august 19, 2015 international examiner

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FREE EST. 1974 —SEATTLE VOLUME 42, NUMBER 16—AUGUST 19, 2015 – SEPTEMBER 1, 2015

Fixing School-to-Prison Pipeline | Page 9 ‘Dragon Lady’ diversifies | 2

Community honors life and legacy of

Donnie Chin

1955-2015

phot

o by r

ick w

ong

2 — August 19, 2015 – September 1, 2015 INTERNATIONAL EXAMINER

IE OPINION

IESTAFF

Established in 1974, the International Examiner is the only non-profit pan-Asian American media organization in the country. Named after the International District in Seattle, the “IE” strives to create awareness within and for our APA communities. 409 Maynard Ave. S. #203, Seattle, WA 98104. (206) 624-3925. [email protected].

IE BOARD OF DIRECTORSRon Chew, President

Gary Iwamoto, Secretary Maria Batayola, Treasurer

Arlene Oki, At-Large

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CREATIVE DIRECTORRyan [email protected]

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HERITAGE EDITORJacqueline Wu

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CALENDAR EDITOR Nina Huang

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PROOFREADERAnna Carriveau

LEAD PHOTOGRAPHER Keoke Silvano

STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Isaac Liu

CONTRIBUTORS Ben Henry JM Wong

Michael Itti Brianne Ramos

Frank Abe Angela Lee

Shawn Porter Eva Cohen

Roxanne Ray Shin Yu Pai

Lauren Pongan Paola Maranan

Lori Pfingst

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By Ben HenryIE Columnist

During testimony before a panel of legislators involved in budget negotiations last May in Olympia, the lights went out.

The culprit was likely someone leaning on the switch in the packed hearing room. But the symbolism of the moment was not lost on the crowd.

“The bill didn’t get paid,” an audience member offered up to loud laughter, as hearing chair Rep. Ross Hunter (D-Medina) paused to get the lights back on.

After the longest legislative session in state history—covering 176 days and three special sessions and ending days before a threatened government shutdown—the Legislature passed a budget that heavily relied on unsustainable revenue sources and failed to comply with a people’s initiative that mandated a reduction of class sizes.

It would seem that those legislators interested in starving our essential public services that enrich the lives of so many—especially for those in our communities of color—want the lights to go out on the people of Washington.

But last week, despite great attempts by entrenched interests to keep us in the dark, the state Supreme Court has illuminated this budget failure for all to see.

The high court unanimously issued sanctions for the Legislature failing to develop a plan to adequately fund K-12 education, as required under the 2012 landmark McCleary decision. As a result, the state will be fined $100,000 a day, amounting to $14 million by the time the next legislative session is scheduled to start in January. Now it is up to Gov. Jay Inslee and the Legislature to make a plan to save our schools.

Along the way, the millionaire Republicans in the Senate who negotiated our inadequate state budget bragged that we are increasing funding for education this session. But, as they are ideologically

Illuminating an unfair and broken state budget

opposed to public investments, this budget ultimately fails our future.

Think of it this way: You’re a parent who needs to feed your hungry children. Rather than provide them with a nutritious and filling meal, you give them the crumbs left over on your plate. You then issue a press release proclaiming how you’ve amply invested in your children’s nourishment.

Washington’s kids are hungry for education, and are left with crumbs. But what is especially disappointing is that there were viable proposals that would have provided the nourishment that our schools need while making the most unfair revenue system in the country significantly more equitable.

A capital gains tax on stock market profits of the state’s wealthiest residents would have raised $800 million annually, mostly from the top 1 percent of

households. Washington is one of just nine states in the country that does not raise revenue from stock market income, which tends to be enjoyed by the wealthiest.

And by asking our biggest polluters to pay for our schools by instituting a carbon charge, we could have simultaneously reduced carbon emissions and brought more balance to our unfair system.

The Legislature had the chance to prevent these sanctions. Instead, we will all pay the price for Republican obstinacy.

As the Supreme Court exposed, the Band-Aid solution that is our state budget is not fiscally responsible, and is no substitute for reforming a broken system. A patchwork approach to closing gaping budget gaps is simply not sustainable, and keeps us on this road of never-ending revenue crises.

During the testimony in Olympia last May, a teacher from the 19th Legislative

District in Southwest Washington called Washington’s tax system “morally corrupt,” adding that Washington ranks fourth in the country with the highest number of students enrolled per teacher.

A capital gains and carbon accountability charge would have raised the revenue needed to strengthen our education system.

The Legislature still can take a giant step in the direction of fair revenue, while investing in Washington’s essential public services. Let’s keep the lights on and build a bright future for Washington.

Ben Henry is Senior Policy Associate at the Alliance for a Just Society, former Board President of Asian Pacific Islander Americans for Civic Empowerment (APACE) and an alumnus of the Asian Pacific Islander Community Leadership Foundation (ACLF).

On August 13, 2015, the Washington State Supreme Court ruled it will fine the state Legislature $100,000 per day for violating the court’s McCleary decision on funding education. • Photo by Ben Henry

INTERNATIONAL EXAMINER August 19, 2015 – September 1, 2015 — 3

IE OPINION

By JM WongIE Guest Columnist

Some combinations are deadly. Sodium cyanide and water is one such deadly combination that when ingested or inhaled, can block oxygen receptors in our body, making it a serious public health risk. This past week in the city of Tianjin, shaken by the chemical explosions of the past week, concerns that sodium cyanide may be present in the water system and the air have caused authorities to issue evacuation orders within a 3-kilometer radius of the explosion.

The real question emerging from the explosion that took place in Tianjin, China this past week is why was 700 tons of sodium cyanide sitting in a storage facility barely 500 meters from residential areas?

Videos of the explosions in the storage plant located in the Binhai industrial zone in Northeast China have become a common sight by now. In one of the videos, the initial curiosity of onlookers with steady cameras quickly becomes one of shaky horror and disbelief as explosions rumble toward the building they live in. The aftermath pictures show charred bodies with unrecognizable features piled atop one another amidst burnt cars and

Vigil for Tianjin: Tragic death and loss to the profit margin

shattered buildings. All of this is painful to watch. Of the 114 dead, only 54 are accounted for. The others will have to be identified through DNA tests. More than 700 people have been injured and the local hospitals are overflowing.

The catastrophe of the recent events have numbers and cents, and some history to it. Ruihai International Logistics, the company responsible for illegally storing 700 tons of sodium cyanide, in addition to three other poisonous chemicals, was located in the Tianjin free trade zone. The largest FTZ in Northern China, the Tianjin port area attracted the chemical industry with its tariff-free storage facilities. Large quantities of toxic chemicals needed for mining, such as sodium cyanide, or cal-

cium carbride for PVC plastic production, are produced in cheap factories in the re-gion, then stored at the port and shipped out. Many of the workers hired in the field are contract workers, poorly trained, with precarious employment. The hazards asso-ciated with these chemicals are then placed disproportionately on the communities and workers in these areas, many of them also lowly paid migrant workers. Basic safety regulations, such as the requirement that hazardous materials be stored at least 1 ki-lometer away from residential areas were obviously disregarded. There were three major residential neighborhoods located by the storage facility.

China has long been heralded as a cheap source of goods. It is widely known that poor working conditions and flagrant disregard for safety regulations contribute to these low production costs. Tianjin was not an isolated incident. Last year, an aluminum dust explosion killing 146 people took place at a metal parts factory in Kunshan, a free trade zone in the Jiangsu province. The car parts factory was supplying companies such as General Motors, Ford, and Audi, among others. The high casualty and death count was also related to the fact that more workers were in the factory that weekend, rushing to make weekend overtime pay to supplement their regular low wages.

The destruction in Tianjin and the explosion in Kunshan—distant as they may seem—are nodes along the commodity supply chain that circle back to the United States, and to us here in Seattle. On one level, we are consumers of the products produced there. The labor conditions under which cheap commodities are made with large profit margins for American companies, should also be our concern. On another level, as a major port city along the Pacific Northwest with China as a primary trading partner, the safety of Chinese ports are important to us as well. In fact, the port of Tianjin is a sister port to the Port of Tacoma. The economic relationships between the two regions rightfully also extend into a concern for the well being of both communities. Last but not least, many of us, Chinese or not, can also empathize in the sadness and anger regarding the senseless loss and death to the profit margin that Tianjin has just witnessed.

Please join the Pacific Rim Solidarity Network, a progressive Chinese/Chinese American collective in Seattle and China Democracy and Human Rights Alliance for a vigil for Tianjin on Sunday, August 23 at 3:30 p.m. at Hing Hay Park. For more information, visit www.facebook.com/events/172052729792689/.

A scene of the Tianjin explosion, showing smashed windows and a smashed and burned car. • Photo by Voice of America

By Paola Maranan & Lori PfingstIE Contributors

It’s not easy to bring up the subject of race and racism. As activists with the #Black-LivesMatter movement proved at Westlake Park earlier this month, no city in America, no matter how liberal it seems, can publicly host an entirely safe and frank discussion of our most profound national challenge. So it takes events like those in Westlake to get the conversation to move.

Those events shouldn’t have to be neces-sary. The facts alone are sufficient reason for us all to be talking.

Data released last month by KIDS COUNT in Washington show that child poverty is more common for Washington’s children of color. Black, American Indian/Alaska Native, and Latino children are disproportionately growing up in our state’s highest-poverty areas. Compared to the state average of 18 percent, approximately one in three—33 percent—of all Black, Native American, and Latino kids, and one in four Pacific Islander/Native Hawaiian kids, live below the poverty line. That means, for example, that a family of four is making less than $24,250 a year—far less than it takes to afford life’s necessities.

Good jobs are key to family well-being. When parents can’t find stable employment that pays enough to cover basic needs, the entire family suffers. While the state unem-

A rising tide doesn’t lift All boAts: Washington’s children of color still struggle to get by

ployment rate has declined since the height of the recession, many in Washington state still struggle to find employment. Among the Black community, unemployment re-mains as high as 14 percent compared to the state average of seven percent. Hmong, Laotian, and Cambodian Americans face similarly high rates of joblessness, accord-ing to U.S. Census data.

And for those who have jobs, roughly one in four Black and one in five Latino Washingtonians are working fewer hours than they wish, or in jobs for which they are overqualified or underpaid. A few of the basics of life—like housing and child care—are far harder to come by in com-munities of color. Black, Latino, multira-cial, Native American, and Native Hawai-ian/Pacific Islander Washingtonians pay a far greater share of their income for child care and housing than their white peers.

