VOL 41 NO 44 | OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2022

Why do immigrants need to engage in politics?

The mass exodus from Chinatown: Businesses finally break their silence

By Mahlon Meyer NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

For a Filipino family of four living in Washington state, getting involved in politics was the last thing on their minds. The mother was in the hospital with a brain tumor. The father, who had been doing business here for 10 years, was counting on an immigration lawyer to clear their hurdles and get them citizenship. But the attorney fell

through. And the immigration bureau vowed to deport the family, “even if they had to carry the mother out from the hospital,” according to Ellen Abellera, an advocate who assisted the family.

The subsequent political lobbying that the family was able to do, with the help of Abellera, who at the time was the chair of the Washington State Commission on Asian Pacific American Affairs, can

Young voters of color make a difference in local and national elections

By Kai Curry NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

With the November primary right around the corner, efforts to engage voters of all ages are in full gear in King County and around the country. Particular focus in recent years has been on those of voting age among underrepresented communities and youth of color. King County Elections’ language access and outreach coordinator, KC Jung, does not predict a decline, though, in the number of voters showing up this year. 2020 was a record year for voting, in spite of COVID-19, and she has seen a steady increase in turnout since she joined the office in 2016.

“Especially in underserved communities, their interest…is increasing,” Jung said. She attributes this in part to King County Elections’ cooperation with the Seattle Foundation to form the Voter Education Fund. Nonprofit, nonpartisan organizations may apply to receive funds for voter

By Assunta Ng NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

This may be the worst year for Chinatown businesses since the pandemic. From July to September, three big retailers, Starbucks, Bartell Drugs, and Viet-Wah Food Market, closed their doors in Chinatown. About 19 businesses have exited from the area either by shutting down, moving away, or suspending indefinitely. (These numbers don’t include those that closed early in the pandemic, pre2022.) And the list is growing…

Within the Chinatown-International District (CID), the Little Saigon neighborhood was hit the hardest in terms of crime, shootings, and homelessness affecting business operations. Nine Little Saigon businesses have been discontinued. Beyond Viet-Wah, Little Saigon

Deli, Shabu Shabu Hot Pot, Ten Leaves Bistro, Hue Ky Mi Gia, Sushi Place, Hardwok Cafe, and Seven Stars Pepper have ceased operations. Fashion Hair Salon has just announced it will close after Oct. 31. Many of these businesses have attributed their closures to local crimes and the homeless encampments in the area. Presently, there are about 15 homeless camps near CID. Since Mayor Bruce Harrell took office in January, his administration has tried to clean up Little Saigon with police patrols and cops checking in large gatherings around 12th Avenue South and South Jackson Street. But the homeless folks have now dispersed around 12th Avenue South and 10th Avenue South, as well as between South King Street and South Jackson Street to evade police patrols. Several

Two roads to voter outreach

By Mahlon Meyer NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

At a time when distrust of the democratic process has reached new heights within the Asian American and Pacific Islander

(AAPI) community, along with the rest of the population, two organizations within the community have adopted somewhat different approaches to voter education and registration.

see FAPAGOW

From left: Ellen Abellera, Consul Jed Liona, and Maricres Valdez at a consular outreach program in Mill Creek this month for the local Filipino American community

Photo from Ellen Abellera

FAPAGOW relies on the community to encourage voter registration. Top row (L to R) Dori Peralta Baker, Rick Polintan, Ellen Abellera, Dolores Sibonga, Third Andresen, Rogelio Gaerlan Batarao, Jr., Lara Mae D. Cholette, Davidson Mance. Bottom row (left to right), Brendan Borromeo, Maria Batayola, David Della, Zavic Batarao, Larry Alcantara, Michelle Wallig, Ador Pereda Yano.

The interior of Green Leaf Restaurant, pre-pandemic during livelier days, stands in sharp contrast to how Green Leaf looked in the last year, before it finally closed its doors for good

outreach to their communities. 20212022 grantees of this Fund, which is in its sixth year, include the Asian Counseling and Referral Service, the Refugee

Interior photo from Peter Kuang.

Photo by

Sora Shimazaki

Exterior photo by

Sen. Patty Murray’s surprise

By Assunta Ng NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

For the first time since 2017, Sen. Patty Murray made an in-person visit in Chinatown last Saturday. More than 30 community members welcomed her.

Lawson Wong, 23, a Chinatown-International District (CID) resident who met Murray for the first time, said, “We— the young, elderly, Black, white, Asian residents of the ChinatownInternational District—are honored to have 30-year incumbent Sen. Patty Murray visit our beloved community.” He and his wife are recent graduates who have decided to make the CID their home.

“I do think it was a good thing that she took time out of her busy schedule to come our way,” said CID resident Debbie Uno.

“We are honored that Sen. Patty Murray came to Chinatown,” said Tony Au, who was among several Asian community members who accompanied Murray’s visit from Hing Hay

Park to Tai Tung Restaurant and Eastern Cafe. “She’s warm and considerate. She’s been one of the most influential senators and Washington state’s best senator for the past 30 years.”

Elected in 1992, Murray is the third most powerful senator among the Senate Democrats. If re-elected on Nov. 8, she would start her 6th term for the Senate.

“I didn’t expect Sen. Murray to

know about my brother’s death and give her regards to our family [but she did],” said Harry Chan, owner of the Tai Tung Restaurant. The day before Murray’s visit was Tommy Quan’s funeral, Chan’s brother. Still in grief, Chan said he appreciated Murray’s visit and her kind words to him.

“Seattle’s International District is such an important and historic part of our city,” said Murray.

“I’m so glad I could meet with local small business owners and community members as I travel all across Washington to remind everyone to vote in this election. When the pandemic hit, I worked hard to secure funding to help our small businesses keep their doors open and their workers on payroll—not just because it was necessary for our economy, but because our local small businesses are the heart and soul of our communities.”

Hyeok Kim, former Seattle deputy mayor, and Rep. Sharon T. Santos were organizers of Murray’s CID tour. “Her (Murray’s) campaign wanted to have the senator stop by the CID to encourage people to vote and a chance for her to say hello to her supporters in the neighborhood,” said Kim.

“Sen. Patty Murray has been a longtime friend of the Chinatown-International District neighborhood, supporting our small businesses and our community-based nonprofits,” said Santos. “This was a good chance for her to see our continued community resilience in the face

of COVID, anti-Asian hate and violence, and existential threats posed by outside developments.”

Murray’s campaign staff said although she had not visited the community during the pandemic, she “had a lot of engagement virtually with CID businesses and leaders during and after the worst of the pandemic.”

Au said, “Murray takes care of our state and gets us funding for both businesses and nonprofit organizations.”

“I hope she wins the race,” said Uno, a Murray supporter. Many community members were snapping shots with Murray even though a few were Republicans. The CID visit was part of Murray’s campaign in the city. After her CID visit, she went to Seattle Center to join Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, who was in our state to campaign for Murray. 

See our pictorial on Sen. Murray’s visit on page 10.

Assunta Ng can be reached at assunta@nwasianweekly.com.

Sen. Patty Murray

Cafe

Photo by Assunta Ng/NWAW

CID protesters ask county for $20 million for past harms

By Mahlon Meyer NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

Standing before the councilmem bers, who sat in a row like judges, Kim Nguyen, a beauty school own er in the Chinatown-International District (CID), asked the one ques tion that might very well define past and present efforts of the Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) community to survive in this coun try.

“We are your people, aren’t we?” she asked.

Redressing harms

Nguyen was speaking at a King County Council budget meeting on Oct. 19 as part of a group of about 60 protesters from the CID asking, for the first time, for something back from the government, which they had supported with taxes and complied with as it harassed and persecuted them over centuries, with exclusion laws, redlining, and environmental injustice.

The protesters were asking for a $20 million investment fund for behavioral health services, economic recovery, and public safety.

In the wake of catastrophic damage to the CID, not only during the past century, but also as a result of a huge increase, in the past few years, in shootings, homicides, arson, rape, and assaults, community advocates were asking for the county to redress past harms and prevent further destruction.

