Project Voice

Jessica Nguyen sits down with Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright of Ballot Breakers, Representative Padma Kuppa of Michigan, and Representative Patty Kim of Pennsylvania to discuss civic advocacy and American politics. We start off the episode learning about the women’s relationship with politics, a field they all originally viewed as dirty business and were reluctant to partake in. They all share how their backgrounds and life experiences have influenced the work that they do in the political space, whether that is as a state representative amplifying and advocating for their communities or the founder of a platform that highlights the younger generation of politicians and celebrates their victories. For State Representatives Patty and Padma, we hear more about their journey running for office, touching upon the causes they are passionate about and the importance of active listening. They talked about the challenges they faced as well as their proudest achievements as elected officials. Lacy shares the origin story of Ballot Breakers and the takeaways she has learned as being a voice for young, aspiring Democratic candidates. Realizing how often she would get cut off or dismissed in certain political spaces because of her identity, she realized the power of allies and communities who support and will help amplify your voice. Directly addressing what is going on in the world, they shared how they have been affected by and are responding to the COVID-19 epidemic and to the issue of police brutality in connection with systemic racism that exists in the US. We end the interview with insights about the world of politics: things they wish people knew about this space as well as advice for those considering running for office. Thinking toward the future, they share their vision of hope and change as active participants in civic advocacy. LACY LEW NGUYEN WRIGHT: Lacy Lew Nguyen Wright is the creator of Ballot Breakers, a website series interviewing young progressive candidates running for office and has featured over 50 candidates representing young people’s perspectives in government. She was previously an Editor-at-Large at Huffington Post. Her writings can also be found on Elite Daily, The Moviegoer, The Bottom Line, and HelloFlo. Lacy is based in whichever coffee shop has the best mocha. BALLOT BREAKERS: We’re seeing young people running for office in droves, seizing the opportunity to take control of their futures and give voice to the people who aren’t being represented in today’s government. These candidates are breaking tradition, transforming what it means to be a candidate. Ballot Breakers seeks to authentically showcase these energized young people, all of whom come from diverse backgrounds, beliefs, and platforms. Ballot Breakers don’t just represent their generation -- they represent their constituents, communities and progressive values throughout the country. WEBSITE: ballotbreakers.com INSTAGRAM: @ballotbreakers | @alwaysbewright TWITTER: @lacylewwright State Representative PATTY KIM, a former news anchor and reporter and Harrisburg City Councilwoman, was first elected to the state House of Representatives in 2012 and has been a leader in government reform and transparency. She returned her cost of living increase (COLA) and introduced a bill to eliminate the yearly pay increases. She is also one of the only members of the House to post all of her expenses on her legislative website for public review. Kim's priorities in the General Assembly include taking a solution-based approach to statewide issues, working in cooperation and collaboration with colleagues, and utilizing her record of service to support initiatives that stand to better the lives of the citizens she represents. Leading her caucus’s charge to provide a livable wage for all Pennsylvanians, Kim twice introduced bills to increase the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour. She continues her fight for a minimum wage increase to restore the middle class by lifting thousands of Pennsylvanians out of poverty. Kim serves on the Appropriations, Education, Local Government and Transportation committees. She is Vice Co-Chair of the Southeast Delegation. During her second term, she served as Treasurer for the Legislative Black Caucus. Prior to her work in the legislature, Kim was elected to Harrisburg's City Council where she served two terms. She was elected as council Vice President by her colleagues during her second term. A 1995 graduate of Boston College, Kim is married to John Sider and together they have two children, Brielle and Ryan. WEBSITE: www.pattykim.com PADMA KUPPA is serving in her first term as State Representative for Troy and Clawson, Michigan's 41st District. She is assistant Democratic Whip, and serves on the Energy, and Local Government and Municipal Finance Committees. She is an engineer, with automotive and technical background and is an advocate on environmental issues and reducing climate change. Her passion for all things local includes extensive community involvement, with several years on the Planning Commission and Zoning Board of Appeals and in K-12 PTAs. It shows in the way she digs into the bills that come before the Local Government and Municipal Finance Committee. Kuppa came to the U.S. from India at the age of four and grew up in America before moving to India as a teenager. After receiving her bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from the National Institute of Technology Warangal, Kuppa moved home to the U.S. for graduate school, and went through the immigration and naturalization process, She got married and started a family before moving to the 41st district more than 20 years ago Kuppa has a career that spans the automotive, financial, and IT industries, with rich and varied community leadership at the local, state and national level. She is co-founder of the Troy-area Interfaith Group and currently President of the Troy Historical Society and a board member of the Michigan Roundtable for Diversity and Inclusion. As the first Indian immigrant and Hindu in the State Legislature, she brings a fresh perspective to the State House. WEBSITE: kuppa.housedems.com | electpadmakuppa.com FACEBOOK: @mirreppadmakuppa | @reelectpadma INSTAGRAM: @mireppadmakuppa TWITTER: @padmakuppami41 Summary by Joanne Nguyen

