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34 YEARS YOUR VOICE

After Rio, Olympics headed for Asian venues seen as safe Photo by Chris Carlson/AP

Photo by James Tabafunda/NWAW

Inslee wants dialogue with AAPI community, not a monologue

"See you in Tokyo" is projected on the floor during the closing ceremony in Rio de Janeiro on Aug. 21.

Gov. Jay Inslee

By Associated Press

By James Tabafunda Northwest Asian Weekly

BEIJING – For the Olympics, it’s so long Rio, hello Asia.

The next three Olympics are headed for relatively calmer ports of call in South Korea, Japan and China following the organizational drama surrounding the

2014 Winter Olympics in Russia and the Summer Games in Brazil, although challenges remain, especially when it comes to finances and generating enthusiasm among home audiences.

A look ahead to the 2018 Winter Games in see OLYMPICS on 16

Mitsui appointed as new Portland Community College president

By Assunta Ng NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY Seattleite Mark Mitsui will begin his new job as president of Portland Community College (PCC) on Aug. 29. He will head four campuses, comprising of 90,000 students in five counties, covering an area of over 1,500 square miles in Oregon.

Being the PCC president is equivalent Mark Mitsui

see MITSUI on 14

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee says he wants suggestions on how to improve the outreach to Asian American and Pacific Islander

communities, as well as others.

He added these communities are “so important and so productive economically and culturally.”

“They have specific needs that see AAPI on 4

WONDERFUL ZIMBABWE Giraffes, elephants, hyenas ... Seattle tourists recount their trip » see 8

HIDDEN BIAS REVEALED? How ‘tolerant’ people really feel about interracial couples » see 8

TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE Publisher Ng on punctuality and lessons learned from a trip to Japan. » see 10

Community » 2 Calendar » 6 Sudoku » 6 Astrology » 15

Seattle’s new housing levy sustains 35-year ongoing effort to combat homelessness

By James Tabafunda NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY With about 74,000 more “yes” votes, Seattle’s Proposition Number 1 replaces an expiring levy to pay for more affordable housing and provides $290 million over the next seven years.

The funding comes at a time when over 45,000 lower-income families in the city pay more than half their income for housing and the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment increased 29 percent in the last five years, a situ-

■

ation Mayor Ed Murray described as “our worst housing affordability crisis in decades” in July 2015.

The Seattle Housing Levy becomes a key response, and City Councilmember Tim Burgess said, “I can’t thank our voters enough for their commitment to making Seattle a city for everyone.”

“We’re excited about what the housing levy is going to be able to accomplish,” said Kelly Rider, director of government relations and policy at the Housing Development Consortium of

Seattle-King County, one of many lead supporters.

“But we’re also excited about many of the other strategies that the city and the region are pursuing to make sure that we’re supporting low-income individuals across the region.”

On a $480,000 house, a Seattle homeowner will pay $122 a year more in property taxes.

Starting in 2017, the Seattle Housing Levy will, among other things, see HOUSING on 13

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AUGUST 27 – SEPTEMBER 2, 2016

■ names in the news Photo provided by Children’s Alliance.

Crayon Award for Jayapal

34 YEARS

Kawamura, of Japanese descent, said in an interview that committee members have already talked via telephone to outline some of the issues they expect to tackle. They range from immigration and climate change to global trade and “how to define food and energy security for the U.S. in the years ahead,” said Kawamura. 

Photo by Evelyn Hou

asianweekly

Morisawa gets merit award

Nicole Jia, moments after being crowned Miss America Outstanding Teen.

State Sen. Pramila Jayapal (right) accepts the Crayon Award from Marisol Massó Lincoln, (left) on Aug. 16.

State Sen. Pramila Jayapal received the Crayon Award for her work on services and programs for kids from birth to age 5.

The award, from the Early Learning Action Alliance, was presented at an Aug. 16 event and attended by families from throughout the greater Seattle area.

“All our children should have the skills and resources to thrive, no matter what neighborhood they grow up in,” said Jayapal. Advocates of early learning believe that investments in the first years of a child’s life are critical to closing the gap for children starting out with fewer opportunities. 

Kawamura named as Trump agricultural adviser

Arthur Gen “A.G.” Kawamura

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump named 64 agriculture policy advisers on Aug. 15, including Arthur Gen “A.G.” Kawamura, a former California Secretary of Food and Agriculture.

“The members of my agricultural advisory committee represent the best that America can offer to help serve agricultural communities,” Trump said in a statement.

Art Port Townsend 2016

Naoko Morisawa received the Merit Award and a cash award at Art Port Townsend 2016.

Her work, “My Collection — Gulliver,” is an oil-stained, hand-crafted wood mosaic, acrylic, oil, sumi on wooden board.

Morisawa earned her BA in Design, Ceramics at Tama Art University in Japan, and moved My Collection—Gulliver By to Seattle in 2005.

Naoko Morisawa The Art Port Townsend 2016 exhibit features artists from Washington, Oregon, Montana, Idaho, British Columbia, and Alaska. 

Miss America’s outstanding teens Nicole Jia from Oklahoma was crowned Miss America’s Outstanding Teen 2017 on Aug. 6. Jia’s parents emigrated from Beijing in the 1980s.

Along with the title, Jia, 17, won a $30,000 scholarship provided by the Harris Rosen Foundation and the Orlando

Scholarship Foundation. She will also act as the official National Teen Goodwill Ambassador for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals.

Miss Washington’s Outstanding Teen 2016, Vivian Dao, was also a contestant. Dao, of Vietnamese descent.

She will be skipping two years of high school to be a freshman at the Vivian Dao University of Washington this fall. 

Tacoma’s new webisode featuring an Asian eatery The City of Tacoma released a new webisode called Inspired Palates. It features a local chef, Vathunyu “Yu” Nanakornphanom of Indo Asian Street Eatery.

Nanakornphanom calls his style of cooking “Asian comfort food.”

Born and raised in Bangkok, Thailand, he taught himself how to This is a screenshot cook He enjoyed cooking with his of Vathunyu “Yu” Nanakornphanom from the family in his youth and trying vari- City of Tacoma’s Youtube ous comfort foods at its famous channel street vendors.

Inspired Palates, as a part of the ongoing efforts to promote the city, highlights purveyors of craft food or drinks of Tacoma, where its culinary canvas has broadened and diversified over the years. 

YOUR VOICE

AUGUST 27 – SEPTEMBER 2, 2016

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AUGUST 27 – SEPTEMBER 2, 2016

34 YEARS

■ national news

New York City settles fatal police shooting lawsuit for $4M NEW YORK (AP) — New York City has reached a settlement of more than $4 million with the family of an unarmed man fatally shot by a police officer in a darkened stairwell nearly two years ago, the attorney for the family said Aug. 16.

The city is paying $4.1 million and the New York City Housing Authority is contributing $400,000 to settle a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of 28-year-old Akai Gurley.

The city’s Law Department called the settlement a “fair resolution of a tragic matter.’’

Former Officer Peter Liang was on patrol in November 2014 when he opened a stairwell door at a public housing building and suddenly fired. The bullet ricocheted and hit Gurley. Liang will pay $25,000 to Kim Ballinger, the mother of Gurley’s daughter as part of the settlement.

Liang was sentenced to five years’ probation and 800

hours of community service; he later apologized to Gurley’s family.

Family attorney Scott Rynecki said the parties reached the settlement “after extensive negotiations guided by Supreme Court Justice Dawn Jimenez-Salta.’’

“I’m glad it’s all done. I’m pleased with the outcome,’’ Ballinger told the Daily News.

The case became a flashpoint for police accountability. The Akai Gurley shooting came just months after the deaths of Michael Brown in Missouri and Eric Garner in New York prompted protests and a nationwide discussion of police killings.

Hawaii sushi chain tied to hepatitis A outbreak tosses food AAPI from 1 might be a little different than other parts of the state, and we want to know about those,” Inslee said during an Aug. 15 media availability at the Westin Building in Seattle.

The Center for American Progress, a nonpartisan institute, reports the majority of AAPIs — 69 percent of Asian American voters and 74 percent of Pacific Islander voters — said that “no one had contacted them about the election” in 2012.

“The Voting Rights Act is a really important tool to give people democracy, and when you give them confidence that their vote will count, they tend to vote more,” Inslee added.

He also answered political questions from minority journalists at the media availability, urging one course of action for voters.

