VOL 34 NO 20 | MAY 9 – MAY 15, 2015

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VOL 34 NO 20

MAY 9 – MAY 15, 2015

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BLOG What we should learn from Sawant » P. 10

33 YEARS YOUR VOICE

Food equals love Nan-Hui Jo’s trials (and also memories of mom)

What dish by your mom was your favorite?

and tribulations

Conviction lowered, but still a possibility of deportation

In celebration of our mothers we asked staff and colleagues what was their favorite dish prepared by their moms. Here are some appetizing responses: “It’s a simple dish, but my mom always made me omelettes growing up. She would mix the

Photo from Sacramento Bee

Omelette

eggs in a bowl with soy sauce, fish sauce, and green onions, and then cook the mixture until it became browned and crispy on the edges.

We would eat the omelette with white rice and a basic Vietnamese {see MOM cont’d on page 15}

“It’s Bao Time” First Taiwanese food truck in Seattle hits the streets

Nan-Hui Jo

By Jenn Fang Northwest Asian Weekly On April 28, the judge in Nan-Hui Jo’s child abduction case rejected the motion to dismiss the guilty verdict against her, and sentenced Jo to 175 days of jail (counted as time served) and three years probation.

A jury found Jo guilty of child abduction in March — despite errors in jury instructions highlighted by Jo’s defense in their motion — after Jo fled an abusive relationship she believed endangered both herself and her child and (because she lacked documentation to remain in the United States) and returned to Korea.

A survivor of years of domestic violence at the hands of her former partner which included both physical and emotional abuse, Nan-Hui Jo escaped with her daughter Hwi to South Korea after her American work visa expired. After six years, Jo applied for a travel visa to allow her American-born child travel to the United States to tour schools while Jo’s own permanent resident application was pending.

However, Jo’s former partner, Jesse Charlton, had filed child abduction charges against Jo, and when Jo arrived in America, she was arrested. After her first {see JO cont’d on page 6}

Photo by Nina Huang/NWAW

Susumu Ito’s 95-year journey Congressional Gold Medal war hero, cell biologist, Harvard teacher, reflects on wonderful life

By Jason Cruz Northwest Asian Weekly A little bit of Taiwanese night market on Boren in Seattle

By Nina Huang Northwest Asian Weekly Earlier this year, Sean Jen quit his job at a consulting firm to start his own Taiwanese food truck.

One of the first of its kind in Seattle, Jen wanted to honor his heritage as well as the food he enjoyed most.

Growing up, food was very {see JEN cont’d on page 15}

Ito with Congressional Gold Medal

Susumu Ito constantly carried three things with him during his tour of duty in World War II: a bible with a medal shield, his camera, and a Senninbari. The latter item is a Japanese strip of cloth decorated with 1,000 stitches which is made by women when men go off to war.

It was part of the Shinto culture of

Imperial Japan. His mother made it for him to protect him from harm.

It worked as Ito returned without injury. Ito made sure that no one saw his Senninbari as he did not want to alarm any of his fellow soldiers. For his service in World War II, in 2010 Susumu Ito received the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian U.S. {see ITO cont’d on page 12}

The Inside Story NAMES People in the news » P. 2

■

COMMUNITY Rising stars » P. 4

A&E Slants: Offensive? » P. 7

COMMENTARY Pacquiao wins more than Mayweather » P. 11

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MAY 9 – MAY 15, 2015

■ names in the news Nakano appointed Executive Director of EDI

in peril. Ngô Văn Diệm reflected on the chaos and terror of April 30th, 1975 for those who were left behind in his poem, “Saigon Dying.” Read the poem in Vietnamese and in English, and listen to Diệm perform the poem, followed by the English translation by his daughter Ivy. 

“Rebirth of the World”

reception was May 1. Aoshima is a Japanese pop artist and member of Takashi Murakami’s Kaikai Kiki Collective. Aoshima graduated from Department of Economics, Hosei University, Tokyo.

The exhibition features large-scale dreamscapes printed on plexiglass, 35 drawings on paper, and an animation. 

Bengali new year

From left: Marci Nakano, Jason Wong, and Sandra Toro

A reception was held to honor Marci Nakano as Executive Development Institute’s (EDI) new Executive Director, April 21. Over 100 were in attendance at the Four Seas restaurant. EDI is the only Pacific Northwest non-profit organization that focuses on leadership training for multiethnic professionals. Nakano transitioned to Executive Director on March 1, 2015. EDI’s current Executive Director, Alan Sugiyama, retired on February 28 for health reasons and will remain connected to EDI as Executive Director Emeritus. In this new role, he will mentor and transition Nakano to her new role and continue to represent EDI in the community.

Nakano was recently the Director of Programs and Events for EDI and has been with the organization for nine years. She is a graduate of EDI’s 2005 Leadership Discovery program. Prior to EDI, Nakano was a Manager at Deloitte & Touche LLP, responsible for financial statement and internal control audits for manufacturing, construction and utility companies. 

Nakajima to open Capitol Hill restaurant

Chef Shota Nakajima

Chef Shota Nakajima has acquired the former Bistrot Le Zinc restaurant space at 1449 E Pine Street in Seattle and in June will open Naka, offering a contemporary menu inspired by Japanese kaiseki. Growing up in a Japanese family on the Eastside of Seattle, Shota’s point of view is influenced by his mother’s homemade cooking coupled with his focus on ingredients from the Pacific Northwest. At age 18, he moved to Osaka, Japan to learn the depth of his native culture and to attend Tsuji Culinary Arts School.

Following graduation, Shota had the opportunity to apprentice under Michelin Star Chef, Yasuhiko Sakamoto. When Shota returned to Seattle, he worked for Chef Taichi Kitamura at Sushi Kappo Tamura in 2011 and 2012. In 2014, he opened his own catering business, Kappo Kitchen, and in December, he participated and won the Seattle round of the World Washoku Challenge. 

Poem commemorates US war and Vietnam anniversary

Ngô Văn Diệm and Ivy Ngo

April 30th marked the 40th anniversary of the end of the U.S. war in Vietnam, when American forces abandoned the South Vietnamese capital of Saigon, leaving millions of people

From left: Xiaojin Wu, Curator, Kimerly Rorschach, Illsley Ball Nordstrom Director and CEO, Chiho Aoshima, artist, and Mimi Gardner Gates, Director Emerita

Chiho Aoshima, “Rebirth of the World” is featured at the Seattle Asian Art Museum from May 2—October 4. The opening

The Bangladeshi Community of Greater Seattle came together last weekend on Saturday, May 2nd in Bellevue to celebrate Bengali New Year in style. There were numerous Bangladeshi food and crafts stores, and concert performances. 

33 YEARS YOUR VOICE

■ community news

Seattle Votes New campaign hopes to inform and engage immigrant voters

Mayor Ed Murray announced plans on April 30 to create the Seattle Votes campaign, a comprehensive effort to significantly increase civic engagement among immigrants, refugees, and communities of color in Seattle. The campaign aims to increase voter registration, voter participation, and advocacy.

“Engaging immigrants in the civic life of our City is critical to the health of our democracy,” said Mayor Murray. “Voting is one of our nation’s greatest privileges and we must make every effort to reduce any obstacles that block immigrant communities from active civic and political participation. The Seattle Votes campaign represents an opportunity for Seattle to do what we do best—innovate and serve all of our residents.”

In his annual budget proposal next fall, Mayor Murray will include funds to implement many recommendations from the Immigrant Voting Rights Task Force, which was convened to identify, analyze, and address the issues that affect civic and political participation by immigrant communities. The recommendations include: —Transfer the New Citizen

Program to the Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs and expand its scope and reach.

—Develop research tools and examine current data to better understand how to best serve current and potential immigrant voters.

—Work with King County Elections to identify additional locations for ballot boxes in Seattle and explore additional opportunities for civic engagement.

—Educate, register and inform immigrant voters with general information about voting.

“By gathering reliable data, we can accurately measure the impacts of policies designed to increase new American voting and civic engagement, such as targeting outreach to new American voters in their native language,” said Cuc Vu, director of the Seattle Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs.

The task force recommends addressing the language needs of new Americans. It also encourages the City to work with King County Elections to place permanent ballot drop boxes in neighborhoods with large concentrations of immigrant voters. 

■ region

MAY 9 – MAY 15, 2015

3

Mayor Hales: Portland negotiating for spot for homeless camp; may move from Chinatown

Current “Right to Dream Too” camp

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Portland Mayor Charlie Hales says the city is trying to buy land so a downtown encampment of about 70 homeless people can move.

The Right 2 Dream Too campers are now at the gate to the city’s Chinatown district. Hales says that land is being sold.

He says the city is negotiating for a plot in an industrial-commercial area on the east side of the Willamette River.

Two years ago, a proposal to move the camp underneath a bridge in the upscale Pearl District in northwest Portland ran into opposition from residents and developers.

In a press release Wednesday, Hales said the camp has shown it can govern itself and be a good neighbor.

He says that on any given night, Portland has 1,700 people living unsheltered. 

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MAY 9 – MAY 15, 2015

■ community news

There is no limit “Rising Stars” serving our community

Zenzile Brooks

Kia Franklin

Marisa Herrera

Compiled by Peggy Chapman Northwest Asian Weekly The Northwest Asian Weekly Foundation is proud to honor women who have made significant impact and contributions to our community. Here is a selection of our “Rising Stars” who will be honored Friday, May 15, 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. at the China Harbor Restaurant in Seattle.