Jessica Nguyen sits down with a few members of the Southeast Asian American (SEAA) SEAAster Scholars Collective–Jacqueline Mac, Linda Pheng, Vanessa S. Na, Varaxy Yi–to hear more about their experiences as POC/SEAA in academia, the meaning of homemaking, and the origin story and mission of their collective. After running into each other at various conferences and acknowledging that there were not many SEAA that occupy the academic space, they made it a goal to create a support system that provided the exchange of knowledge and authentic voices/experiences of the SEA diaspora. Oftentimes feeling alienated and isolated in academia, which is a predominantly White space, some members have taken more creative approaches (like dyeing their hair blue) in order to stand out and fight against invisibilization. When speaking about the challenges they had to overcome, they realized they wanted to do more than just survive. They wanted to thrive. Focusing on fostering a collaborative atmosphere, the SEAAster Scholars Collective was founded to help people feel whole and supported. Engaging with other scholars who are able to empathize with their cultural experiences and honor each other’s beliefs and values, they found empowerment. After sharing their favorite moments and takeaways from being a part of this group, they end the podcast by providing advice and resources to those interested in pursuing a career in academia. The SOUTHEAST ASIAN AMERICAN (SEAA) SEEASTER SCHOLARS COLLECTIVE is committed to advancing knowledge and understanding of the postsecondary experiences of SEAA students, staff, and faculty. We met as graduate students through various social connections and higher education networks and were thrilled to learn that there were other Southeast Asian womxn in higher education. We hold individual and collective identities as Khmer American, Lao American, ethnic Chinese Vietnamese American, daughters of refugees, partners, friends, and sisters. Varaxy Yi, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, California State University, Fresno Malaphone Phommasa, Ph.D., Director, Transfer Student Center, University of California, Santa Barbara Latana J. Thaviseth, Ph. D. Student, University of California, Los Angeles Linda Pheng, Ph.D. Candidate, University of Wisconsin, Madison Vanessa S. Na, Ph.D. Student, University of California, San Diego Jacqueline Mac, Ph. D. Candidate, Indiana University, Bloomington WEBSITE: Seaasters.com INSTAGRAM: seaaster_scholars

Jessica Nguyen sits down with Seo Kelleher, the author of the newly released book “Don’t be a Bitch, be an Alpha,” to talk about her journey as an intuitive life and business coach and shamanic healer. With 20 years of marketing experience and an MBA under her belt, Seo used to define herself as a high performing career woman who focused on getting good grades and climbing the corporate ladder. Concerned with what other people will say and think about her, she realized that she was creating challenges in her head with the mindset that she had to live up to what the world had expected of her. When she transitioned into becoming an intuitive life and business coach, she realized that she had to dig deep within herself and face and heal her own traumas before she could help others with their transformations. Her approach in coaching focuses heavily on people relying on their own self for clarity in answers. Using her personal experience of transforming her own life, she wants to pass on these practices to a greater community of womxn who empower each other by first empowering themselves. Touching upon her book “Don’t Be a Bitch, Be an Alpha,” Seo talks about redefining alpha womxn as womxn who are empowered by their own authentic being. She believes that a strong woman emerges when she can exist in space where she can truly be herself. To foster and continue to build this space, one needs to be a little selfish and take care of one's self. Once you reach the most thriving version of yourself, the core of what you do in this world stems from a place of abundance, joy, excitement, and creativity instead of guilt, duty, and obligation. We end the podcast with the advice to have more fun and to not fear rejection. Unlike what many of our Asian diasporic parents may say, good things do not always have to come with suffering. SEO KELLEHER is  an intuitive life and biz coach who empowers women to move outside their comfort zones, manifest transformation and play big. As a coach, she goes beyond strategy and embrace the WOO to help women change their lives so they can change the world on their own terms... and in their own way. Website: Courage To Be Instagram: @seokelleher Facebook: Alpha Female Sisterhood Summary by Joanne Nguyen