Inslee said, “The most important thing we can do is to send people to U.S. Congress who believe in comprehensive immigration reform, and most of those people have a D (Democrat) behind their name, and this is just extremely important.”

“Bringing 11 million people out of the shadows, so that their kids can go to school and they can go to work and they can pay their taxes. That’s a benefit for the whole country.”

Among his minority hiring and appointments (judicial, staff, cabinet, etc.), 25 percent are minority and 75 percent are white.

For boards and commissions only, 24 percent are minority and 76 percent are white.

“People understand bringing in new talent, new creativity, new diversity is an inspiring story in our state, and we’re going to continue our efforts to make sure that that happens,” Inslee said about finding talent in minority communities.

He says being the governor of Washington is “the best job in America.”

“I didn’t understand how big our state was when I took this job, getting to know personally 7 million people is a challenge.”

Liang’s supporters said he has been made a scapegoat for past injustices. More than 10,000 of his backers rallied in New York and across the U.S. after the verdict, protesting his conviction.

Liang was a rookie patrolling a pitch-dark stairwell with his gun drawn while Gurley headed down to the lobby because the elevator was out of order. Liang said he was startled by a noise, fired accidentally and didn’t immediately realize his bullet had hit someone.

A jury convicted him of manslaughter, but Brooklyn state Supreme Court Justice Danny Chun said prosecutors hadn’t proven key elements of that charge and reduced it to criminally negligent homicide, a lowest-level felony. He said there was no need for prison “to have a just sentence in this case.’’ 

By Audrey McAvoy Associated Press HONOLULU (AP) — A popular restaurant chain in Hawaii that serves sushi on a conveyor belt threw out food and scrubbed its counters Aug. 16 after state authorities identified its raw scallops as the probable source of a hepatitis A outbreak. see GENKI SUSHI on 12

After four years on the job as the state’s to participate in any way, to give them the chief executive, he is most proud of his ac- validation that their voice counts by getting complishments in education. Last year, he them to find any way to share that voice.” and state legislators put an additional $2.3 On the proposed increase in the state’s billion towards early learning, K-12, and minimum wage, Inslee says he wants to higher education. build an economy that helps every family, “We’ve increased early childhood edu- one based on a “rock-solid principle.” cation because I think it’s the single most “If you work 40 hours a week, you ought impactful on people’s lives,” Inslee said, to have a roof over your head and food on about giving access to 7,000 more children the table. And right now, our minimum over the past three years. “We’ve had one wage is archaic.” of the largest expansions in early childhood The incremental increase of Washington’s education, very important in the diverse minimum wage to $13.50 an hour “keeps up communities.” with changing circumstances, so I’m very A Results Washington report states this excited about it, and I hope it will pass.” increased access prepares children for sucOn combatting prejudice and bias in state cess in school and life. government, Inslee said, “Once you recogWhile early childhood education is his nize that, then you start to figure out what proudest accomplishment as governor, the lack of diversity in state contracting has not been. In 2015, diverse businesses made up only about 1 percent of the $6.1 billion that Washington state spends annually with the private sector for goods and services contracts and public works projects.

“This has been really frustrating to me that we have not moved the needle on this, so we have gone back to the drawing board 自1872年起服務西北岸社區 and intensified our efforts to look for a new 非營利獨立協會 way to do that,” Inslee said.

Last August, he created a subcabinet dedicated to increasing access to state contracts for small and minority-, women- and veteran-owned businesses.

“One of the challenges is the complexity of the contracting process with the state,  Most insurances accepted  Cleaning and we’re trying to educate people about  Root canals  Fillings how to do that,” he said.  Crowns & bridges  Extractions Empowering people is key to getting them more involved in public affairs, including merely speaking into a microphone at school board meetings.

Dr. Tom P. Mar, D.D.S. •骨灰靈位 “Encouraging people even•陵墓地下室 personally 318 6th Avenue South, Suite 108 to engage,” Inslee said. “I’ve•墓碑、紀念碑 learned that •土葬福地 Seattle, WA 98104 when people feel a sense of power that they can accomplish good things. Simple things get them on the path to doing great things.”

1554 15th Ave East (North Capitol Hill) “Just a simple thing of getting people

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we can do about that, and there are a number of things. Number one, we try to get people to be culturally aware of this.”

Cultural competency training for his top 100 managers has already happened.  For more information on board and commission opportunities, go to governor. wa .gov/ board s- commission s/ board scommissions/upcoming- appoint mentopportunities.

For more information on the Business Diversity Initiative, go to omwbe.wa.gov/ governor-business-diversity-initiative.

James Tabafunda can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

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■ WORLD NEWS

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Glass-coated kite string kills 3 people in India’s capital

NEW DELHI (AP) — Indian police say three people, including two children, have died after their throats were slashed by glass-coated kite string used in competitions to bring down the kites of rivals.

A 3-year-old girl riding with her parents in a car had her head out of the sunroof when her throat was cut by a kite string, her uncle said Aug. 17.

The other victims were a 4-year-old boy who was also looking out of the sunroof of a car, and a man who fell off a

Chinese swimmer breaks taboo about ‘that time of the month’

By Didi Tang Associated Press Who knew a simple statement about “that time of the month’’ could cause such a stir?

A Chinese Olympic swimmer whose popularity soared during the Rio Games for her animated facial expressions and rare candor has become a social media sensation for another off-thecuff comment about a topic still considered taboo in China: her Fu Yuanhui period.

Twenty-year-old Fu Yuanhui emerged from the women’s 4x100-meter medley relay two weeks ago and told a Chinese state broadcaster that she failed to swim her best in part because her period had started the day before. Television footage showed her crouching down with her hand over her stomach. Team China finished fourth in the race.

The interview quickly trended on Chinese social media sites, where users expressed surprise — and some

motorbike after his throat was cut by a string and it became tangled around his neck.

The man, Jafar Khan, suffered a fatal head injury, said his father, Ayub Khan.

The deaths occurred in New Delhi on Aug. 15, which was India’s Independence Day, when many people fly kites to celebrate.

Accidents involving kite string have been on the rise in recent years. Popular among kite flyers is a type of string

imported from China that is almost invisible but is coated with glass or metal shards. The strings are used to cut the strings of other kites.

The city government banned the sale of glass-coated kite string following the three deaths, saying anyone violating the prohibition could be fined up to 100,000 rupees ($1,500).

Several states have banned the use of glass-coated string but it remains available in stores. 

China joins world’s 25 most innovative economies

By Dave Bryan Associated Press UNITED NATIONS (AP) — A commitment to investment in universities and research has enabled China to join the world’s top 25 most innovative economies for the first time, according to a new report co-sponsored by the United Nations’ intellectual property organization.

Switzerland, Sweden, the United Kingdom, the United States and Finland were the top five most innovative economies in the world, according to the report.

Criteria analyzed include the quality of a country’s top universities, the number of scientific publications and the number of international patent filings.

Francis Gurry, director general of the U.N.’s World Intellectual Property Organization, said at a news conference announcing the findings that China has made a commitment to making innovation a key part of its economic strategy and as a result its capacity for innovation has improved greatly.

“Innovation assumes particular significance because it opens up new avenues of growth,’’ he said.

Report co-editor Soumitra Dutta, a dean and professor at Cornell University, said China has invested tremendously in education and there is now an enormous increase in qualified Chinese graduates. He said there has also been a lot of investment in innovation in Chinese institutions and organizations.

“Given all the strategic focus China has put on innovation, innovation is right there in the national plan,’’ he said.

The annual report on economic innovation, called the Global Innovation Index, prepares profiles on 128 countries. It’s jointly sponsored by WIPO, Cornell University and INSEAD, a leading international graduate business school. It is a tool for business executives and policy makers.

The report released Aug. 15 found that despite China’s rise, there is an “innovation divide’’ between developed and developing countries. However, there is increasing awareness among policymakers everywhere that fostering innovation is crucial to a vibrant, competitive economy.

Before the 2009 financial crisis, money spent annually on research and development around the world was growing at an annual pace of approximately 7 percent.

The report found however that global R&D grew by only 4 percent in 2014.

The five countries at the bottom of the list were Niger, Zambia, Togo, Guinea, and Yemen.