Zenzile Brooks, PhD, is the Marketing Manager for Glosten, a Seattle-based engineering consultancy focused on naval architecture, marine engineering, ocean engineering, and detailed design. Dr. Brooks earned her undergraduate degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Southern California, and obtained both a Master’s and PhD in Civil Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Her role as Marketing Manager combines her passions for storytelling, engineering, and building relationships. She is an active member of the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers (SNAME), and serves on the Education Committee of the Seattle Chapter of the Society of Marketing Professional Services (SMPS). A native of Oakland, California, Dr. Brooks spends her free time in Seattle cooking, exploring, and training for the upcoming RAGNAR Northwest Passage relay race.

Kia C. Franklin is an education advocate with a passion for equity and social justice.

This calling was shaped at an early age, when as a student in the Seattle Public Schools she observed troubling disparities in the quality of education and support given to students, falling along racial and socioeconomic lines. She has worked in various youthserving and education-focused non-profit organizations in the Seattle area, including TAF (formerly Technology Access Foundation) and the Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle, where she now serves as a board member. She currently works as a Partnership Director for Equal Opportunity Schools, where she provides consulting and coaching services to school districts and high school administrators who are committed to increasing access to rigorous courses for underrepresented students. Kia is a proud Seattle native and a graduate of Stanford University (B.A.) and Georgetown University (J.D.).

Marisa Herrera, PhD, is the Executive Director of Community Building & Inclusion at the Kelly Ethnic Cultural Center at the University of Washington in Seattle. She received her Doctorate in Higher Education Administration from the University of Southern California.

Prior to coming to the UW, Marisa was the Assistant Director of Undergraduate Admission and the Associate Director of El Centro Chicano at Stanford University and worked in student affairs positions at UCLA and Northern Arizona University .

Rita Meher

Katie Wilson

Diana Lindner

In 2010, she circumnavigated the globe and served as the Assistant Dean of Students on Semester at Sea, where she worked alongside Archbishop Desmond Tutu and traveled to 15 countries and five continents. In 2014, she started the Leadership Without Borders Room at the UW as part of her National Hispana Leadership Institute community project, the first center in the state to offer leadership development, advocacy and community building for undocumented students.

Rita Meher is founder of TASVEER. After 9/11 Rita made a short film on racial bias in the United States, but could not find a platform to share her experience and thoughts which she had captured in her film. She formed TASVEER (which means “the picture or reflection”), an organization dedicated to showcase the talents of independent filmmakers from South Asia while giving them a platform to discuss many thought-provoking issues (often ignored by the mainstream cinema like Bollywood films) with their audience. TASVEER held its first Seattle South Asian Independent Film Festival in 2004 exploring various social issues. The festival has become one of the largest independent film festivals in the entire Northwest. TASVEER has also been hosting “Aaina” (“the mirror”) for the last nine years, its annual signature festival focused on South Asian Women.

Katie Wilson co-founded the Transit Riders Union in 2011, and has served as its elected General Secretary since 2012.

In that time TRU has fought successfully to preserve the Metro bus service and was instrumental in winning a reduced fare for low income riders. Katie has lived in Seattle since 2004 and has worked many low wage jobs, from coffee-making to apartment managing to construction. In addition to fighting for better and more affordable public transit, she is currently co-founding a worker cooperative landscaping company called Black Cap Cooperative Landscaping.

Diana Lindner was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina and received her MD from the University of Buenos Aires. She moved to the US in order to obtain postgraduate training in Pediatrics, and had a pediatric residency and fellowship in Pediatric Endocrinology at UW/Childrens Hospital.

She worked with Eastside Pathways, preparing children for success in life from prenatal to career. She is currently part of the subgroup early learning/ school readiness. She manages the Reach Out and Read project also related to kindergarten readiness. She is active with Mujeres of the NW and the Eastside Latino Leadership Forum.

C. June Strickland is a citizen of the Cherokee nation, from the family of Hawkins. Since 1994 she has been a faculty member in the University of Washington School of Nursing. She received a MS

C. June Strickland

Lorena Gonzalez

Tracy Hilliard

in health education and Ph.D. in Higher Education, Policy, and Governance from the University of Washington. Her research focus is in prevention science, translational/ transcultural research, with American Indians in the Pacific Northwest. She is affiliated with the Intercultural Cancer Council (ICC), as a Board member, and the Spirit of Eagles National Community Projects Network, funded by the National Cancer Institute, and has focused on women’s health screening in most of her research with Pacific Northwest tribes.

M. Lorena González, a nationally recognized attorney, civil rights leader, has recently served as a senior advisor and legal counsel to Seattle Mayor Ed Murray.

Before working for the Murray Administration, represented Lorena women, older workers, low-wage workers and people of color in employment, wage theft, and gender discrimination cases. In the past year, she has helped set policy and implement historic minimum wage and worker protections alongside the Mayor, unions and progressive leaders throughout Seattle.

She is the President Emeritus of OneAmerica, the State’s largest immigrant and civil rights organization, based in Seattle and served on the Seattle Police Accountability Review Panel in 2007. Committed to transparency, Lorena served on the Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission.

Tracy M. Hilliard, Ph D, MPH, is the Director of Data Integrity for the City of Seattle’s Human Services Department. She leads strategy and innovation around the use of data to improve social services. She is also a Clinical Assistant Professor in the University of Washington (UW), School of Nursing, Department of Psychosocial & Community Health. Dr. Hilliard earned a PhD in health services, a MPH in maternal and child health, and a BA with Distinction in sociology, all from UW. She is Chair of the Health Informatics and Information Technology Section of the American Public Health Association.

Andrea Akita is the Executive Director of InterIm Community Development Association (InterIm CDA), a nonprofit community development corporation in Seattle that works to promote resiliency among Asian American, Pacific Islander, immigrant and refugee communities. For 45 years, InterIm CDA has developed affordable and mixed-use development housing projects, led neighborhood planning initiatives, and promoted community building activities. Prior to joining InterIm CDA, Andrea was a manager in the Seattle Human Services Department, where she planned and developed housing stability and supportive services programs to reduce and end homelessness. She has more than 20 years of experience working with nonprofit organizations and public agencies. She has

Andrea Akita

Thanh Tan

Lani Cao

served as the Housing Services Manager for the Northwest AIDS Foundation and as a program officer for the Washington Community Development Loan Fund.

Thanh Tan is a multimedia editorial writer. Prior to joining the editorial board of The Seattle Times, she was a political and general assignment reporter with local TV stations in Boise and Portland, an Emmywinning reporter, producer, and host with Idaho Public Television, and a multimedia reporter / producer with The Texas Tribune in Austin. She has also contributed to “This American Life” and The New York Times. Born and raised in Olympia, Thanh graduated with honors from the University of Southern California. She loves food, music, politics, films, yoga, the outdoors and journalism. She lives in South Seattle.

Lani Cao graduated from the China University of Politics and Law. Following graduation, she served as in-house counsel for a major fuel company in Beijing, China for seven years. During her time in Beijing, she co-authored published books on key topics in Chinese corporate law.

Seventeen years after obtaining her first law degree, Cao attended law school in the United States and obtained her Juris Doctorate degree. Since then, Lani Cao has been practicing law in Seattle, Washington. She focuses on immigration law, and her broad-reaching background and experience in family law, business law, and estate planning helps her better serve her immigration clients in a more thorough and thoughtful way.

Cao is an active member of the Chinese community in the greater Seattle area of Washington State. She served on a volunteer basis as the Principal of the Northwest Chinese School from 2007 to 2009.

Emcee

Sonya Green is a media communications professional with more than 20 years broadcast experience. She is the first African American female to hold the News Director position at KBCS. Green is also among the first African American females to host an afternoon drive time show, Music + Ideas on 91.3 KBCS in a market dominated with male hosts. She is a board member of the National Federation of Community Broadcasters and also sits on the media advisory board for the South Seattle Emerald, Southern Seattle’s only non-profit, reader supported, and community operated media and news outlet. She was named the 2011 Woman of the Year by the Bellevue chapter of the Business and Professional Women.  Email rsvp@nwasianweekly.com to attend the luncheon honoring the Rising Stars.

Ticket prices are $45. Student prices are $25 with I.D. Peggy Chapman can be reached at editor@nwasianweekly.com.

33 YEARS YOUR VOICE

MAY 9 – MAY 15, 2015

■ WORLD NEWS

5

Thai police dig up 26 bodies at suspected trafficking camp

By Sumeth Parnpetch Associated Press

PADANG BESAR, Thailand (AP) — Thai police trekked into the mountains and dug up 26 bodies from dozens of shallow graves at an abandoned jungle camp that’s been linked to human trafficking networks, which activists say are “out of control” in the Southeast Asian country.

A lone survivor, now hospitalized with severe malnutrition, told authorities smugglers escaped days earlier with around 100 Rohingya Muslims, a long-persecuted religious minority in neighboring Myanmar.

Police Gen. Jarumporn Suramanee, who oversaw the excavations in southern Thailand, said Saturday it would take

time to determine the victims’ identities and cause of death.

“We will have to wait for the DNA test results and analysis from other evidence,” he told The Associated Press. He said that 32 graves were found scattered in Padang Besar, a subdistrict in Songkhla province, but some turned out to be empty. He did not expect the death toll to rise above 26.

The discovery of a hidden mountain camp in southern Thailand, long considered a regional trafficking hub for migrants seeking a better life in third countries, was a sharp reminder that little has changed despite repeated assurances by authorities that they are addressing the root causes.