What’s true in the statistics about eco-nomic security also shows up in education, health care, and family well-being. The dearth of affordable, culturally competent, high-quality early learning opportunities sets up kids of color poorly for success in school—so that by the time students reach the third grade, Black, Latino, Na-tive American and Pacific Islander/Native Hawaiian students are below the state aver-age in reading proficiency. This culminates in lower rates of on-time graduation for

children of color from many backgrounds, including among kids of Hmong, Cambo-dian, and Laotian descent.

Those who do graduate face significant financial barriers to higher education: in-state tuition for Black and Latino students as a share of median household income is 50 percent higher than the statewide average.

This is not the Washington state we want our children to grow up in.

These stark differences in child well-be-ing fall along lines of race and ethnicity in no small measure because of public policies with effects that vary sharply by race and ethnicity.

Too many of our state’s children are born and raised on an unequal and unstable foot-ing, and what’s destabilizing our future is our national legacy of structural racism.

Racism—as it plays out in public prac-tices in education, housing, employment and criminal justice that have thwarted the dreams and ambitions of kids and families—has always been a human-rights violation. Now, as our children lead the country into a more diverse reality, it’s a condition that none of us, of any race, can afford to perpetuate. We can’t have a pros-perous 21st-century economy, an engaged democracy or a healthy community without implementing the strategies that give every family a chance to thrive.

The Annie E. Casey Foundation, which put forth the 2015 KIDS COUNT Data Book last month, recommends policies that result in higher pay, paid sick leave, flexible scheduling and expanded unemployment benefits. With these, we get higher family income, reduced stress on parents and an increased capacity of parents to invest in their kids.

This past legislative session, with the historic passage of the Early Start Act as a method of forwarding racial equity in the first five years of life, we saw progress to-ward the country our kids deserve. Right now, with numbers like these, no one can claim that Washington is in an economic re-covery. To change the numbers so that they no longer describe a landscape of unequal futures, policymakers must work toward achieving equity for every child. Toward that aim, they’re a useful and motivating tool to call out for the kind of change our children need.

Lori Pfingst is Research & Policy Di-rector at the Washington State Budget & Policy Center. Paola Maranan is Execu-tive Director of the Children’s Alliance. The two organizations make up KIDS COUNT in Washington, which gathers and analyzes emerging data on how kids are doing in our state, and turns that in-formation into action on issues like pov-erty, hunger, health care, and education.


IE OPINION

By Michael Itti & Brianne RamosGuest Columnists

Community activists approached the governor four decades ago to develop awareness in state government of the unique needs and challenges of Asian Pacifi c Islanders (API). As a result, the fi rst state commission in the nation was created to address barriers preventing full equality and inclusion for APIs.

In the decades since, the Commission on Asian Pacifi c American Affairs (CAPAA) has responded to a broad range of changing issues on behalf of a population with 48 ethnicities and hundreds of languages and dialects.

Today, the Commission remains committed to our responsibility to improve the lives of APIs, who are now our state’s most diverse and fastest growing communities.

Throughout the year, the staff examines statewide programs and services, which do or should affect APIs in the areas of government, education, health, business, and immigration.

Its twelve board members, who are appointed by the Governor, convene fi ve times a year to hear from state agencies, community-based organizations, and the public.

Feedback from Commissioners and the public are used to recommend changes in programs and laws to the Governor’s Offi ce, the Legislature, and state agencies.

At the beginning of this year, the Commission approved a new strategic plan that guides our advocacy efforts. Below is an update of our progress and ongoing work.

Closing the Educational Opportunity GapsAPI communities are proud of the

large numbers of youth who graduate high school and obtain a college degree. However, not all API students are succeeding. Educational resources, services, and policies too often fall short of providing an equitable opportunity for all students to achieve—creating an opportunity gap.

The Commission supports public engagement on education issues, which is vital to closing the gaps.

The Commission appointed two leaders to represent Asian American and Pacifi c Islander communities on the Educational Opportunity Gap Oversight and Accountability Committee (EOGOAC), which meets monthly to develop an implementation plan based on community input to address the gaps.

Their recommendations are published annually and include strategies such as reducing the impact of school discipline policies on students of color, increasing cultural competency of educators, and improving the quality of English language learner programs.

CAPAA: Advocating for you at the state levelTo increase public awareness of the

gaps, the Commission has partnered with the National Commission on Asian American and Pacifi c Islanders Research in Education (CARE) to launch the Washington State iCount Report.

The report revealed disparities among APIs by reporting school data such as school discipline, absences, and educational attainment by ethnic groups. The report was presented at a community forum with CARE in March along with Pacifi c Islander youth from Our Future Matters and members of the Southeast Asian American Education Coalition—two grassroots groups working on closing the gaps.

Addressing Health DisparitiesThe Commission is working to ensure

public health agencies are aware of API disparities related to chronic diseases and behavioral health and factors contributing to social determinants of health such as access to safe housing, healthy foods, and open spaces.

To ensure services are responsive to API health and well-being, data must be collected by ethnic groups rather than just Asian American or Pacifi c Islander.

The Commission is advocating for changes on two widespread surveys of Washingtonians, the Healthy Youth Survey (HYS) and the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS).

While the BRFSS does include some API ethnicities for the demographic question, it lacks an option for Washington’s fast growing Cambodian/Khmer community, which is the third largest in the country. In addition, the Commission is urging the telephone-based survey to provide language assistance for limited English profi cient populations.

Promoting Economic OpportunityAPI populations experience a wide range

of economic success—from the highest incomes to the lowest wage earners.

The Commission is working to support immigrant entrepreneurship and the role of small businesses in our communities.

The Commission participates on a new subcabinet formed by the governor to increase access for small and minority-, women-, and veteran-owned businesses to contracting opportunities with Washington state government. The subcabinet will identify causes and barriers contributing to low participation among small and diverse businesses in state contracting and review all current state laws, policies, and practices.

In addition, members of the Commission and community participate on a diversity business roundtable convened by the Washington State Department of Commerce, whose mission is to grow and improve jobs in our state.

The roundtable is working to ensure organizations that receive state funding to support local economic development have the tools and knowledge to assist underrepresented businesses and business owners.

Representing YouThe Commission strives to be a voice

for APIs and serve as a bridge between our communities and state government.

To be effective in representing you, the Commission welcomes public participation and feedback at our upcoming board meetings in Tacoma on September 19 and in Seattle on November 21. Staff and Commissioners also attend numerous community events and meet with individuals to hear concerns.

Contact us at (360) 725-5667 ( telephone interpretation is available) or visit our website at www.capaa.wa.gov for information about upcoming board meetings and to sign up for our electronic newsletter.

Michael Itti is the Executive Director and Brianne Ramos is the Project Coordinator for the Washington State Commission on Asian Pacifi c American Affairs. The Commission has a board made up of 12-governor appointed members that represent the diverse APA communities of Washington State.

IE News Services

Governor Jay Inslee announced in August the reappointment of Lori Wada and made the following ap-pointments to the Commission on Asian Pacifi c American Affairs (CA-PAA).

• Dr. Tam Dinh is the Director of Field Educa-tion and an Assistant Pro-fessor of Social Work at Saint Martin’s University. Prior to her academic work, Dr. Dinh worked for more than 10 years with individuals and families in clinical and community settings. This experience ranges from being a case manager at Safe-Futures, where she worked with both gang-involved youth and their families to provide holistic and in-tegrated culturally-competent case management services, to her last nonacademic position at the City of Seattle Human Services Depart-ment where she engaged at an ad-ministrative, organizational, and so-cial policy leadership level.

• Dr. Lakshmi Gaur came to the United States on an Indo-American exchange program, completed her doctoral de-gree in Human Genetics, and proceeded to work in molecu-lar biology over the last three decades. She is currently the Laboratory Director at Ascendant Laboratories. Dr. Gaur has been an active member in the commu-nity for more than two decades and has served in various capacities as a volun-teer, committee member, and board of-fi cer with the India Association of West-ern Washington since 1994, including serving as President, Vice President, Secretary, and director of the youth program. She has also promoted Indian cultural heritage through programs at the Northwest Folklife Festival and Asia Pacifi c Cultural Center.

• Dr. Ka‘imi Sinclair is an As-sistant Professor at Washington State University—Spokane Health Sciences campus. She has a PhD in Health Behavior and Health Education from the University of Michigan, School of Public Health, and a Master’s in Public Health from the University of New Mexico. For two decades, she has conducted grant-

funded diabetes prevention and dia-betes self-management research with racial and ethnic populations across the United States. Dr. Sinclair’s work focuses on culturally adapting health programs and offering them in com-munities to make them more acces-sible to underserved populations.

Since moving to Washington three years ago, she has become actively involved with the NHPI community in the Puget Sound region, building a community-academic partnership with several NHPI-serving organiza-tions including the Asian Counseling and Referral Service, the Internation-al Community Health Services, and the Asia Pacifi c Cultural Center.

The Commission on Asian Pacifi c American Affairs was established by the state Legislature in 1974 to improve the well-being of Asian Pacifi c Americans (APAs) by ensur-ing their access to participation in the fi elds of government, business, education, and other areas. It has a board made up of 12-governor ap-pointed members that represents the diverse APA communities of Washington State.

New members appointed to CAPAA

Dinh

Gaur

Sinclair


IE OPINION

By Gary IwamotoIE Columnist

“Community activist murdered in Chinatown.” That was the headline. A senseless shooting in the early hours of the morning. The authorities state the activist was not the intended target, that the activist was caught in a crossfi re of bullets between rival gangs, that it was a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. A community grieved. Uncle Bob gave a heartfelt eulogy, tell-ing the mourners of the activist’s love for community, dedicated commitment as a dedicated Interim board member, and compassion for children. But this hap-pened almost thirty eight years ago. The Chinatown in the headline wasn’t the In-ternational District. It was in San Fran-cisco. The activist wasn’t Donnie Chin. It was Denise Louie.

In 1977, while visiting friends in San Francisco during the Labor Day Week-end, Denise was hav-ing an after hours meal at the Golden Dragon Restaurant in San Francisco’s Chi-natown. During that period of time, two rival gangs, the Wah Ching and the Joe Boys, were having a battle over control of turf in Chinatown. Members of each gang had been killed in the weeks leading up to the Labor Day Weekend. In the early hours of September 4, 1977, around 2:45 am, the Sunday before Labor Day, members of the Joe Boys went to the Golden Dragon in search of their rivals. The Joe Boys entered the restaurant with ski masks hiding their faces and started fi ring their weapons. The Wah Ching had been at the Restaurant but ducked down below the tables as the shooting started. They had all escaped the shooting. Five peo-ple, including Denise were killed, eleven others were injured. All of the victims were innocent bystanders. Denise had just turned 21.