“We’re coming to you. We want safety. We want clean streets. We want our businesses to prosper. We want our neighborhood to thrive. Magnolia has that, Laurelhurst has that, View Ridge has that, Madrona has that. All beautiful safe neighborhoods,” said Amy Chen Lozano. “The CID deserves that as well.”

A trial plan

It was a moment that had several precursors. The county had agreed to scrap plans to expand a megaplex homeless shelter on the border of the CID after months of protests by residents.

Community advocates said they were also inspired by a recent plan put forth by Deputy Mayor Greg Wong to provide more services to the CID on a trial basis for eight weeks. This would include directing officers from other parts of the city to the CID, increasing clean up services, and working to remove graffiti, according to Tanya Woo, a member of a work group with city and county officials.

In her remarks at the council meeting, Woo thanked the county for halting expansion of the homeless shelter, saying that there were already 20 shelters in a onemile radius of the CID.

Echoing comments of other protesters, she said the increase in crime was linked to those who

preyed on the homeless.

As one illustration of the difference between the CID and the rest of the city, she said that there was an average of one homicide a month in the CID, while in every other community in the city, it is one a year.

“Please don’t walk away from us, please help us,” she said.

The last of its kind

The request for an investment fund to provide grants to community organizations was a major step forward, said Woo, in a separate interview.

Culturally, Asian and Asian

American communities are not accustomed to be outspoken about their needs, she said.

“We’ve never asked for anything before,” she said.

Ronald Takaki, a fellow of the Society of American Historians, in his book, “A History of Asian Americans: Strangers from a Different Shore,” argues that because of their history of both being excluded from the mainstream through centuries of systemic racism and their more recent stereotype as a “model minority,” Asian Americans are uniquely positioned to question

Protesters wait outside to attend the King County Council budget meeting

Photo by Eugene Tagawa

Asian

midterm

State

U.S.

Patty

U.S. Congress-District

Suzan DelBene

U.S. Congress-District

Pramila Jayapal

U.S. Congress-District

Kim Schrier

U.S. Congress-District

Adam Smith

U.S. Congress-District

Marilyn Strickland

State Supreme Court Mary Yu Secretary of State Steve Hobbs

State Senate LD-27 Yasmin Trudeau

State Senate LD-34 Joe Nguyen

State Senate LD-45 Manka Dhingra

State Representative LD-1 Davina Duerr

County

State Representative LD-32 Cindy Ryu

State Representative LD-33 Mia Gregerson

State Representative LD-37 Sharon Tamiko Santos

State Representative LD-41 My-Linh Thai

State Representative LD-48 Vandana Slatter

Tomiko Santos

King County Prosecutor Leesa Manion

King County, West Electoral District,

Position

Kuljinder Dhillon

City

King County, West Electoral District, Judge Position

Gregg Hirakawa

City

Court of

NOW THROUGH 11/19/2022

VIRTUAL ART: BODIES OF LAND ANN LEDA SHAPIRO & HANAKO

ArtXchange Gallery,

First Ave S, Seattle Tuesday –Saturday, 11 AM –5:30

artxchange.org

NOW THROUGH 2/19/2023

EXHIBIT, “WE ARE CHANGING THE TIDE: COMMUNITY POWER FOR ENVIRONMENTAL

The Wing Luke Museum, 719 S. King St., Seattle

Thu-Sun, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. wingluke.org/we-are-changing-thetide

NOW THROUGH 1/15/2023

EXHIBIT: SRIJON CHOWDHURY: SAME OLD SONG

Frye Art Museum, 704 Terry Ave., Seattle Admission is free Wed-Sun: 11 a.m.-5 p.m.

NOW THROUGH 9/18/2023

RESISTERS: A LEGACY OF MOVEMENT FROM THE JAPANESE AMERICAN INCARCERATION

The Wing Luke Museum, 719 S. King St., Seattle

Thu-Sun, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. wingluke.org

29

KWA CELEBRATE 50TH JUBILEE

Hotel Murano Pavilion, Tacoma 5 p.m.

Tickets at kwacares.ejoinme.org/tickets

WALK FOR RECONCILIATION AGAINST RACISM

Union Station Tacoma

9:30 a.m.-2 p.m. RSVP at info@crpftacoma.org

COMMUNITY PAINT DAY TO RESTORE COLUMN ARTWORK ALONG JACKSON STREET

Jackson Street, Under I-5 900 S. King St., I-5 Underpass along Jackson Street/King Street, Seattle 10 a.m.-5 p.m. alex@urbanartworks.org 203-247-6883

NOV 2

CID WORKSHOP #1 — OPTIONS

Union Station, 401 S. Jackson St., Seattle

4:30-6:30 p.m.

RSVP to Phoebe Wu, phoebe.wu@soundtransit.org

STG PRESENTS MIYAVI Neumos, 925 E Pike St, Seattle 8 p.m. $28-$35 stgpresents.org

4 & 5

LIVE ART EVENT, DJ KOO X GRAFFITI ARTIST KOMA Baekjeong, 3000 184th St. SW Ste. 922, Lynnwood 6-10 p.m. 425-490-6328

5

FREE WORKSHOP, “DIVERSITY IN LAW ENFORCEMENT” Renton, WA 8:15 a.m.-3:30 p.m. RSVP required at rentonwa.gov/valleypolicecareers

THE ETHNIC HERITAGE COUNCIL OF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST TO ANNOUNCE THIS YEAR’S AWARD RECIPIENTS TO BE HONORED AT THE ANNUAL AWARDS CEREMONY & RECEPTION

MLK F.A.M.E. Community Center, 3201 E. Republican Street, Seattle 2-5 p.m. $35/ticket Tickets at https://bit.ly/3Meu3Rq

BUNKA NO HI, JAPANESE CULTURE DAY FESTIVAL

JCCCW, 1414 S. Weller St., Seattle 11 a.m.-5 pm jcccw.org

TERRI NAKAMURA, AUTHOR OF “BLOGGING IN INSTAGRAM”

11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. For zoom link, contact rotaryofseattleid@gmail.com

Buying a home may not be as out of reach as you think, even in this market

Here’s how you can achieve home ownership

By Yang Yang SR. HOME LENDING ADVISOR, JPMORGAN CHASE & CO.

Buying a home is one of the most important purchases you will make in your lifetime, and the pressure is mounting for those looking to buy right now, with home prices fluctuating and mortgage rates at their highest levels in over a decade.

While existing home sales have fallen month-over-month since the beginning of the year, prices still hit a record high above $400,000 in May, according to the National Association of Realtors, as low levels of housing inventory and supply chain constraints have created an affordability squeeze for homebuyers. Mortgage rates have nearly doubled in the last six months— from 3% in 2021 to close to 6% in 2022— making it increasingly challenging for many Americans to purchase a home, especially for those with limited income.

So, how do you know when you’re ready to buy a home? More importantly, how much home can you afford? We sat down with Yang Yang, Sr. Home Lending Advisor at Chase, to answer those questions and discuss what the current state of the market means for you and your family’s homebuying dreams.

Q: What are the main factors mortgage lenders look at when evaluating an application?

Yang Yang: When it comes to homeownership, your credit score and debtto-income ratio are major factors in the application process.

Your credit score is set based upon how you’ve used credit, or not used credit, in the past. Using credit responsibly, such as paying bills on time and having a low utilization rate will result in a higher score. Higher credit scores can help you qualify for the lowest interest rates. A score at 700 or above is generally considered good.

Additionally, lenders look at your debtto-income ratio. This is a simple equation of how much debt you have relative to how much money you make. Borrowers with a higher debt-to-income ratio are considered more risky while a lower debt-to-income ratio may allow you to qualify for the best rates on your home loan.

Q: What are some tips for improving your credit score?

YY: There are a number of things you can do to improve your credit score, starting with reviewing your credit reports to understand what might be working against you. You can also pay down your revolving credit and dispute any inaccuracies.