A government spokesman, Maj. Gen. Sansern Kaewkamnerd, issued a stern reaction Saturday, saying his country was determined “to eliminate every type of human

Festivals, large gatherings canceled in Beijing

By Jack Chang Associated Press

BEIJING (AP) — Springtime in Beijing usually brings out bustling crowds for rock concerts, food festivals and other outdoor revelry amid the smog and catkins. But this year, police in the Chinese capital have been canceling everything from an Earth Day event to a heavy metal concert, stoking worries that the authorities are cracking down on any large gathering deemed politically risky.

The cancellations have hit the city’s music scene, with annual summer mainstays such as the Strawberry Music Festival going dark. Police also recently shut down the Gaymazing Poker Race, a mix of pub crawl and poker tournament that was set to raise funds last week for the Beijing LGBT Center, a gay and lesbian service and cultural group. The race’s co-sponsor, the Great Leap Brewing pub, responded by preemptively canceling its own massive June craft beer festival for fear of a last-minute police shutdown.

Lucia Wang, of Great Leap, said city authorities cited concerns about excessive crowds, while John Shen, a program

manager at the LGBT center, said he was given no explanation at all. Beijing police did not respond to a faxed request for an interview Thursday.

“This year it seems impossible to do large events like this,” Wang said. “We have a high chance of being canceled in the last minute.”

As for the reasons behind the cancellations, Wang said, “That’s the question for all big event organizers now.”

The cancellations in Beijing hit as the government tightens its grip nationwide on independent civic groups and activity, with non-governmental organizations and university professors saying they’ve been working under tighter scrutiny.

Chinese officials also have been promising tighter crowd controls after a New Year’s Eve stampede killed 36 people along Shanghai’s famed Bund riverfront due to inadequate policing.

Archie Hamilton, who promotes music festivals and other events in China, said he believes the clampdown in Beijing reflects the overall political atmosphere, with Communist Party authorities trying to rein {see CHINA cont’d on page 12}

trafficking and block Thailand from being a transit point.”

Those behind the camp will be “severely punished,” he added, regardless of whether they were common criminals or corrupt officials.

Human Rights Watch, meanwhile, called for an independent investigation with U.N. involvement to determine what happened at the site.

“Trafficking of persons in Thailand has long been out of control,” said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “The finding of a mass grave at a trafficking camp sadly comes as little surprise.”

Last June, the United States put Thailand in its lowest

N. Korea arrests S. Korean studying in US

PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) — North Korea said Saturday it has arrested a South Korean student of New York University for illegally entering the country from China last month.

Won Moon Joo, who North Korea says has permanent residency in the U.S. and lives in New Jersey, was arrested on April 22 after crossing the Amnok River from the Chinese town of Dandong, the official Korean Central News Agency said.

The 21-year-old man is being questioned by state authorities and has admitted that his actions were in violation of North Korean law, the agency said.

In New York, a spokesman for New York University, John Beckman, confirmed that Joo was a junior at NYU’s Stern School of Business, but was not taking classes this semester and the university was unaware of his travels.

“When we heard the news reports, NYU

got in touch with the student’s family to express our concerns over his welfare and to convey our support. His well-being is in our thoughts and prayers,” Beckman said.

He said the university was in touch with the U.S. State Department and the South Korean Embassy.

An official from South Korea’s Unification Ministry, who didn’t want to be named, citing office rules, said it couldn’t immediately confirm whether Joo was a South Korean citizen and was being held in North Korea. Officials from South Korea’s intelligence agency were unreachable for comment.

North Korea has occasionally detained South Koreans, Americans and other foreigners, often on accusations of spying, in what analysts say are attempts to wrest

Assunta Ng

Account Executives

Peggy Chapman

rebecca@nwasianweekly.com

Han Bui

kelly@nwasianweekly.com

Publisher assunta@nwasianweekly.com

Police in southern China raid office of car-hailing app Uber

BEIJING (AP) — Police in southern China raided the office of U.S. car-hailing app Uber after the Chinese government in January banned drivers of private cars from offering such services through apps.

A statement by the Guangzhou Municipal Transport Commission said police suspected Uber was operating an illegal taxi service without a proper business registration. It said police seized thousands of iPhones and other equipment used to run the business in the Thursday night raid in

the city of Guangzhou. The commission also said it was cracking down on other carhailing apps in the region and issuing fines of 30,000 yuan, or about $4,860.

Uber said in a statement Friday that it was cooperating with the authorities while continuing to offer the service to Guangzhou residents.

The transport commission said it recognized the limits of traditional taxi services in the area and was studying how online-based services could fill the need. 

{see THAILAND cont’d on page 12}

Editor editor@nwasianweekly.com Layout Editor/Webmaster han@nwasianweekly.com

{see KOREA cont’d on page 12}

Rebecca Ip Kelly Liao John Liu

john@nwasianweekly.com

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MAY 9 – MAY 15, 2015

■ community calendar THU 5/7 WHAT: Panel discussion, “Immigration in Context: How the last 50 years reshaped US politics, economy, and culture” WHERE: Wing Luke, 719 S. King St., Seattle WHEN: 6-8 p.m.

INFO: wingluke.org

THU 5/7 & FRI 5/8 WHAT: Second Annual Washington State Charter Schools Association Conference WHERE: Double Tree Hotel, 18740 International Blvd., Seattle WHEN: 5/7 at 8:30 a.m.-8 p.m., 5/8 at 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

INFO: 800-280-6218, conference@wacharters. org

FRI 5/8 WHAT: Bloom Gala WHERE: Westin Seattle Hotel, 1900 Fifth Ave., Seattle WHEN: 5:30 p.m.

TICKETS: ichs.com/ bloom INFO: 206-788-3672, christinel@ichs.com WHAT: Demonstration, co-presented with Gardner

Center for Asian Art & Ideas, “Music of the Japanese Imperial Court” WHERE: SAM, Volunteer Park WHEN: 7:30-8:30 p.m.

RSVP: visitsam.org/ tickets WHAT: Teen Night Out features an evening full of live music, art making, and performances WHERE: SAM WHEN: 7-10 p.m.

INFO: seattleartmuseum. org

FRI 5/8 & SAT 5/9 WHAT: HDA 20th Anniversary Performance, “Our Journey Together” WHERE: Meydenbauer Center, 11100 NE 6th St., Bellevue WHEN: 7:30 p.m. on Friday, 2:30 p.m. & 7:30 p.m. on Saturday COST: $15-$50 INFO: 206-287-9998, hengdadance@yahoo.com

SAT 5/9 WHAT: Family Fun Day sponsored by Target: Art, Activities, and more!

WHERE: Wing Luke, 719 S. King St., Seattle WHEN: 11 a.m.-4 p.m.

INFO: wingluke.org

WHAT: The 42nd edition of St. Peter’s Episcopal Parish annual fundraising dinner, “The Big Takeout” WHERE: St. Peter’s Parish Hall, 1610 S. King St., Seattle WHEN: 12-5 p.m.

INFO: 206-323-5250 WHAT: JCCCW’s “Omoide” (memories) program WHERE: JCCCW, 1414 S. Weller St., Seattle WHEN: 1-2 p.m.

INFO: jcccw.org

TUE 5/12 WHAT: How to make Dong Chimi Kimchi with Instructor Jung Hee Park WHERE: APCC, 4851 S. Tacoma Way, Tacoma WHEN: 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

REGISTER: 253-3833900 WHAT: Gang of Four book launch (Bernie Whitebear, Larry Gossett, Roberto Maestas, and Bob Santos) WHERE: MOHAI, 860 Terry Ave. N., Seattle WHEN: 6:30-8:30 p.m.

COST: Free admission INFO: elaineko001@ gmail.com

THU 5/14 & FRI 5/15 WHAT: Book reading with Janice Nimura WHERE: at SAM on Thursday, at Eagle Harbor Book Co. on Friday WHEN: 7 p.m. on Thursday, 5:30 p.m. on Friday

FRI 5/15 THRU SUN 5/17 WHAT: Saigon’s Golden Dragon Water Puppet Theatre WHERE: Town Hall, 1119 Eighth Ave., Seattle WHEN: Various times.

Check Townhall website.

COST: $5-$25 INFO: townhallseattle.org

THU 5/21 WHAT: New terrace overlook at Kubota Garden WHERE: Kubota Garden, 9817 55th Ave. S., Seattle WHEN: 2:30-4 p.m.

INFO: seattle.gov/parks

SAT 5/23 WHAT: Meet the artist Maggie Ho WHERE: APCC, 4851 S. Tacoma Way, Tacoma WHEN: 2-4 p.m.

INFO: 253-383-3900 WHAT: Gallery party with Aaliyah Gupta WHERE: Core Gallery, 117 Prefontaine Place S., Seattle WHEN: 4-6:30 p.m.

INFO: aaliyahgupta.net

SAT 5/30 WHAT: CISC’s 43rd Annual Friendship Dinner & Auction WHERE: Daybreak Star Indian Cultural Center WHEN: 5:30-8:30 p.m.

COST: $125/person INFO: kevinc@ciscseattle.org, 206-624-5633 REGISTER: cisc-seattle. org

­ EVERY TUE WHAT: Asian Counseling and Referral Services

Employment Program Orientation WHERE: ACRS, 3639 Martin Luther King Jr. Way S., Seattle WHEN: 3–4:30 p.m.

