icetea

Why is Daniel Henney so hot?

Bruce Lee

Do you want to know why they make jokes about Chuck Norris and not Bruce Lee? Because Bruce Lee is no joke!

Let's not forget that the only reason you know Chuck Norris is because of Bruce Lee. 

Anh Do

This is a great video of Anh Do, comedian, actor and author of "The Happiest Refugee".

I actually knew of his brother Khoa Do first, when in 2005 he won Young Australian of the Year.

But having followed Anh Do over the years, I find him and his story incredibly inspirational. A true blue Asian Australian hero.

 

Chinese Australian History Trust Fund

I personally think this is a great idea.

"CHINESE community leaders will ask the federal government to set up a fund that would acknowledge Australia's history of racial discrimination against Chinese migrants."

This would be a great opportunity to finally teach and learn about Chinese Australian history, which has for the most part, been swept under the rug by our education system. What most Australians don't realise is that Chinese and Australian history are intertwined and inseparable.

Sweet revenge

I'm sure we've all experienced this, but someone's found a novel way to deal with racism.

 

Wong Fu in Sydney

Wong Fu came down to Sydney on Sunday, so you know I had to go check them out. I'm not one of the die-hard fans out there who camped outside the theatre, nor did I purchase a meet-&-greet ticket, nor did I squeal like a little fangirl when they came onto the stage. But I can say one thing, I've been following these guys from almost the beginning. I'm immensely proud of them. I can't say I'm a hardcore fan, but I am an original fan.

 

Let me set the scene. I was in first year uni, and at the time... Youtube did not exist. I somehow stumbled across Wong Fu's site. I can't remember how I got there, it wasn't a link from Angryasianman because I discovered them before the video went viral, maybe it was a link from an Asian American forum, maybe it was sent to me by a friend... but nonetheless, there I was downloading this not-yet-viral video, "Yellow Fever".

I watched it, stunned at the controversial topic being touched upon. Amazed by how well they pulled it off (and with great comedic effect!). And just appreciative to see regular Asian guys like me on the small small screen.

Soon after, "Yellow Fever" went viral. I don't think many people can lay claim that they created a viral video even before Youtube, but that's what Wong Fu did. (Partially helped by guys like me who forwarded it to their friends saying "You have to see this!")

Over the years, I kept a tab on all their videos. From their early lip-synchs, dance vids, music vids to their more dramatic, serious pieces. I followed their success, I spread their videos, I even got my own girlfriend hooked onto Wong Fu. Hearing the "Wong Fu Weekends" song from my girlfriend's laptop every Saturday morning has become the norm in the home.

So here's to you WFP! I wish you guys continued success. I may not be the most vocal supporter, but know that I was one of the first.

 

Wong Fu 4 Lyfe!

Jeremy Lin and Race

I didn't want to turn Jeremy Lin into a race thing publicly. I wanted to keep him for myself or something that only Asians who were born and raised in western countries could understand: The immense pride swelling inside, the shit-eating grin my mates and I had on our faces when we were watching him pick apart the Laker defence at our local pub, how I was shocked to find myself getting choked up over the performance of a basketball player... If you're not an Asian male who grew up in a western country... you just wouldn't understand what this means to us. Jeremy Lin is paving the way for more than just minorities in sports... this extends well beyond the courts.

We knew the ascension of Jeremy Lin would bring out the best and worst in people. For one, I haven't seen Asian Americans so proud in a long time. On the other hand, the stereotypes were practically paraded out in full force, like a racist carnival of sorts.

"And here we have stereotype #37 - the driving jokes. Up next, #38 the Yellow Mamba!"

I didn't want to turn it into a race thing, because I wanted to move beyond that, where we don't need to discuss about race. We can just appreciate a great basketball player, who happens to be Asian American. Why can't we have an audience of all ethnicities chant Lin's name without giving his heritage a second thought? But you know what, it was inevitable that race would fall into this picture, so this leaves a perfect opportunity to drop some knowledge.