At the time, Denise Louie was Inter*im’s youngest board member, a college student who had been one of Inter*im’s legion of activist volunteers. She helped build the Danny Woo Inter-national District Community Garden. Standing barely fi ve feet tall, Denise was described by friends as a “dynamo,” a person of boundless energy. Just like Donnie has been described as every-body’s brother, Denise was everybody’s kid sister. Like Donnie, Denise donated many hours of her time to community service without expectation of glory.

Donnie and Denise were about the same age, both born in 1956. They were friends, very good friends. It was Don-nie who brought attention to the need

for a day care center in the International District. Children needed a place to be at while their parents worked. Immi-grant children and families had no con-tact with established day care programs. At the time of her death, it was Denise who was chairperson of an Inter*im task force studying the feasibility of starting a day care center in the International Dis-trict, a day care center which was eventu-ally named in her honor. And when the Denise Louie Child Care Center opened its doors in the spring of 1978, among its staff was Donnie’s sister, Connie, who was then a program coordinator and teacher. Connie would also serve as Executive Director. Today, that day care center, now known as the Denise Louie Education Center, continues to thrive, ex-panding its services outside the Interna-tional District to Beacon Hill and Seward Park.

When Denise was killed, Donnie blamed the “punks” and “thugs.” Don-

nie knew about the Chinese gangs in America. He attended and participated in countless anti-gang conferences and semi-nars. He monitored gang activity through federal circulars and updates. He learned that many of the Wah Ching gang members who had escaped the shooting at the Golden

Dragon Restaurant, fl ed to Canada, stop-ping in Seattle on their way to Vancou-ver, in the aftermath of the shootings.

When the murders fi rst occurred, the identity of those involved were hidden by the ski masks they wore. Intense pressure was placed on the San Francisco Police Department to solve the murders. Hav-ing unsolved murders was bad for busi-ness. Eventually, an anti-gan task force was formed. A huge reward ($100,000) was offered. Informants gave the killers up. Six months later, ironically, when Inter*im announced plans to open the Denise Louie Day Care Center in March of 1978, the fi rst arrest of the fi ve in-volved in the Golden Dragon murders was announced in San Francisco. The killers were caught, tried, and convicted. Three of them were convicted of fi rst de-gree murder and were sentenced to life imprisonment and as of 2013, were still incarcerated.

As in Denise’s case, Donnie’s kill-ers will be caught, tried, and convicted. As in Denise’s case, it may turn out that those involved in Donnie’s killing will face imprisonment for their remainder of their lives and waste whatever future they had because they chose to solve their confl icts with a gun. History, sometimes has a cruel way of repeating itself. We mourned Denise then, we mourn Donnie now. We can’t forget.

Caught in the crossfi re

Denise Louie. • File Photo

The following is a speech given by Angela Lee of the International Dis-trict Emergency Services (IDEC) dur-ing the August 15 memorial of Donnie Chin’s life and legacy at Chong Wa playground:

I’m Angela Lee, also known as Sup-port 7 to Donnie and IDEC. Donnie has known my family before I was even born. We lived on S. King St., just around the corner from Canton Alley. When I was two years old, my parents opened up Ying Hei Restaurant for 19 years. It was located four doors down from where the original Sun May store was.

Donnie would come in to eat at our restaurant a lot. Probably because he can’t cook very well! His radio was al-ways on him. When a call comes in and he hears that it’s in Chinatown, he would run out quick. We knew he’d be back af-ter his run. His food would get cold by the time he returns. Even though we’d of-fer to heat it back up for him, he didn’t care. Donnie was on call 24/7.

As a kid growing up in Chinatown, our parents were always working long days. We would just run around the streets and play with other neighborhood kids. We always congregated at the IDEC in Canton Alley. Even though it was where Emergency Center operated out of, look-ing back at it now, it was as if it was a community center for the ghetto Chinese kids that lived in the neighborhood. Don-nie would let us play there, get homework help, and feed us snacks. He also used to feed us these nasty MRE’s (the military meal rations) where you choose these lit-tle brown packs from bad tasting to gross tasting. I still don’t even know why I ate that stuff, when I could just run back to the restaurant to eat real food.

We tried to do homework in the base-ment. But we mainly came to mess with Donnie. All our parents are immigrants from China and spoke only Chinese to us at home. We learned our English either at school or watching Sesame Street. But I am pretty sure we all learned our swear words from Donnie here at the Center!

Our families didn’t have much money for toys, back then we just go out and play and come back by dinner time. Hanging out here at the Center, we ended up play-ing with Donnie’s equipment a lot. He had a room full of video cameras, radios, scanners, twist ties, T-sticks, and tasers.

We didn’t play ordinary tag like most kids, we played tag with Donnie’s taser guns, trying to zap each other. Let’s just say those things hurt! Then we would try to zap Donnie and he would get mad at us, and yell and kick us out. He would al-ways say, “And don’t come back!” as we ran down the alley to go home. But we always came back.

Usually I was the only girl that hung out at the emergency center with all the boys around my age. (Big Hong, Middle, Baby, Gia Gong, just to name a few.) We would always get into these crazy fi ghts

here and most of the time, Donnie would be the instigator of the fi ghts. Even though I was the only girl, he did not feel sorry for me. He let me fi ght for myself. I had to learn to beat the boys up or I get beat.

Donnie knew most of us kids didn’t have opportunities to get out of Chinatown since our parents are always working. He would make time to take some of us to Puyallup Fair, or to see military vehicles at the army base, or to see the ships when Seafair fl eet arrived at the water front.

Donnie has been a very big part in all our lives. He was the fi rst one to try to teach me to drive, before I started driver’s ed class and even before my dad took me out in a car. When I got my license and car, he made sure I had a fi rst aid kit in my car in case of emer-gencies with his beloved glow sticks. And of course he’d put the fi rst aid kit in a little green army box (since he loved anything military).

As we all got older, he recruited us to volunteer at the Emergency Center. We all came back in one way or another to help him out. He taught us to be tough and rough, but also caring for others. I can see that in each one of us. He even said so himself in a recent email to me on June 26: “Big Hong went from a ghetto kid to a good dad—loves his family. Baby is taking care of all the kids, I watched them jump all over him smiling and laughing. These ghetto kids who were out of control grew into young men who are doing good things. We did some right things here. Still remember this little girl who beat up ev-ery boy she met ... wonder what she turned out to be?” He was proud of each one of us and how we turned out.

In an article that Donnie wrote back in 1982 that was recently republished in the International Examiner, Donnie mentioned how he often went looking for a guy named Saito to thank him for caring for all the street kids here in Chinatown, giving them money, playing with them, being a friend. Donnie said that he had hoped future gen-erations of kids growing up in the District will have friends like Saito to make growing up a little bit easier.

Donnie, I wish we could have told you that you were to us what Saito was to you and the other kids of your generation. Donnie, youmade growing up here in Chinatown a little bit easier and then some. We will truly miss seeing you in the alley and running down King Street in your tan uniform. I wish we could tell you how much you really meant to all of us and thank you for helping raise us ghetto kids who used to swear and fi ght with you to be the people we have grown into now. We are all better to have had you in our lives. Thank you for taking care of all of us, mentoring us, and looking out for us all these years.

Just like how you hoped the future genera-tions of kids growing up in the District will have a friends like Saito growing up, I now hope the future generation of kids growing up in the ID will have someone like Donnie Chin. But in my heart, I know there will nev-er be any one like you for future generations to get to know. You were one of a kind.

Donnie Chin was one of a kind


IE OPINION

By Frank IrigonGuest Columnist

Closing down the hookah bars is not going to close down crime in the Chinatown-International District. This neighborhood has been under siege for decades by crime. From prostitution to pick pockets, gambling and gangs, rapes and robbers, mayhem and murders, this litany can go on and on. And the City’s response has been tepid and does not tackle the root causes for these crimes and criminal activities and thus continues to keep this neighborhood’s residents, businesses, and visitors vulnerable. This neighborhood deserves better from the City, and we’d rather see their efforts in solving the murders of Benito Enriquez, who was fatally beaten to death near 5th Ave. and South Weller Street on June 29, 2015, after leaving a Kenny Chesney concert at Century Link Field, and the murder of Donnie Chin.

A cloud of smoke: Dialogue must continue for API leaders, hookah bar owners to clear the air

The mayor’s decision to close all hookah bars is lamentable, especially when Donnie’s death was used as one reason for doing it and consequently, it appears Asian Americans are against their East African owners. One race pitted against another. For this reason of racism, Cindy Domingo and I with the help of Nebil Mohammed, a hookah bar owner, organized a meeting between Asian American community leaders and activists and hookah bar owners and their supporters. We met on Thursday, August 13, at IDEA Space. Present were eight hookah bar owners and co-owners with their supporters, and there were 10 from our community.

* * *After the meeting one API community

leader said:“It was important to sit with the Hookah

bar owners and to have a dialogue—outside of the City Council chambers. As many people pointed out, the conversation

today is something that City policy makers should have done before the Mayor’s proposal—not as a result of it.

“After seeing the sign-on letter from the mayor’s office for the East African community leaders, I, too, am saddened to see how the issue is dividing communities, creating ‘sides’ with too many people who have already sacrificed and lost too much.”

* * *Another API community leader said:

“I got a chance to hear their frustrations with getting SPD to address their public safety needs, not unlike what we have been experiencing. It is too bad that such a meeting was not able to take place within the East African communities as well.

“I think this meeting was also important for the hookah owners to know that, for whatever reasons these hookah lounges are attracting the less desirable elements around their establishments, they do need to do something about it. Not just the

other East African communities, but also members of our communities have had enough.”

* * *I can honestly say that this is not about

race but about being a responsible business owner, of taking responsibility for the bad behavior of his patrons outside his business and happening in front of Legacy House where our low-income, limited English speaking Asian seniors lived. Where they should be able to sleep in peace, live without fear, and enjoy the morning air. Instead our seniors are subjected to danger, are deprived of sleep, and cannot enjoy the morning’s blessings. And I can assure you that closing down the hookah bar is not a clashing of cultures, but about the criminal behaviors of some of the business’s clientele. We all should be good citizens and be civil towards one another. And our hope is that the good relations we have with the East African community does not disappear in a cloud of smoke.