INFO: 206-695-7527, employmentprogram@ acrs.org, acrs.org/services/ employmentandtraining

EVERY WED WHAT: Seattle University School of Law Citizenship Project WHERE: Yesler Community Center Computer Lab, 917 E. Yesler Way, Seattle WHEN: 5–6:30 p.m.

COST: Free INFO: 206-386-1245

EVERY THU WHAT: The Rotary Club of Seattle International District meets WHERE: New Hong Kong Restaurant, 900 S. Jackson St., Seattle WHEN: 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m.

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{JO cont’d from page 1} trial ended in a hung jury, Jo was retried with additional threats of deportation added by ICE while Jo’s former partner was awarded full custody of their child.

Jo’s case ignited Asian American and domestic violence advocates through social media. A Twitterstorm garnered numerous tweets through the hashtags #StandWithNanHui and #WeSurvived. Numerous activists also changed their social media profile pictures in solidarity with Nan-Hui Jo, and NBC News covered the story. Members of Korean American Coalitio to End Domestic Abuse (KACEDA) organized court watches, and maintained updates from the trial.

The judge in Jo’s case lowered her child abduction conviction to a misdemeanor and sentenced her to 175 days in jail and three years probation, with time served for the 8 months she has already spent in jail awaiting her trial.

Jo was therefore released from county jail, but immediately into Immigrant and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody due to an immigration hold placed on Jo by ICE and Customs & Border Protection. Advocates say that ICE officers were on-hand to take Jo into custody as she was processed out of county jail following her sentencing. Jo was permitted mere minutes of measured “freedom” in the lobby of the county jail to thank her supporters before she was taken into ICE

Jo meets with supporters

custody.

Jo’s conviction on the child abduction charges now stand (and likely await an appeal) which significantly complicates her fight to regain custody of her six-year-old daughter, who is currently being cared for

by Jo’s abuser, the child’s father. Meanwhile, because Jo is not a U.S. citizen, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) placed a deportation hold on her. After her sentencing, Jo was transferred to ICE custody and is being detained in an ICE facility pending a decision on deportation.

With this move, Nan-Hui Jo is likely to become one of the thousands of immigrant parents separated from their families by ICE deportation.  Jenn Fang can be reached at info@ nwasianweekly.com.

33 YEARS YOUR VOICE

MAY 9 – MAY 15, 2015

■ ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Slants

Is the name offensive?

The Slants

By Vivian Nguyen Northwest Asian Weekly With May underway, spring has officially sprung! And so has news for all of our Asian friends in the media. From controversial band names to casting news, see what’s happened during the last month with pop culture.

“The Slants” lose their appeal to register band name Simon Tam, founder and bassist of a Portland, Ore.-based Asian American dance rock band named The Slants, recently filed an application to register the mark “The Slants”.

The U.S. Court of Appeals in the Federal District rejected his application, upholding a US Patent and Trademark Office’s decision that the name could not be trademarked since the name refers to a racial slur that the greater society would find disparaging. Evidence, such as organizations refusing to do business with the band due to their objection of the “offensive and racist” name, were brought up in court against Tam’s application.

In previous interviews about the band, which were used as material for consideration in the appeal, Tam has stated: “I was trying to think of things that people associate with Asians. Obviously one of the first things

A-pop!

people say is that we have slanted eyes.”

This is an important point for Tam: He is arguing that the use of “slants” was meant to be a subversive re-appropriation of the derogatory term, and part of a larger project for the group to “take ownership” of antiAsian stereotypes. Rejection of the band name, Tam claims, is a violation of his First Amendment rights of freedom and speech.

With documents that support his band’s name, including letters vouching for its use from Asian American leaders, Tam went on to argue that the Patent and Trademark office has purposely discovered ways to find the slur offensive. He details this struggle in an article with the Oregon Live: “‘The Patent and Trademark office has created a composite that finds the name offensive, but we can’t find an actual Asian who is offended,’ he said. ‘This is so much bigger than just our band—this law disproportionately affects minorities.’”

This issue was brought up to spotlight a law that Tam believes needs updating. By disproportionately using this law against minorities versus non-minority applicants, there has been an uptick in excessive vagueness in determining what is “too offensive” to register as a mark.

In the same Oregon Live article, Tam went on to say: “‘I’m definitely disappointed, but not completely surprised since we have been fighting this thing for so long. … We’re going to exhaust every available option to fight this thing.’”

With the recent trend of Asian slurs serving as the namesake for television shows and band names, there is a growing trend of Asian Americans reclaiming epithets to, as Tam previously mentioned, take control and ownership of Asian stereotypes and images.

We’ve seen this recently with celebrity chef and author Eddie Huang’s sitcom “Fresh Off the Boat,” which originally drew criticism from television executives and the public for its controversial name.

But like Tam, Huang fought to keep the show’s name as homage to his roots and reflective of his experiences of growing up in an immigrant family. Previously used in a derogatory manner, here, Huang celebrates and repurposes the phrase “fresh off the boat”, much like Tam hopes to do with “The Slants”.

As Asian Americans begin to dominate more of the arts and entertainment scene, will this be a continuing trend that we continue to see among artists and creatives? I am curious to see how this will redirect the conversation for Asians about the mainstream use of Asian slurs as a way of asserting identity.

Recent casting and directing news Actress Olivia Munn was casted in the upcoming “X-Men: Apocalypse” film as Psylocke, a telepathic, psychic character.

Munn, who is of Chinese descent, is best known for her television journalism career {see A-POP cont’d on page 12}

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asianweekly northwest

8

MAY 9 – MAY 15, 2015

■ ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Damaged by deadly Portraying family quake, fate of Nepal through film

■ WORLD NEWS

heritage unsure

Kelly Huang

By Andrew Hamlin Northwest Asian Weekly Swayambhunath, before and after

By Todd Pitman Associated Press KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — Perched on a hilltop, the blue-rimmed eyes of Kathmandu’s gold-spired Swayambhunath stupa have long stared silently across this sprawling city nestled in the Himalayan foothills.

But since Nepal was shattered by a mammoth earthquake a week ago, those eyes have gazed upon a nation in mourning — and on a microcosm of its despair inside the ancient temple itself.

Here, monkeys scurry across the demolished ruins of a pair of precious bulletshaped edifices built by King Pratap Malla in the 1600s. Saffron-robed monks haul golden relics and carpets out of a ruined monastery.

The temple now has its own population of displaced — priests and vendors huddle under tents, after their own homes in the complex crumbled.

Swayambhunath, which dates back to the 5th century, is one of at least 68 cultural heritage sites in Nepal that were damaged by the tremor, according to Nipuna Shrestha of the UNESCO, the U.N. cultural heritage organization, citing preliminary figures from the Department of Archaeology. That’s nearly 80 percent of historic landmarks in seven monument zones that have been declared World Heritage Sites in the Kathmandu Valley alone.

Few would compare the loss of Nepal’s historic treasures to the massive human misery wrought by the magnitude-7.8 quake, which claimed more than 7,000 lives, damaged more than a million homes and displaced nearly 3 million people.

And yet, “it’s hard to describe how painful this is,” Shrestha said. “These are not just monuments, they are part of our daily life. It feels like losing part of your family.”

Shrestha said at least 18 other monuments are known to have been damaged elsewhere, but information has been incomplete because phone networks have been disrupted and roads severed by avalanches. The sites most heavily affected were made of brick and wood.

Terrifying footage posted on YouTube of the moment the quake hit one temple complex in Bhaktapur, just east of the capital, shows chunks falling from the top of

a crumbling temple as it is enshrouded in a cloud of brown dust. Tourists can be heard screaming as some struggle to stand and others try to run as buildings disintegrate around them.

Speaking earlier this past week, Prime Minister Sushil Koirala said the government’s first priority was relief and rescue for all those affected. But he also vowed to rebuild “all structures of historical, religious and archaeological significance.”

In an impoverished country already struggling to help the living, though, it is unclear when that will happen, or how.

Among the landmarks destroyed in the capital was the iconic, nine-story Dharahara Tower, which was topped by a statue of Shiva — the god of destruction in Hinduism, the predominant religion among Nepal’s 28 million people. The second-biggest religion is Buddhism.

Police say at least 60 bodies were recovered, most of whom were inside the tower’s 213-step spiral staircase at the time.

Built in 1832, Dharahara was partially destroyed during a 1934 quake, and like many sites that were toppled across the country, eventually rebuilt.

The tower once offered panoramic views of the city. All that remains now is its base, the rest having smashed into the ground surrounding it.

Amrit Sharma, an Indian national who grew up in Kathmandu and has spent much of his life here, said the tower was like “our Washington Monument, our Empire State building.”

“The damage to these sites is not just a huge loss for Nepal, it’s a huge loss for humanity,” Sharma said. “People come from all over the world to see these. But they’re not just tourist attractions to us. If we lose them, we lose a sense of our past.”

Among the worst hit sites was Kathmandu’s historic center, Basantapur Durbar Square.

Built between the 12th and 18th centuries, it is a place where kings have been coronated and religious festivals are held. The Nepal Archaeology Department website calls it “an open museum of Nepalese culture, art and architecture.”

Steps that once led to a pair of pagodastyle Hindu temples with multi-tiered roofs {see NEPAL cont’d on page 14}

Kelly Huang, American and of Laotian heritage, recently finished her short film “A Refugee Story: Khamsay Huang,” a portrait of her elderly uncle, Khamsay, and his story of leaving Laos during wartime and coming to America. The film went online recently courtesy of the SEARAC (Southeast Resource Action Center) blog. Ms. Huang took some questions over email.

did you become aware of Laotian heritage as you grew up?