Additionally, there are services like Chase Credit Journey to help monitor and improve your credit score. Credit Journey monitors all of your accounts and alerts you to changes in your credit report that may impact your score. You’ll get an alert any time Chase sees new activity, including charges, account openings and credit inquiries. Chase will also notify you if there are changes in your credit usage, credit limits or balances. You don’t have to be a Chase customer to take advantage of Credit Journey.

Q: What are some factors that can affect the cost of a mortgage?

YY: There are several factors to consider when reviewing mortgage options including loan term, interest rate, and loan type. Potential homebuyers should contact a home

lending professional to understand and review the options available to them.

For example, there are two basic types of mortgage interest rates: fixed and adjustable. While adjustable rates are initially low, they can change over the course of a loan, so your mortgage payments may fluctuate. Loan term indicates how long you have to pay off the loan. Many homebuyers tend to opt for a 15year or 30-year mortgage, though other terms are available. A longer loan term generally means you’ll have lower monthly payments, but you’ll pay more in interest over the life of the loan. A shorter loan term may come with higher monthly payments, but you’ll likely pay much less in interest over time.

Q: What are the costs of homeownership beyond the monthly mortgage payment?

YY: People often think of the down payment and monthly mortgage, but buying and owning a home carries additional costs. Closing costs, for example, can amount to up to 3% or more of the final purchase price. Other factors that could add on to your monthly payments are property taxes, homeowner’s insurance, and homeowner’s association (HOA) fees. To get an idea of

what this may look like for you, use an affordability calculator.

While there is no way for a buyer to completely avoid paying these fees, there are ways to save on them. Some banks offer financial assistance for homebuyers. As an example, Chase’s Homebuyer Grant offers up to $5,000 that can be used toward a down payment or closing costs in eligible neighborhoods across the country. There may also be homeowners’ or down payment assistance offered in your city or state. Contact a Home Lending Advisor to learn about resources you may be eligible for.

For a deeper dive into this topic, our Beginner to Buyer podcast—episode three, “How Much Can I Afford?” is a great resource for prospective homebuyers to get answers to all their homebuying questions (chase.com/personal/mortgage/beginnerto-buyer). 

Learn more about the homebuying process by visiting chase.com/personal/mortgage/ home.

Sponsored content from JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Yang Yang

Indians embrace next U.K. prime minister, Sunak, as their own

By Sheikh Saaliq

NEW DELHI (AP) — The next

minister of the United Kingdom, Rishi Sunak, has embraced

— and on Monday, Oct. 24, people across the former British colony proudly celebrated his

Social media and TV channels in India were awash with congratulations for the 42-year-old Sunak, who is set to become the first person of color to lead Britain. The former Treasury chief was chosen by a governing Conservative Party desperate for a safe pair of hands to guide the country

economic and political turbulence.

For many Indians, who are celebrating Diwali, one of the most important Hindu festivals, it was a instance to say: He is one of our own.

“It is a moment of pride for India that the country which ruled us for many years has now a prime minister of Indian heritage,” said Manoj Garg, a New Delhi businessman.

Sunak’s grandparents hailed from Punjab state before the subcontinent was divided into two countries — India and Pakistan — after British rule ended in 1947. They moved to East Africa in the late 1930s before finally settling in the U.K.

in the 1960s. Sunak was born in 1980 in Southampton on England’s south coast. His ancestral link is not his only association with India. He is married to Akshata Murty, whose father is Indian billionaire N.R. Narayana Murthy, founder of tech giant Infosys.

In April 2022, it emerged that Murty, who owns a little less than a 1% stake in Infosys, did not pay U.K. taxes on her overseas income. The practice was legal, but it looked bad at a time when Sunak was raising taxes for millions of Britons as chancellor of the Exchequer.

Indian TV channels appeared star-struck by Sunak’s victory. Across the bottom of the screen on New Delhi Television ran the words: “Indian son rises over the empire.”

India Today news channel, meanwhile, took a jab at the U.K.’s economic and political turbulence, using the Hindi term for someone of Indian background: “Battered Britain gets ‘desi’ big boss.”

Last year, Indians celebrated Kamala Harris’s Indian heritage when she became U.S. vice president.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Sunak on Twitter and said he is looking forward to “working closely together on global issues.”

“Special Diwali wishes to ‘living bridge’ of UK Indians as we transform historic ties into modern partnership,” Modi wrote.

Some said Sunak’s selection was particularly special for the country with its recent celebration of 75 years of independence from British colonial rule.

“Today, as India celebrates Diwali in

its 75th year as an independent nation, the U.K. gets an Indian-origin Prime Minister. History comes full circle,” lawmaker Raghav Chadha tweeted.

Others celebrated Sunak as a “proud Hindu,” saying he did not shy away from embracing his faith and Indian culture. They shared videos on Twitter showing Sunak taking his oath of allegiance as a lawmaker in 2020 on the Hindu holy book Bhagavad Gita.

Other videos shared on Twitter showed Sunak praying to a cow, considered holy by Hindus, when he was running for Britain’s top job for the first time in August. In a Hindu ritual conducted in London, Sunak touched the cow’s feet while his wife offered carrots to it. Sunak also performed “aarti” in front of the cow — a Hindu ritual involving the waving of oil lamps.

Sunak has been public about his Indian origins — and his love for cricket. He has also talked about his abstinence from beef on religious grounds.

“I am thoroughly British, this is my home and my country, but my cultural heritage is Indian,” he told reporters in 2020.

Associated Press video journalist Shonal Ganguly contributed to this report.

Vote

Confidence.

Rishi Sunak

Save the CID Army

Leesa Manion, who is running for King County

raised over $10,000 at Joyale Restaurant on Oct. 18. About 180 people

James Wong and Cindy Li are the event organizers.

Photos by Assunta Ng

Voting is your most

Paid for by AARP

King County Council

Sen. Patty Murray visiting the CID in front of Hing Hay Park.

Sen. Patty Murray in the Eastern Hotel.

Allison Wong (center) sings the national anthem. Next to her are her father, James Wong (right) and Jimmy Matta from Burien City Council.

From left: Regina Choe, Leesa Manion, and James Wong

How to identify and avoid election misinformation

Rise in misinformation threatens to undermine voter trust and confidence

According to a recent Univer sity of Washington Center for an Informed Public poll, which surveyed voters in Washington state, 71% of respondents stated they trust the state’s vote-by-mail system. However, 23% of respon dents said their level of trust has decreased since the 2020 General Election. This is especially true among Latino and conservative voters.

This decrease in voter trust likely correlates with the increase in election misinformation.

Election misinformation comes in many forms, including—but not limited to—opinion essays disguised as news reports, falsified versions of stories from seemingly credible sources, anonymous social media posts, conspiracy theories portrayed as fact, and accusations of voter fraud that lack credible evidence. The goal of these misinformation campaigns is to confuse voters and undermine people’s trust and confidence in elections.

Misinformation works best when people do not know how

to recognize it. Using the tips below, you can identify and avoid misinformation and help your friends and family do the same. As a voter, you deserve to know the facts—and know how and where to find them.

How can you tell if you are looking at misinformation?

Check your reaction

News articles or posts with attention-grabbing headlines and

Photo by Edmond Dantès

usually intend to evoke an emotional reaction more than relay facts. If you find yourself becoming upset about something you are reading or watching, take these next steps.

Check the sources

Trustworthy media outlets will indicate where they get their information. Reliable sources can include government officials, researchers, reputable thought leaders, and acknowledged experts. If you cannot find sources, or if the sources are unreliable, you should question whether the information may be biased or even untrue.

Check other news providers

If you read an article or post or watch a video you think may be inaccurate, look elsewhere. For example, check reliably nonpartisan news sites such as the Associated Press or Reuters.

Check the author

Do a quick online search for the author of or person quoted in the story. Think about whether they have any reason to mislead you. Are they an expert in their field? Are they credible? Do they

By Kai Curry NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

The School for Good and Evil has got a problem with its curriculum. The school master is on a kind of permanent vacation, its teachers are uninspired, and its students are shallow and thoughtless (is that one thing?). The new movie on Netflix of the same title explores notions of good and evil through the tribulations of the School’s most recent recruits—Sophie (Sophia Anne Caruso) and Agatha (Sofia Wiley)—who force the School to look at its status quo.