Bruno Lanvin, the report’s co-editor and executive director of INSEAD, said the fact that China is now in the top 25 shows that a “middle-income’’ country can break into the top 25 if there is committed investment in research and development and other areas related to innovation. He called China a “harbinger’’ of change. 

see YUANHUI on 14

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AUGUST 27 – SEPTEMBER 2, 2016

34 YEARS

■ COMMUNITY calendar AUG. 27

Nikkei Community Network markS the retirement of the three UW Professors: Tetsuden Kashima, Stephen Sumida, and Gail Nomura Lee Activity Center, Blaine Memorial United Methodist Church, Seattle 11:30 a.m.

WSCCNA’s Annual Potluck Picnic Renton Coulon Park, North Shelter, 1201 Lake Washington Blvd. N., Renton 11:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m.

206-850-5914 Talk and Q&A with artist Emi Lenox, author of “Plutona” Kinokuniya Book Store, 525 S. Weller St., Seattle 2 p.m.

Free Annual Cambodian Cultural Celebration Saltwater State Park, 25205 8th Place S., Des Moines 11 a.m.–4 p.m.

Free admission Discover pass is required for vehicle access.

SAAFF Outdoor Film Series, "Enter the Dragon" Hing Hay Park, Seattle 7:30 p.m. seattleaaff.org

28 6th Annual Celebrate Little Saigon, “Café Sua Đá Edition!”

1025 S. King St., Seattle 1–7 p.m.

2nd Annual Portland Korean Food Festival: Mukja “Let’s Eat” Ecotrust, 721 N.W. 9th Ave., Portland 2 p.m.

Free–$100 CID Block Party 2016 900 S. King St., Seattle 3–9 p.m.

CIDBlockParty.com

7:30 p.m. jazzalley.com

3&4 Japan Fair 2016 Meydenbauer Center, 11100 N.E. 6th St., Bellevue 10 a.m.–6 p.m.

8 CULTIVATE: A Celebration of Food Justice Danny Woo Garden, 6:30–8:30 p.m. $70/ticket RSVP to bit.ly/DWGparty jwasberg@interimicda.org

Kawabe Summerfest 221 18th Ave. S., Seattle 11 a.m.–4 p.m.

Storytime in Japanese, “Once Upon A Time In Seattle” Kinokuniya Seattle, 525 S. Weller St., Seattle 11 a.m.

206-587-2477, kinokuniya.com

29 AAJA Seattle Chef Showcase 2016 Columbia Tower Club, 701 5th Ave. Ste. 7500, Seattle 6–9 p.m. brownpapertickets.com/event/2560404

31 Ms. Gu Shengying, a highly renowned performer, will be in Seattle Hing Hay Park 11:30 a.m.–1 p.m.

SEPT. 1–4

Jazz keyboardist and composer Keiko Matsui is touring Dimitriou’s Jazz Alley, 2033 6th Ave., Seattle

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Photo by Dan Ehrlichman

Martial arts academy continues tradition of training mind and body

Mr. Chang performing ceremonial dance.

Founded by Master Chang Wu-Na and Dr. Mei-hui-Lu in 2006, the Wudang Internal Arts Academy has instructed students in the Chinese martial arts, while promoting physical fitness and self-defense. Since its inception, the academy has taught students young and old alike from across the United States, Canada, and China, and continues to participate in martial arts competitions, demonstrations, and cultural exchanges on the local and national level.

The academy has since relocated to a new compound at 2411 S. Walker St. in Seattle. It reopened on Aug. 13 and includes a courtyard and larger practice rooms.

The academy’s opening ceremony began with a number of Daoist rituals which included singing, chanting sutras, and performing ceremonial dances accompanied by musical instruments to clean the energy of the space, seek inner peace, and to praise the strength and beauty of nature. These rituals were followed by a traditional lion dance performed by students from five external martial art school students to pray for prosperity and success.

The two events were followed by several short addresses by the academy’s sifus, or martial arts masters, in addition to honored guests from the greater Seattle area and as far east as Issaquah. The ceremony concluded see WUDANG on 13

Photo by Tim Gruver/NWAW

By Tim Gruver NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

Students of the Wudang Internal Arts Academy performing a traditional Chinese lion dance.

Asian Americans: Technology & Innovation Friday, Oct. 7, 2016 @ 6 p.m.

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Credit: S. Wittet

■ TRAVEL

34 YEARS

AUGUST 27 – SEPTEMBER 2, 2016

Credit: G. Tang

Sunrise at Gorges Lodge

By Gary Tang & Scott Wittet SPECIAL TO THE NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

T

Falling for

Zimbabwe

A young bull elephant visits a waterhole in Hwange National Park.

■ COMMUNITY NEWS

UW study finds bias, disgust toward mixed-race couples

Interracial marriage has grown in the United States over the past few decades, and polls show that most Americans are accepting of mixed-race relationships.

A 2012 study by the Pew Research Center found that interracial marriages in the United States had doubled between 1980 and 2010 to about 15 percent, and just 11 percent of respondents disapproved of interracial marriage.

But new research from the University of Washington (UW) suggests that reported acceptance of interracial marriage masks deeper feelings of discomfort — even disgust — that some feel about mixed-race couples. Published online in July in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, co-authored by UW postdoctoral researcher Caitlin Hudac, the study found that bias against interracial couples is associated with disgust that in turn leads interracial couples to be dehumanized.

Lead author Allison Skinner, a UW postdoctoral researcher, said she undertook the study after noting a lack of in-depth research on bias toward interracial couples.

“I felt like the polls weren’t telling the whole story,” said Skinner, a researcher in the UW’s Institute for Learning & Brain

Source: Pew Research Center

Sciences.

The research involved three experiments.

In the first, 152 college students were asked a series of questions about relationships, including how disgusted they felt about various configurations of interracial see INTERRACIAL on 12

he giant’s copper-colored eye was as big as a baseball and he knew we were watching — he could see us and smell us. But he seemed relaxed, maybe playful. That was a good thing, because we were eye-to-eye with a young and very, very big, bull elephant. Though he could have squirted us anytime, we felt safe in our bunker-style blind, gawking at “his majesty,” as he paused for a drink just 30 feet away.

Across the pond, a large female elephant, her daughter, and a calf emerged from the bush. They seemed content too. The mom rested in a typical position, one back leg crossed in front of the other, at ease. The daughter struck the same pose awhile later, and then the calf, leaning against its mom so it wouldn’t tip over, copied them both.

So cute!

I think that’s when we started falling in love with Zimbabwe. Over the next week and a half, we would soar high over a natural wonder of the world; sleep far above, and then next to, the mighty Zambezi River; “rough it” in bush tents with double chandeliers and hot water showers; and munch on crocodile nuggets and interact with some of the most amazing animals on the planet, in their wild see ZIMBABWE on 15

YOUR VOICE

AUGUST 27 – SEPTEMBER 2, 2016

■ ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Mystery, myth, space, and silence

asianweekly northwest

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Do You Know Bruce?

The last testament of exhibit coming to an end Masabumi Kikuchi

Masabumi Kikuchi

By Andrew Hamlin NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY Pianist and keyboardist Masabumi Kikuchi, aka Poo Sun, aka Poo, was born in Tokyo in 1939 and died in Manhasset, N.Y. in 2015. History, the source in this case being Wikipedia and AllMusic, don’t seem to say how he acquired his nicknames, although he did entitle one of his solo albums “Poo-Sun.” This is only one (or two) of many mysteries surrounding the man and his music.

The pianist won a spot in Lionel Hampton’s band while only in his early 20s, and went on to play with such

Western jazz luminaries as saxophonist Sonny Rollins, pianist Mal Waldron, drummer Elvin Jones, and bassist Gary Peacock, who became a close friend and supporter (and who taught jazz for many years at Seattle’s Cornish College of the Arts). Over the years, Kikuchi deployed electronic keyboards and a wide range of instruments. But in the last few years, he went back to piano and stuck to that.

“Black Orpheus,” an ECM recording from the concert Kikuchi taped in Tokyo not long before his death, consists of solo piano improvisations. The pianist see KIKUCHI on 12

“He had many different interests, pursued them in a humble way, and succeeded in everything,” Sheenie Yip, a marketing intern at Wing Luke Museum, said about Bruce Lee. Yip, a college student, is in charge of press releases, social media, and creating content on Facebook for Wing Luke. The internship aligned with her interests and majors. She is studying media studies and East Asian studies.

As she dived into this internship, Yip learned that she and Bruce Lee shared some things in common. For example, they are both from Hong Kong. They both have a strong desire to identify as being Asian American and they care about Asian representation in the media. Yip became more “into him” through the museum’s exhibit and realizing his many different contributions beyond his martial arts.