Jeremy Lin is holding a mirror to mainstream America (and the world) about how inadvertently racist we are to Asian Americans. I say inadvertently, because the average person isn't harbouring outright hate against us. They just don't realise how offensive their stereotypes are. For the most part Asian Americans have been invisible and voiceless, but not due to a lack of trying. America either didn't want to hear it, or they were in complete denial of it - in fact they still are.

Suddenly an Asian American NBA star hit the scene and lazy journalists and jokers decided to dust off every tired stereotype: some to hate, most to honour. But intention to offend isn't the point, because they would never even dream of doing such a thing if Jeremy Lin was Black, White or Latino. And it shows just how ill-prepared America is for an Asian American hero. If anything, Jeremy Lin is forcing America to look at how they keep getting away with racism against Asian Americans that would not be tolerated against any other ethnicity.

Would Ben & Jerry's dare to release a watermelon flavoured ice cream for Tiger Woods? (Nevermind that Tiger Woods is more Asian than Black, but that's another story). No, because it would be entirely inappropriate and offensive. I'm not saying I was particularly sensitive over Ben & Jerry's Linsanity Fortune Cookie flavoured ice cream (in fact it sounds delicious), but it just shows how inadvertently ignorant society is when it comes to dealing with Asian Americans. Jeremy Lin did overnight, what countless Asian American organisation have been trying to do for years: trigger a dialogue about how we treat Asians in media.

This is not to say you should stop talking about his ethnicity altogether (though eventually it'd be nice, but we're really not there yet as a society)... just stop bringing up the half-a-century-old stereotypes, even if you think it's positive. Because at best, even the "positive" stereotypes are belittling, because they ignore the human character of individuals.

Recently, an ESPN journalist was fired for publishing the headline, "Chink in the Armor". His defence was that he didn't know it was offensive. First of all, I find it hard to believe that anyone can think that the word "chink" is okay to use when writing an article about an Asian American. But let's give him the benefit of the doubt. At best this is a perfect example of how racially insensitive society and the media is when talking about Asian Americans.

If there's one more amazing thing that Jeremy Lin has progressed; it is to a more robust discussion and understanding of race and ultimately ourselves. It's not just black and white anymore.

Interview With My Bully

A great article about an Asian American woman who confronts her racist childhood bully in adulthood.

http://www.salon.com/2012/02/14/interview_with_my_bully_when_i_confronted_my_bully_about_racism/singleton/ 

The Jeremy Lin Show

Linsanity! Lincredible! Lindispensable! Linconceivable! Lindestructable! Linvincible!

Call it what you want, but Jeremy Lin is the talk of the NBA.

I didn't want to blog about him, I didn't want to overhype him before he earnt his stripes, because you know the haters are waiting to pounce. But I can't contain myself anymore. Jeremy Lin is the man!

I've been following this kid even before he was in the NBA. I excitedly blogged about him in 2010 when he officially became the second Asian American and first Chinese/Taiwanese American in the NBA. And even when he got dropped by the Warriors and the Rockets with barely any play time, I kept my support for him.

This is a classic underdog story. This kid was overlooked, again and again, leaving college undrafted, dropped from two teams for no good reason and barely any play time. Then suddenly given an opportunity to shine because the team's All-Star player was injured. That's when the magic happened. And the rest as they say, is history.

This isn't just an Asian American story, this is a story any person can relate to. Anyone who's ever been passionate about anything, who was consantly doubted and overlooked, but never gave up.

I've watched every game of his since he's been starting and watching his team has been refreshing.

I wish the guy all the best in what I'm sure will be a long fulfilling career.

Did this study actually surprise anyone?

Racism linked to low IQ

"There's no gentle way to put it: People who give in to racism and prejudice may simply be dumb, according to a new study that is bound to stir public controversy.

The research finds that children with low intelligence are more likely to hold prejudiced attitudes as adults. These findings point to a vicious cycle, according to lead researcher Gordon Hodson, a psychologist at Brock University in Ontario. Low-intelligence adults tend to gravitate toward socially conservative ideologies, the study found. Those ideologies, in turn, stress hierarchy and resistance to change, attitudes that can contribute to prejudice"

...

But no, seriously... did this study actually surprsie anyone?