Huang: I grew up in the Twin Cities area.

I was always aware of my Laotian heritage because it was always around me. I went to the temple periodically and my mother was always a vendor at the Buddhist temple whenever they would have big celebrations.

By default, I helped her out. I guess when I really learned to appreciate my heritage was when I joined the Lao Student Association at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities.

NWAW: Where did you grow up and how

{see HUANG cont’d on page 13}

33 YEARS YOUR VOICE

■ pictorial

MAY 9 – MAY 15, 2015

9

This month, it’s all about heritage API Heritage celebration at the Seattle Center Armory May 3

Photos by George Liu/NWAW

Photo by Kollaboration Seattle

Hum Bow Eating Contest contestants share strategies on the best way to win. From left to right: Natasha Chen, Craig Kenworthy, Bryan Yambe, Marlene McIntosh, Betty Patu, Larry Gossett, Taichi Kitamura.

Cambodian Dance Preservation Troupe of Olympia

Tanya Woo performing Chinese Ribbon dance.

Gowe (Gifted on West East) aka Gordon Tsai was the headliner of the celebration.

Photos by George Liu/NWAW

Photo by Kollaboration Seattle

Photo by Kollaboration Seattle

Let the Hum Bow eating begin!

Natasha Chen of KIRO 7 Eyewitness News celebrates her victory!

12 Fingx get ready to perform for the celebration.

asianweekly northwest

10

MAY 9 – MAY 15, 2015

OPINION

■ PUBLISHER'S BLOG

RESPECT?

Seattle City Councilmember Kshama Sawant’s inappropriate and unfair questioning of John Okamoto (now voted in as a councilmember) during the public interview to fill in Sally Clark’s seat, gave me a revelation—the importance of respect.

We make wishes during celebration. My wish for May’s Asian Pacific American API Heritage Month is that Asian Americans can respect one another and that we can respect our differences.

Sawant’s action recently shocked and disgusted a number of the ethnic community when they felt she was trashing a respectable Asian community leader.

Sawant’s behavior bothers some Asian Americans because she is Asian American herself. Seattle’s Asian community is famous for its collaboration despite our small number compared to San Francisco and New York’s Asian population. We pride ourselves in getting things done by a small gang. Yet, Sawant never wants to be connected to the Asian community. She has no time to meet with Asian community leaders as a couple of Chinatown/International District leaders told the Asian Weekly. One called Sawant’s office and introduced herself, and instead got cold shoulders. “(Council member Sawant) she doesn’t have time,” said her staff.

“We should bring the Asian community together, not divide it,” said Debadutta Dash

Photo by Assunta Ng/NWAW

What we should learn from Sawant’s actions

From left: Jean Godden, Bruce Harrell, Tom Rasmussen, Kshama Sawant, Nick Licata, Tom Burgess, and John Okamoto (front)

of Indian descent, currently a candidate for Seattle City Council. Okamoto was clear of wrongdoing in his role at the Port of Seattle, which Sawant accused him of mismanagement and the Port of corruption.

You could tell at the hearing, Sawant was upset because she sent out a questionnaire prior to the interview asking all candidates for their views on rent control, wage theft, and other issues, and Okamoto didn’t respond. Not every candidate responded

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either. Okamoto didn’t say whether he’s for rent control, even though Sawant pushed many of the candidates to commit to her agenda. The rent control issue is more than a “yes” or “no” answer.

A person’s a person, no matter how small—Dr. Seuss You don’t have to like or dislike someone to respect the person. You don’t need to have a relationship with someone to treat him as a human being. You don’t have to agree to respect another individual. It’s just basic courtesy, humility, and decency.

If you don’t respect others, how can you expect others to do the same?

In my decades as publisher, I have encountered many whom I stand on the opposite and people that I don’t agree with, yet we can greet and talk to each other, and even collaborate on projects for the common good. There are times when I readily praise my detractors because

I recognize that they have done good deeds and even the right thing. I want to encourage people I disagree with to make positive contributions. Frankly, the community can all benefit from great work and learn from remarkable examples.

There should be a respect for differences, honesty, and integrity.

Sawant’s strategy backfired: Okamoto received the majority of the City Council votes. Last week, the Seattle Times editorial even commented that she owes Okamoto an apology! How many of these negative media pieces can Sawant afford in an election year? How many of these battles can she fight with her Council colleagues, and then result being isolated with the minority of the Council? And the public is simply left to shake their heads in disbelief by her behavior?

I was beaming with pride at the hearing initially, watching three Asian Americans in the final round for Clark’s seat, and two Asian American elected officials, Sawant and Councilmember Bruce Harrell, interviewing on the other side of the table. It was truly historic for the City of Seattle. But then, it turned out to be embarrassing and disappointing for me being an Asian American witnessing how an Asian elected official who lacked tact, grace, and humanity, grilling a candidate without basis. Ironically, Okamoto told the Asian Weekly during an interview that he thought he had a connection with Sawant because of his labor background as he was once the CEO of the Washington Education Association, the state’s teachers union.

Perhaps, Sawant’s action taught us a lesson--Asian Americans have to learn to agree to disagree. And we have to practice it well because the art of politics is to compromise and learn respect for disagreement. 

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

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Have a story idea that you think would fit perfectly in Northwest Asian Weekly? We want to know about it.

Send it to us at info@nwasianweekly.c om.

33 YEARS YOUR VOICE

MAY 9 – MAY 15, 2015

11

OPINION

■ editorial

Spring cleaning

There is a bit of spring in our step here at the Northwest Asian Weekly. Looking over the past few months, there are many things the Asian American community in Seattle should be proud of. Not necessarily “cleaning” but perhaps “beaming.”

So what has been accomplished?

— Yay for Okamoto!: John Okamoto was elected to replace Sally Clark’s position on Seattle City Council.

Granted, it is an interim position (seven months) and he will not qualify to fill the seat in re-election, but it is still a victory for our community. The other victory was that we had two other Asian American candidates (Sharon Lee and Sharon Maeda) vying for the position. We are representing!

— Smoking ban in parks: Do you smoke in a park? Well,

■ COMMENTARY

you should know you might not be allowed to do that soon.

That butt might have to move somewhere else if the city's commendable initiative passes.

— Pronto: Do you need a bicycle? We have bicycles! They are right there on the corner of Sixth and King Street in the International District (and many other neighborhoods). Take advantage.

— Hotel Panama: The beloved landmark in the neighborhood (6th and Main) has now been declared a national treasure.

Make sure to check out fantastic tea, music, and more important, its dedication to Japanese heritage.

— Seattle Votes: The effort the City of Seattle has been contributing to immigration and refugee affairs is impressive.

The new initiative to place permanent drop boxes for ballots

in minority neighborhoods and to outreach to non-native speakers should be applauded.

— MLK day: Seattle had an impressive turnout for MLK day at Garfield High School in the Central District. The parade traveled throughout the city. Apparently, black lives do matter in all our communities.

— Beautifying the ID: Our Japantown now has lovely decorated boxes covering the obnoxious traffic boxes. And we should praise everyone who contributes to maintaining the beautiful Danny Woo Garden.

There has been devastation globally recently, but for one brief article, let’s consider what has been accomplished in our small corner of the world. 

Pacquiao wins more than Mayweather’s millions Manny’s fight unites Filipino countrymen across the globe

The Super Bowl is the biggest sports event of the year for Americans, and for Filipinos living in the United States, the boxing matches of Manny Pacquiao have the same effect. Filipino families spend days preparing for the viewing of fights from the comfort of their own living rooms, inviting other relatives and friends to join in what could very well be described as a Filipino holiday.

Guests enter a house and are immediately greeted by the mouthwatering aroma of crispy lechon (roasted pig), pancit (traditional Filipino noodles), and of course, there’s a pack of chilled beer for the men, all of which bring them back to their days in the Philippines.

Pacquiao has been hailed a national hero, and in his most recently released original song, “Lalaban Ako” (“I Will Fight”), he sings in Tagalog, “Kahit maging sino ka man, dukha o mayaman, kung para sa bayan, sabay tayong lalaban.” These lyrics roughly translated into English mean, “No matter who you are, whether you’re poor or rich, if it is for the town, we will fight together.” The lyrics bear a strong, personal message to Filipinos all over the world. The Philippines has been in turmoil for decades under a government that the citizens have accused of corruption such as embezzlement and graft. This is why many natives choose to immigrate to other countries in pursuit of a better life.

However, the country unites in peace and pride whenever there is a scheduled Pacquiao fight. Even opposing rebel soldiers suspend their battles in the southern war-torn provinces of the country in order to watch the boxing matches and support the nation’s most iconic celebrity. Now he holds additional responsibilities in politics as an elected congressman in the Philippines, hoping to uplift the economic and emotional well-being of the poorest regions of the country.

It is not about the millions of dollars and the pride of winning a title for Pacquiao, but rather the opportunity to represent the Filipino community in mainstream media and share his fighting spirit with them. He is one of the only well-known Filipinos out there on a global stage and for him to lose any match would mean that the superstar of the Philippines could slowly fall off the map of Hollywoodlevel stardom.

The long-awaited boxing match between Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather that took

Photo by Alex Wilson

By Rhea Panela For Northwest Asian Weekly

The big fight

place on May 2 was expected to be the “Fight of the Century.” There was disappointment not only that Pacquiao lost, but also

because there were such high expectations for this specific fight alone that Pacquiao unfortunately was not able to uphold.