“He is one of the few Asians who influenced the U.S. media industry. His wave was incredibly influential.” She emphasized how Lee broke the racial barriers in the U.S. film industry. At the time when there were no Asians playing major roles in American films, Lee broke the mold by being himself and rejecting Asian stereotypes. Then there’s his personality. “[Bruce] had a sense of confidence, and he was very humble.” Yip said she was influenced by the way he lived and approached goals, and the fact that he wasn’t egotistical. “Bruce Lee is not just about kung fu. He was a Cha-Cha dance

Photo provided by the Wing Luke Museum.

By Kirara Kamo NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

Sheenie Yip in the distinctive yellow tracksuit, similar to one worn by Bruce Lee in Game of Death.

champion, a poet, and had many other passions.” Yip also emphasized how Lee’s passions enriched his outlook on life. “His impact is still alive and will last forever.”

Yip didn’t always embrace her Chineseness. As a child, she tried to forget Cantonese and anything to do with her heritage. However, after joining YouthCAN (Wing Luke Museum’s award-winning arts see BRUCE on 12

asianweekly northwest

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34 YEARS

AUGUST 27 – SEPTEMBER 2, 2016

OPINION

■ PUBLISHER’S BLOG

By Assunta Ng NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY I am not always punctual. In fact, I admit that I am often a few minutes late. That realization hit me when I was in Japan recently.

When you travel overseas — that distance rouses consciousness of your own behavior — that comparison of your own self with foreigners creates the desire to change and emulate.

What started it was an apology from a bus driver on our way to Yokohama. He was only five minutes late.

How often do you see American bus drivers apologizing for not being on time?

How often do American doctors apologize to their patients for making them wait for more than half an hour or more?

My husband and I don’t speak Japanese.

The English apology was flashed on the bus screen, while the driver apologized in Japanese.

We were just happy that the bus terminal was conveniently located outside TokyoNarita Airport. After we bought the tickets, we waited only a few minutes before the bus arrived. We didn’t even know the bus was late. Later, I learned that the Japanese fast train constantly flashes out an apology message at the station, for running even one minute behind.

I should have known that punctuality is an

essential part of Japanese culture from my 1994 trip. However, that experience made me angry, rather than appreciating punctuality.

I was with the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce delegation to Kobe, Japan, celebrating the 37th anniversary sister-city relationship between Kobe and Seattle. The tour bus left without us (including me, the late June Chen, and former Seattle City Councilman Tom Weeks) for the airport, so that the driver could follow the “on-time” rule. No one checked if the group had the right number of passengers before it took off.

We were stranded at the Osaka Westin Hotel

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not knowing what to do. Yes, we were to blame, being 10 minutes late. Luckily, the hotel clerk called the bus driver. The three of us took a taxi to catch up with the bus.

During the trip, Japan’s punctuality taught me to deal with my Japan-born relatives who were raised in Kobe. They came an hour and 15 minutes early to the hotel. I was annoyed that they woke me up from my nap. So I learned to adapt to their way of thinking. If I wanted our lunch to be at 1 p.m., I told my relatives to arrive at 1:45 p.m. I knew that they would knock on my door at 12:45 p.m. It worked, but at times, it could be disastrous and confusing. What if they showed up at 1:45 p.m., I would have starved to death.

But I refused to learn from my mistakes.

I was still tardy after all those years. Now that I am much older, I realize my own foolishness. I consider those encounters during my 1994 trip as memorable and laughable. Now, it provides great writing material for me.

The bus driver’s behavior simply dawned on me that I had never apologized when I was a few minutes late. That’s just awful.

This trip reminded me of people who are often late, not by just a few minutes, but as long as half an hour or more.

Lately, a friend told me about her desire to lead an organization. I like women to be in leadership roles. But whoa, her character flaw is — she is often late and sometimes, a no-show. And there were no apologies or explanations afterwards. Should I tell her to learn the Japanese way?

Leaders have to set an example. What if she has to chair a meeting and is late? It means keeping other people waiting. Being late means you don’t respect other people’s time. It is common for some people to feel insulted. You don’t need to be early, just be on time or no more than five minutes late.

If you know you are going to be late, call or text to let them know — that’s just basic courtesy. Plan ahead and make an effort to be on time and let go of unexpected minor disruptions, such as a phone call or unannounced visitors.

Which community is worse?

Have you heard of “Indian time,” “Chinese time,” “Korean time,” or “Mexican time”? That’s not funny. The stereotypical view that many communities

don’t understand the concept of being on time might not be a healthy depiction, but there is some truth to it.

Once, our Korean American writer criticized the Korean community for always being late to their events in the Asian Weekly. Some Korean community leaders were mad and complained about our writer’s rudeness and disrespecting elders. So we can’t write about the truth, is that it? Or we have to embellish the stories every time we write about the Asian community?

The trouble is, these community events don’t start on time. Some start more than an hour late. Usually, too many people want to be acknowledged, too many want to have the spotlight, and some speakers hog the microphone which makes the program boring. Or the master of ceremonies doesn’t keep a handle on time and lets the program go way too long.

I have been to thousands of community events. Most don’t start on time and continue into the wee hours of the evening.

I am used to it. But is it appropriate to imply that being respectful of someone else’s time does not matter?

I will say that in the last couple of years, I have attended many Korean American events and they seem to have improved as far as guests showing up on time and the event starting on time.

How to keep myself on time

I used to be late all the time when my kids were young. Yes, I used them as an excuse. Now, I really don’t have any good reasons for not being punctual.

To keep myself from being tardy, I frequently tell people, “I will wait for you in my office first, instead of meeting in a restaurant.”

Use tools like your smartphone and computer reminders. Or, have someone as your time-keeper pushing you out of the door when needed. My husband will say, “Don’t you have a meeting?” And I will dash out of the office. Sometimes, when he walks into my office, I sense what he’s about to say …and I will snatch my purse and run.

From now on, if I am late, I will say, “Sorry, I am late,” and maybe, with a bow, Japanese-style!  Assunta can be reached at assunta@nwasianweekly.com.

AUGUST 27 – SEPTEMBER 2, 2016

YOUR VOICE

asianweekly northwest

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OPINION

■ editorial

The arrogance of Americans

By Ruth Bayang NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

Let me start off by saying, I chose America and I love America. I am American.

Naturalized, not natural-born.

I have lived in the United States for 26 years. I entered the United States legally on a student visa. I graduated from college and immediately applied and got approved for a work visa. Then I applied and got approved for permanent residency (green card). Then I applied to be a citizen. I was sworn-in in 2004.

Many times, you’ve heard, or maybe you’ve uttered it yourself, “If (insert candidate’s name here) wins, I’m moving to (insert country here).”

Here’s where the arrogance part comes in. What makes you think another country wants you?

I have lived in several countries and the common perception around the world is that in general, Americans are obtuse.

I know from personal experience that the United States of America is the easiest country to get into. And yes, I’m talking about going about it through the legal channels. Not crossing a border illegally, or overstaying a visa.

Again, if Hillary Clinton/Donald Trump wins and you’re moving to (pick a country of your choice), what makes you think that they want you?

You can’t move tomorrow

I’ll use Canada as an example, since they are just north of us and Americans have a history of pledging to move there during fierce elections.

A check of application processing times for permanent residency or citizenship on the Government of Canada website (cic.

occupation, your income could go down.

Also, Americans who move to Canada may still be subject to paying American taxes. The IRS states that U.S. citizens who live in Canada as Canadian permanent residents are still required to file yearly U.S. income tax returns and also contact the Canadian government to see if they should file Canadian tax returns and pay Canadian taxes as well.

If you meet the IRS’s requirements. it may be possible to exclude some or all foreign income on U.S. tax returns.

GOD BLESS AMERICA gc.ca) states it takes a minimum of 5 months.

Canada’s point-based immigration process puts an emphasis on skills for employment and education, not family ties (unless you’re marrying a Canadian).

The vetting process for Canada’s skilled workers program is comprehensive. The Canadian government launched a new system in 2015 to expedite the permanent residency process for highly-skilled immigrants called Express Entry. While Express Entry has processing times of six months or less, a job offer up front from a Canadian employer is a “significant asset,” according to Canada’s immigration website.

If you don’t already have a job offer in Canada, you better have enough money saved up to support yourself until you find one. You’ll need $9,199 ($12,184 Canadian) in cash savings — and that’s the bare minimum to qualify for Express Entry.