The School was formed some hundreds or thousands

of years ago by twin brothers Rafal (“Evil”) and Rhian (“Good”). After eons of keeping the balance between these two forces, Evil/Rafal gets antsy for more power (of course, as “evil” does) and overcomes Rhian in a duel.

Kind of. All the viewer knows is that many years later, Rafal is gone, Rhian has lost his posh English accent and is played by Morpheus from “The Matrix,” and he is the pretty lazy head of the school.

Enter Sophie and Aggie, best friends who live in the Muggle, oh sorry, mundane town of Gavaldon. I don’t know if it’s important or not (I really don’t), but Sophie is white and considers herself “good” and

Aggie is Black and everyone in the town calls her a witch. Umkay. Both girls would love to get out of this humdrum life, but it’s Sophie who has the chutzpah to put a letter under the wishing tree begging to be taken away by the School, whose recruiting method is basically kidnapping, by a nasty rotting roc, no matter which side you’re on. Kinda like getting “sorted,” you get flown to the school and dumped into your respective “side”—you are either a “Never” or an “Ever”—as in, “happily [insert] after”—and there are NO MISTAKES. This is a movie full of twists

see GOOD AND EVIL on 17

Black Adam

Stop preaching to me, comic book movies!

By Kai Curry NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

When does justice become revenge? If someone kills your family, and you go after them, is that justice or revenge? Also, do you put them in prison or go for the whole “eye for an eye” thing and kill them?

The latter is what Black Adam prefers and boy, can he not stop getting roasted for it? “Black Adam,” the latest installment on the DC side of comic-books-turnedmovies, has too much moralizing, too many characters, and too much damn interrupting rock music.

I really hate how both DC and Marvel continually preach morals to us that they pass off as universal. As if a whole country such as, oh I don’t know, America is 100% down with them. For Marvel it’s invariably,

“I must save X person instead of the entire world,” while for DC it is, “Heroes do not kill.”

Everybody knows Black Adam’s iconic answer: “Well I do.”

I’m all for individuals having their own beliefs. I’m tired of being preached to. We all love an antihero like Black Adam, yet why do these mythical moralistic heroes still bombard us? Also, how about just showing us instead of telling us? The constant nagging dialogue, especially from Hawkman to Black Adam about how he needs to tow the line is just annoying and overdone.

“His darkness lets him do what heroes like you can’t,” defends Black Adam’s number two fan, Adrianna, who maybe is

see BLACK ADAM on 16

Thank you!

Our believed head of the family Tommy Quan passed away peacefully at the age of 88 on Sept, 23, 2022.

We were pleasantly surprised by the number of friends and relatives coming to his funeral. We thank you for your condolences and presence to bid him farewell.

We are grateful for the flowers, money for charities in memoriam of Tommy, cards and kind words from many of you, including Tai Tung long-time customers. We also like to thank the Northwest Asian Weekly and Seattle Chinese Post for publishing an article about Tommy Quan and his contributions in China on Oct. 8.

Tommy, a father, grandfather, great grandfather, brother and dear friend appreciated all your friendship and support during his lifetime. Forever, we are indebted to you.

— Family of Tommy Quan and Tai Tung Restaurant

Protesters at the meeting returned to this theme, even arguing that the Seattle CID is the last of its kind.

Matt Chan, a community advocate, said centuries of a unique space where commu nities of color mingled and learned to live side by side.

“We all were pushed to this area, and we made it work,” he said. “There’s nothing like this that exists anywhere in the coun try, not even in the world.”

“No good news”

Donald Liu, in urging the council to grant the investment fund, said he and his wife were both in their 80s but now no longer dared to go out at night.

Crime, vandalism, and harassment has increased so much that businesses remain boarded up and the Bartell drug store, where residents got prescriptions, has closed.

“We see drug addicts shooting up, home less people roaming around, mentally ill people shouting profanities,” he said.

“There’s no good news for business in the CID.”

Nguyen, the beauty shop owner, said there was an encampment of 300 unhoused people behind her building and described encounters in which some had exposed themselves to her young students, prompting their parents to force them to leave the school.

The failings of government

Takaki also argues that Asian Americans could play a unique role in reminding

America of its troubled history.

From the moment they started out on their protest walk to the King County Council chamber, the 60 odd protesters seemed, on some level, to be among the few in the region who were standing up to the failings of the government.

On a day when the air quality in Seattle was the worst in the world, residents gath ered in Hing Hay Park before commencing the 20-minute walk.

Woo and other organizers told the senior citizens joining them they should consider staying behind, and if they did come, to at least wear masks.

As they marched, the air was like “gunk,” said Woo. “I could feel it in my whole body,” she said.

Gary Lee, another organizer, described the air as “ugly brown.”

He said, “It was like breathing in smoke, it was nasty. I could feel it fully in my chest.”

When they arrived, Lozano described to councilmembers what she said were the reasons the senior citizens had decided to come.

“Our community is here because multiple government agencies have failed the CID, from the city to the county, to the state,” she said. “Did you know that every time we march here to speak to you, or to speak to the Seattle City Council, we have members who come who are in their 90s. This is not an easy walk for them. The city building has so many stairs, and yet they’re here every single time, because it matters.”

The Save CID members attended two more budget meetings on Oct. 25. One for Seattle City Council and the other King County Council. 

Mahlon can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

MISINFORMATION from 11

have any inherent biases? Are they even a real person? Finally, ask yourself: Is this information being paid for by a company, politician, advocacy organization, or other source with a strong bias? Is there evidence to support the claims they make? Do you feel you have enough information to fully understand the issue, or should you learn more?

Where can you go to learn more?

The Office of the Secretary of State’s elections website and its FAQ page offer comprehensive and accurate election information. Contact your local county elections office to learn more about elections and voting where you live. Also, follow #TrustedInfo2022 on Twitter. No matter where you go for the most accurate and reliable election information, remember that your vote matters. That’s why

“misinformants” are working hard to convince you to vote their way, or not vote at all. 

For more information, visit sos.wa.gov/elections. Also, view our YouTube video, “WA State 2022 Election Challenges with Steve Hobbs,” youtube.com/ watch?v=qEkk1EyJ0Qc

Predictions and advice for the week of October 29–November 4,

By Sun Lee Chang

Rat—Are you reluctant to give up a long-held role? Ready or not, it is time to switch gears.

Ox —Does everything seem to be happening all at once? Consider cutting back on what you are taking on.

Tiger—Letting go is essential to moving on. It can be hard initially, but there will be relief once you do.

Rabbit—Put the focus on where it needs to be. To be truly helpful, the result is key above intent.

1927, 1939,

Dragon—While saving money is important, be careful that it is not at the expense of giving up too much time.

Snake—A true original, you tend to stand out from the crowd. Don’t minimize what makes you special.

Horse—It takes more than a rocky road to stop you. For you, it is about the journey, not the destination.

Goat—Are you feeling silly today? There is no need to be serious all the time, so have a little fun.

Monkey—Put your trust in someone who deserves it. To do otherwise is to set yourself up for disappointment.

Rooster—There are some lessons that need not be experienced firsthand. Learn from someone else’s mistakes instead.

Dog—Devise a plan or course of action, but do be flexible enough to change it as the situation warrants.

Pig—Have a lot to do? Start with the hardest one. Once done, everything else will seem easy by comparison.

1973, 1985, 1997, 2009, 2021 TIGER 1914, 1926, 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998,

1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000, 2012 SNAKE

1995, 2007,

VOTERS

Women’s Alliance, and the Indian Association of Western Washington, which operates on the east side, in the Bellevue and Redmond area. According to Jung, the Fund is meant to be utilized primarily to reach voters who might have language barriers, voters of color, and members of other, underserved communities.

“Among those organizations, two or three, at least…are related to youth groups,” she told the Weekly. “They do door-to-door outreach…to let voters know that an election is coming,” and Jung’s office follows up with these nonprofits to make sure they are using the funds prop erly.