There has been so much pressure on Pacquiao to win his fights because his people have so much pride in him. “Filipino Pride” has been one of the most treasured values carried by any Filipino, whether they live in the Philippines or overseas. Those who do not understand the culture tend to see this pride with a negative connotation, and sometimes Filipinos are referred to as cocky or that they always complain in defense of a fellow Filipino in a competition, such as in the cases of American idol runner-up Jessica Sanchez and Miss Universe 2012 1st runnerup Janine Tugonon who both had massive fan followings from both the Philippines and in the United States.

What I personally see as the reason behind such reactions is that they have such high expectations for a person of Filipino background to make it big in an industry, whether it be pageantry, entertainment, or sports, because they hope that there will finally be a role model for them to look up to and possibly help lift up the reputation of the Philippines. The role model has the honor of representing not only the home country, but {see PACQUIAO cont’d on page 13}

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asianweekly northwest

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MAY 9 – MAY 15, 2015

{THAILAND cont’d from page 5} category — Tier 3 — in an annual assessment of how governments around the world have performed in fighting human trafficking.

The ranking took into account the smuggling of Myanmar’s Rohingya community, as well as cases of migrants from neighboring countries who are forced or defrauded into working against their will in the sex industry, commercial fishing, garment production, factories and domestic work.

Thailand has promised action in order to get off the blacklist, but recent revelations by the AP that some of its fishing vessels were treating men from Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos as virtual slaves have further dented the country’s reputation.

Authorities discovered the camp Friday, acting on a tip. Police and rescuers reached the mountain camp on foot, and found a clearing with 39 bamboo huts, two dozen sleeping quarters and some makeshift kitchens and toilets.

They also found one corpse covered with a blanket and a weak, ailing male survivor identified as a Bangladeshi national before beginning to dig up graves. The survivor told police that about 100 Rohingya were held there and taken away just days before police arrived, said local police commander Col. Weerasant Tharnpiem.

Police could not immediately confirm if the captives were Rohingya Muslims.

Members of the religious minority have for decades suffered from state-sanctioned discrimination in Myanmar, which is predominantly

Buddhist. Mob attacks in the last three years have left up to 280 people dead, sparking one of the biggest exoduses of boat people since the Vietnam War. More than 100,000 men, women and children have boarded ships in the Bay of Bengal since June 2012, said Chris Lewa, director of the Arakan Project, which has monitored the boat movements more than a decade.

That number includes both Rohingya from Myanmar and a growing number of Bangladeshis.

Their first stop is almost always Thailand.

Lewa believes there are around 800 people still in jungle camps in Thailand. However, there has been a change of tactics recently, one that appears to be putting them at even greater risk.

Instead of jungle camps, Rohingya and Bangladeshis have in recent months been taken to large ships while they wait for ransoms to be paid, said Lewa, who estimates that 7,000 to 8,000 migrants are currently parked off the coast or in nearby international waters.

Their health is inevitably deteriorating quickly, she said, adding that there are growing reports of deaths. A 15-year-old survivor told Arakan Project last week that during his own two months at sea, more than 30 people died on three different boats.

He said the bodies were all thrown overboard.  Associated Press writers Thanyarat Doksone and Jocelyn Gecker in Bangkok and Robin McDowell in Yangon, Myanmar, contributed to this report.

in what they see as a society too accepting of liberal and Western influences. He said a March 14 show by the Japanese rock band Boris was canceled with two days’ warning, after the musicians had already arrived in Beijing.

Several events also have been scraped in central Beijing and in Chaoyang Park, and a musicfilled show organized for this weekend by the U.S. Embassy and China’s Ministry Culture was first canceled and then moved to a district in the city’s east.

“My pocket view is that as far as the powers that be are concerned, society is a little out of control, with too much expression and frivolity and general chaos,” Hamilton said. “And I feel that (President) Xi Jinping and the new administration have come in and gone, `We need to focus on this a lot. We need to get this right and make sure this doesn’t get too out of control.”’

Shi Shusi, an independent

Beijing-based commentator, said the clampdown reflects the party’s insecurities amid a slowing economy and an anticorruption drive that has caught tens of thousands of officials.

“This instability all affects how the politicians view people outside the party’s control,” Shi said. “Whether it’s music or other activities, in China, everything is political.”

After the Shanghai stampede, Chinese officials scaled down some popular events during February’s Spring Festival but are now targeting gatherings that would not appear to present a safety risk.

The craft beer event would have drawn an estimated 5,000 people to a downtown commercial center, Wang said. The Earth Day event plus a heavy metal music festival scheduled for May 28 would have drawn at least several hundred people.

Other large events have been allowed to continue, such as an April 18 boxing match and barbecue that drew hundreds

{KOREA cont’d from page 5} outside concessions.

In March, North Korea announced that it had detained two South Korean citizens over alleged espionage. It has been holding another South Korean man since late 2013 on suspicion of spying and allegedly trying to set up underground churches in the North. He was sentenced last year to life in prison with hard labor.

Also last year, the North released three

{A-POP cont’d from page 7}

Thank you for recycling this newspaper! {ITO cont’d from page 1} medal.

After the war, Ito moved with his family to Cleveland, Ohio. Ito worked in a garage working on automobiles but decided to return to school for further education using the G.I. Bill to pay for his education.

He went to Western Reserve University which is now known as Case Western University. He then went on to Cornell Medical Center to study cell biology. After receiving his PhD in Biology from Cornell, he began teaching at Harvard Medical School. His research utilizing an electron microscope on the gastrointestinal system is world renowned. Although he retired in 1990, Ito still is active in the lab even at the age of 95.

It’s amazing to think that Ito could have just settled to be a small town car mechanic if things were different. The renowned war hero and cell biologist might not have come to be if not for World War II. Ito grew up in Stockton, California where the town was socially segregated. “We kept pretty much to our own community.”

Ito’s parents were farmers and worked from farm to farm. He

{CHINA cont’d from page 5}

Wedding photo

recalls not much of an education when growing up as there was no electricity or running water in the schoolhouse. Still, he was accepted into the University of California, Berkeley. But, he declined going because there were few future opportunities for people of color.

Instead, Ito went to community college for a year before attending auto mechanic school. Practically, he thought that becoming an auto mechanic would be the way to ensure a stable future. But, even being an auto mechanic presented

before delving into acting aspirations, such as her role in the political drama “The Newsroom”. Psylocke is a fan-favorite character, which means Munn will have big shoes to fill once she takes on this role!

Meanwhile, director Cary Fukunaga will team up with the screenwriters from the critically acclaimed “Brokeback Mountain” film to create a movie based

its own hurdles. “They would not let me join the auto mechanic’s union,” recalled Ito. “It was blatant and obvious discrimination. It was not only prevalent but accepted.”

As a result, Ito’s opportunities to work in car garages were limited as only Whites could work in union garages.

In 1940, America was at war and Ito, an American citizen, was drafted into the military. Maybe surprising, Ito was pleased with being drafted. “I just turned 21 in July and I was drafted in October,” Ito stated, “I was quite happy about that.” While Ito’s response may be unusual for many, it showed the angst of a young man seeking adventure. “I was bored working in garages. It didn’t seem like much of a challenge and much of a future.”

Ito was placed in a unit with other Japanese Americans. The irony of the situation was that while Ito and his fellow soldiers of Japanese ancestry were fighting for their country, the United States, their country had decided to send Japanese Americans and people of Japanese descent to internment camps.

Ito’s family was uprooted from their home in California as they

to the city’s artsy Shuangjing neighborhood as well as a concert by the U.S. pop group the Backstreet Boys that same night.

For the Earth Day event, police stepped in only after hundreds of environmental and other groups signed on to help run the festival, which would have included an environmental issues presentation, live music and question-and-answer session, said Eva Mei, a marketing specialist with co-organizer Gung Ho! Pizza.

“The event had been getting more visibility,” Mei said.

For Hamilton and other promoters, the crackdown means a spring and summer drained of Beijing’s usual sweaty fun.

“This put the fear into all of us,” he said. “Everyone’s afraid of getting it wrong and losing a lot of money. ... It’s that harmless stuff, of people getting together and sharing and being creative, which is what China is about, but it’s not really happening.” 

Americans — two of whom entered the country on tourist visas — and Kenneth Bae, a KoreanAmerican missionary who was convicted of “antistate” crimes. An Australian missionary detained for spreading Christianity was deported after he apologized for anti-state religious acts and requested forgiveness.  Associated Press writer Tong-hyung Kim in Seoul, South Korea, contributed to this report.

on the lives of Joe and Jadin Bell—a son and father who were known for their plight and eventual suicide from gay bullying and fight against anti-bullying respectively. Fukunaga, who is of Japanese descent, is known for his directing work on the popular HBO drama-mystery series “True Detective”.  Vivian Nguyen can be reached at info@ nwasianweekly.com.

were moved to an internment camp in Oklahoma. He recalls visiting them in his military uniform at the camp. It was a surreal experience.

Ito’s army regiment, the allJapanese-American 442nd Regiment was the most decorated unit for its size in the U.S. Army during World War II. “Most of us were totally gung ho about fighting for the U.S. despite fighting their home country of Japan,” Ito stated, “The decision being made [to fight] was a privilege for us and allowed us to show our patriotism and devotion to our country of the American way of life.”

Although it was banned, Ito brought along his camera to take pictures of his experiences in the U.S. Army. “Nobody questioned me,” Ito stated about using his camera. “I carried it with me throughout the war and in combat.”