Jessica Nguyen sits down with Tiffany Huang, the founder of Spill Stories, to talk about how she is able to foster personal growth passion projects. Stifled by the fast-paced Hong Kong lifestyle, Tiffany wanted to build a platform that allows for people (particularly womxn of color) to be unrestrained in the way that they speak and share their stories. Having to juggle both her day job and her passion project, she realized that sometimes one has to throw organization out the window and just start executing when you realize what it is that you want to do. With time and experience, Tiffany has learned that authentic stories come about when one does not overthink and simply makes their passion and intentions clear. Delving into more how Tiffany was able to develop Spill Stories to be what it is today, she touches upon she has become aware of the cues that precede burning out, prompting her to check in and make sure that her basic life needs are met. They talk about the importance of self love and how it is easy for people to pour so much love and passion in their projects but not into themselves. Even if it means taking a day for yourself where you can calm down and do nothing, they discuss how one’s productivity should not be a determinant of one’s worth. Tiffany ends the podcast with golden nuggets that include advice on how to approach passion projects: “Be very crystal clear on what is your purpose.” Spill Stories is a storytelling platform to unite womxn of color, tackling social issues told through deeply personal perspectives. Spill Stories focuses on delivering high quality content via Instagram, while also offering monthly writers workshops in Hong Kong / Seoul, and larger bespoke events for the community. TIFFANY HUANG is a Taiwanese American living in Hong Kong. She is a marketer in the hospitality industry by day and a writer by night. In 2018, she founded Spill Stories, a storytelling platform to unite womxn of color. She finds herself often caught between two worlds -- one focused on commercial success, and the other focused on personal passion projects. The desire to close this gap is what drives her to wake up in the morning everyday, as challenging as the journey may be. Instagram: @spillstories, @hausoftiffany Facebook: @spillstoriesig Website: Spill Stories Summary by Joanne Nguyen

Julie McConnell sits down with Julia Ha and Tammy Tran from Project Yellow Dress (PYD) to talk about how underrepresented communities are gaining visibility through self-expressed artistic mediums. We start the podcast getting to know the two PYD founders who talk about their family history (fun fact: they are second cousins). Their family experienced a double diaspora having to escape China and Vietnam because of warfare, and as a result, have traveled to many different countries in search of a new place to call home. We move on to hear about the lightbulb moment when a children's book on the Holocaust inspired them to start PYD. Recognizing how taking ownership of one's history is so crucial for communities who are often overlooked in history textbooks and mainstream media, they created PYD as a platform to encourage silenced individuals to share their stories through whatever medium they desire. This is a community of people who are flipping the script as they do advocacy in their own way. Yes, Asians can be artists. They can be whoever they want to be. It is so important for them to be able to feel like the protagonist of their story, to celebrate the fact that they are a refugee or a child of a refugee, especially in today's political climate. We close out the podcast with takeaways that touch upon an increasing need for ethnic studies courses. Because learning about people’s history helps us understand one another and ourselves, it is so important to recognize how and where ethnic studies is being taught and improve on that. "Know history, know self. No history, no self." Project Yellow Dress is a storytelling platform that is dedicated to sharing and highlighting the histories, experiences, and voices of the Southeast Asian diaspora. Website: www.projectyellowdress.com Facebook: @projectyellowdress Instagram: @projectyellowdress Twitter: @projyellowdress JULIA HA is a Chinese-Vietnamese American from the San Francisco Bay Area, the daughter of Vietnamese Boat People refugees who immigrated to the U.S. in the early 1980s. She received her B.A. from University of California, San Diego (UCSD), where she majored in History: War, Revolution, and Social Change with a special emphasis in Genocide Studies, and graduated with a M.A. Ed. degree in Equity and Social Justice in Education with a focus on Genocide Education from San Francisco State University (SFSU). She currently works as an EOP Advisor at San Francisco State University. Facebook: @juliathucha Instagram: @jbwahaha TAMMY TRAN, one of the co-founders of Project Yellow Dress, is a Chinese-Vietnamese American whose parents are Vietnamese Boat Refugees. Through Project Yellow Dress, she’s been able to reconnect with her family's history and get to know more about her parents and community. Aside from Project Yellow Dress, she studied Fine Arts & Art History during both her undergraduate and graduate careers and is currently getting an MILIS in Cultural Heritage Management. She truly enjoys seeking out new narratives that inanimate objects can tell us and believes that it's so important to find ways to preserve people's voices through visual representations. Summary by Joanne Nguyen