Artists of the Pacific Rim highlighted at Seattle Art FairBy Eva CohenIE Contributor

Seattle might be at the edge of the American frontier, but its location on the west coast situates the city within the realm of the vast Pacific Rim, replete with a rich and diverse art community.

Leeza Ahmady, the director of Asia Con-temporary Art Week (ACAW), partnered with the Seattle Art Fair to bring Thinking Currents, a “signature exhibition of video, film and sound by artists based in the Pacific Rim,” to the city from July 30 to August 2.

The exhibition showcased 30 artists, including both those born in the region, and many who relocated there later in life. The artists’ backgrounds were as diverse as their art, ranging from Charwei Tsai, who has lived in Ho Chi Minh City, Paris, and Taipei, to Alexander Ugay, whose ethnically Korean family was forcibly relocated by Stalin from South Korea to what is now present day Kazakhstan. Due to this fluidity in movement, those in the exhibition were listed by the cities they have lived in, rather than by the country they currently reside in, since they are not representative of nations or nationalism: they only represent their own art and experiences.

Born in Afghanistan, Ahmady moved with her family to New York as a teenager. Since then, she has traveled widely throughout Central Asia, where she has forged countless firsthand relationships with local artists. Ahmady said she was excited for the Seattle public to take in the wealth of creativity displayed in Thinking

Currents, and is ecstatic how well the opening went, with lines to get in that stretched out the door and down the street.

“Seattle is a very special place, it’s becoming incredibly diverse; the public is broadening,” Ahmady said. “What I would like to see in Seattle is for the general public to be puzzled: for them to say, ‘I didn’t know about this, what does this mean?’”

“I want them to be turned on and to say, ‘I want to know more, this is making me think and feel something,’” Ahmady continued. “Hopefully they will not to be dismissive if it’s something they don’t immediately get; they can revisit the idea and learn more from it.”

Within the Pacific Rim, some countries have longer histories of their artists’ creations reaching the shores of the Pacific Northwest than others. Even within the Pacific Rim, some countries, such as Cambodia and Thailand, have not even infiltrated into the psyche of art curators based in Asia, Ahmady said, so she is especially pleased to have introduced creations from these nations to the American public in Seattle.

The themes represented within Thinking Currents included issues of migration, environment, identity, technology, nation building, conflict, and stagnation. And what holds all of these Pacific Rim countries together? Water. The exhibition delved deeply into this unifying fact of nature, with artistic explorations in video and new media format of the various liquid and land territories in the region.

A keynote discussion featured Ahmady in conversation with French-born artists and architects Laurent Gutierrez and Valérie Portefaix, of MAP Office in Hong Kong. The two also had a piece in the exhibition entitled “Island is Land,” which is a single channel color video on a 30 second loop. The video “explores islands as anomalies through semiotic ambiguity; as land that is both opposed-to and reliant-on water for its existence.”

Other videos in the exhibition were similar in length, such as Burçak Bingöl of Istanbul’s “Self Conscious” which runs at 1:31min, where the artist “interrogates notions of belonging, culture, history, and tradition, also read as homage to ceramics—a treasured Asian-continental artistic practice and symbol of wealth, widely spread through Western imperialism.” Alternatively, Ho Tzu-Nyun of Singapore submitted the video “The Cloud of Unknowing,” with a run time

of 28 minutes. The piece “explores the aesthetic history and role of cloud imagery in art through eight compartmentalized vignettes, titled after a fourteenth century mystical treatise on faith, in which the cloud represents a simultaneous internal struggle and reconciliation with ‘the unknown’ or the divine.”

Visiting Seattle for the first time, Gutierrez and Portefaix said they are struck by its similarity to Hong Kong.

“Our projects are all related essentially around territories … to discover the potential of these territories, and to inform about the modes of living,” said Gutierrez. “Recently, we have mainly been concerned with the ecology of these territories.”

Seattle, like Hong Kong, is surrounded by interconnected pieces of land, and it is this type of geography that truly inspires the pair. As Ahmady points out, nine out of 10 of the world’s largest port cities are in the Pacific Rim, so cities such as Seattle play an integral role in human interconnectivity and globalism, as well as serving as the connector between mankind and the Ocean. Portefaix added that political tensions over islands, such as the growing amount of disputes over islands in the Pacific between China and other nations, also plays a role in their art.

Geopolitical topics run strong within Thinking Currents, which was coined as an exhibition which “seeks to contribute to a rethinking of global contemporaneity.”

Polit-Sheer-Form Office – artist collective: HONG Hao, XIAO Yu, SONG Dong, LIU Jianhua, LENG Lin (Beijing) “Do the Same Good Deed,” 2014, single-channel video, color, sound, 8’.


IE COMMUNITY

By Ron ChewIE Contributor

Anne Chinn Wing, who passed away on July 25 at the age of 96, was remembered as a fun-loving, dedicated volunteer for many Seattle community groups, including Kin On Health Care Center, the Miss Chinatown Queen Pageant, and the Gee How Oak Tin Association.

“Anne was a leader and a great resource and asset for our community,” said Fred Yee, former director of Kin On. Yee said

Wing served as Kin On board president in the mid-1990s and helped shepherd completion of a new 100-bed nursing home in 1996 following an ambitious board-led capital campaign. “She will be much missed.”

Bettie Sing Luke said she admired Anne’s ability to maintain an active social life—which included mahjong games with friends and dancing—even as she took on leadership roles for many community causes, both Asian and non-Asian. “Kin On was one very important agency to her,” Luke said. “She

Anne Chinn Wing remembered as free-spirited, dedicated supported Kin On in many big and small ways. I remember attending a food fair at Kin On and seeing Anne bring in a box of freshly-made joong tay. Those sold

before she even unpacked the box.”Wing helped fi rst establish the queen

pageant in 1948 to celebrate Chinese cultural traditions and ethnic pride for young women. She continued to run the pageant for 35 years, receiving an award from the Chinatown Chamber of Commerce in 1986.

Wing’s involvement with the Gee How Oak Tin Association, one of the oldest family associations in Seattle, spanned many decades beginning in the 1960s. The Association is comprised of Chinese with the surname of Chin, Woo, and Yuen. Wing served as head of the Oak Tin women’s auxiliary for three terms and helped push for greater representation of women on the national level.

Her involvement in the family association stemmed from fi erce pride in her father’s role as a pioneer Chinese American settler in Seattle.

Wing was born in the early Chinatown in Pioneer Square near Second Avenue and South Washington Street. Her father Chinn Kee, a community leader, was one of the fi rst Chinese employed by the Immigration and Naturalization Service. “We had our home at the back of the store,” Wing said in a 1991 interview featured in Refl ections of Seattle’s Chinese Americans: The First 100 Years. “The store was a very busy place because at that time, there were so few families and mostly single men. Because they couldn’t speak English and they were unable to get employment, that was the core of their everyday activities.”

Wing, known as “Auntie Anne” to the local community, was also remembered as a free-spirited individual who loved to travel and participate in ballroom dancing with her husband David.

“No one loved a party more than she,” Bette Luke, Wing’s daughter-in-law, said. “At the age of 84 while on one of many cruises, she and David were, as usual, the fi rst up on the cruise ship’s stage where there was open dancing. Showing off, she kicked her leg too high in the air and damaged her knee, which resulted in a knee replacement operation. She recuperated quickly and was back on the dance fl oor, not kicking quite so high.”

Wing

By Frank AbeSpecial to the IE

In her solo play on the lone resistance of Gordon Hirabayashi, playwright Jeanne Sakata shows that the truth of the Japanese American experience can work as powerful drama onstage, with-out violating the history or resorting to melodrama.

Hold These Truths, which just ended its longest run ever of four weeks at the ACT Theater, uses nothing but the ac-tual word and deed of the UW student and Quaker pacifi st, based on Sakata’s hours of interviews with him. Where she compresses events or fi ctionalizes Gor-don’s letters from jail, the words are al-ways drawn from his actual writings, the minimum of dramatic license is taken, and the intent is always to illuminate the real nature of Gordon’s character. Her approach succeeds brilliantly.

Having known Gordon through his visits to Seattle later in life, it’s odd to see him portrayed on stage by someone who bears such a striking resemblance. Ryan Yu captures something about the tilt of the head when Gordon would pursue a thought. He fi nds an expansive energy in the younger Gordon, while staying true to his pure convictions and measured speech. Yu holds the stage for 90 min-utes, and earned a standing ovation ev-ery night.

At a pivotal moment in the play, Yu as Hirabayashi trembles at the gravity of his decision to violate the military curfew, and take on the government. He realizes his will be a test case, and the line he writes in a letter, “Therefore, I must refuse this order for evacuation,” precedes by two years the nearly identi-cal stance of the draft resisters at Heart Mountain. The difference was Gordon had no organized resistance around him, no model for his selfl ess stand.

Seeing the play performed in Seattle was especially meaningful, at a theater just a few blocks from the federal court-house where Gordon was fi rst arraigned in 1942, and a few blocks more from the King County Jail where he served nine months. Hearing a stage voice announce the wartime exclusion order in terms of real Seattle territory—Roosevelt and N. 85th—made the history all too tangible for an audience that can visualize those streets today.

That federal courthouse was also the scene where Gordon in 1985 was given a chance to put the government on trial for withholding evidence that could have changed the outcome of his Supreme Court test case. In connection with the play, I moderated a July 20 panel at Town Hall Seattle with the playwright and three of the lawyers who backed Gordon and Fred Korematsu in their attempt to overturn their high court convictions.

Rod Kawakami, Lorrie Bannai, and Daniel Ichinaga took us inside their legal strategy to refute the claim of military necessity used to justify the wartime incarceration. On the eve of the hearing, Kawakami described how the govern-ment offered Gordon a Presidential par-don in exchange for dropping the case; it was revealing of Gordon’s character that he rejected the offer, saying “We should be the ones pardoning the government.”

Hold These Truths: The power of the real

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Frank Abe, left, moderates a panel on July 20 at Town Hall Seattle with playwright Jeanne Sakata and three lawyers who backed Gordon Hirabayashi and Fred Korematsu. • Courtesy Photo


IE NEWS

By Anna CarriveauIE Contributor

Saturday afternoon, August 15, at the Chong Wa Benevolent Association Playfield, more than 500 people gathered to honor International District Emergency Center (IDEC) founder and executive director Donnie Chin, who was murdered on July 23 only blocks away.