Of course, local nonprofits conduct voter outreach outside of this Fund. The Chinese Information and Services Center (CISC), for instance, reaches young voters who are parents with kids in their preschool and after-school programs. “We reach parents who may be in that age range,” say, up un til their 30s, explained Executive Director Michael Itti, “…about the importance of registering to vote and voting.” CISC has partnered with the City of Seattle “to ed ucate community members about the De mocracy Voucher Program,” said Itti. “We also encourage people to sign up for trans lated ballots that are available from King County Elections.”

Jung explained that King County Elec tions goes out to civic engagement classes at King County public high schools, where they do a presentation followed by voter registration. She granted that during the first waves of COVID-19, the office “went into panic mode” just like everyone else and because classes were shut down, so was the outreach. But recently, things have opened up. “King County and Washington state is mail-in voting,” Jung pointed out. “I don’t see that much difference. You are staying home anyway and we are mailing the ballot out. You can just mail it back.” Those ballots should be coming to your mailbox by Oct. 24 for the November elec tions.

Another strategy, next to engaging young voters where they live or work, is engaging them early. “If you have a habit to vote from a young age, then…you will turn out,” Jung assured. “You will grow up down the road to be a regular voter…

The habit from a young age is very import ant.” To this end, King County has a “Future Voters” program, wherein any young person with a permit or state-issued ID may pre-reg ister to vote at age 16 or 17. This year, if the person will be 18 when the general election hits, then he or she will be allowed to vote in the November primary. “If they have the ID, they can go to voter.votewa.gov and pre-reg ister,” said Jung. “As soon as they hit 18, we automatically mail out the ballot, if there is an election in their precinct.”

While Jung and her staff work to engage young voters locally, alongside King Coun ty nonprofits, nationally, organizations such as Rock the Vote strive to do the same. “In an age of disinformation and voter suppres sion efforts, we hope to make voting more accessible and empower young voters with the information they need to be voters,” said Rock the Vote spokesperson Charlie Bonner. “Knowledge is powerful, and it is empow ering to know things like how to register to vote and how to research what’s on your bal lot. We offer the tools to educate young and/ or first-time voters so they feel confident casting their ballots.” Along with Jung, Rock

the Vote acknowledges that young voters are more comfortable on the Internet than on pa per, so in 2001, they launched the “first-ever online voter registration tool,” and since then, have worked with “over 1,100 tech partners to make civic participation more accessible.”

Rock the Vote has also hooked into youth interest in online platforms to reach more po tential voters. “Most recently, we partnered with GameOn to offer 24/7 responses to questions about voting in the 2022 midterm elections through a bot on the Rock the Vote website,” Bonner said.

“We know that young people have a lot of political power. It’s why young people, espe cially young people of color, face some of the greatest voting suppression efforts by those already in power.” Bonner cited several ob stacles and “modes of disenfranchisement” of young voters of color, such as “polling lo cations being moved away from college cam puses, or further away from Black and brown neighborhoods,” and yet Rock the Vote con tinues to be hopeful that “young people recog nize the importance of voting in this midterm election.”

Young voters of color are more impactful

than they imagine. “Diverse representation in government makes a big difference,” said Itti. “Young people bring new perspectives and creative ideas to difficult challenges. When they vote, they shift the agenda and di alogue. They motivate their entire family to vote, which strengthens the community.” In many cases, parents might be hesitant to vote because of a language barrier, they don’t un derstand the process, or they remember that in their country, their vote did not matter.

“It’s different in the U.S.,” Jung insisted. She recalled that when she first came to the States from Korea, she too felt confused about the process. At that time, she couldn’t “explain or educate my kids” about voting. Voting out reach relies in large part on young people to get the word out. “If King County Elections educates young voters, they can go to their parents and educate them,” Jung said. “Your vote matters. Your voice matters…No matter who you are, one voter has one vote.” 

Kai can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

his powers, which sure, is something he could work on.

but I’m not

neither do

nor

when it comes to these characters’ origin

number one fan is Amon, Adrianna’s son, a conglomeration of all the characters named Amon in the comics, and a constant reminder to Black Adam of his own son—which is also a new story from when the comic was first released in 1945.

Adam—or Teth Adam, which translates to Mighty Adam—is eviler in the first installments of the comic. He lives in Egypt, is part of the pharaoh’s family, and betrays everyone when bewitched by Blaze, a daughter of Shazam. Black Adam is the original person imbued with Shazam’s power, and later Billy Baston is chosen because Black Adam is punished for using the power for bad. Little fact is that it’s Baston’s dad, C.C., who finds Black Adam’s tomb in the first stories—here, it’s Adrianna and a traitorous companion, Ishmael, who live in the country of Kahndaq, which is in North Africa now, not Egypt, and is overrun by conquerors. Lately, it’s the “Intergang,” whom Amon and Adrianna beg Black Adam to save them from.

Problem is the Justice League has caught wind of Black Adam being released from his prison/tomb and are en route to stop him from, well, being himself. Mainly ‘cause they’ve got a Wikipedia article about all the bad stuff he did and don’t really know him any other way. So he’s a menace to them, but a help to the besieged people of Kahndaq. They don’t know that he does bad things because the former king of Kahndaq murdered his son and also because he just gets so darn mad that he can’t control

The Justice League sends an oddly mismatched team to quell this threat: four heroes who are four heroes too many. Why couldn’t we just have Black Adam’s origin story, which would have been plenty, and put this in a sequel? It wasn’t confusing, exactly, just too much going on. What was confusing was why send two complete novices— Cyclone and Atom Smasher—who’ve never done a mission before, to fight one of the most powerful beings of all time? The original user of magic. With the might of gods? Also, the Rock. Who might be a god. And where in the hell is everyone else while Kahndaq is imploding and exploding at the same time? Does the Justice League not check in with their weirdly ambiguous head honcho, Amanda Waller, at all?

Maybe it’s an example of all the shitshows that happen around the world and nobody really does anything, right? Outside of the region itself. Maybe one or two human heroes take it upon themselves to sign up for a war that’s not theirs (I’m looking at you, Andy Huynh and Alexander Drueke, in the Ukraine). I always wonder in these types of preachy movies if you’re being given analogies for real life. Are the imperialists the United States? When Black Adam says, “We weren’t just free, we were great,” is he suddenly Donald Trump? It’s hard to ignore that.

Let’s talk about the music. Here’s my take: If the movie is not “Baby Driver,” then it does not need constant accompanying rock music—especially if the music is not even synced properly with the action. What in the world is the big, long silence before Black Adam does something badass because we are all, it seems, waiting for the song

to kick in? It’s unforgivably distracting and tells me that there’s a hole somewhere in your creation that you have to fill with music to cover up for it. A good movie does not need any music. It should complement, not carry.

“Black Adam” is weirdly slow, even with the music, and the humor rarely hits. Amon is not convincing as a rabble rouser and Hawkman, please stop angsting already. The only connection I liked was between Black Adam and Dr. Fate, played by gracefully aging Pierce Brosnan. There’s way too much messing around and not enough of Black Adam being amazing. The audience loves him, so the persistent haranguing he gets from the Justice League’s lily white team sent to keep him from exacting “revenge” (or justice) on people, i.e. killing them when they do bad stuff versus saving them, as Hawkman is prone to do, is verging on not making any sense.

Black Adam, the movie and the character, are reined in at every turn. The Rock is flawless and has said how much this character means to him. Please let him do his thing. He has figured Black Adam out, even if his creators can’t. Why set him up as a hero only to knock him down? Because I do think the audience sees him as a hero and not even an antihero. In this day and age, anything else is just outdated. The world is gray and we should have established this by now.

“Black Adam” has a wide release and is playing at a theater near you.

Kai can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

FAPAGOW from 1

That such widely divergent methods and philosophies are necessary suggests just how diverse are communities within the broader AAPI bloc, and how different their needs are, particularly at this moment.