Jessica Nguyen sits down with Ivy Kwong to talk about navigating the healing process individuals may have to go through with their family, particularly their parents. After talking about her own personal experience, Ivy shares tactics to help people heal and foster healthier relationships with their parents. Ivy touches upon how growing up as a child of immigrants from China and Hong Kong, she felt that she constantly had to constantly switch back and forth between two cultures–home was China while school was America. Having to straddle between these two worlds, she often was shocked at how her experience with family was so different than that of her American friends. She struggled to seek validation, approval, and love from her parents who gave conditional love only when she was succeeding. She often had to walk on eggshells within a household that didn’t process and talk about emotions. Ivy comes to realize that this emotional repression leads her to turn the anger she feels toward her parents against herself. As Ivy starts to unpack all of the trauma she experienced in her childhood, she talks about the importance of healing oneself first before any rebuilding of familial relationships can occur. Guilt and shame are powerful and manipulative tools that one needs to recognize and acknowledge, especially when formulating one’s boundaries. Ivy touches upon how to recognize when your boundaries have been violated and goes into talking about you have to be in touch with your own boundaries before you are able to enforce them. We teach people how to treat us and we get to choose how we respond to the way that people treat us. The podcast rounds off with Ivy talking about how her work as a marriage and family therapist has allowed her to help address trauma that gets passed on from generation to generation. As individuals go through healing, they learn to trace the root of their trauma, helping older generations also go through the healing process. In a way, doing the work to help the older generations heal is a way of recognizing and paying back the sacrifice our elders have made for us to be in this position of privilege. It is important to remember that this healing process is ongoing and non-linear, and that a lot of time “you have to go through a lot of fuck yous before you get to forgive yous.” Ivy Kwong, LMFT offers culturally sensitive psychotherapy and coaching services specializing in recovery from codependency, Asian and Asian-American mental health issues, and healing from intergenerational and ancestral trauma. Website: https://www.bareivy.com/ Facebook: @BareIvy Instagram: @bareivy Twitter: @BareIvy IVY KWONG is a first-generation Asian-American woman who was born to Chinese immigrant parents and raised in the Midwest. She is a survivor of childhood and adult sexual trauma, a codependent/people-pleaser in recovery, the founder of BareIvy.com, a workshop and retreat leader, and an author, speaker, and coach. She has over 14 years of experience as a psychotherapist in private practice specializing in recovery from codependency, Asian and Asian-American mental health issues, and healing from intergenerational and ancestral trauma. She recently finished her first book featuring a little Asian-American girl as the main character entitled "The Little Girl, The Ocean, and The Moon." It is a children's book written for adults, encouraging you to remember and to honor your childhood dreams. Ivy is available for in-person therapy in Seattle WA, for online therapy sessions in WA and CA, and for online thera-coaching (a blend of treatment involving elements of both therapy and coaching) worldwide Kickstarter: The Little Girl, The Ocean, and The Moon: A Children's Book Summary by Joanne Nguyen

Jessica Nguyen sits down with Helena Berbano to delve into how and why Asian-Americans are so politically disengaged. Given Helena’s active involvement in campaigning for Asian-American women candidates, she speaks about the power of political engagement and how the lack of such action negatively impacts the larger community.  We start the podcast with Helena speaking about the difficulties of working and existing in a white male-dominated space that heavily relies on having connections. Still holding onto her authenticity, she has found a way to adapt within this space as a woman of color. Working in politics, she has also gained insights into why the Asian-American community has lower engagement with politics compared to other communities. Besides more obvious factors like voter suppression tactics and language barriers, there are also issues with lack of contact and lingering trauma from past experiences with corrupt politics. Taking these into consideration, we should reevaluate what would be the most effective ways to get more of the community (both young and older generations) to be more politically involved. Helena recommends redefining the negative connotation around the word “politics” through honest conversations about causes and issues they genuinely care about. Using that as a stepping stone, one can start by getting involved in local elections because no matter how small or big the political stage is, representation of diverse perspectives matters.  When it comes to being an activist, Helena reminds us that one does not have to be out in the frontlines protesting or go knocking door-to-door to call themselves activists. What is most important is to find the route to activism that is most authentic and accessible for them. Stay tuned to the end of the episode to learn about resources and/or spaces to explore if you are interested in being more involved in political movements. HELENA BERBANO is a 2nd generation Filipina American who is an organizer, activist, and campaign operative. She has managed national voter engagement programs and has advised a number of Massachusetts state and local grassroots advocacy groups on their campaigns. During her tenure as Director of Special Projects at Nonprofit VOTE she focused on voter registration and outreach with disenfranchised communities and collaborated and trained a variety of advocacy and nonprofit networks, including the National Association of Community Health Centers, YWCA, United Way Worldwide, and League of Women Voters.  One of her biggest passions is getting more women and people of color elected into public office. In 2016, she organized a national coalition of Asian American Pacific Islander millennials in support of Secretary Clinton. She also has invested in leadership in her home state of Massachusetts. In 2017, she served as Campaign Manager for Nicole Castillo's bid for Newton city council, and in 2018 she served as Strategic Advisor for now State Representative Tram Nguyen. Most recently she served as Director of Operations for Dr. Mohammad Dar’s bid for the 8th Congressional District in MA. She holds a Master of Public Administration from the University of Massachusetts Boston, where she was given the distinctions of McCormack Scholar, Keough Capstone Fellow, and Best Capstone for her research focused on women of color public office initiatives. She is the outgoing Co-Director of New Leaders Council - Boston and formally sat on the Mass NOW PAC and Young Democrats of Massachusetts boards. On her days off, she listens to musical theatre compilations and avidly sings power ballads at karaoke. Website: www.helenaberbano.com Summary by Joanne Nguyen