The public memorial, organized by IDEC and nearly 100 volunteers, celebrated Chin with stories highlighting his accomplishments and life mission to build a better International District by knowing, loving, and serving those within it; a mission he executed via the creation of IDEC, a volunteer-based emergency service organization, which has responded to more than 2,500 calls and 1,000 events since its inception in 1968.

“In almost 50 years leading the IDEC, Donnie earned the respect of the entire community,” said Beth Takekawa, executive director of the Wing Luke Museum, and close friend of Chin. “He successfully collaborated with firefighters, police, medics, and other first responders. He trained hundreds of community members in emergency first aid, personal safety, and emergency preparedness. He protected the neighborhood and tried to keep us safe.”

While Chin’s altruistic efforts accomplished more than you think any one person could, including saving lives, as Takekawa noted, he’d be the last person to hear it from. Many of his deeds went unsung, because he didn’t care about recognition, rather he simply enjoyed the noble act of helping others, a point many speakers emphasized throughout the memorial.

Chin was proud of IDEC and the men and women behind it, which Takekawa highlighted by reading the following quote by him: “We have some of the most dedicated and hard-working people in the ID. They have given more than the community will know. I am deeply proud of every member here.”

Because IDEC put Chin on the frontline, responding to radio calls for crime, medical, and other emergencies, he became well known, even somewhat of a legend,

among Seattle firefighters and police officers. Retired captain Preston Bhang, of the Seattle Fire Department, said firefighters respected Chin’s courage; his humble, honorable nature; and dedication to helping people, no matter who or where they were, to an extent that Bhang was asked by the fire chief at the time to recruit Chin, who refused because he wouldn’t be able to serve the International District full-time if he took the job.

“He responded,” Bhang said. “He was brave. He was community-minded. He stuck his life on the line, he did all day long and all night long, and he was not paid. And, he didn’t go home to some fancy neighborhood, to some big house—he went home and he lived in the neighborhood he served. That’s a hero.”

Police Capt. Paul McDonagh also reflected on Chin’s devotion to the International District and the many lives he saved and touched via IDEC. “He chose to help, he chose to care, and he chose to serve,” McDonagh said. “Donnie made those active choices in his life and lived them everyday.”

Other speakers included Tai Tung res-taurant owner Harry Chan, who com-mended Chin for saving his grandmother, after a neighbor notified him she’d fallen. Chin contacted Chan about the incident di-rectly, which granted the family members more time together, Chan said. Also speak-ing was former transient and drug addict,

Franklyn Smith, who was left for dead by passersby on an International District side-walk after his pancreas ruptured, until Chin approached him, asked if he was okay, and got him the medical attention he needed.

When Smith ran into Chin later on, he asked him, “Why do you do the things you do to people who don’t live here?” Chin replied, “Because we are all family.”

Since then, Smith has celebrated 10 years of sobriety and worked to serve his community through supportive housing

programs and his employment with the city as a transitional reentry specialist—all of which, Smith stated, he owes to Chin.

While each speaker had a distinct, inspiring story to share about Chin and the ways he influenced their lives and the community, they collectively cherished Chin’s love for helping others and will remember him as a true hero of the International District. And, although a void remains after his loss, the deep imprint he left on the International District, speakers said, will live on through the people he taught, served, and loved.

Among the overflowing crowd, which grew bigger and bigger throughout the ceremony, were hundreds of Chin’s friends and family members as well as Mayor Ed Murray, Seattle Police Chief Kathleen O’Toole, and members of the Seattle Fire Department, the Seattle Police Department, and IDEC.

The memorial began and ended with a joint ceremonial performance by the Seattle Fire Department and Seattle Police Department Pipe and Drum Band and the presentation and retiring of colors by the Seattle Police Color Guard, an honorary act traditionally reserved for fallen police officers and firefighters, which seemed only fitting for someone like Chin, who lived to heroically serve his community.

Community honors life and legacy of Donnie Chin

Donnie Chin was honored ceremonial performance by the Seattle Fire Department and Seattle Police Department Pipe and Drum Band. • Photo by Rick Wong

IE News Services

On Thursday, August 13, Seattle Police Department detectives said they identified two men present during the shooting of International District Emergency Services director Donnie Chin on July 23.

Detectives also said they believe the men had spent time at two International District hookah establishments prior to the incident. Detectives are working to determine the extent of their involvement in the homicide. One of the men is in police custody on an unrelated Department of Corrections violation.

SPD Chief Kathleen O’Toole said the men were involved in criminal activity

around the same time Chin’s murder occurred. O’Toole said Chin was not the intended target and likely caught in crossfire. SPD does not yet have probable cause to arrest the men and are working closely with prosecutors.

SPD detectives said they are also still looking for help in finding a witness who they say picked up some shell casings and brought them to officers. The man was described as a 6” tall African-American with a thin build. At the time, he was wearing a white brimmed hat, glasses and a green argyle shirt. Anyone with information is asked to call SPD Homicide Investigators at (206) 684-5550.

SPD identifies two men present at shooting


IE NEWS

By Lauren PonganIE Contributor

The full parking lot spilling over onto nearby neighborhood streets was a good indication that the July 29 public forum, “The School-to-Prison Pipeline: Education, not Criminalization of our Youth,” was well attended. In addition to occupying every seat in the NewHolly Gathering Hall, forum attendees lined the walls, entranceways and even open floor space. Some who were too far to be able to hear filled the hallways to have their own relevant discussions.

The meeting, sponsored by both King County and the City of Seattle, addressed Recommendation Area 3 of the King County Youth Action Plan (YAP) Task Force: stopping the “School-to-Prison Pipeline.” This Recommendation calls on “the County and its partners to support preventative practices and programs that reduce the likelihood of contact with the juvenile justice system.” The transition from school to prison is an issue seen to primarily affect immigrant youth and youth of color.

This Recommendation is especially relevant in the context of the recent controversial closing of the Middle College High School for Social Justice and Community Engagement at High Point, and the displacement of teacher and co-founder Rogelio Rigor from the Ida B. Wells Middle College for Social Justice. The two middle colleges primarily serve students of color.

Many see these and other issues of education and access for communities of color as particularly poignant because

Fixing a broken educational system A public forum on the School-to-Prison Pipeline

of the County Council’s recent approval of a contract to construct a new, $210 million voter-approved juvenile detention center in Seattle.

In February and the preceding months, protestors objected, arguing that the juvenile detention system disproportionally incarcerates black youth, and other youth of color. In 2012, King County juvenile detention data showed that 42% of incarcerated youth in Seattle were Africa American, though they comprise only 7.7% of King County’s youth. Many called for the reallocation of the youth detention center funds for youth education and social services programs. The detention center is due to be completed in 2019.

UW Bothell Professor Wayne Au delivered his keynote speech, “Connections between disproportionality in discipline and achievement and school policies and practices,” which addressed some of the disparities in both graduation rates and

disciplinary action. In both cases, students of color suffer disproportionally. A lack of administrators and teachers of color to serve as role models and leaders in educational communities, in addition to the use of suspensions and expulsions, are some of the problems Au cited.

A combination of seven councilmembers from King County and the City of Seattle were present and participated in the forum.

As panelist Dustin Washington of the American Friends Services Committee and the Tyree Scott Freedom School succinctly summarized, “Our kids are not broken; the system is broken.”

Another panelist, teacher Alonzo Ybarra from the recently closed Middle College High School at High Point noted that these “issues are a matter of life and death.” For at-risk students, especially students of color, Middle Colleges can be the final chance to graduate. High Point

was closed in order to save revenue for the city, among other reasons, to which Ybarra responded that “Education isn’t a way to make money, but to figure out who you truly are.”

One of High Point Middle College’s graduates, fellow panel member Audreyanna Leatualii, said that “Without schools like Middle College, I wouldn’t be here right now.” Having struggled with food insecurity, homelessness, anxiety, and depression, Leatualii felt that Middle College was the only way she could have graduated. She chose High Point for its social justice based curriculum and feels that the school’s closure is a mistake.

Rogelio Rigor, one of those who testified, is a Filipino-American teacher who co-founded the Ida B. Wells Middle College for Social Justice eighteen years ago. He was recently and suddenly displaced as a teacher from the Wells School on a technicality of endorsements. “Wells is not a remedial program, but this pervasive punitive culture of extracting the curriculum by my sudden displacement for the sake of standardized curriculum is a farce,” he said.

Some of the themes that emerged in the public testimonies were a lack of people of color serving in school administrations, as role models, and involved in the disciplinary system; a need for community-based education and restorative justice; the exclusion from official state curricula of pedagogies that are culturally relevant to communities of color; and a need for a moratorium on the casual use of suspensions and expulsions in disciplinary matters.

Ida B. Wells School for Social Justice co-founder and teacher Rogelio Rigor speaks to the panel at the July 29 public forum, “The School-to-Prison Pipeline: Education, not Criminalization of our Youth.” • Photo by Lauren Pongan

By Shawn PorterIE Contributor

Washington became a state in 1889, but its history of racial discrimination against Chinese immigrants dates back even further, Throughout the 1800s, Chinese immigrants built the first railroads to and from Seattle in what was then the Washington territory.

Chinese labor also worked in local industries, dug the earliest portion of the Lake Washington Canal, worked as domestic servants, and even graded many of the steep Seattle roads like Pike, Union, Jackson, and Washington Streets.

Among many discriminatory measures and laws effecting Chinese people, discriminatory laws were passed as far back as 1853, when a measure denying Chinese the right to vote was passed. Another measure denied Chinese the right to own land.

On February 7, 1886 an anti-Chinese riot in Seattle led to 350 hardworking Chinese, essentially all those left in the region, being forced to leave Seattle by order of mob rule. The mob of 1,500 forced the Chinese onto wagons headed for the Queen of Pacific steamer and ensuing boats.

A resolution that attempts to address the past racial discrimination practiced by the city of Seattle was signed by Mayor Ed Murray in his Seattle office August 14, 2015. The resolution acknowledges anti-Chinese legislation and riots during the 1800s as well as the contributions of Chinese Americans.

Initially passed by the Seattle City Council, leaders from the API community joined the mayor during the signing of the resolution, many receiving memorial pens from the mayor commemorating the occasion.

The resolution was first drafted by OCA—Greater Seattle board member Doug Chin. “This [resolution] means that we acknowledge

the contribution of the Chinese, as well as the sacrifice and the hardship of the anti-Chinese movement,” said Chin. “It gives

us a sense of belonging to this city and recognition of our important role in the work of this city.”