So I’ll marry a Canadian

You can marry a Canadian or live with one for at least a year to become a resident

of Canada.

When you’ve married or lived with a Canadian green card holder or citizen for one year, and you are in Canada legally, they can sponsor you to begin your citizenship process.

There is no minimum income requirement, but you can’t be on welfare and you need to pass the criminal, security, and medical exams. Your relationship must also be genuine, for obvious reasons.

This process can take at least six to eight months after the fact that you’ve legally been married or lived with them in Canada for a year. It can also cost around $750 in processing fees. More complicated cases can take up to two years to resolve, which puts you halfway through a presidential election cycle.

Money matters

The U.S. dollar is currently stronger than the Canadian dollar, and income taxes in Canada versus the United States are roughly the same. Depending on your

They have free healthcare

Get in line and expect long wait times for doctor’s appointments.

A free healthcare system has its downsides. Many doctors are over-booked and are not taking new patients. If you can find a doctor, the next available appointment could be six months down the line.

Canadians on public drug plans can wait up to a year to access new medicines and treatments after they are approved by the Canadian government, according to a study released in June by pharmaceutical group Innovation Medicines Canada.

And the cost of prescription drugs often is not covered under Canada’s public healthcare system. The study also found that only 37 percent of Canadians on public drug plans were qualified to be reimbursed.

I chose America and I love America. The U.S. of A is not perfect, but what place is?

It is still the land of the free and home of the brave.

God bless America.  Ruth can be reached at editor@nwasianweekly.com.

■ LETTER

Reader responds to blog about homeless camps in ID Editor’s note: This is in regards to our publisher’s blog last week titled, “How Chinatown battles homeless encampments.”

Although street crime has repeatedly victimized me, it was not the homeless who did it. Further, I never give up on a home that bridges the homeless community. Those of us who have found safety can be found to prevent people on the margins from ending up in jails or mental health detention centers. Clearly, there is no excuse for graffiti, public urination, robbery, or intimidation on the streets of any society, much less an environment where the residents have given so much to the public, as is the case in the International District (ID). But if homeless people cannot

pitch a tent under a bridge anywhere, I fail to see how we can possibly answer the issue meaningfully. Where would you turn if you were homeless? The situation caused by flooding in Louisiana is certainly proof that homelessness does not inherently reflect moral character.

The sentiment that galls me most in Assunta Ng’s complaint and call for aggressive action is the idea that police should watch for opportunities to move on the camps, such as drug use. The truth is that police science has a whole history of manufacture for pretexts that fits this description. Not everyone in the indigent Asian community in the ID is safe and clean with respect to malcontent, recreational drugs, and other calls to self-harm. Not only did I have a terrible time with totally unfounded suspicions,

but I was personally unable to keep Chinatown youth from causing trouble. They, too, may find themselves among the homeless for need of better education and community care.

I realize that if you put up a sign reading, “We will help you,” the rest of Seattle will say, “Fine, great, get ye to Chinatown.” But if you are willing and capable of taking aggressive action, in my humble opinion, you might consider showing your courage and take that action on behalf of the marginalized.  — Mac Crary Resident in Exile

KING COUNTY NOTICE TO BIDDERS Sealed bids will be received for C01077C16, Telecommunications Cabling Work Order Contract; by the King County Procurement and Payables Section, 3rd Floor, 401 Fifth Avenue, Seattle, WA 98104, until 1:30 PM on Thursday September 8, 2016. Late bids will not be accepted.

Brief Scope: Provide the consultation, procurement, installation, training,

repair, emergency repair, and move/add/ change services required to support the Telecommunications needs of King County.

Estimated contract price: $1,000,000 Pre-Bid: August 31, 2016 at 11am, 401 Fifth Ave, 3rd floor, Bidding room, Seattle, WA 98104.

A site tour is not scheduled. A conference line has been set-up at 206-263-8114, conference ID#659238

There is a 5% minimum requirement for King County Certified Small Contractors and Suppliers (SCS) on this contract.

Complete Invitation to Bid Documents, including all project details, specifications, and contact information are available on our web page at: https://procurement.kingcounty.gov/ procurement_ovr/default.aspx

northwest

12

AUGUST 27 – SEPTEMBER 2, 2016

GENKI SUSHI from 4 Genki Sushi was ordered to close its 10 restaurants on Oahu and one on Kauai, said Peter Oshiro, Hawaii State Department of Health sanitation branch chief. The restaurants must dispose of their food supply and disposable items like cups and napkins and disinfect the facilities before they reopen.

On Aug. 15, the department identified imported frozen scallops served raw at the restaurants as the source of the outbreak, which has sickened 168 people so far. The disease can cause fever, loss of appetite, nausea and other ailments.

The department said the tainted product is called “Sea Port Bay Scallops’’ distributed by Koha Oriental Foods. The box says the scallops are from the Philippines.

U.S. Food and Drug Administration spokeswoman Lauren Sucher said the agency is working to confirm the source.

People can contract the virus by eating contaminated food, drinking contaminated water, close personal contact or sex.

Oshiro praised Genki Sushi for being a “good partner’’ in its investigation into the source of the outbreak. He said the

company hasn’t tried to hide any information and showed authorities invoices and distribution records.

The company immediately complied with the department’s order, said Mary Hansen, Genki Sushi USA chief administrative officer.

“We continue to work with the Department of Health to ensure we’re in compliance so we can reopen our restaurants as soon as possible,’’ she said.

Genki Sushi patrons select their sushi items by taking them off a conveyor belt that moves around tables and counters. Its Maui restaurant in Lahaina and another on the Big Island are not being ordered to close because state health authorities have not verified that shipments of the raw scallops were delivered there.

The state health department first announced the hepatitis A outbreak on July 1, but it struggled to identify the source because of the disease’s long incubation period. It’s been difficult for those infected to remember everything they ate and all the people they had contact with.

Dr. Sarah Park, the state’s epidemiologist, said one key piece of information was that 70 percent of those infected

KIKUCHI from 9

BRUCE from 9

had only one guide, one rule, before hitting the keys: A note taped near the keyboard reading, “Play slower. I sound better when I play slower.”

And he played mostly slower, although he understood the dictum that the first law of all art is contrast. So along with slow sections, he threw in contrasts between chords, dying away to silence, and rapid runs. He let the pieces build along their own internal logic, and at this point in his artistry, he did not much care about accessibility, or any preconceptions about his work. He poured in energy and passion, when those spirits seized him.

But he let notes, and chords, die away until you can almost hear the stage, and the audience, pushing in, without sound, to fill that space he left. And he moaned, too, along with his own piano lines, communing with himself, leaving distinct, sometimes annoying, but impossible-to-remove counterpoints.

By this point, Kikuchi was having trouble getting work, largely because he could not or would not conform to what anyone else wanted to hear. With Peacock, drummer Paul Motian, and sometimes others, he’d turn standards inside out onstage and in the studio, laying aside the familiar melodies, then the familiar chord changes, then the generally-agreed upon substitute chord changes. Standards as non-standard as a few men working together could make them.

Then, with a final flourish, a final creative step, he tossed aside all connection to what came before. 

and leadership program for youth) to find community outside of her predominantly white high school, Yip said the positive experience prompted her to go back and find the “Asian part” of herself. Now, she can’t get enough of Asian American politics and history.

The Do You Know Bruce? exhibition at Wing Luke is part 2 in a three-part series on Bruce Lee’s life. It closes on Sep. 4. The exhibit focuses on Lee’s impact in the media and film industry, how he defied stereotypes, broke barriers, and transformed media perceptions by playing roles of real people rather than of Chinese male caricatures.

The exhibit also features Lee’s famous one-inch punch. Visitors can test and measure the G-force of their own one-inch punches. Part 3 of its series, “Day in the Life of Bruce Lee” is coming out on Oct. 1. This installment takes a more personal

Andrew can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

34 YEARS

INTERRACIAL from 8 relationships and about their own willingness to have an interracial romance. The participants overall showed high levels of acceptance and low levels of disgust about interracial relationships, and pointed to a strong negative correlation between the two.

In the second experiment, the researchers showed 19 undergraduate students wedding and engagement photos of 200 interracial and same-race couples

had eaten at Genki Sushi, but only 22 to 23 percent of those who replied to a department survey had. She said health officials didn’t get a response like that for any other restaurant, food chain or grocery store.