A tale of two communities

The Chinese Information and Service Center (CISC) strives to empower its clients, who require services in languages that are not English, to make informed decisions. As a result, CISC offers voter education wrapped into other services, holds special events, and is routinely asked to serve as a mediator for government and other agencies seeking to reach the populations they serve.

“The most important aspect is the trusted relationship that providers have with the community they serve,” said Michael Itti, executive director of CISC. “When clients come in for services, we include information about civic affairs, the importance of being involved, and make sure their voices are heard.”

The Filipino American Political Action Group of Washington (FAPAGOW) also does voter registration through special events but is focused on strategizing to shape its message to reach a wide range of perspectives and generations in its communities, one of the largest Asian American groups in the state. Unlike CISC, FAPAGOW offers endorsements of candidates, and considers issues such as religion and generational allegiances, both of which complicate potential voters’ interests.

“There is a definite concern about growing mistrust of government and a diminished faith in the democratic process in the Filipino American community and beyond,” said Ador Pereda Yano, president of FAPAGOW, which he describes as progressive but non-partisan. “We have not figured out how to engage all different perspectives, but we want as many as are qualified to register.”

Special events

For CISC clients, traditional ways of getting information about voting, which are in English, may be inaccessible.

These include “all the mailers, television ads in English—it’s all in English,” said Itti.

So CISC invites clients to “ballot parties.” These are groups of dozens of clients who often meet in the organization’s senior activities’ room. There, staff members share information in their native language.

This includes reading ballots and candidates’ statements aloud, which King County Elections translates into multiple languages.

It also includes instructing clients in the use of the City of Seattle’s Democracy Voucher program. Using this program, any permanent resident or voter of the city can donate up to $100 to a candidate of their choice.

During one ballot party, a staff member showed a powerpoint to a group of 30 clients about the program.

“Many had questions,” said Itti.

On Oct. 30, CISC is joining with the Chinese American Citizens’ Alliance (CACA) for an annual rice drive, which will include an opportunity to register voters.

But Itti emphasizes that clients come in every day for issues such as help with understanding a piece of mail.

And caseworkers may use these opportunities to share information about voting.

“We encourage eligible voters to register as participation is an important basis of the democratic process,” said Itti.

Strategic outreach

FAPAGOW held its most recent voter registration in Mill Creek in early October in partnership with the National Federation of Filipino American Associations.

But one of its main components of outreach is endorsement of candidates. Its board spent years aligning its principles with what it considers are the varying perspectives of the Filipino American communities in Washington state.

These include an emphasis on climate and environmental justice, racial and economic justice in education, employment, and contracting, and culturally and linguistically accessible and affordable health, human, and housing services.

FAPAGOW has recently also acted in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement and sent letters to local and state officials calling for them to change policing to provide the unsheltered with mental health professionals, increase Black community oversight of government, and focus on the populations hardest hit by COVID-19, which includes Black, Native American, and people of color communities.

Using these principles, the organization has endorsed candidates who may vary wildly in policies, but share common priorities of helping immigrants and communities of color.

“For instance, U.S. Rep. Kim Schrier and U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal have different policy foci, Rep. Jayapal is more progressive, but they have enough shared interests, such as human rights and social justice, that we endorse both,” said Yano.

Mediation

CISC, like other community groups that work with clients whose primary language is not English, is often called upon to act as a bridge between government and its clients.

“Every city seems to be emailing us to do civic engagement,” said Itti. “Still, we’re just one of many that governments should reach out to.”

Family associations, the Asian Counseling and Referral Service, and other stakeholders all can and do connect policymakers with the community, he said.

According to Itti, community engagement has five levels, starting from the most basic and progressing to the most empowering: inform, consult, involve, collaborate, community-led.

CISC, in working with outside agencies, however, is sometimes limited by its capacity. It is well-staffed in languages such as Cantonese, Mandarin, and Taishanese. For Vietnamese and Spanish, only a handful.

At the same time, it is easy for people to walk into its location in the Chinatown-International District (CID), and hundreds do weekly. But for its other locations, clients mostly need to ride the bus or drive, which makes it comparatively difficult.

The solution, Itti suggests, would be for governments to engage in long-term outreach rather than one-time or

“transactional” efforts.

“We could do more outreach of this kind and would be even more effective with ongoing engagement since that would allow us to build more capacity,” said Itti.

Splicing outreach

For FAPAGOW, it is a balancing act reaching out to one of the largest communities of Asian Americans in Washington state—there are 170,000 to 200,000 Filipino Americans in the state.

Religion, generational differences, and changing perspectives among members of the community means that “FAPAGOW hasn’t figured it out, it is very difficult to characterize the different political orientations,” said Yano.

“Some families have been here since the 1920s or 1930s, others may belong to the group of new immigrants that mostly arrived since 1965,” after the Marcos regime came to power, said Yano.

While most Filipino Americans are Catholic, depending on their generation, and other varying experiences, views on such sensitive topics as reproductive rights may vary widely.

“This is a challenge,” said Yano.

FAPAGOW leaders have also found challenges in reaching out to a younger generation—both those whose families have lived here for centuries and those more recently arrived from the Philippines.

While they are focused on issues in the U.S., they are also passionate about the Philippines.

“As we seek to engage the younger generations, we find that those who have come here to study are interested in the Philippines, helping to overcome injustices and inequities in the Philippines,” he said. “But also those in the younger generation who are born here want to be in touch with the motherland, in terms of finding their own identities and their heritage. So both groups have a passion for protesting human rights abuses that should be mitigated.”

Dolores Sibonga, the first member of the Seattle City Council of Filipino ancestry and a current advisor to FAPAGOW, wrote in a blog on the organization’s home page about the importance of reaching out to the younger generation.

“You’d think that at my age—89—I wouldn’t be concerned about youth. And yet I worry that young people will sit out the November election, and we will lose whatever vestiges of democracy that remain today,” she wrote.

Sibonga said younger voters could unite around issues such as universal health care, the green new deal, and economic justice.

“And just to show you how much your one vote can count: For about the last 100 years, one of every 100,000 votes in U.S. elections and one of every 15,000 votes in state elections “mattered.” They were cast for a candidate that led or won by one vote.” 

To view FAPAGOW’s full list of endorsements, visit fapagow.org.

To learn about CISC’s upcoming rice drive in partnership with CACA, visit cacaseattle.org/index.html.

Mahlon can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

GOOD AND EVIL from 12

on what it means to be “good” or “evil” or if there are even such things. Sophie and Aggie, who are put into the “wrong” schools, they think, turn everything the School is doing on its head and provide the catalyst for a series of changes and revelations. They break every rule from the get-go. They try to escape. They want to switch schools (well, Aggie actually doesn’t care; she’s just there because she loves Sophie and wants to help her friend). They mingle with each other, which is not allowed. Sophie pines for a prince (the son of King Arthur), which is not allowed, since she’s a “Never.” There are a lot of things that are not allowed and if you strike out—well, let’s just say that it’s not a very nice school, all in all.

I’m making fun by comparing this movie to Harry Potter, but in truth, “The School for Good and Evil” is its own

entity and successfully so. It draws the viewer in very satisfactorily, creating a convincing, enchanting world. Costume, set, and characters are all fully realized. Rather than balking at the cliches, which are done in jest, I loved the overly made up princesses in their curls and voluminous dresses, turning up their noses to the “Nevers” in their cobwebs and tattoos and black outfits. I loved the forced march through the forest of innocent-looking terrors like carnivorous pansies; and all the backstabbing leading up to who will take who to the Evers’ Ball.

I loved the teachers, too, of which there are three primary ones: the Nevers leader, Lesso (Charlize Theron), the Evers leader, Dovey (Kerry Washington), and the teacher of “beautification,” Anemone, played by Michelle Yeoh. All three are gorgeous and their mannerisms are just so. All three have depth that you know is there yet at the same time maintain a rigid front for the sake of

the School’s rules. They are assisted by wolf-men on the Nevers’ side and gnomes and nasty fairies on the Evers’ side (this was a take on that scene in “Labyrinth” when what’s-her-face thought a fairy was adorable and got a bite on the finger for her trouble).