Resolution expressing regret for anti-Chinese legislation signed

On August 14, 2015, Seattle Mayor Ed Murray signed a resolution that acknowledges anti-Chinese legislation and riots during the 1800s as well as the contributions of Chinese Americans. • Photo by Shawn Porter


IE ARTS

By Roxanne RayIE Contributor

The Seattle Opera will present a new work that is a collaborative effort not only among the artists involved, but also among our local Puget Sound community.

The new opera, An American Dream, arose from the Seattle Opera’s Belonging(s) Project, according to Seattle Opera PR Man-ager Gabrielle Gainor. “The Belonging(s) Project asked members of the community to answer ‘If you had to leave today and could not return, what would you take with you?’” Gainor said. “Seattle Opera received many entries, but was inspired by two stories in particular: one was Marianne Weltmann, a German Jew and former opera singer, and the other was Mary Matsuda Gruenewald, a Nisei Japanese American.”

Then, Seattle Opera’s former Director of Education Sue Elliott became involved, see-ing possibilities for an original work. Ac-cording to Gainor, “Elliott did a lot of awe-some community-based operas that were created in partnership with communities of color when she worked at Houston Grand Opera.”

Elliott followed a similar model for An American Dream. “Sue was originally the one who organized this project, and also the one who roped in Jessica Murphy Moo, librettist, Jack Perla, composer, Judith Yan, the conductor—and me, as sort of an infor-

mal community and cultural adviser,” said Gainor, who is Japanese American and serves on the board of the Japanese Ameri-can Citizens League.

Gainor worked closely with librettist Jes-sica Murphy Moo, aiming for linguistic and cultural authenticity. “Even though Jessica is not Japanese, she has created a world in this opera where I have a sense of familiarity and ‘being at home’ in the Japanese American elements,” Gainor said. “She has always lis-tened to me whenever I’ve had a question or concern about something that I found to not accurately represent the Japanese American community. She’s been willing to revise, to learn, and to immerse herself in this experi-ence.”

Gainor also assisted with arrangements for one of the show’s performers, Nina Yo-shida Nelsen, who also participated in the development of the opera itself. “Jessica asked Nina to interview her grandmother, a Seattle native who was incarcerated during World War II,” Gainor said. “The interview was then used to write a new aria for Nina’s character.”

Nelsen was happy to participate so fully. “I am half Japanese-American. My grandparents were interned in World War II. When I was asked to be in this opera, I jumped at the opportunity,” Nelsen said. “It’s not often that an opera plot is the story of your family.”

Nelsen’s family was pleased, as well. “I am lucky enough that my 91-year-old grand-mother is still alive and mentally able to share many stories with me about her expe-riences in ‘camp,’” said Nelsen. “Ironically, my middle name (Kiyoka) is after my great grandmother. She would have been the same age in camp as my character. I like to think that this is a special connection between us.”

That connection came to life for Nelsen during the interview process. “I have learned so much about my own family through work-ing on this opera,” she said. “My grand-mother has been inspired to share her stories with me, stories I’ve never heard before. It’s been an incredible experience for me!”

As part of An American Dream, Nelsen has also been able to give special presenta-tions, with Gainor’s assistance, performing at the 92nd Annual Japanese American Citi-zens League Banquet, as well as for elders at Nikkei Concerns’ Seattle Keiro nursing home, many of whom were incarcerated during WWII. “For the Japanese Ameri-cans in the 1940s, it was just as easy to lose everything they had worked and dreamed toward,” Nelsen said. “That just breaks my heart.”

Nelsen hopes that seeing their experiences refl ected onstage will please local Japanese Americans. “Touching souls with music is one of my greatest joys in life,” Nelsen said. “It’s the most precious gift I have to give.”

Despite their advanced age, both of the women who inspired An American Dreamhave been involved in the project, and both plan to attend the August performance. “Marianne Weltmann attended the work-shop performance of the opera, and Mary Matsuda Gruenewald was recently at a com-munity event at Wing Luke for the opera,” said Gainor.

Gainor hopes that this project will al-ter the perceptions of the local community about the possibilities inherent in opera. “Opera is not simply a dated art form about long ago, and far away,” she said. “It’s about us, people, the experience of being human. For this reason, it was important for us as a company to create an opera with locally-sourced stories and bring these to the stage.”

Gainor reports that numerous commu-nity partners also helped bring this project to fruition: Holocaust Center for Humanity, Bainbridge Island Historical Museum, Den-sho, Japanese American Citizens League-Seattle, Museum of History & Industry (MOHAI), Wing Luke Museum of the Asia Pacifi c Experience, and Los-Angeles-based Japanese American National Museum.

An American Dream refl ects the goals of Seattle Opera, said Gainor. “Communi-ty is at the heart of everything that Seattle Opera does.”

‘An American Dream’ runs on August 21 and 23, at McCaw Hall, 321 Mercer Street.

An American Dream: ‘Community is at the heart of everything’

By Shin Yu PaiIE Contributor

On a quest to unearth his great-great-grandfather’s Liu Feng Shu’s fabled porcelain collection, American journalist Huan Hsu embarks on a “long march” back to his ancestors’ native land. Hsu’s book, The Porcelain Thief: Searching the Middle Kingdom for Buried China, interrogates the ABC (American Born Chinese) experience in the motherland and the ineffable longing of second-generation Chinese Americans that seek to recover a connection to the past, and a lost identity that is not fully their own.

Hsu writes incisively on the challenges of being an overseas Chinese, or huaquiao(“Chinese bridge”) and the attitudes and biases that he encounters, which continually remind him of status as an outsider. His co-workers refer to him as Bruce Lee, when he refuses to take an English name. At a funeral for a beloved relative, Hsu fi nds his name recorded incorrectly in the family registry. Confronted with his own alienation and disassociation from a sense of being Chinese, the pain of Hsu’s frustrations pervade his writing. Marked as foreigner to native Chinese, yet invisible to other Americans, the author is caught between worlds in circumstances where it is impossible to feel fully at ease.

Former Seattle Weekly writer Huan Hsu publishes memoir As a journalist, Hsu is a critical

observer of contemporary Chinese culture and comments on everything from digital piracy, food safety, religion, Chinese factory conditions, and urban planning and design, while documenting the many ways in which China assaults his senses on a daily basis. “China was people taking an eternity to use bank machines, bathrooms with hot-water taps that didn’t work, soap dispensers that never had any soap, and long, gross-looking fi ngernails that served no apparent purpose.”

Hsu’s resentment leads him to lash out in inappropriate ways. He asserts his personal space by shoving innocent subway riders and provoking traffi c disputes, which, in one terrible instance, results in Hsu getting a thorough beating.

But readers may grow to empathize with Hsu’s character. His older cousin

Andrew relentlessly ridicules him for his cultural illiteracy—Hsu can never be fl uent in Mandarin or Chinese enough. Hsu can’t connect to the

religious devotion of his Christian relatives but endures long and tedious hours of religious testimony, in order to piece together the story of his family. He seeks out and interviews a number of his relatives in both China and Taiwan who offer him confl icting accounts of what may have happened to his great-g rea t-g r a nd fa t he r’s porcelain collection.

Eventually, Hsu’s journey takes him to Xingang where he puts on a desperate

yet persuasive performance of fi lial piety that grants him permission to dig up his ancestral land. The terms of agreement involve temporarily planting trees to beautify the land, which must be promptly removed once photos have been taken. In a ridiculous and heart-rending scene, Hsu snaps at his

translators and guides to let him do the digging. He takes a pickax and opens up several shallow holes where he places camphor and loquat trees into the ground. Unfortunately, if any buried treasure exists, it’s three or four times deeper down in the earth.

Though Hsu never succeeds in fulfi lling his desire to recover his ancestral patrimony, his time in China allows him to get to know his elderly grandmother, Liu Pei Jin, before she dies. He records the history of her life as the eldest child from a family of four daughters. She escapes a fate of bound feet and receives a Western education at a missionary school before continuing on to study at a top women’s college. The many migrations through Liu Pei Jin’s life take her from Nanjing to Shanghai to Taiwan and eventually America.

The Porcelain Thief reaches back into hundreds of years of Chinese history and decades of political upheavals to tell the story of China through Hsu’s ancestors. Though the book travels back and forth between the past and present and multiple family storylines, the strongest parts of Hsu’s book narrate his own experiences as an ABC struggling to fi nd personal meaning in being Chinese, through embracing the complexity of his family’s histories.


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As the next U.S. Presidential campaign heats up, the issue of immigration continues to be a hot topic. Local theatre company SIS Productions is highlighting the challenges of immigration faced by Asian Americans with a presentation of Genny Lim’s play Paper Angels.

First produced 35 years ago in 1980, Paper Angels was seen in San Francisco, New York, and Seattle, before appearing on PBS’ American Playhouse in 1985 and winning the Villager Award at The New Federal Theater in New York.

The play centers on the experiences of Chinese immigrants whose first stop entering the United States was at Angel Island. “I started writing Paper Angels while working on the book, Island: Poetry and History of Chinese Immigrants on Angel Island,” Lim said. “I wanted to reach a wider audience than just Asian American Studies students and Chinese history buffs, which I thought would be the main readership of our then self-published book.”

Lim chose the theatre because of her own experience during college. “I had been a theater arts major in college and loved the stage,” she said. “I wanted people to know who these people were who risked everything to come to the U.S. and why. Bringing their stories to life would be the best way, I thought.”

But writing her first play was a big leap for Lim. “I had never before thought of writing a play myself,” Lim said. “My experience in theater, however, led me to realize that if there were no roles for Asian Americans, we simply had to write plays ourselves. We had to take the initiative to tell our own stories.”

Lim considers it crucial to continue telling the stories of immigration. “I don’t feel it’s an accident that Paper Angels is being produced today,” she said. “With immigration reform being one of the hottest and most controversial topics today, the questions the play raises are more relevant than ever.”

Lim highlights the legal and political issues that have continued to face the United States. “It’s no secret that our immigration system is broken and that exclusionary immigration policies targeting any one specific racial group unfairly and inhumanely, be they Chinese, Mexican, Arab, or other are discriminatory and racist,” she said.

She is especially concerned about the children who are affected by immigration challenges. “We are facing a humanitarian crisis of epic proportions with upwards of 90,000 unaccompanied children crossing the Southern border without parents or relatives in one year,” Lim stated. “God knows how many have or will perish along the way and the ones caught are held in overcrowded and unsanitary conditions. Children stare at the walls with blank eyes, the same way the Chinese youths did on Angel Island.”

Director David Hsieh has appreciated the opportunity to direct this production.