Park said the department is concerned the scallops may have been served or distributed to places other than Genki Sushi because a small number of patients say they didn’t eat at the chain. Park said the distributor said it only provided the scallops to the Genki Sushi.

Park said the health department has notified other U.S. health agencies so doctors around the country can consider travel history to Hawaii if their patients report hepatitis A symptoms.

Attorneys for an Oahu resident, Brant Mauk, filed a lawsuit on Aug. 16 against Genki Sushi and Koha Oriental Foods alleging negligence and seeking damages. Hansen said Genki Sushi hadn’t seen the lawsuit and didn’t have any comment. A voicemail message left for Koha Oriental Foods wasn’t immediately returned. 

Photo by Han Bui/NWAW

asianweekly

Bruce Lee souvenirs from Wing Luke’s display window.

look at Bruce Lee, with information gathered from his family and friends about his personal routines and habits. 

Kirara can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

while recording their neural activity. The researchers asked the students to quickly indicate whether each couple should be included in a future study on relationships, a task that was intended to ensure participants were socially evaluating the couples while their neural activity was recorded.

Participants responded faster to images of same-race couples and selected them more often for inclusion in the study. More significantly, Skinner said, participants showed higher levels of activation in the insula — an area of the brain routinely implicated in the perception and experience of disgust — while viewing images of interracial couples.

“That indicates that viewing images of interracial couples evokes disgust at a neural level,” Skinner said.

As with all neuroscience studies, Skinner said, it is impossible to be certain whether the insula activation reflected a disgust response, since the insula is sometimes responsive to other emotions. But in combination with the other experiments, the authors believe it is evidence of a neural disgust response.

Lastly, the researchers used an implicit association test, used to measure attitudes and beliefs people may be unwilling to acknowledge, to gauge whether feeling disgusted would impact more than 200 participants’ feelings about interracial couples. One group was first shown a series of disgusting images (a dirty toilet, a person vomiting), while the other was shown pleasant images of cityscapes and nature.

During the implicit association test, the two groups were tasked with categorizing photographs of same-race and interracial couples and silhouettes of humans and animals. They were first instructed to press one computer key if the image

showed an animal silhouette or a mixedrace couple, and another key if it was a human silhouette or a same-race couple.

Then the combinations were switched — participants were told to hit one key if the image was an animal silhouette or a samerace couple, and the other key if it was a human silhouette or mixed-race couple.

Participants were quicker to associate interracial couples with non-human animals and same-race couples with humans. That suggests that interracial couples are more likely to be dehumanized than same-race couples, the researchers write, and previous studies have shown that people tend to exhibit more antisocial behavior and are more likely to use aggression and even violence toward dehumanized targets.

Taken together, the experiments show that despite high levels of reported acceptance, bias against mixed-race couples persists in the United States, the researchers say. In 2013, they note, Washington Post columnist Richard Cohen caused a furor when he wrote that New York Mayor Bill de Blasio’s interracial marriage incited “a gag reflex” among some people, prompting the Post to write a follow-up story about the controversy.

Such sentiments, Skinner said, belie the notion that most Americans are ready to embrace mixed-race romance.

“Some people are still not comfortable with interracial relationships, or at least they’re a lot less comfortable than they would appear to be,” she said.

“Acknowledging these biases is the first step to figuring out why people feel that way and determining what can be done so they won’t.”  For more information, contact Skinner at 206-685-1310 or skinna2@uw.edu.

HOUSING from 1 produce and preserve 2,150 affordable homes, reinvest in 350 affordable homes, and support operations for 510 affordable homes.

Seattle Chinatown/International District Preservation and Development Authority (SCIDpda) Executive Director Maiko Winkler-Chin Director Maiko said, “I can say for Executive Winkler-Chin the levy-funded units in this neighborhood, we have a very high percentage of APIs living in the units, higher probably than the percentage of APIs from the last census for our neighborhoods.”

In 2014, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders made up about 12 percent of the residents living in city-funded buildings, and Seattle served 13,457 households.

“Our members, including InterIm CDA and SCIDpda, are all trying to better meet the needs of our low-income residents and build housing for them,” Rider said. “We Kelly Rider, Government Relations & Policy are a nonprofit, Director membership organization of people doing work to build affordable housing and to serve low-income residents’ housing needs across King County.”

The levy provides short-term loans to preserve existing affordable housing. She said, “This would provide an opportunity for nonprofit developers or others to buy the building quickly before it gets turned over to a market-rate developer that’s going to jack up the rents and displace those tenants so that we can make sure that

AUGUST 27 – SEPTEMBER 2, 2016 those residents are able to stay in their community.”

The passage of the Seattle Housing Levy also makes loans available for 280 low-income, first-time buyers, as well as short-term rent assistance and services to 4,500 individuals, including victims of domestic violence, and families who are at risk of becoming homeless or evicted.

Rider said, “And a lot of our families need three and four bedrooms in order to be able to serve their households, particularly if you think of multi-generational families.”

“As residents are paying off their mortgages or they’re paying back their down payment assistance, they’re able to put that money back into the levy to be able to use for another family,” she said. “That’s another smaller portion but still incredibly important particularly for some of our communities of color that have been unable to access home ownership opportunities in the past.”

In addition to working with East King County affordable housing providers, the Housing Development Consortium of Seattle-King County is currently working on 64 other recommendations, all from a Housing Affordability and Livability Agenda Advisory Committee created by Murray and the City Council in 2014.

“We’re hoping that residents across the region will step up to voice the importance of those other strategies and their interests in addressing affordable housing with other strategies with their city elected reps, their county elected reps, their state elected reps, so that everybody hears the strong voice that we heard on election night,” Rider said.  For more information about the City of Seattle’s Proposition No. 1, go to yesforhomes.com.

James Tabafunda can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

asianweekly northwest

13

WUDANG from 7

Photo by Ron Smothermon.

YOUR VOICE

Mr. Chang (2nd from left) and Dr. Lu (left) bow to each other before the ceremony begins.

with several demonstrations of the school’s martial art styles performed by chief instructors and a number of their students.

At Wudang, martial arts provide not only a means of self-defense, but can also promote a state of well-being for their practitioner.

“Martial arts don’t always involve getting into physical fights,” said Rick Ching, president of the Washington Chinese Cultural Association and guest at the ceremony. “But sometimes it means fighting battles in our minds.”

The academy teaches a variety of styles within the Wudang martial arts system, including the martial arts systems of Xingyiquan, Baguazhang, and Taijiquan, along with Wudang Sword. The name Wudang is derived from the Wudang mountains in China. In most cases, several lineages are taught of the same system because of Master Chang and Dr. Lu’s vast experience in their field.

Eight Chinese symbols adorn the walls of the Wudang Academy: He (harmony), yong (courage), ren (compassion), zhi (wisdom), heng (perseverance), zhong (loyalty), jing (respect), and qian (humility). It is these principles that students and instructors live by at the academy, in accordance to Daoist principles of harmony and respect for life.

“No matter how hard we work, we must have support if we are to share our traditions and culture,” Lu said. “From martial arts training, we learn to be humble, patient,

perseverant, respectful, disciplined, brave, compassionate and how to get along with ourselves and others.”

Daoist philosophy values the balance between the development of physical strength as well as calming the mind and relaxing the body. According to Lu, Daoism can be practiced as a philosophy as much as a religion.

“The basic tenets [of Daoism] are seeking void and tranquil mindset, using non-action to deal with troubling situations, keeping your mind and heart clear and quiet,” Lu said. “In addition, trying to be as soft as water and follow the nature of everything instead of confronting against it.”

Daoists worship many gods, goddesses, and immortals. They were transformed from people who made tremendous contributions to the human society, according to traditions of the late Han Dynasty of ancient China. The academy, however, encourages its students to retain their own religious and cultural traditions as well.

Lu believes that martial art practitioners can find a whole new meaning in the martial arts as a way of life.

“Once you find the feeling, [the martial arts] becomes a part of you,” Lu said. “You will never want to give up on it!”  Tim can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

asianweekly northwest

14

AUGUST 27 – SEPTEMBER 2, 2016

MITSUI from 1 to the chancellor position in Seattle Colleges system. The 19th largest community college system in the nation, PCC’s budget is twice as large as Seattle Colleges’.

Prior to serving as president of North Seattle College and vice president for South Seattle College, Mitsui was deputy assistant secretary for Community Colleges in Washington D.C. since 2013, within the Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education for the U.S. Department of Education. His job was to advance President Obama’s community college agenda through partnerships with numerous federal agencies and national stakeholders.