In order to prove herself “good,” Sophie has to get true love’s kiss, and things go badly from there. Aggie, in her effort to help, finds out all the School’s dark secrets, and eventually gets almost everyone to agree that “good” and “evil” might not be “black” and “white” (again, not sure if that implies something racial). The story is a conversation about “Nature” vs. “Nurture” as well. Will Sophie “turn” evil since she’s forced to stay in the evil school? Or was she evil all along, denying it even to herself? What does it mean to be good? Is it that you “always defend, never attack” like the teachers say? Or is it okay for good to attack sometimes? Why has evil not

“won” in such a long time? (I don’t know what that means, but they’re pissed that it hasn’t happened since Rafal disappeared/ died). The illumination provided at the end is intriguing.

“The School for Good and Evil” was a welcome portal into a magical alternate reality, and the most I have felt myself wrapped up into that kind of fairy tale world for a long, long time. It’s the sort of movie that will keep you wondering as you go about your day whether a (nasty) fairy is going to fly up from the bushes outside your house, or maybe a roc will come to take you away—but think twice before you put that letter under the wishing tree. It’s not what you think.

“The School for Good and Evil” can be streamed on Netflix.

Kai can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

from 1

businesses, such as Lam’s Seafood, have fenced up to prevent homeless folks from trespassing onto the property, despite Lam’s Seafood’s earlier resistance to fencing (they objected to their store looking like a prison.).

The cost of losing small businesses

“Local small businesses are the hearts and souls of our communities,” said Sen. Patty Murray, who recently visited the CID. A community thrives when businesses can enhance residents’ and visitors’ quality of life by providing a variety of services and products. In the CID’s case, these came in the form of cafes, hair salons, restaurants, doctors and dentists, law firms, accountants, grocery stores, florists, travel agencies, bookstores, banks, travel agencies, dry cleaning services, and many other retail operations. Additionally, these businesses also provide jobs for residents. When these businesses collapse or relocate, jobs and money for the community will erode simultaneously.

Some businesses were reluctant to talk to the Northwest Asian Weekly about their demise for fear of losing face, a burden in many Asian cultures. Remembering how many obstacles they had to overcome to reach success, all they could do in the past three years was to stand by helplessly as their businesses crumbled to pieces, day after day, first due to the pandemic, and then compounded by public safety issues. The pain of closing their businesses, which owners and their families have sweated over years to build up, is simply unendurable for many. To these immigrants, closing their businesses represents more than personal failure. Even though the closures are not their fault, many owners view them as shaming for their families and their community.

Breaking silence

“I am relieved now,” said a business owner who made the hard decision to close down this year. He said that he didn’t want to point fingers at the nearby homeless population due to concern for his employees’ safety. He admitted that the final blow which propelled him to close his business permanently was when a homeless man assaulted his employee while also shoplifting.

“My employee fought the guy for stealing, and he hit her hard,” said the business owner.

The business owner said the homeless problem began two years ago. “It was not severe then. Now, they have no fear at all.” Employees’ safety and the business owner’s lack of confidence with the Seattle Police Department (SPD) finally pushed him to close the business.

Another victim, Green Leaf Restaurant closed in June and has only now agreed to be interviewed. House of Hong Restaurant has been closed indefinitely after it was broken into many times during remodeling. 85C Bakery, which has been closed since the pandemic, is in limbo. The bakery’s storefront glasses have been broken a few times this year, and its outside is a constant hangout for the homeless. The bakery is in a 30-year lease and apparently still wants to reopen at some point, according to a neighbor. “It is more a labor issue, as it is unable to find enough employees to open its store,” said the neighbor.

Getting out

Several businesses moved out of CID this year. Bayani Travel, one of the few Filipino businesses in the CID, moved out in July after staff at the agency were robbed at gunpoint. Law firm Buckley and Associates, with more than 30 employees,

moved to Renton more than a month ago. Spic ‘N Span Cleaners moved to Rainier Avenue South when their lease expired. The current owner of Tsue Chong Company, which makes noodles and fortune cookies, moved their whole operation to Kent earlier this year. The original owner, Tim Louie, still owns the property that the former factory sits on, and he intends to sell it. It is right in front of several homeless camps on 8th Avenue South (the camps run all the way up to 12th Avenue South). Louie said he saw no choice but to sell, with the homeless at the back of his property and even setting up tents on his front entrance before he blocked access to it.

The Asian Weekly reported in July that a petition signed by neighbors was asking the Washington State Department of Transportation and the City of Seattle to clear the land after a fire in the homeless encampment behind the length of the block threatened the building in April. Louie said, “Nothing has been done so far.”

Green Leaf Restaurant, which specialized in Vietnamese cuisine, was once a media darling with numerous positive reviews when it first opened in 2006. It sat right on the edge of homeless camps on 8th Avenue South. Green Leaf shut its doors four months ago. Owner Peter Kuang didn’t want the Asian Weekly to know of his restaurant’s fate initially. Now, however, he is revealing that he was literally forced out of business because of the homeless problems.

“Several needles and foil paper for burning drugs were found outside my business every morning,” Kuang said. “We used to have great business, busy day and night. Customers loved our food. [But] when the homeless folks started hovering outside the restaurant, my customers were afraid to come into our restaurant. Some ordered takeout and told us to bring the food to their car. They were afraid to get out of their cars and walk to our door.”

Kuang said that the homeless people who loitered around his store seemed to have mental illnesses. “Those addicted people are young and pale, and their mind is gone. They looked lifeless. They not only slept outside the restaurant, they endangered the store with fire for smoking drugs every night. They yelled at my customers and refused to let them go through the door. I was hoping I can keep the restaurant so my [eight] employees wouldn’t lose their jobs,” added Kuang. “But the situation got worse. [And] it’s not just the homeless issue. There were shootings. The business was in decline. I felt terrible that I had to halt my restaurant. But the fear that our lives were endangered was real. It’s not worth it if we get hurt. We watched the fresh vegetables in our restaurant turn to rotten greens. And no customers came to our block at all. My chef, who knew I was losing money, said, ‘Boss, we are unhappy about the situation. We understand if you have to close it—so be it.’ I didn’t want to close it, but I had no other choice.”

Kuang finally ceased the business because he couldn’t afford the rent.

Kuang also said he felt much lighter after closing his business. “There’s no pressure,”

he said. “There’s no fear now.”

Mary Zhu, a paralegal at Buckley & Associates, said public safety was the reason the firm moved out of CID. “A few of our colleagues’ cars in the parking lot were broken into a few times,” she said. “There were also strange people hanging out in the parking area. To protect ourselves, we always left together after work, especially the female employees.”

The law firm surveyed its employees a year ago, to see if they wanted to stay in the CID or move out. The majority voted to move because of safety issues.

Other disturbing scenarios include many people running through their office building’s dumpsters. Zhu said when they moved out of the office, they threw away furniture such as chairs, shelves, and sometimes papers. Every day, the dumpsters were a mess because people ran through the garbage picking out what they needed and left all the trash on the ground.

“It’s uncomfortable to have someone rummaging through even our useless papers,” said Zhu. “Since then, we shredded our papers inside our office first, instead of going to the dumpster directly.”

Despite safety concerns, Zhu said she actually voted to stay in the CID. “It’s always easy to meet my clients in Chinatown as they can shop and we can meet in a restaurant. My clients like to meet in CID.”

Bayani Travel, which moved out in July to Tukwila, had experienced a robbery earlier this year. The robber(s) entered the store and put a gun behind the manager. Allegedly, the robber was a woman who made the manager open the safe and give her $7,500, according to Bayani’s neighbor. (Bayani didn’t respond to the Asian Weekly’s request for an interview by press time.)

Fashion Hair Salon, a one-woman business ran by Hong Chau, was a busy business before the pandemic. Although she was often fully booked, she would try to squeeze as many walk-ins as possible. The reason for closing is fear of crimes and homelessness in the neighborhood, Chau said. She said that purse-snatching is rampant with people hanging around looking for targets. “My daughter told me to quit,” she said. “The neighborhood has been deteriorating—I have no choice. My husband used to pick me up after work. Now, I don’t have a ride home. And I am scared when winter comes. It will be dark outside.”