“Many consider Paper Angels to be one of the modern classic Asian-American plays,” he said. “It tells part of America’s history that is often overlooked and that very few people actually know about.”

But Hsieh believes that the play is not just an important history lesson. “The one-act is rife with iconic characters in dramatic situations that an audience can easily relate to, and the poetic structure of the play is intriguing to me,” he said.

This production is unusual in that SIS Productions sought to maximize opportunities for actors by selecting two full casts, instead of just one. “I applaud the opportunities for artists that this production has created,” director Hsieh said. “For many of our cast members, this is like their first or second production and it has been a joy to work with them and helping develop their skills and talents.”

This double cast has not been without challenges, but it has led to great collaboration. “It’s always more tricky double-casting a show. You often end up with fewer rehearsals because your time is spent divided among two instead of just one,” he said. “But on the flip side, I also find that while I end up often having to give the same notes twice ... the casts can also often learn from each other and glean what works best or improve their performance based on that their counterparts are doing.”

Other collaborations occurred between director Hsieh and the producers at SIS, due to Hsieh’s heavy commitments to two other concurrent productions. “There were several run-throughs which were videotapes for me to watch later,” he said, “and I was lucky to have the trust and talents of the producers to rely on to work on certain elements in my stead.”

Beyond that, the SIS producers teamed up with the new INScape Arts Center space to highlight Lim’s theme of immigration. “The idea first came when, back in 2010, I went on the first open house tour for the new INScape Arts Center, where Seattle’s immigration center known as the INS Building had been reconverted into

arts spaces,” said SIS producer Kathy Hsieh (and brother to director David Hsieh). “As I was walking through the halls, I could feel the history of the building and thought it would be great to do a play about immigration in the building.”

As she continued to tour the new space, producer Hsieh felt a flash of inspiration. “I came upon the outdoor courtyard at INScape—it’s an enclosed exterior space on the second floor of the building and the only place where those detained at the center were allowed to get fresh air and some exercise,” she said. “A scene from the play Paper Angels by Genny Lim flashed in my head.”

After sharing her idea with the other SIS producers, their artistic team explored the project further. “Our Literary Manager, Roger Tang—having produced the local student production decades ago—was able to get a hold of Genny Lim to inquire about doing the show and she’s been incredibly gracious,” producer Hsieh said.

Kathy Hsieh explains that the logic behind the double-casting and the wider community collaborations is to expand the outreach of Paper Angels as much as possible. “We thought, if we ever did Paper Angels, we should do it with the possibility of being able to tour it in mind,” Hsieh said. “This would mean double-casting the show so that, between all the actors, we might be able to pull one cast together for any tour.”

To test that idea, SIS has performed the show in Tacoma before bringing it to Seattle for the latter half of August, and they are actively seeking additional opportunities. “We and the cast are still looking for colleges and other groups that may be interested in booking the show,” she said, welcoming interested parties to contact SIS Productions directly.

While Lim is unable to attend SIS’ Seattle production, she has fond memories of the 1983 production of the play by the Asian Theater Group at the Ethnic Cultural Center in Seattle’s University District and would welcome a new life for the play. “I would be very curious to see how the production looks today,” Lim said.

Lim also has aspirations to continue her work in theatre. “I would like to write another play, possibly trying to tie the connective threads among the oppressed and occupied of the world,” she said. “There’s a common theme that underlies the seemingly unrelated man-made phenomena of Gaza and Ferguson, Tibet and Afghanistan, etc. It’s still too big and broad for me to wrap my head around as yet.”

However, Lim expressed an interest in seeing a revival of Asian American theatre nationwide, and adding her voice may help this goal come to fruition. “I’d like to find the through-line,” she said.

‘Paper Angels’ runs from August 20 to 31 at INScape Arts Center, 815 Seattle Boulevard South, Seattle. For more information, visit celebr8women.wordpress.com/events-2/paper-angels.

Paper Angels tells stories of immigration

Pictured left to right: Phoenix Ever and Serin Ngai • Photo by Rick Wong (c)


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Sara Porkalob wears many hats: performer, writer, activist, and devoted granddaughter. And she’ll be presenting those many hats at this year’s Bumbershoot festival at the Seattle Center.

Porkalob will be performing the latest ver-sion of her solo work, Dragon Lady, A One Woman Show, which was inspired by her grandmother’s life. “Dragon Lady is about the relationships between history, memory, and storytelling in my family,” Porkalob said. “Because those three things inevitably change over time—history is written every day, memories fade, and stories are reinter-preted—developing this piece over time just makes sense.”

Family history is important to Porkalob, and she views her grandmother as the foun-dation of that history. “I chose her because she’s the matriarch—the one from which we all stem,” she said. “We can only trace our family history as far back as her because she keeps secrets about the past.”

What secrets? Porkalob claims that one of her favorite memories of her grandmother occurred when she was fi ve years old. “I tried to wake her from a nap for dinner,” she said, “and before I knew it, was pinned face down on the rug with her knobby-ass knee in the middle of my back because I had, in her words, ‘snuck up on her and didn’t I know she was part ninja?’”

Other surprises await revelation during the show, and some are unknown even to Porkalob in advance. “Each performance is different because I improv about 15 percent of it each night,” she said. “It really depends on the type of audience—if they’re rowdier or quiet, older or younger. There are parts of the show that I change specifi cally for them.”

And she has also made improvisational changes for her grandmother, as well, on nights when her grandmother is attend-ing her performance. And when Porkalob quotes a line that her grandmother had spo-ken earlier that same day, her grandmother can’t help but react while sitting in the audi-ence. “As soon as I say that line, she leans over to my mother and says, ‘Ai-yah! I said that! I said that when you picked me up!!!’” Porkalob said.

This started a chain re-action in the auditorium. “Everyone in the audience hears her of course—she doesn’t know how to whis-per -- and they start crack-ing up,” Porkalob said.

“Talk about layered realities happening, a magical moment of connection between au-dience and performer.”

With these kinds of moments, Porkalob describes her typical audience reaction as one of wonder. “Incredulous audience mem-bers approach me after the show and ask me, ‘Is that true? Did that really happen?!”’And I always answer, ‘What do you think?’”

Through these stories, Porkalob presents her grandmother as a strong personality. “My Grandmother is brazenly outspoken, and as a result, all of the women in my fam-ily are,” she said.

Porkalob is aiming for familial authentic-ity more than seeking to relay specifi c facts. “In Dragon Lady, my objectives are not to make my audience believe anything or to make them feel any particular way,” Pork-alob said. “My show is an invitation to the audience to have them join me in an experi-ence, to partake in a story that is deeply inte-gral to who I am—‘true’ or not.”

She hopes to share these stories with a broader audience at Bumbershoot, and was encouraged to apply by Shane Regan, Program Manager at Theatre Puget Sound. “The performer lineup was largely white males and they sought to diversify the program,” Porkalob said. “My goal is to get the people who would go out to see a solo-show written by a white male to come see my show as well.“

Porkalob’s role as an activist comes into play here. “Lack of diversity on Seattle stag-es has been a hot topic,” she said. “As an arts activist, I push for social change within the arts.”

Always re-working and developing this show, Porkalob entices newcomers and vet-erans alike by saying, “I also have about ten minutes of new material that I’ve never shown an audience.”

‘Dragon Lady, A One Woman Show’ runs from September 5 to 7, at Bumbershoot, at Seattle Center, 305 Harrison Seattle.

Porkalob

‘Dragon Lady’ diversifes

At a DACA submission party hosted by 21 Progress and Fearless Asians for Immigration Reform (FAIR!), undocumented grandparent/guardian Lefi ti Qiolevu sees herself on the cover of the July 15, 2015 International Examiner. The DACA submission party was in celebration of three undocumented API scholarship awardees who had mailed their DACA applications. • Photo Courtesy of 21 Progress


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HAVE YOU HEARD ABOUT NEW PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOL OPTIONS IN KING COUNTY?

WA CHARTERS IS HERE TO HELP! wacharters.org | 206.832.8505 | [email protected]

RAINIER PREPSUMMIT SIERRA HIGH SCHOOLEXCEL PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOL

Appreciating Al Sugiyama—

RSVP onlineIE News Services

An appreciation event to recognize community leader Al Sugiyama will happen on Sunday, September 13 from 3:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. at Blaine Memorial United Methodist Church, 3001 24th Avenue S, Seattle, WA 98144.

Organizers ask that there be no gifts and that attendees RSVP by September 6. To RSVP, visit http://goo.gl/forms/Uds1NOSSke.

For more information, email [email protected] or call (206) 326-9042.

Celebrate Cambodian

cultureThe Washington State Parks and

Recreation Commission invites the public to the 8th Annual Cambodian Cultural Celebration at Saltwater State Park in King County. The free event runs from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, August 22, at

Saltwater State Park, 25205 8th Place South in Des Moines (for directions, visit http://mapq.st/1MIodBQ). Celebrate Cambodian culture with members of the South Puget Sound Cambodian communities through performances of traditional music, dance, skits and drumming, along with activities, contests, displays, and demonstrations for the entire family. Enjoy Cambodian food available for purchase from Angkor Gourmet of Tacoma. Everyone is welcome, and admission is free. The Discover Pass is required for vehicle access to the event.

JamFest pays tribute to Bruce

Lee on August 20The fi nal JamFest of the year on Thursday,

August 20 will celebrate hometown hero and international superstar Bruce Lee with performances, giveaways, art, food, and more in Seattle’s International District. Evening access to the Wing Luke Museum exhibit, Do You Know Bruce? is included in admission.

Tickets are $8 general, $6 students, $6 seniors, and $5 for museum members. Featured performers include DJ Kitman of Integral DJs, Tess Guerzon, Soul Food, Turtle T, Nanda, Shadow Shifters, and The Shanghai Pearl.

For more information, visit http://www.wingluke.org/jamfest.

Filipino WWII Veterans’ forum

on August 19Last month, the White House

announced that family members of Filipino World War II veterans will be granted special permission to reunite with their parents and come live and work in the United States.

The announcement came as part of a report issued by the Visa Modernization Task Force, an interagency group created in November as part of President Obama’s executive actions on immigration.

“The Department of Homeland Security will create a program to allow certain family members of Filipino-American veterans to request parole to come to the United States to provide support and care to their Filipino veteran family members who are U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents,” said Jason Tengco, Deputy Director of the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacifi c Islanders, in a statement. “Parole is an avenue provided under the Immigration and Nationality Act that allows individuals to come to the country on a case-by-case basis based upon urgent humanitarian reasons or signifi cant public benefi t. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the Department of State will work

together to provide clear guidance to the public on the application process, and decisions will be made on a case-by-case basis. This is a critical step in strengthening our legal immigration system and also helping Filipino-American veterans reunite with their families.”