Jessica Nguyen sits down with Abigail Hing Wen, the author of Asian-American young adult novel “Loveboat, Taipei,” to learn about her journey in becoming a published author. Working in artificial intelligence in Silicon Valley, Abigail had no idea she would ever become a writer. Although she grew up reading books all the time, the idea for a book never came until she graduated from law school in 2007. Her journey started with the novel FOXSTONE and has continued over the course of 12 years where she continued to work on her craft, even getting an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts. 5 books later, she came out with “Loveboat, Taipei,” a story based on her own experiences attending a summer camp in Taiwan where she was able to revel in Asian culture and build amazing relationships. For Abigail, this coming-of-age story was written with the intent for 1) the Asian community to feel that they too can be protagonists of a novel and 2) showcase the diversity and humanity that exists within the community. Tune in to the episode to learn when the sequel is scheduled to be released!  When pitching her work to publishing companies, some challenges she faced included not being able to get through marketing due to gatekeepers not being able to relate with the characters–an issue that writers of color often face in the white-dominant publishing space. Despite these challenges, she has found strength in being able to work with agents who share the same vision for her work. We end the podcast with Abigail telling aspiring novelists to continuously write and find people they can resonate with. Despite all the obstacles and barriers that exist in this journey, she encourages people to never give up since “a writer’s life is mostly rejection.” Enter to win a free copy of the bestselling novel by Abigail Hing Wen Giveaway Deadline: August 31st, 2020 Winner Announcement: September 1st, 2020 1) Follow author Abigail Hing Wen AND Project Voice on 1 of the following social media platforms @abigailhingwen: Facebook | Instagram | Twitter @projectvoicepod: Facebook | Instagram | Twitter  2) Write an Apple Podcasts review for Project Voice 3) Tag 3 friends in the comments (any social media platform) Summary by Joanne Nguyen

Julie McConnell sits down with Cece Horbat to discuss all things environmentalism. As someone who has been interested in the environment after watching NBC commercials about recycling, Cece is now majoring in environmental justice at the University of Michigan’s School for Environment and Sustainability. Responding to the article “Five Ways to Make the Outdoors More Inclusive,” Cece finds a correlation between the diversity of the environment and the human population and feels that it is inherently wrong that some people do not have equitable access to the resources that the earth has to water, whether that’s clean air, water, or even healthy. This lack of equity may be due to a variety of factors such as geographic location, economic stress, and/or lack of education. What also comes hand in hand with this lack of access to the outdoors is the lack of awareness of how humans are impacting the environment. Although the topic itself may be complicated and overwhelming to tackle, Cece encourages people to start by reflecting on their individual choices. It starts with consciousness and the willingness to educate yourself about how you can be living more sustainably, whether that is reusing plastic bags or even buying a reusable boba straw. There is not a one-size-fits-all solution and you have to figure out what changes you can make in your everyday life that works for you. As Cece said, “We all deserve a safe and happy place that gives us what we need, and the earth does that, so we need to respect it in the best way that we can.” CECE HORBAT is a Chinese Adoptee from Albany, NY. Aside from her love for a good deep discussion about adoption, she's passionate about the environment. CeCe is pursuing her masters degree at the University of Michigan studying Environmental Justice. When she's not drowning in homework, you can find her in search for the best new food place while sipping some boba and petting a dog. Instagram: @treehugginasian LinkedIn: @chorbat Summary by Joanne Nguyen

Julie Connell sits down with Nkauj Iab Yang from Southeast Asia Resource Action Center (SEARAC) to deliver an engaging and educational episode centered around trauma–from how it's defined to the long-term consequences that unfold when trauma goes unaddressed. This episode covers a wide variety of trauma with trauma being defined as emotionally and physically distressing experiences that challenge one's ability to cope. The conversation starts off with a focus on the older generation who lived through the war in Southeast Asia and fled their homeland for the sake of their well being and safety. Besides having experienced violence firsthand, these individuals had to face many stressors that came with resettling in a foreign country. Faced with language barriers and lack of access to resources and information regarding higher education, many Southeast Asian communities suffer from high rates of unemployment and poverty. Many people had to learn how to navigate America on their own since there was no pre-existing Southeast Asian community to provide guidance or emotional support. Because survival was of the highest priority, people oftentimes found themselves too busy to find time to cope with their trauma. This results in 1) unaddressed trauma that gets more harsh and violent as it is passed from one generation to the next and 2) lack of positive, community-defined coping mechanisms. The conversation now shifts to the younger generation who are negatively impacted by intergenerational trauma while also having to deal with present-day stressors as a result of data aggregation. Because the data of all Asian American communities get grouped together, many of the nuanced problems faced by the Southeast Asian community often gets overlooked. Although in reality there is an education and wealth disparity gap between the Southeast Asian and East Asian communities, the perception that they all fall under the Model Minority Myth has hindered Southeast Asian communities from accessing necessary services and resources. Yang emphasizes how we need to focus on highlighting appropriate and accurate data that reflects the story and situation of these communities. We end the podcast reflecting on the importance of speaking out about trauma and combating the stigmatization of mental health as a form of collective healing. SEARAC is a national civil rights organization that empowers Cambodian, Laotian, and Vietnamese American communities to create a socially just and equitable society. As representatives of the largest refugee community ever resettled in the United States, SEARAC stands together with other refugee communities, communities of color, and social justice movements in pursuit of social equity. Website: www.searac.org Facebook: @searac NKAUJ IAB YANG is the Director of California Policy and Programs. She works closely with Southeast Asian American led and serving organizations throughout California to build a statewide Southeast Asian American equity agenda, identify the appropriate strategies, and advocate for local and state policy change. Nkauj Iab spent the last 13 years committed to youth organizing, youth development, and policy advocacy. She holds a Master of Arts in ethnic studies from San Francisco State University and a bachelor of arts in ethnic studies from the University of California, Berkeley. Facebook: @nkaujiab Summary by Joanne Nguyen