Mitsui lost his bid for the Seattle College chancellor job

34 YEARS

in April to Dr. Shouan Pan. He got the PCC job offer in late July, beating two other finalists. The PCC board of directors had voted unanimously for Mitsui, citing his transformative leadership and strategic thinking.

“The Board of Directors was tremendously impressed

by President Mitsui’s passion for the transformative power of community colleges, and by his clear understanding of PCC’s complex environment,” said Gene Pitts, the chairman of the PCC Board of Directors.

“He brings demonstrated strengths as a strategic thinker and transparent decision-maker, and he is a passionate advocate for social justice and inclusion. Coupled with his wealth of regional and national connections, President Mitsui is a natural fit for PCC and one who we believe will

benefit the students and communities we serve,” said Pitts.

Mitsui is now in Portland. He was not available for comment.

Mitsui holds a bachelor’s degree in Physical Education from Western Washington University. He has pursued doctoral studies in Educational Leadership and Policy at the University of Washington, where he earned his master’s degree.

Founded in 1961, PCC has eight workforce training and educational centers in addition to four campuses.  Assunta can be reached at assunta@nwasianweekly.com.

Solution

YUANHUI from 5 admiration — that Fu had shared such an intimate matter but also that she swam while menstruating. Said one blogger: “If her candor can dispel the thought in some people’s minds that menstruation is dirty, then her act is worth applause.’’

In China, menstruation is considered an off-limits topic of conversation, a reflection of conservative views about women’s bodies and sex. “It’s an issue stemming from demonizing sex,’’ said one woman on the Chinese question-and-answer internet site Zhihu. “Therefore, a well-educated girl should not think about anything related to sex.’’

There is also a long-held notion in China that women should not engage in exercise during menstruation. Girls are excused from physical education class at school and warned about taking showers, drinking cold water and eating raw fish during

one’s period. Immersion in water, the stories go, may cause infection.

And because tampons are unusual in the communist nation — there is a belief they can compromise the virginity of unmarried women — the idea that someone could swim during that time of the month is entirely novel.

Such ideas, while wrong, are something all women endure in China, said Wang Yuling, a gynecologist in Shanghai Huangpu District Health Center for Women and Children.

“If you have so many limitations during the period,’’ Wang said, “you could waste one-sixth of the year by thinking in this way.’’

Fu, a bronze medal winner in the 100-meter backstroke, is just one of several athletes on the Chinese team breaking ground by breaking from the typical on-message style common with past Chinese Olympic squads. 

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■ astrology

AUGUST 27 – SEPTEMBER 2, 2016

asianweekly northwest

15

Predictions and advice for the week of August 27–September 2

By Sun Lee Chang Rat — There is a fine line between helping and taking over. You must discern when it is appropriate to take a step back.

Dragon — Are you experiencing something outside your comfort zone? Use it as an opportunity to expand your horizons.

Monkey — If you enjoy standing out from the crowd, then this is your week to shine. Just remember to take it all in stride.

Ox — Invest some time searching out other alternatives. As you broaden your options, you will have a better chance at finding something you like.

Snake — A sour note need not ruin the rest of the song. Even with a few stumbles at the beginning, you can still finish strong.

Rooster — While it is important to appreciate the different approaches, you should adopt only the one that fits your needs.

Tiger — Instead of turning inward, you have decided to reach out. To your surprise, that action is then reciprocated in kind.

Horse — Pay attention to what you keep going back to. That which you thought was far away is probably closer than you think.

Dog — Things are falling in line much smoother than you expected. However, there is still a ways to go before it is all said and done.

Rabbit — As a new dynamic takes shape, you find that your place in the order of things is different from what it once was.

Goat — Although a lot is going on around you, your ability to focus should help you to steer a steady course.

Pig — In the mood to try something new? Let your adventurous spirit take you in a direction that you have not traveled before.

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, 2016 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.

Photos by Dr. A. Chauvet

ZIMBABWE from 8

They call these beautiful sable antelopes “The Pride of Zimbabwe.”

homes. And sometimes right in our camp.

I was born in Hong Kong and never had a dog or cat, so all this animal stuff is new to me. When my partner and I travel, we usually visit places with a rich combination of history, culture, scenery, and great food. While a safari sounded intriguing when we first started talking about it two years ago, I had mixed feelings getting ready for this trip. I was worried about how comfortable I’d be in a tent and that I’d get bored watching wildlife. But our friends raved about safaris in South Africa, Kenya, and Tanzania. So I thought we should give it a try. If we stick only with what’s familiar, what’s the point?

In early planning discussions, we agreed that we’d like to see Victoria Falls in southern Africa. That narrowed our decision down to four countries near the falls, which included Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, or Zimbabwe. A friend based in Zambia recommended talking with his travel agent, Butterfly Bishop of Africa Fusion Travel (africanfusiontravel.com).

Butterfly was fantastic! She grew up in the region, knows all the parks and safari operators, and was happy to work through different itineraries. Butterfly had just returned from Zimbabwe and was enthusiastic. Because Zimbabwe’s government gets a lot of bad press, tourism is down. Butterfly told us that the operators there would be very welcoming, that we would seldom see another jeep during bush drives, that the quality of the camps and the guides was excellent, and that the country represents great value compared to its neighbors. After one visit to the Imvelo Safari Lodges website (imvelosafarilodges. com) — the company she recommended — we were sold!

light, was gorgeous and fascinating. We passed a pond full of hippos, languidly leaving the water as the sun grew less intense. Later on, a family of nine elephants came to drink from the pond next to the lodge. Baboons and vervet monkeys were all around, so we had to keep the doors closed and windows zipped shut or things would disappear. We weren’t allowed to walk alone from the lodge to our tent at night. We’d always be accompanied by staff who knew what to do if an elephant happened to be camped in front of the door. They advised, “You wait.”

Scott and I haven’t been camping in ages, it’s just not our thing. So the bit about sleeping in a tent was worrisome.

Would there be hyenas and big cats sniffing at us through the canvas? What about scorpions and snakes?

It turns out that the tents at Bomani are on platforms four feet off the ground, with 10-foot ceilings, attached bathrooms, and electricity, at least when the generator is on. July is winter south of the equator, and it was nippy in the morning — we could see our breath. But the big bed had heavy comforters, and every evening, the staff slipped hot water bottles under the covers. Nice touch! In the morning, we’d bolt out of bed and get dressed immediately. It was too cold to shower, so we waited until it warmed up in the afternoon. The chilly evenings meant that there weren’t any mosquitoes or other buggy pests, and that was a blessing.

Many Imvelo staff come from nearby villages — that’s one of the ways the company gives back to the community. These are people who have grown up surrounded by the animals we’ve come to see — they know their stuff. Zimbabwe-trained guides are true experts, and are famous throughout the region.

A day at Bomani went something like this. We were up for a light breakfast at 6:30 or 7. Campfire coffee really tastes great when you’re still shivering and just out of bed! Then we climbed into open jeeps for game drives, though twice we opted instead for a game walk with a rifle-toting guide.

A few hours later, we were back in camp for a hot, generous brunch. After a few hours relaxing or reading, they called us for tea and snacks, then another drive. Drives can continue after dusk, and become night safaris — we shined flashlights into the bush to look for reflections from beastly eyes. One time I saw two, then suddenly there were 20 white discs glaring back at me — a herd of buffalo, getting ready to bed down.

Spooky and exciting!

Riding the Elephant Express

Zimbabwe is a long, long way from Seattle. Following a grueling, 30-hour door-to-door trip, we landed in the tiny town of Victoria Falls. The next morning, we left for our first bush camp. Bomani Tented Lodge is next to an extensive, wildlife-packed national park called Hwange, famous for its booming elephant population. Half the trip was by minibus, then we reached a small train station where we shifted to “The Elephant Express,” the tour company’s private, single car locomotive. The rail trip takes about two and a half hours, unless there are animals. The engineer would stop, so we could ohh, ahh, and take pictures. We smiled at the cautionary “elephant crossing” signs along the route. For us, it was a placid giraffe, ambling slowly over the tracks, that brought the train to a halt. We loved it!