A special forum titled, “City of Seattle Community Forum: Justice for Children of Filipino World War II Veterans,” has been scheduled for Wednesday, August 19 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the Filipino Community Center Ballroom (5740 Martin Luther King, Jr. Way, Seattle, WA, 98118). The Filipino American community and supporters are invited to the forum to learn more about the new visa policy.

The forum is sponsored by Seattle Mayor Ed Murray, Seattle Councilmember Bruce Harrell, and the Seattle Offi ce of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs.

Request for Proposal

The City of Seattle acting through its Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) is seeking proposals from qualified parties and service providers interested in submitting proposals for a 5 year agreement for the operation and maintenance of coin operated telescopes, located in various Parks around Seattle.

The Request for Proposals will be available beginning August 6, 2015. Interested parties may pick up a copy of the RFP or request that one be mailed or emailed to them by contacting the Department at the address shown below. You can also print the RFP from the web at: http://www.seattle.gov/parks/partnerships/RFP.htm

For more info, visit our website or contact:

Mailing Address and Contact InformationJules Posadas, Concessions and Contracts Coordinator Seattle Parks and RecreationContracts Administration and Support Office (CASO)800 Maynard Ave S, 3rd FloorSeattle, WA 98134 Office: (206) 684-8008 / Fax: (206) 233-3949 Email: [email protected]

(Please note that electronic submissions of proposals cannot be accepted)


Community Care Network of Kin On815 S Weller St, Suite 212, Seattle, WA 98104ph: 206-652-2330 fx: [email protected] www.kinon.orgProvides home care, Alzheimer’s and caregiver support, com-munity education and chronic care management; coordinates medical supply delivery for Asian/Chinese seniors and families in King County.

Kin On Health Care Center 4416 S Brandon St, Seattle, WA 98118ph: 206-721-3630 fx: [email protected] www.kinon.orgA 100-bed, Medicare and Medicaid certified, not-for-profit skilled nursing facility offering long-term skilled nursing and short-term rehab care for Asian/Chinese seniors.

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Call Washington Apple Health at 1-855-WAFINDER (1-855-923-4633). Choose Amerigroup.

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Arts & Culture

[email protected] www.deniselouie.orgMulticultural preschool ages 3-5 years old. Now enrolling Private Pay full-day ($900/mo) and part-day classes ($500/mo) with locations at ID, Beacon Hill, and Rainier Beach.

3327 Beacon Ave S.Seattle, WA 98144 ph: 206-725-9740

Education

Housing & Neighborhood Planning

HomeSight5117 Rainier Ave S, Seattle, WA 98118ph: 206-723-4355 fx: 206-760-4210www.homesightwa.org

HomeSight creates homeownership opportunities through real estate development, home buyer education and counseling, and lending.

InterIm Community Development Association310 Maynard Ave S, Seattle, WA 98104Ph: 206.624-1802 Services: 601 S King St, Ph: 206. 623-5132Interimicda.orgMultilingual community building: housing & parking, housing/asset counseling, projects, teen leadership and gardening programs.

Asia Pacific Cultural Center4851 So. Tacoma WayTacoma, WA 98409Ph: 253-383-3900Fx: 253-292-1551faalua@comcast.netwww.asiapacificculturalcenter.orgBridging communities and generations through arts, culture, education and business.

Kawabe Memorial House221 18th Ave S, Seattle, WA 98144 ph: 206-322-4550 fx: [email protected] provide affordable, safe, culturally sensitive housing and support services to people aged 62 and older.

Address tobacco control and other health justice issues in the Asian American/Pacific Islander communities.

601 S King St.Seattle, WA 98104ph: 206-682-1668 website www.apicat.org

Asian Counseling & Referral Service3639 Martin Luther King Jr. Way S, Seattle, WA 98144 ph: 206-695-7600 fx: [email protected] www.acrs.orgACRS offers multilingual, behavioral health and social services to Asian Pacific Americans and other low-income people in King County.

1601 E Yesler Way, Seattle, WA 98122ph: 206-323-7100 www.nikkeiconcerns.orgrehabilitation care | skilled nursing | assisted living | home/community-based services | senior social activities | meal delivery | transportation | continuing education | catering services

Legacy House803 South Lane Street Seattle, WA 98104ph: 206-292-5184 fx: [email protected] www.scidpda.org/programs/legacyhouse.aspx

Description of organization/services offered: Assisted Living, Adult Day Services, meal programs for low-income seniors. Medicaid accepted.

Senior Services

WE MAKE LEADERS

Queen Anne Station, P.O. Box 19888, Seattle, WA [email protected], www.naaapseattle.orgFostering future leaders through education, networking and community services for Asian American professionals and entrepreneurs.Facebook: NAAAP-Seattle Twitter: twitter.com/naaapseattle

Social & Health Services

Chinese Information & Service Center611 S Lane St, Seattle, WA 98104 ph: 206-624-5633 fax: [email protected] www.cisc-seattle.org

Creating opportunities for Asian immigrants and their families to succeed by helping them make the transition to a new life while keeping later generations in touch with their rich heritage.

International District Medical & Dental Clinic720 8th Avenue S, Seattle, WA 98114 ph: 206-788-3700email: [email protected] website: www.ichs.com

Bellevue Medical & Dental Clinic1050 140th Avenue NE, Bellevue, WA 98005ph: 425-373-3000

Shoreline Medical & Dental Clinic16549 Aurora Avenue N, Shoreline, WA 98133ph: 206-533-2600

Holly Park Medical & Dental Clinic3815 S Othello St, Seattle, WA 98118ph: 206-788-3500

ICHS is a non-profit medical and dental center that provides health care to low income Asian, Pacific Islanders, immigrants and refugees in Washington State.

Seattle Chinatown/International District Preservation and Development Authorityph: 206-624-8929 fx: 206-467-6376 [email protected]

Housing, property management and community development.

Executive Development Institute310 – 120th Ave NE. Suite A102 Bellevue, WA Ph. 425-467-9365 • Fax: 425-467-1244Email: [email protected] • Website: www.ediorg.orgEDI offers culturally relevant leadership development programs.

Professional & Leadership Development

Please mail a check for $35 to the International Examiner or donate to: 409 Maynard Ave. S. #203, Seattle, WA 98104.Thank you for your contribution.

ph: 206-624-3426 www.merchants-parking-transia.org

Merchants Parking provides convenient & affordable community parking. Transia provides community transportation: para-transit van services, shuttle services and field trips in & out of Chinatown/International District & South King County.

Social & Health Services

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Senior Services

Horizon House900 University St Seattle, WA 98101 ph: 206-382-3100 fx: [email protected]

www.horizonhouse.orgA welcoming community in downtown Seattle, offering seniors vibrant activities, independent or assisted living, and memory care.

FAIR! ph: 206-578-1255 [email protected]

FAIR! provides undocumented Asians and Pacific Islanders with access to free immigration services, legal services & financial assistance, with translators available upon request.

Agape Senior Group Activity Center36405 Cedar St, Suite UTacoma, WA 98409ph: 253-212-3957 [email protected]

Japanese Language School for Children on Saturdays. Activities/Programs for all ages. Programs include Calligraphy Class, Chiropractic Taiso, iPad & Computer Classes, and more! Join us and make new friends!

IDIC is a nonprofit human services organization that offers wellness and social service programs to Filipinos and API communities.

7301 Beacon Ave SSeattle, WA 98108ph: 206-587-3735fax: 206-748-0282 [email protected]

Southeast Seattle Senior Center4655 S. Holly St., Seattle, WA 98118ph: 206-722-0317 fax: [email protected] www.sessc.orgDaytime activities center providing activities social services, trips, and community for seniors and South Seattle neighbors. We have weaving, Tai Chi, indoor beach-ball, yoga, dance, senior-oriented computer classes, trips to the casino, and serve scratch cooked lunch. Open Monday through Friday, 8:30-4. Our thrift store next door is open Mon-Fri 10-2, Sat 10-4. This sweet center has services and fun for the health and well-being of boomers and beyond. Check us out on Facebook or our website.

2500 NE 54th StreetSeattle, WA 98105ph: 206-694-4500 [email protected]

Working to prevent and end youth homelessness with services including meals, shelter, housing, job training, education, and more.


Check back for Sudoku in the IE every issue! Answers to this puzzle are in the next issue on Wednesday, September 2.

Now there are more buses on the streets than ever before, and income-qualified riders can save up to 50% on fares with ORCA LIFT.

Apply in person at any King County enrollment location or learn more by calling 206-553-3000 or 800-756-5437or visiting www.orcalift.com.

City of Seattle all aboard Learn more at orcalift.com

More buses,More buses,more options,more options,more affordable.more affordable.Save up to 50% on your fare if you qualify.Save up to 50% on your fare if you qualify.

Save money when you ride transitNew ORCA LIFT card available for income-qualifi ed residents

It only takes a few minutes to find out if you qualify for an ORCA LIFT card. If you do, you can save up to 50% on transit fares. With the ORCA LIFT card, Metro buses during peak times are only $1.50 instead of up to $3.25 for two-zone travel.

Applying in person is quick and easy. You do not need to show proof of immigration status when you apply; just proof of who you are and your income level. Once you qualify, you’ll receive an ORCA LIFT card, which you can load with funds and start using immediately.

Here’s how to get a card:

1. Make sure you meet the income guidelines:

2. Go to any of these ORCA LIFT locations:

• Public Health—Seattle & King County

• Catholic Community Services• Compass Housing Alliance• El Centro de la Raza• Global to Local• Multi-Service Center• ReWA (Refugee Women’s Alliance)• WithinReach• YWCA• City of Seattle—Mayor’s Office of Senior Citizens

3. Bring proof of who you are and your income level.

For documents accepted as proof, go to: www.orcalift.com and click on the “What You Need to Qualify” tab.

4. Get your ORCA LIFT card on the spot.

5. Go to any ORCA retailer, ticket vending machine or online to add value or a monthly pass to your card.

6. Ride and enjoy your savings!

If you take transit twice a day, this card can save you up to $900 a year. Be sure to tell your friends and family about ORCA LIFT so they can save money, too.

For more information, visit www.orcalift.com or call 206-553-3000.

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august 19, 2015 international examiner

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