Jessica Nguyen sits down with Cynthia Koo and Irene Kwong to talk about their experiences as Asian-American women business owners in the stationery industry. In this interview, we explore how they turned their passion into a career while dealing with obstacles from external pressures. Cynthia and Irene briefly introduce Wonton In A Million and Simply Gilded, respectively, before delving into how their obsession with stationary during their childhood carried over to adulthood. Their interest to pursue this interest professionally grew as they discovered the welcoming stationary community. As they look back on their journey as creative entrepreneurs, they reflect on how it wasn’t something they set out to do full-time right from the beginning. Facing difficulties with breaking into the market and their fears of financial instability, the process to eventually go all-in on their passion projects was gradual as they built confidence in their craft. Technology played a crucial part in that process as it enabled them to find inspiration, do research, and connect with other artists and designers. Because there is no definite guidebook when it comes to being an entrepreneur in the creative industry, they advise aspiring entrepreneurs to be really passionate about their craft and to strike a balance between consuming and producing art. When faced with creator’s block, they advise artists to change it up by trying things that are new and challenging. They also want to remind the listeners that this path is never set in stone and that although things may shift as things progress, it’s important to maintain the mindset that the path to success may be long and arduous. Given how far they’ve come with their businesses, they want to share their experiences with the greater community, particularly Asian American women, by speaking at conferences or doing a podcast episode like this one. They hope that by talking about their stories, Asian American women who have thoughts about starting their own business will feel seen and heard, empowering them to pursue their passions even if it is the road less traveled.  CYNTHIA KOO is the founder and designer of Wonton In A Million, a stationery brand that's home of the Dimsum Steam Team. She grew up eating dimsum at Oriental Garden, the restaurant my dad has managed in New York City for over 30 years and one day in 2015, she started wondering why there weren’t punny greeting cards featuring the little dumplings, buns, and pastries that made up her favorite Chinese cuisine. Thus, Wonton In A Million was born. Her sincere hope is that the Dimsum Steam Team makes you happy and hungry, inspires you to eat more dimsum, and "touches your heart" (the literal translation of "dimsum")! Website: www.wontoninamillion.com  Instagram: @wontoninamillion IRENE KWONG is an unconventional entrepreneur with a deep love for exploring the imaginative world she inhabited in her childhood.  After departing from an almost decade-long career in pharmacy, she finally had the opportunity to live her dream of building a creative business (and playing with stickers all day!).  She currently resides in Seattle, WA with her husband Darren and 2 kids, Jake and Lily. Simply gilded specializes in beautiful and whimsical stationery products for home, office, creative expression, and beyond!  From magical washi tape designs to notepads, magnets, pins, pens, a monthly subscription box, and more, simply gilded strives to spark joy and delight with their products and messaging.  Website: www.simplygilded.com  Simply Gilded: @simplygilded Simply Gilded Box: @simplygildedbox Juniper Bunny: @xoxojuniper Summary by Joanne Nguyen

