PRSRT STD U.S. Postage Paid Permit No. 746 Seattle, WA
VOL 33 NO 9
FEBRUARY 22 – FEBRUARY 28, 2014
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SPORTS Sochi updates » P. 7
32 YEARS YOUR VOICE
ID printing business closes after 26 years Owner said he has achieved American Dream By Assunta Ng Northwest Asian Weekly
Photo by George Liu/NWAW
“My Phuoc” means “joy and fortune coming to America” in Vietnamese, according to Linh Kieu Ngo, and that’s what he named the print shop he opened 26 years ago in Chinatown. Ngo’s joy has now turned to sadness after shutting down his business on Jan. 30. “I threw away all of my inventory,” he said. “I sold my printing press on eBay for only $135.” For the past five years, Ngo has been a victim of the digital revolution. Fewer and fewer customers patronized his business. Even when Ngo didn’t take a paycheck, he couldn’t afford the rent. “I thought if I worked for free, I could turn the business around,” he said. “I guess I didn’t want to face reality.” Home computers and printers are inexpensive, and consumers can easily do their printing at home. From simple to complicated color printing, people have learned to print their own business cards, calendars, and personalized stationery.
Lieu-Anh Ngo, left, and her husband Linh Kieu Ngo in front of their now-closed store.
And the machines are clean, not dirty like the old traditional printing machines with ink spilling all over. The Asian Weekly was once Ngo’s customer. A decade ago, the paper bought its own color printers and began printing materials in-house. As a final resort, Ngo attempted to sell his business, but no one responded to his advertisements. “I can’t catch up with technology,” Ngo said. “I was hoping my daughter could teach me computers, but….” The proud man remembered how he raised a family of two daughters, now both college graduates living out-of-state. One is attending medical school at Duke Univeristy. The other is getting her master’s degree and working in Ireland. He also sponsored his four siblings to immigrate to America. “That’s 13 people altogether,” he smiled, referring to his ability to support them when they arrived, in addition to raising two children. “They all have jobs now.” “I am proud of having my business,” Ngo said, recalling his good business days when he and his wife worked as many as 14 hours {see MY PHUOC cont’d on page 12}
Seattle artist straddles cultural Hirabayashi family will donate edges, comes up ‘cute’ Medal of Freedom to UW By Marino Saito Northwest Asian Weekly
Gordon Hirabayashi
Photo by Marino Saito/NWAW
Ken Taya doesn’t fart rainbows any more. The popular, bilingual web comic “I Fart Rainbows” can still be found on the web (ifartrainbows.com). It ran for three years until the artist, also known as Enfu, got too busy with other projects. Enfu was born in 1977 in Chicago. He has lived in Delaware, Seattle, and Sendai, Japan. Most of his life has been spent in the Seattle area, and it’s still the place he calls home. He has worked as a game developer for more than a decade. “Enfu” the artist was invented in 2005 as a creative outlet for Taya. “Enfu” is the Onyomi (Chinese reading) of the Japanese Kanji (sarukaze), which literally translates to “Monkey Wind.” He chose “monkey” because “flying monkey” was a nickname given to him due to the way he used to fly around the basketball court when he played point guard in high school. Also, he said he always thought monkeys were cute animals. His day job in the video game industry has seen him work on such games as Halo 3 and Scribblenauts Unmasked. His
Ken Taya, also known as Enfu
commissioned illustrations can be seen in stores and restaurants across the Pacific {see ENFU cont’d on page 12}
Nearly 70 years after defying an order by the United States government to be interned, Gordon Hirabayashi was given the highest civilian honor — the Presidential Medal of Freedom. But Mr. Hirabayashi was not there to receive his medal. He had died four months earlier. On Saturday, Feb. 22, Susan Carnahan, Gordon Hirabayashi’s widow, will present Hirabayashi’s Presidential Medal of Freedom to his alma mater, the University of Washington. The medal is part of the collection of Hirabayashi’s journals, recordings, legal papers, and photographs that the family has donated to UW Libraries special
collections, where they are available to students, researchers, and the public. Plans to digitize portions of the collection are underway. Ana Mari Cauce, Ph.D., provost and executive vice president of Office of the Provost and professor in the Psychology Department, will accept the Presidential Medal on behalf of the UW. In the near future, it will be on permanent display on the UW campus. The presentation is one part of UW’s annual Day of Remembrance of the signing of Executive Order 9066 and on the occasion of the UW Libraries opening the Hirabayashi Collection, “Courage in Action: A Symposium on the Life and Legacy of Gordon K. Hirabayashi.” The event, with emcee Lori Matsukawa of King 5 TV, will include speakers and exhibitions from 1 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. in UW’s Kane Hall. Speakers will include Judge Mary Schroeder, Senior Circuit Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Judge Schroeder wrote the 1987 opinion vacating Hirabayashi’s curfew {see HIRABAYASHI cont’d on page 14}
The Inside Story NAMES People in the news » P. 2
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MUSIC Haochen Zhang at the symphony » P. 8
BLOG Martha Choe — a leader’s leader & community mentor » P. 10
VILLAGE REPORT A ride through Thailand » P. 11
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