over the next few years, she also hopes to grow her team and business so they can continue donating to charities and figure out how to solve big problems, such as homelessness, in the local community. Nina can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.
SOLUTION from SUDOKU on page 6.
YOUR VOICE PANAMA HOTEL from 1 Japanese American community, and later to those interested in its heritage, was defined to a large extent by the unjust laws that oppressed the community, making the hotel a place of refuge and a cultural mecca. It served as one of the few bathhouses—culturally-significant sites—when Japanese immigrants were forced out of Seattle by exclusionary laws in the 1920s. It became a repository for trunks, suitcases, and furniture when 120,000 people of Japanese ancestry were incarcerated starting in 1942. After World War II, it became the last vestige of a Japantown that had been largely destroyed. And today, it is slated to become a Japanese American museum to preserve a lost moment in time. By 1910, when the Panama Hotel was built, the population of Japanese immigrants and their children exceeded that of Chinese immigrants and their descendants. This was because anti-immigration laws, such as the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, had been primarily aimed at Chinese. During this period, the hotel’s six storefront spaces housed businesses that offered repositories of Japanese culture, including a bookstore, a grocery, and later a news outlet. But by the early 1920s, oppressive laws against land ownership by people of Japanese ancestry began to be ratcheted up. Initially, Japanese immigrant farmers had found creative ways around laws restricting them from owning land, such as putting the land in the name of a child born here or a white proxy. But new laws made this impossible. This accounted for a draining of the population out of Seattle to far flung regions around the state for farming or other industries. But the bathhouse in the basement of the hotel provided a necessary communal hub to which members of the community would return regularly. During this period, there were only 10 Japanese bathhouses in North America. According to schematics of the basement, the bathhouse was divided into a separate section for men and for women and children. During its early years, the hotel also provided lodging to newly-arrived immigrants who needed single rooms in a familiar environment. The hotel has 102 hotel rooms. It also had a laundry in its basement. On Feb. 19, 1942, President Franklin Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066 creating “exclusion zones” that effectively forced anyone of Japanese ancestry on the West Coast into concentration camps. The owners of the hotel, Sanjiro and Toyo Hori, before they were incarcerated, opened up the basement of the hotel as a repository for people’s belongings that they could not take with them. Since the order spelled out what families and individuals could carry, people had to make last-minute decisions about what was worthwhile to preserve. “Not surprisingly, shock, scared, worried, and confused were most characteristic of the emotions” experienced by people at this time, according to a team of psychologists who conducted interviews with 30 survivors, as recorded in “Recollections of historical injustice: A qualitative investigation of emotions in Japanese American incarceration memories,” a chapter in the book, “Qualitative Strategies for Ethnocultural Research.” Later, during their time imprisoned in places such as Minidoka, Idaho, the emotions would turn to fatalism. But at the time, the items they selected to store in the basement included things that seemed to hint at a desire to prove their identity as Americans. Besides the ordinary items of teapots, bowls, and rice cookers, there was a large selection of things that reflected absorp-
DECEMBER 11 – DECEMBER 17, 2021 tion in American society, even if the society had worked hard to prevent that from happening. There was a collection of American flags, a voters pamphlet, a list of requirements for graduation at a local high school, a Coca-Cola advertisement, and a brocaded image of Mount Rainier, among many others. By the time the war was over, however, Japantown had been abandoned for years and was never able to recover. Few, if any, survivors of the camps came to reclaim their belongings despite the hotel owners’ repeated efforts to find them (decades later, the current owner, Johnson, would get a federal grant to catalog the 8,500 items left behind). In 1954, the owner died and his son took over management. But by then, it was too late. The decline of Japantown had worsened. The bathhouse stopped operating in the 1960s. As the years passed and demographics changed, the population of Japanese Americans was scattered even further, some to the Eastside, some even further. In 1985, Jan Johnson, a local art connoisseur, bought the hotel. Speaking at the meeting of the Landmark Preservation Board, she said that the upper stories of the hotel still operate as a hotel. But it is the internal aesthetics that mean the most to her.
“Each day, the light and shadows coming in through the upper story windows illuminates a different piece of art,” she said. Board members universally praised her for keeping the hotel safe during a time of massive gentrification. Board member Russell Conway noted the hotel had been designated a national landmark in 2006. “That was a proud moment for the city of Seattle and for Jan to have preserved it when those greedy developers would have put stucco on it and built condominiums,” he said. Another board member, Harriett Wasserman, illustrating the evolution of the hotel into popular consciousness, said her book group read a New York Times best-selling novel, “Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet,” based on the hotel, and had them gone to the hotel’s tea house to discuss the novel. Xiaolin Duan, a historian of the history of material culture at North Carolina State University, called this the “transformation of individual memory into collective memory.” Johnson plans to further such a transformation by making the hotel into a Japanese American museum. Some of the items stored in the basement have been loaned to the Ellis Island Museum and the Japanese American Museum in Los Angeles.
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But such a venture is feasible. In fact, a wildly popular and emotionally evocative exhibit that toured several continents might provide a model, said Wu Hung, a professor of Art History at the University of Chicago. Starting in 2005, a Chinese artist constructed a giant art exhibit out of all the ordinary items his mother had amassed during her long and difficult life. In the exhibit, called “Waste Not,” which was curated by Wu, the mother sat among all her accumulated possessions and told visitors stories about their significance. “People need vehicles to preserve and activate memory. We hear echoes of history in decayed buildings, worn photographs, torn letters, distressed objects, resounding melodies, and recurring dreams,” wrote Wu as part of the exhibition. Spectators viewing the ordinary objects were moved to tears. Karen Yoshitomi, the head of the Japanese Culture Community Center of Washington, said the Panama Hotel is “one of the last vestiges of what was Niohnmachi,” or Japantown. “There is an opportunity to tell a broader story not only about the Panama Hotel but about the broader Japanese community,” she said. The board will tour the hotel before making a final vote on the nomination on Jan. 19, 2022.
Wild Horse Wind and Solar Facility in Ellensburg
We aspire to lower our carbon emissions to net zero by 2045 and help others do the same. TOGETHER, we can go beyond net zero carbon. Learn more at pse.com/TOGETHER
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39 YEARS
DECEMBER 11 – DECEMBER 17, 2021
bəqəlšuł We are Muckleshoot Descendants of the Duwamish people
Muckleshoot Jingle Dress dancer Madrienne White at the 2021 Muckleshoot Powwow. Photo by Joshua Trujillo.
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northwest
We Are Muckleshoot Our name and our tribe represents our ancestors, the Duwamish and Upper Puyallup peoples who moved from Puget Sound – including what is now the Seattle waterfront – to our reservation on the Muckleshoot prairie. For more than 164 years, we have fought to preserve and uphold our treaty rights, our sovereignty, and our heritage. Today, the spirits of our ancestors live on in our traditions, our arts, and our community. They define where we came from, who we are, and where we are going. Our survival and continued growth hinges on teaching our children history, culture, and leadership skills so they may carry our mantle for generations to come. Our identity, our legacy, and our treaty rights are unique to our name and Tribe, and ours alone.
bəqəlšuł LEARN ABOUT THE FIRST PEOPLE OF SEATTLE
WeAreMuckleshoot.org