This is it. We made it. Season 4 finale. As many of you know, Project Voice has been running for a little over 2 years since November 2016. When I first started the podcast, I only expected myself to produce 15 episodes at the most. It was started by me and a bunch of my friends who I invited to share their experiences on the show. Most of us didn’t come from an academic background in ethnic studies or Asian American studies. We were just speaking from our own experience[s]. I was learning as I was going through the conversations taking place on Project Voice, and over time, eventually became very active and involved with the activist community. I learned to be more convicted with my beliefs while at the same time, open-minded and respectful towards those who hold different views from mine. I’ve learned and listened from a variety of perspectives. As many of you know, I have not been in the U.S. for a few years now and just moved my base to Australia where I’ll be living for at least another year. During this time period, I plan to reach out and connect with the Asian Australian community and potentially other Asian diasporic communities all over the world outside the U.S. As an American, I feel like It’s time to learn and listen again. My busy schedule means I won’t be able to keep up with our monthly release for Project Voice. However, I do want to say that I spent a long time to decide putting Project Voice on another hiatus. To be honest, I wanted to transition out of Project Voice for more than a year now and have been putting this decision on hold because I see how much value it offers to our community. I can see how much I’ve grown through this project as well as many other people who’ve been following PV since. I feel honored to see how many people have heard about Project Voice and how many inspiring change makers have been interviewed on our platform. At the same time, ironically speaking, I do feel like I’ve lost my voice working on Project Voice, a now large-scale platform for influential voices. For me right now, I want to spend some time to rest and reflect on how Project Voice can continue thriving as an AUTHENTIC media outlet for our Asian community tuning in all over the world. What can we do with our content to keep our audience informed and engaged AUTHENTICALLY? As a child of immigrant parents, I knew what it’s like to feel like I have to reinvent the wheel and now having an established platform for other Asian diasporic folx to share their stories, my next questions are: how can we improve our reach so that many others won’t feel the need to reinvent the wheel?  And also, how can I transform Project Voice into a self-sustaining platform for not only our current generations but our future generations of aspiring creators and storytellers as well? I’d like to thank our listeners for tuning in, sharing feedback on our podcast, and engaging with our content. I’d like to thank our team members for the time and energy they put into contributing a cause that they care about. I’d like to personally thank Grace Abe, our graphic designer and illustrator for leading last year’s rebranding project. Because of Grace, we were able to provide a powerful visual experience alongside with the release of our episodes. Last but not least, I’d also like to thank our sponsors, Found Coffee and Bharat Babies for believing in our mission. If it weren’t all of you, Project Voice would not be where it is today. Much love, Jess

About a year ago, Minnie Ng and I invited Jen Sungshine to share with us not only her history and experience in activism and video production under Love Intersections but her insights about collaborating with other multitalented QTPOC artists as well. From our interview with Jen, we will learn about why collaborations may be the most effective and ethical approach to sharing stories of communities across borders. In this episode, we also will discuss more about the importance of engaging in difficult dialogues and listening with empathy and compassion as creative activists. As we near the end of season 4, Project Voice will be preparing for its lineup for season 5 (and ANOTHER big surprise coming soon!). If you are interested in being interviewed, please email us at projectvoicepod@gmail.com! Jen Sungshine speaks for a living, but lives for breathing life into unspoken situations in unusual places. She is a nerdy queer Taiwanese interdisciplinary artist/activist, facilitator, and community mentor based in Vancouver, BC, and the Co-Creative Director and founder of Love Intersections, a media arts collective that cultivate a vision of collaborative filmmaking and relational storytelling. Jen's artistic practice involves learning through unlearning; and instead of calling you out, she wants to call you in, to make artful social change with her. In the audience, she looks for art in your interruption. Follow Love Intersections: https://loveintersections.com/ https://www.facebook.com/loveintersections/ https://www.twitter.com/intersectlove https://www.instagram.com/loveintersections/  

Content warning: sexual assault Years before the online #MeToo movement that took place in October 2017, Yee Xiong filed a civil suit case against her attacker. Determined to bring justice to her case, she bravely held her ground despite the bribery and threats that occurred during the conviction. It was only a few months later that Yee reached out to me to again to share news of her huge win of her lawsuit case. The legal battle lasted for 6 years. According to a NY Times interview, Yee hopes that her victory will send “a very powerful and positive message to the world that people will be held accountable for their actions, no matter how long it takes.” In this episode, Yee will share with us how she navigated through the legalities of her case and healed herself after the incident. On a larger scale, we also will discuss about how sexual violence is related to immigration rights. Yee Xiong is a daughter of Hmong refugee parents and an advocate for sexual assault survivors and immigrant rights. She earned her BA in Asian American Studies at the University of California, Davis, and works as a community educator at her local rape crisis center in Yolo County. She is passionate about building solidarity among historically oppressed communities through grassroots organizing, women and youth of color empowerment, Southeast Asian and migrant worker issues, and ethnic studies. Follow Yee on Instagram @yee.speaks!

Brought to you by our co-host, Afsana Oreen: Anti-Blackness within the South Asian diasporic community is often not discussed. That’s why I was excited to learn how Nina Bhattacharya – a writer, educator, and cultural organizer – combats anti-blackness. I invite you to modify her strategies, with some additional guidance from the Aerogram’s article “The Revolution Starts with My Thathi,” the next time you need to confront anti-Blackness in your community or in unfamiliar spaces. Nina Bhattacharya is a writer, educator, podcast producer, and cultural organizer based in Cambridge, MA. Her writing has been published in The Toast, Kajal Magazine, and The Aerogram.

