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JUNE 27 – JULY 3, 2015
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33 YEARS YOUR VOICE
Addressing isolation, shame, and coming out together
Despite criticism, US Open at Chambers delivers
Matsuyama, Pan Impress while Tiger does not
By Jason Cruz Northwest Asian Weekly It went down to the final hole at the U.S. Open at Chambers Bay as Jordan Spieth won his first U.S. Open title after Dustin Johnson was not able to sink his last putt to force a Monday playoff. It was a memorable time for many at the University Place course as the years of waiting for the area’s first major golf championship was worth the wait. The drama of the last nine holes was intriguing even for the casual golf fan as {see US OPEN cont’d on page 12}
Youth suicides take toll on family, community
API organizations aim to start API LGBTQ family support group
By Tiffany Ran Northwest Asian Weekly Marsha Aizumi and her son Aiden spoke about coming out of the closet at a recent conference called “Family: An API LGBTQ Gathering” [Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual Transgender, Queer] held on June 13 at the North Seattle College. It hasn’t always been so easy for Marsha to talk about coming out or the shame she admittedly felt when her transgender son Aiden first came out as a lesbian. Aiden later shared his desire to transition from a lesbian female to male. The shame Aizumi felt was one she attributed to her experience of growing up in an Asian family, where she worried about bringing dishonor to her relatives. Such shame, she described, had effectively pushed her into the closet as her son struggled to come out of it. Once she began attending groups like PFLAG (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays), they provided her with information and directed her to places where she could talk to people one on one. “Asian families tend to not want to make public [those] issues that they’re dealing with. What that does is that not too many Asian families come out, so the ones that are dealing with these issues are very isolated,” said Aizumi.
Photo courtesy JACL
VOL 34 NO 27
EDUCATION Congratulations graduates! » P. 3
Aiden and Marsha Aizumi
Parents are often the ones to guide their children, but in the case of API communities, LGBTQ children must often help their parents navigate this issue because the parents don’t speak language, don’t have the understanding, and lack the proper support. Aizumi {see AIZUMI cont’d on page 15}
“Representing our views” A perspective on how much a flag can have significance
The end of the school year brings joy for many as the weather and time with family and friends Christopher Nguyen Izabel Laxamana brings a much-needed rest from a long school year. Two recent tragedies reflect the concern with youth suicide. As friends, family, and teachers mourn and grieve the losses, one wonders about the reasons for someone to take their own life. Christopher “AnhKhoi” Nguyen passed away on April 27. The senior from Cascade High School in Everett, Wash. was only 18 years old and was to graduate this spring. He was a member of the National Honors Society and took college-level courses at Everett Community College. He was going to attend the University of Washington with enough credits to be a sophomore with the intention of entering the pre-engineering program. He was an avid community volunteer and was a role model to his brothers and friends. In addition, he loved photography, technology, {see SUICIDES cont’d on page 5}
Photo provided by Bruce Harrell’s office
By Jason Cruz Northwest Asian Weekly
Councilmember Bruce Harrell announces the resolution to recognize the Vietnamese Heritage and Freedom flag at the Seattle City Council
By Tom Vu Special for Northwest Asian Weekly It was a joyous moment June 22 that the Seattle City council passed the resolution to recognize the Vietnamese Heritage and Freedom Flag as the symbol for the Seattle’s Vietnamese community. Kshama Sawant voted against it with two full pages of argument. She had strong arguments though. She probably used the information sent to her from a
Vietnamese PHds from UW. She spent nearly an hour before the council meeting to convince the other councilors to change their minds. Many members of the Vietnamese community and I were surprised by Sawant’s vote. We didn’t expect opposition to come from an Asian American. But she often has her agenda. When we started this movement, we didn’t expect to get even eight votes. We thought if we got five, we would be {see FREEDOM FLAG cont’d on page 15}
The Inside Story NAMES People in the news » P. 2
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BUSINESS Uber drivers might be employees? » P. 5
MUSIC MONO releases two new albums » P. 8
BLOG Devotion to WSU » P. 11
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