Suddenly, we stopped in the middle of nowhere, five minutes from Bomani. The drive into camp, in the late afternoon

Surprises and sundowners

Some game drives started out a bit disappointing. We

We drove around the bend and, suddenly, a giraffe!

cruised the bush roads and spotted only common animals, like impalas. But that never lasted long. At any moment, we would come face to face with a group of male giraffes, warthogs, sable antelopes, or elephants. In Hwange, we found two of the “big five” game animals — African elephants and Southern Cape buffaloes. As for the other three, we would see lions later in Zambezi National Park, but we didn’t spot any leopards (they’re elusive) or rhinos (they live only in parks in the southern part of the country). We encountered a lot of other game, though, and learned to love those drives.

The second morning at Bomani, Daba, our guide, noticed a flock of vultures near the railroad tracks — we headed over at once to investigate. A wildebeest had been hit by a cargo train the night before. When we arrived, two jackals were sparring with a heaving mass of vultures, both species trying to strip every bit of meat. Hours later, only skin and bones were left.

And when we returned after dark, we saw hyenas fighting over that. The next morning, everything had been dragged away — even the bones — it was like nothing had happened.

Photo by D. Dube

The lions were interested in us, but fortunately didn’t approach the car.

Clever guides find the best places to watch the sunset, and they serve snacks too!

Every day at sunset, the guides organized a special treat — what folks in the region call a “sundowner.” It’s cocktail hour in an awesome location, usually with a view of the brilliant African sky and spectacular sunset. The guide and driver would set up a mini-bar featuring South African wines, local beer, and any liquor we requested before heading out (we found gin and tonics to be especially nice served on the hood of a jeep). There was always a tray of homemade appetizers too, both meat and veggies. We really miss sundowners!  Next week, the thundering Victoria Falls, lions, and crocodile croquettes.

asianweekly northwest

16

AUGUST 27 – SEPTEMBER 2, 2016

OLYMPICS from 1 Pyeongchang, South Korea, the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics and the 2022 Beijing Winter Games: All three countries have hosted the Olympics before and enjoy a shared reputation for prosperity and a deft hand at organizing major events.

Pyeongchang 2018: sleepy location divided over cost

Pyeongchang, a sleepy ski resort town in South Korea’s mountainous east, is the smallest of the Asian hosts, and hopes to use the 2018 Winter Games to position itself as a major Asian winter sports destination.

However, preparations for Pyeongchang 2018 have been noticeably less smooth than when Seoul hosted the Summer Games in 1988. Organizers are struggling with construction delays, local conflicts over venue construction and difficulties attracting domestic sponsorships. Such problems were easily avoided 30 years ago when the country’s then-military dictatorship steamrolled any opposition.

Even so, six new competition venues are about 80 percent complete, and a new highspeed rail line, designed to link the country’s main gateway of Incheon airport with Pyeongchang in 90 minutes, will be up and running by January 2018.

Despite a slow start, organizers say 90 percent of the domestic sponsorship target of $760 million will be met at the end of the year, when another round of test events will begin at Olympic venues.

If the 1988 Summer Olympics marked the nation’s arrival on the world stage as a modern industrialized economy and fully fledged democracy, the significance of the Pyeongchang games for South Korea is harder to pinpoint. The country is currently ranked the world’s 11th largest economy by the International Monetary Fund and boasts a remarkable level of political stability despite the threat from communist North Korea.

There is little obvious craving among the public for the recognition that large sports events bring.

Excitement for the games has been tempered by concerns over the enormous costs involved, both for preparing and staging the games and for maintaining the new facilities that might find little use once the party leaves town.

Gangwon province, which governs Pyeongchang and drove the efforts to win the games, has quarreled with the central government over who should pay the Olympic bills, which are now estimated at nearly $12 billion. The government has been eager to save money but failed to convince Pyeongchang organizers and area residents to move some competitions and the opening

and closing ceremonies to existing stadiums in other cities.

Generating buzz is also a challenge because South Korea does not have a large footing in winter sports. While the country is competitive in speed skating, it remains a virtual unknown in skiing, snowboarding and ice hockey. It had an iconic winter sports figure in Olympic figure skating champion Kim Yu-na, but she has retired and is involved with Pyeongchang only as an honorary ambassador.

Yet optimists say the Olympics will bring much-needed infrastructure to one of South Korea’s less-developed regions, which could become a winter sports destination for Asian tourists.

“Pyeongchang is not all green lights at this point. It will be and it’s a very able country,” IOC member Dick Pound of Canada said recently when asked if the IOC can relax now that Rio is out of the way and the three Asian cities are next.

Tokyo 2020: reliable provider despite early hiccups

Ballooning costs remain an issue: Japanese media in December put the figure at about $18 billion, although organizers have not confirmed that. Newly elected Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike has pledged to rein in costs, writing in a recent newspaper column that her team must become world-class cost accountants so that the Olympics do not hobble future generations with debt and mar Tokyo’s skyline with white elephants.

Some events have already been moved to existing facilities in the suburbs to avoid the cost of building new ones. The competition sites are spread around Tokyo and the surrounding area, rather than being in Olympic parks.

“It’s going to need a lot of careful planning to get people from venue to venue,” said IOC Vice President John Coates. “It’s a more complex situation than Rio. On the positive side they have a very good transport infrastructure that connects all parts of the city. I think they’re up for it, no worry about that, but you can’t say it’s going be easy.”

And then there’s the heat. Tokyo in August is famously hot and humid, similar to Washington, D.C., and organizers are busy devising ways to keep athletes and fans cool.

The 1964 Tokyo Games were held in October.

Beijing 2022: expertise but no snow

Tokyo was clearly the most reassuring choice when it was selected over Istanbul and Madrid in 2013 for the 2020 Summer Games.

Japan’s capital city even billed itself as a “safe pair of hands” at a time of global unrest and economic turmoil.

Spain was still wrestling with the aftershocks of the previous decade’s financial crisis, and Turkey with political unrest and the effects of the conflict in neighboring Syria. Also weighing on the minds of International Olympic Committee members were mounting concerns about construction delays in Rio, and security and astronomical cost overruns for the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, Russia.

The IOC opted to play it safe and go with a rich country with strong corporate sponsor support.

That doesn’t mean there have not been major hiccups. Last summer, spiraling construction costs drove the government to scrap a futuristic plan by the late worldrenowned architect Zaha Hadid for the main Olympic Stadium, raising concerns a new design might not be ready in time. Then the logo chosen for the Tokyo Games was ditched after plagiarism allegations.

But Tokyo has the advantage of being a city that is in most senses already complete. There is no mad rush to build subway lines, or, as for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, elevated highways to unsnarl traffic. It is also one of the safest major cities in the world.

Japan hopes the Olympics will boost tourism and the economy, as well as show off the country’s technology, from driverless cars to super-sharp 8K television.

Handing the 2022 Winter Olympics to China’s capital Beijing was arguably one of the IOC’s most pragmatic decisions.

When the time came to vote, the pool of candidates had been reduced to just two: Beijing and Almaty, the capital of

34 YEARS the landlocked Central Asian nation of Kazakhstan, which had never hosted an event on such a scale and whose dependence on hydrocarbon exports was a worry.

Beijing, meanwhile, could skate on its record of hosting the highly praised 2008 Summer Olympics that equipped it with almost all the facilities needed to stage the indoor events for the Winter Games, such as ice hockey and figure skating.

That allowed the bid organizers to cater to IOC Chairman Thomas Bach’s drive for lower coasts and greater sustainability after the scandal over the $51 billion overall price tag associated with Sochi. Beijing estimates the total cost for operations and infrastructure at just $3 billion, while robust economic projections ensure strong support from the government and domestic sponsors.

In keeping with the theme of re-use, the Beijing Games organizing committee’s new offices are located in former iron ore storage silos at the former Capital Iron and Steel Works’ sprawling factory site in the capital’s western suburbs.

The Beijing Games have not been without their controversies, chief among them the lack of steep mountains and natural snowfall in the area directly surrounding the typically bone-dry capital. That has required organizers to locate some of the skiing events in the adjacent province of Hebei, with travel eased by new high-speed rail links.

Beijing’s heavy winter air pollution is also a concern, although city planners say the closure of factories and retirement of smokespewing vehicles will help. And while China’s ruling Communist Party continues to silence its opponents and repress Tibetans and other minorities, human rights do not appear to be a major factor in the run-up to the games, just as they were mostly cast aside during the 2008 events.

Although China does not have much of a Winter Olympics tradition, organizers have touted the event as a driving force for public participation in hockey, skiing and other winter sports. 