Ito has donated the negatives to the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles, California. Many of Ito’s pictures have been published and used in exhibitions. He states that the museum has digitized the photos. It has sent him 1,100 of the photos for him to identify and comment on for further use.

During World War II Ito and his regiment was involved in a heroic effort where he stormed a section of the Vosges Mountains to rescue a captured battalion of Texas Infantrymen. Although his regiment suffered extremely heavy casualties, Ito did not suffer any injuries. Also during his tour, he helped liberate prisoners of a Nazi death camp.

Ito is one of a variety of seniors featured in a book, “From Working to Wisdom: The Adventures and Dreams of Older Americans,” which addresses growing old. At 95 years old, Ito has led an exciting life. “His talents were such that they simply couldn’t keep him down,” said Brendan Hare, the author of the book. “He has no bitterness about anything.” Hare refers to the many instances of discrimination Ito experienced throughout his life, yet persevered through it all.

“Do what you love and enjoy doing it to the best of your abilities,” advised Ito of living a fulfilling life and career. “If you enjoy doing it, all other things fall into place.”  Jason Cruz can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

33 YEARS YOUR VOICE

■ astrology

MAY 9 – MAY 15, 2015

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For the week of May 9–May 15, 2015

By Sun Lee Chang

Rat — While you had your doubts at first, the deeper you get involved the more you are finding to like about this new adventure.

Dragon — While you want to get it all done quickly, there are steps you cannot skip along the way. It is much better to take a little longer to do it correctly.

Monkey — A compliment sincerely given should be accepted with grace. Avoid trying to deflect or minimize it, if at all possible.

Ox — Are you feeling a bit overwhelmed at the moment? Carve out some time for a short walk to regroup your thoughts.

Snake — An evolving situation has you wondering what will happen next. Don’t worry, for you will soon think of a good angle about how to approach it.

Rooster — Just when you think you have found out all there is to know about your friend, she surprises you with something wonderful.

Tiger — You are suddenly free of an obligation that was bothering you previously. Think twice before taking on any new ones.

Horse — Making a lateral move may not be worth the trouble. Check to see that there is an actual improvement to going sideways as opposed to upwards.

Dog — An interruption does not need to derail your progress. Simply take it for what it is worth and move on to where you had originally planned to go.

Rabbit — Talking through an issue can help you reach a solution – just be careful who you choose to discuss it with.

Goat — Go outside of your comfort zone and wear something fun today. You may find that it colors your outlook for the day as well.

Pig — A story you heard recently has you quite intrigued. However, it best to be skeptical until all the facts check out.

What’s your animal sign?

Rat 1912, 1924, 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008 Ox 1913, 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, 2009 Tiger 1914, 1926, 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998, 2010 Rabbit 1915, 1927, 1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999, 2011 Dragon 1916, 1928, 1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000, 2012 Snake 1917, 1929, 1941, 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001, 2013 Horse 1918, 1930, 1942, 1954, 1966, 1978, 1990, 2002, 2014 Goat 1919, 1931, 1943, 1955, 1967, 1979, 1991, 2003, 2015 Monkey 1920, 1932, 1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004 Rooster 1921, 1933, 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005 Dog 1922, 1934, 1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994, 2006 Pig 1923, 1935, 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007

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

{HUANG cont’d from page 8}

NWAW: What were the most challenging aspects of making the film, and how did you overcome these challenges?

Huang: The most challenging was actually making my uncle open up. I actually filmed the interview 6 months before and he wasn’t really structuring his sentences well, so I went back to audio record him answering the same question because I knew he would be more open once there was no camera there. And he was much more open that time. “Camera-shy” is a real thing

That’s where I realized how much the culture influences me. I learned to love to wear the traditional clothes and speak the language instead of be embarrassed of it.

NWAW: How did you become interested in filmmaking?

Huang: I was always interested in film since I was young. I would always anticipate DVD releases on a lot of films because I didn’t really get to go to movie theaters.

I would specifically ask for the 2-disc special edition because I loved watching the special features and the behind the scenes. I love watching the “making of” of films.

I took a 2-year course on the Art of Film in High School and I think that’s when I realized I wanted to do this for my career. I couldn’t see myself doing anything else either.

NWAW: What are your favorite filmmakers and what have you learned from them?

Huang: I don’t particularly have a favorite filmmaker but I have favorite films and some of those are “Sicko,” “Blackfish,” “Spirited Away,” and “Hector and the Search for Happiness.”

“Sicko” and “Blackfish” are both documentaries and what I liked about those films was that they were very persuasive and manipulative.

I’m not necessarily trying to have those traits be a part of my films, but applaud that they accomplished

{PACQUIAO cont’d from page 11} also foreign and American-born Filipinos who are minorities in the United States and abroad.

Unfortunately for Filipinos who clasped their hands and prayed for Pacquiao, the people’s pride, to win, Pacquiao lost the match to Mayweather. However, while Mayweather stood on each corner of the ring, pointed to crowd, and

A Refugee Story: Khamsay Huang

what they were trying to tell their audiences. They gave you the truth and it hurt and made you mad.

That’s what I want for my audiences as well. I want to tell the truth and I want them to react and feel something (maybe not hurt them or make them mad but you get what I’m saying). Every film I make I want my audience to be able to relate. “Spirited Away” and “Hector” are films I look up to because their stories are deep with many layers and symbolisms.

I want to be able to tell my own stories in a similar fashion.

NWAW: How have you studied filmmaking?

Huang: I went to The Art Institutes International Minnesota for Digital Film and Video

Production. A lot of the time it’s all self-taught. I’ve noticed through school that a lot of it can’t really be taught through lecture but actually picking up the camera and filming and then taking that footage and editing it. Constantly practicing and getting better, because with more practice, the better the storytelling.

NWAW: What lead you to make a film about your uncle?

Huang: I actually created this for my History Piece in my Electronic Field Production class. I thought my uncle would be perfect because he knows so much information about the family and the journey about getting to America. I also knew he would be more open to speak about his experience whereas my other uncles wouldn’t be so inclined.

shouted out, “I won! I know I won!” the majority of the audience met him with loud boo’s and “Pacquiao!

Pacquiao!” Pacquiao fights can bruise emotionally while the boxer is beaten physically.

What really mattered that night was that the entire world could see how much Pacquiao really meant to his people and his fans. Mayweather may have taken home the money and the winning title, but Filipinos and all Pacquiao fans showed their

NWAW: What were the biggest surprises for you, making the film?

Huang: I don’t find a lot of things very surprising, maybe because I been desensitized by the media but the one thing I found surprising was that I had already asked my dad the same questions, and when I finally went to speak with my uncle some of the stories didn’t match up. My uncle is older than my dad, so I trust his memory a little more because he was older at the time. He had a better grasp of what was occurring.

NWAW: How did you arrange for your film to be seen on the web?

Huang: I upload all of the work I’m proud of to my Youtube. My friend, Alex Phasy, actually told me about the SEARAC 40 & Forward Blog. He told me that I should submit my film to it because it’s perfect for

passion and support for their fighter.

No matter what, Filipino pride cannot be shattered thoroughly. That night, Pacquiao won something that his opponent could not take home with him. He had won the hearts of over a million people, and that love carries a deeper value than Mayweather’s $180 million.  Rhea Panela is currently a journalism student at the University of Washington.

their blog. So I submitted it and they posted it! And then Andrew saw it, and that’s where I am now.

NWAW: What’s in the future for you? Any new projects lined up?

Huang: As of right now, I’m just working on graduating. I’m 6 months away from graduation. I’m in the post-production on my senior film, which is also a documentary.

It’s a documentary about my parents and their relationship and experiences. My film will touch on the effects of the Vietnam and Laos Civil war, the communist take-over, and how that influences my parents’ relationship and how that influences me.

I’m really excited about this film because it’s personal and I’m telling a great story that many people should hear. It’s a story that is sort of swept under the rug, and I’m really happy to shed light on it. The film will premiere at my portfolio showing in October, which is when I graduate. (Yay!) Other small projects I’m working on are just small sketches with my friends, where I get to act.  To view “A Refugee Story: Kamsay Huang,” visit http:// w w w.40andfor ward .org/ blog/2015/4/3/a-refugees-storykhamsay-huang.

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

asianweekly northwest

14

MAY 9 – MAY 15, 2015

{NEPAL cont’d from page 8} now lead nowhere, resembling giant anthills. One of them, Kasthamandap, was built five centuries ago and is believed to have been constructed from the timber of a single tree.

Elsewhere, a 17th century statue of Garuda, a bird-like deity in Hinduism ridden by the god Vishnu, lies at the bottom of a tall stone pillar it once adorned. Other temples have been leveled completely.

Although soldiers and police guard the sites, hundreds of residents freely clambered over the top of some ruins, as well as piles of brick and intricately carved wood. Many were helping in a preliminary effort to clean up the site.

Laxmi Rimal, 18, had slept on a wooden pallet under a blue tent in the square since the earthquake. “Our house was completely destroyed, it looks like that,” she said, gesturing

toward the crumbling white plaster edifice of Gaddi Durbar, which was built in 1908.

At the Swayambhunath stupa, a Buddhist site also venerated

by Hindus and known to tourists as “the monkey temple” for its resident population of primates, police wave visitors away.

The 365 stone steps leading up to it, each representing a day of the year, are blocked off with debris.