“It is sad we have to close the store,” said the business owner who was quoted earlier. “We don’t want this to happen. We are forced to do it. There is no way out. We just don’t know what to do. The City can’t deal with the homeless crisis. It’s also hard for us to deal with people who have mental problems. Our employees’ safety is important.”

Jay Lee, former operator of Spic ‘N Span, now owns Crown Cleaner on Rainier Avenue South, which is about 100 feet away from Chinatown.

When asked about the difference between the new and old location, Lee said, “Every day, two to three homeless people

were sleeping outside the CID shop daily, and customers couldn’t get in. I had to pay them to go away.” Lee said he had paid the homeless to leave his old business location for more than a year before he himself left.

When asked about his response to the County deciding not to expand the SODO homeless shelter, but to keep the existing shelter instead, Kuang said, “You can build whatever you want and how big you want, but these homeless people are not going to stay there.”

The controversies

Despite the fact that homelessness is a major concern in the CID, not everyone believes the homeless population are those causing problems in the CID. Some younger community members have said to the Asian Weekly that “it’s the people who prey on them. Drug dealers who come to where their clients are.” Also, they said, the government has failed to take care of them.

The problem is that it is hard to distinguish whether CID crimes were committed by homeless people or by criminals living outside the CID.

“Whoever said the homelessness is not the cause of problems in our community is being irresponsible,” said Kuang.

Two recent cases were committed by homeless individuals. In daylight, a homeless man punched a couple of seniors in the CID, resulting in them bleeding. The man who assaulted the seniors had been terrorizing the community for 15 years and was in jail for three days before being released. The second case involved a homeless woman who was panhandling outside a restaurant before going to Oasis Tea Zone. There, she assaulted and bit an Oasis female employee so hard that she needed a tetanus shot and then three months later, an HIV test.

Not all business owners want to express their views about CID’s homeless challenges on the record. One owner said, “I don’t want you (Asian Weekly) to write about it. Anything you publish will discourage people from coming to Chinatown. My business is so bad now, if you write more about this, I will have zero business.”

Dr. Xiao Ming, a chiropractor, said, “Since the Navigation Center for drug addicts and homeless was established in Chinatown, crimes have skyrocketed. Businesses on my left and right have all been broken into several times. My business has not been affected much because most of my clients are CID residents. However, I notice that some clients who live outside Chinatown won’t come to see me if their pain is not severe enough.”

Meanwhile, Kuang is looking for opportunities to open a restaurant again. He hasn’t ruled out the CID as a potential location in the future. His heart is still in the community, he said. He just wishes CID public safety would improve so that he and his employees can feel safe again.

Assunta Ng can be reached at assunta@nwasianweekly.com.

Viet-Wah was one of the few places in the CID with Lotto machines.

The exterior of Fashion Hair Salon, which will close after Oct. 31

Homeless people sleeping in the early morning, on the streets of the CID

Photos by Assunta Ng

IMMIGRANTS from 1

serve as a role model for other immigrants facing any issues—and the necessity of getting involved in civic engagement.

“The first thing I tell them is that if they have an issue, they need to contact their legislators to get their voices heard,” said Abellera, in an interview.

Beyond that, Abellera and others outlined a whole variety of ways that immigrants can impact the voting process, get their needs met, and participate in local politics.

Through joining advocacy groups, signing up for the City of Seattle’s Democracy Voucher program, and reaching out to elected officials, even those who are green card holders—and not yet voters—can have a significant impact on policies that affect their lives in ways they might not have dreamed of.

It can save your life

For the Filipino family (their name is withheld for privacy), with the help of Abellera, they were able to reach the governor at the time, their senators, their state senators, and even then President George Bush, through a visiting official from the Philippines. A local Filipino American advocacy group held a rally when Bush was visiting a hotel in Bellevue. Abellera was able to get letters written by many of the officials and local advocates passed on to Bush.

As a result, they were granted a new opportunity to apply for citizenship.

Today, the two daughters, who at the time were young children, are registered nurses.

“So, like their parents, they are giving back to the community,” said Abellera.

Call your state legislators

But not all issues need to be so dire. According to Shomya Tripathy, director of policy and civic engagement at the Asian Counseling and Referral Service (ACRS), local government agencies as well as legislators want to know the needs of the residents who live in their communities, whether they are voters or not. Metro King County, for instance, established a work group with ACRS to determine whether or not it made sense to eliminate cash fares, among other changes.

ACRS brought one of its case managers, who works with immigrants, into the room, and he explained that all of his clients used cash on buses. Metro listened.

In the same way, Abellera urges immigrants, if they have any problems, to contact their local legislators.

She urges them to first determine who is their rep resentative, then to simply call his or her office, or if they don’t feel confident in English, to have someone else do it. The legislative assistant will take down the caller’s name and concerns and either the legislator or an assistant will call back.

“The legislators are open to this because they need to know the issues of people in their district,” said Abellera.

Hesitations

First and even second-generation immigrants, how ever, may be cautious about using such an approach or even registering to vote, after a green card is obtained.

Port Commissioner Sam Cho, who is also president of the Washington Chapter of the Korean American Coalition (KAC), said that some immigrants come from countries with authoritarian backgrounds, which may dissuade them from getting involved in the civic process.

“The trauma of fleeing from political or religious persecution is passed down,” he said.

Still, he said, immigrants can join advocacy groups or register for unique programs such as the Democra cy Voucher Program.

Even without a vote, support a candidate

The Democracy Voucher Program makes it possi ble for both registered voters and permanent residents who are not yet citizens to support candidates by do nating funds to the candidates of their choice. The city automatically mails these vouchers—there are four of them, each worth $25—to every registered voter.

Green card holders can apply for them through a simple form online and designate what language they want to receive them in.

When it comes time to vote, immigrants can select from all the candidates that have chosen to accept these vouchers (most do) and send them to any one of them. That candidate will then receive that amount of

money from the city’s coffers.

The program, which was approved by voters in 2015, is a way to address both campaign finance reform and to involve all residents in the political process, said Renee LeBeau, manager of the program.

Just show up for services

Just being associated with the many service providers that assist immi grants in King County is another way for immigrants to learn about the polit ical process and how to get their voic es heard. ACRS distributes materials about democracy vouchers and other programs in food bags in the languages of their clients. At the same time, the organization models civic engagement for its clients by making public com ments in the legislature and advocating for its clients.

“We take a more holistic approach, we understand civic engagement as meaning that people understand they have access to avenues that will impact and change their lives, such as all the tools that are out there and options for making public comments,” said Tripa thy.

Such issues might include if the bus line doesn’t go where needed or library closures. “But this education has to be melded into other programs we provide for it to be the most effective,” she said.

Overcoming language issues

Language can be one of the major barriers for immigrants to get involved in the political process. Even for long time residents, who are citizens and have the right to vote, it is not always self-evident how to ask for election, or other, materials in a language oth er than English. Voters must be able to identify democracy vouchers mailed to them in envelopes that do have mark ings in multiple languages but are pri marily in English. If they only open the envelopes, there is an insert inside in multiple languages that allows them to ask for vouchers to be resent to them in their native language.

For immigrants, language issues may be even worse. Advocacy groups hold election and other civic education programs on radio shows or YouTube channels in native languages. For in stance, KAC holds a candidate forum

on Korean radio shortly before the elec tion (information can be found on the KAC home page).

“It is important to follow the issues and the candidates even if you are not voting,” said Abellera.

Beyond the daily struggles

Many immigrants are struggling just with basic needs, food, housing, and language. But Tripathy said ACRS has come to realize that you cannot separate

those essential needs from the broader political environment. “The politics of the city fully impacts how we can sup port our marginalized communities,” she said. “We all have to get involved.” 

To register for democracy vouchers, visit seattle.gov/democracyvoucher/iam-a-seattle-resident/apply-now.

Mahlon can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.