Inside, shopkeepers and monks were shaking dirt from books, Buddha statues and relics they had dug out of the rubble of a monastery which had partially collapsed onto a shop. Supendra Buddhacharya, who sold tourist curios there, lamented what he predicted would a major drop in tourism nationwide if the sites are not rebuilt swiftly.

“If we don’t have heritage here, what will people come to Kathmandu to see?” he asked.

Legend has it that a sage sowed a lotus seed in a beautiful

lake that existed where the stupa now stands. The seed blossomed with thousand petals, and from that flower a darkblue flame emanated, which came to be known as Swayambhu joti, or “self-originated flame,” which gave the site its name.

On Wednesday, Lama Zoba, a Buddhist monk, stood before the temple’s white dome. The eyes painted on the gold spire above it — symbolizing the omniscient, all-seeing nature of Buddha — peered in four directions across the valley. The view is stunning and peaceful, but it belies the tragic fact that bodies are still being dug out of the rubble below.

“You can’t compare this loss to the loss of human life. But you can’t bring back the dead, they are gone,” Zoba said. The temple, though, “will be rebuilt. And we will use it to pray for their next lives.” 

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33 YEARS YOUR VOICE

soup for a family meal. My mom still makes this for me as an adult!”

— Vivian Nguyen

“Go by feel”is my mom’s secret recipe. My mom could cook ten courses of a Chinese banquet for our extended family at ease. Her garlic pan-fried prawn, abalone, clay pot rice, and onion pork chop are all my favorites.

If you have to ask for a recipe with exact measurement of each ingredient, I can tell you upfront, my mom’s cooking is not your style. While I was growing up, I gradually understand my mom’s cooking theory, which I concluded is very universal and no secret at all. It only requires you to be very focused when you cook , plus add a little bit of your common sense. Creative and tasty dishes will then happen naturally. Your feel and your common sense will lead you to make good judgments when it comes to cooking.”

— Rebecca Ip “Thin rice noodles—similar to vermicelli—or a Chinese-style angel hair pasta. It would be the noodles with sliced pork, sliced so thin nothing else has compared, and with a whole egg on top. This dish was absolutely necessary for birthdays.”

— Rosita Chan “Whenever I smell basil, I think of my mother and her Italian pesto sauce. Every

summer, I helped her pluck the fresh green leaves from the garden. We washed them with a hose, then placed them on newspaper to dry in the sun. That night, while hot water boiled for the spaghetti, she made the pesto. The whole house filled with the smell the crushed basil leaves blended with garlic, olive oil, sea salt, pine nuts and freshly grated Parmesan Reggiano cheese. I added my mother’s pesto recipe to my arsenal. A few years later, in Japan, I had my eye on my future husband.

I invited him and some friends to my house for a dinner party. I blended hope and passion into the crushed basil leaves and garlic. He had seconds, and thirds. When he finished off the pot, I knew he was hooked. I credit my mother’s pesto for my marriage. Now that I am a mother, my sons help me plant and pick the basil leaves to make pesto. I hope it brings them as much luck and love as my mother’s recipe brought to me.”

— Laura Ohata

“One of my favorite dishes my mom makes for me is orange chicken. It is so good that I stopped eating at Panda Express. It’s crispy on the outside and flavorful on the inside. I love it so much that I have to have it once a week. When I do, I instagramed it and send to friends. That’s how it got famous. Recently, I hosted a few of my good friends over to watch the Pacquiao fight.

They requested to have my mom’s orange

“My mom makes this amazingly garlicy cheese spread –shredded cheese, minced garlic, and mayo. It’s really simple, but I love spreading it on a piece of bread as a snack. I want some now!”

— Daria Kroupoderova “My all-time favorite meal that my mom made is Vietnamese seafood gumbo served with rice. The soup base is a combination of chicken broth and fermented fish, and other fresh seafood ingredients, such as shrimp, catfish steak, and squid. Beside all the seafood, she had pork belly slices and eggplants, too.

The broth and the smell is the key to this soup.

My mom made this soup without any stinky smell of the fermented fish. What’s left was just the lemongrass aroma. I prefer this soup serve with rice rather than noodle, topped with variety of Asian herbs. Nobody can top this dish but my mom.”

— Han Bui “My favorite dish mom makes for me is Chicken Chawal. It’s a basic chicken curry, which is cooked to perfection. It starts with a base of fennel seeds, finely chopped onions, ginger, and garlic sauteed in Ghee (Indian clarified butter). Masalas are added to the mix followed by diced fresh tomatoes. Once this mixture reaches the desired consistency, the chicken is dropped in along with water and slowly cooked on medium flame, so that the chicken can absorb all the masalas and the water turns into the delicious gravy. It is garnished with “Tadka”, a sauteed mix of garlic, fennel, salt and other ingredients.

We sometimes have plain yogurt or Achaar (Indian Pickles) along with it. There are so many memories associated for me with this dish, that I don't think anything will ever dethrone it as my favorite!”

— Gurvinder Pal Singh

{JEN cont’d from page 1} important to Jen. His earliest childhood memories were spent cooking with his grandma cooking Taiwanese and Chinese foods.

“I still remember the sandwiches she used to make me when I came home from school, as well as the vegetables she would plant and cook from our backyard. Without a doubt she was my first culinary inspiration. Her food is what brought my whole extended family together every weekend growing up,” he said.

After Jen’s grandmother passed, his mother continued to teach him how to cook and helped to refine his palate for traditional Chinese and American home cooking techniques.

“Time spent in the kitchen while my mom experimented with different sauces and meats were very fundamental to my development as a cook and especially as an eater,” he said.

When it came time to starting his own food truck business and fulfilling a dream of owning his own restaurant, Jen was ambitious, and wanted to cook everything Taiwanese.

“I wanted to be a one-stop-shop for all the big food attractions at the Taiwanese night markets; oyster pancakes, big chicken cutlets, and

15

chicken and served over white jasmine rice.

My mom made appetizers, too. But they didn’t want any— just so they could eat a lot of orange chicken. By the end of the night, she packed each of them a to-go box.”

— Alex Wilson

{MOM cont’d from page 1}

“My favorite dish my mom would make is the traditional Taiwanese-style dried radish omelette! It goes perfectly with congee and other meat and vegetable dishes too. Whenever I have this, it really brings me back to my childhood.”

— Nina Huang

MAY 9 – MAY 15, 2015

Shroom bao

Bao chickawow

stinky tofu. Unfortunately, logistically that is impossible to do as a food truck. Other food truck owners have stressed the need to be simple; and that’s something I am learning,” he said.

He has also received feedback from other food truck owners that his food has a stronger emphasis on preparation because of his unique dishes: braised pork belly, beef shank, and hand-rolled and flattened green onion pancakes. These dishes aren’t easy to make en masse.

have to prepare the fresh vegetables, rice and last minute sauté items the morning of. Once everything is securely packed in the truck, then they head out to their designated spot in South Lake Union around 9:45 a.m.

They are ready to serve by 10:45 a.m. and that’s usually when the first customers of the day start to trickle in. As expected, 11:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. is usually the peak lunch hour.

“It’s actually a challenge to manage the process. We have to be able to slow or speed up the prep time.

For example, we’ll have to heat up certain ingredients to match the customer flow, and we don’t want food to get cold or take too long to serve customers. We have to ramp up and ramp down as necessary,” he said.

Typical day for “It’s Bao Time” Jen’s typical day starts around 8 a.m. at the commissary kitchen. He and his team of two employees go through a checklist to ensure everything is working and ready to go.

Some of the food preparation takes place the afternoon before, but they

“Pancit. It was a family favorite.”

— Jason Cruz

“My mom, Assunta Ng, likes to cook simple and healthy dishes for the whole family. The secret to her portabella stir fry with minced pork is to add a little bit of sweet wine at the end and stir well. Delicious! Thanks Mom!” — John Liu

Jen explained that food truck owners nowadays rely on this type of data analysis of customers and their orders to help determine the timing of an average day.

At around 1:50 p.m., the team packs up and heads back to the kitchen to do the dishes.

Jen does most of the cooking in the afternoon as well as the grocery shopping. He said that he often has to make stop at multiple stores because there isn’t a one stop shop for his menu. He also receives weekly pricing info from the grocery stores to help plan out his shopping agenda for the week to maximum efficiency and minimize costs.

Challenges & looking ahead As the business ramps up, Jen said that social media and branding is a big challenge.

“As a reluctant user of social media myself, it’s hard to turn 180 degrees and force yourself out there as a business. Being a mobile enterprise, food trucks require active and extremely current information out there to constantly engage with their customers. That is something that we are currently trying to learn,” he said.

Jen’s short-term goal is to expand his presence onto the University of Washington campus where there is a large international community.

He already has a few loyal fans who go out of their way to visit him in South Lake Union.

“We love being in South Lake Union, but it’s less personal during the lunch rush. I like to make connections and talk to customers, and when there are returning customers, there is no greater satisfaction than to know that your product is well received,” he explained.

Jen’s goal is to eventually have another truck or a storefront in the next three years to really maximize exposure to customers.

Though it was hard for Jen to quit his full time job, his family has been his biggest supporters. Even though being in the food truck business goes against everything they are comfortable with, Jen is grateful for their support.  You can find “It’s Bao Time” parked at 333 Boren Ave N on Mondays and Fridays, and 320 Harrison Street from Tuesdays through Thursdays.

The truck will also be at several upcoming events including the University of Washington’s Taiwanese Student Association Night Market on May 9.

Nina Huang can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

asianweekly northwest

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MAY 9 – MAY 15, 2015