Recently, a man by the name Edward Blum and the Students for Fair Admissions have teamed up to sue Harvard for discriminating against its Asian American applicants with its affirmative action policy. Affirmative action has been one of the hottest debates for a while within our community and I thought that it would be really helpful to have Quyen Dinh, Executive Director from the Southeast Asia Resource Action Center, also known as SEARAC, on the podcast to share her personal story as well as SEARAC’s findings on the important impact affirmative action and data disaggregation has had on our Southeast Asian American community. Quyen Dinh is the Executive Director of the Southeast Asia Resource Action Center (SEARAC). As Executive Director, Quyen has advocated for Southeast Asian Americans on key civil rights issues including education, immigration, criminal justice, health, and aging.  Born to Vietnamese refugees, Quyen identifies as a second-generation Vietnamese American. She holds a Masters of Public Policy from the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of California, Berkeley. Quyen was born in New Orleans, LA, and grew up in Orange County, CA and San Jose, CA.  She currently resides with her husband in Washington, DC.   Follow SEARAC on: https://twitter.com/SEARAC https://www.facebook.com/searac/ https://www.instagram.com/searac/

It is no surprise to us how often Asian women are bombarded by harmful messages from society and media. Tired of being told how we should navigate the world, Sung Yeon Choimorrow and I will be opening up the conversation on body issues by first discussing and dispelling stereotypes fostered by microaggressions, internalized racism, fatphobia, racism, and more. Later on in the podcast, Sung Yeon also will share her professional involvement with body politics through means of organizational advocacy under the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum (NAPAWF). She will bring up topics on NAPAWF’s current agenda, such as immigration and deportation. We will end strong with closing remarks to questions that many of us in our community have asked every day: What does #bodylove mean to us? What does it mean to have agency over our bodies? How can we change the culture and attitude around our politicized bodies and finally reclaim agency over our bodies? Sung Yeon Choimorrow is the executive director of the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum, the nation’s only organization dedicated to advocacy at the intersection of gender and racial justice for Asian American Pacific Islander women and girls. She is a Public Voices fellow with the Op-Ed Project. Follow NAPAWF at: https://www.napawf.org/ https://www.facebook.com/NAPAWF/ https://twitter.com/napawf https://www.instagram.com/napawf/  

So, I was ecstatic to know that Bharat Babies was going to be a sponsor for Project Voice and I really wanted to give the platform to its founder, Sailaja, because what she’s doing for our community is really inspiring. When I was looking for sponsors for Project Voice, one of the items on my criteria was to partner with a business who reflected our values and I believe that Bharat Babies really fit the mold for us as a business. As someone who grew up craving for stories that looked like me, I thought it was refreshing to hear that there was someone out there who decided to make a change about it. So, here I’m going to have Sailaja share her story on how she started Bharat Babies. Bharat Babies is an indie publishing house that shares the stories of South Asian characters doing everything from the everyday to the extraordinary. From stories of superhero, the celebrating festivals, to standing up for themselves, Bharat Babies helps to ensure that every child can see themselves in the stories told. Bharat Babies can be found at www.bharatbabies.com, facebook.com/bharatbabies, twitter.com/bharatbabies, and instagram.com/bharatbabies. Sailaja has been a passionate volunteer in the Hindu Youth community for over twenty years and is an accomplished academic with degrees from Northeastern University, Harvard University, and Simmons College. She has also worked with multiple startups, helping them to refine their brand identity and develop their marketing communications. Her unique set of skills and experience help to her to drive Bharat Babies forward. Her ambition is to have Bharat Babies be an active participant in the field of multicultural children’s literature, moving forward with the belief that we need diverse kids lit for a diverse world. When she's not working to change the face of children's publishing, she can be founded hanging with her two adorable children at the park or at circus class (really, that's a thing).  

After coming back from a retreat for Asian American women, I have fostered a deeper appreciation for physical spaces dedicated solely for Asian women. That’s why Dr. Connie Wun is here today to share about her upcoming launch of #ImReady, being held from November 3rd-4th, 2018. She will be sharing how she founded her own organization for AAPI women as the director of AAPI Women Lead, “an intergenerational organization that strengthens the social and political power of AAPI communities through the leadership of AAPI Women-identified, women and girls in solidarity with other communities of color.” “The #ImReady Movement aims to strengthen the progressive political and social platforms of Asian and Pacific Islander communities in the US through the leadership of self-identified AAPI women and girls.  Our goal is to challenge and help end the intersections of violence against and within our communities. We do this work in solidarity with other communities of color. The #ImReady Movement raises visibility around self-identified AAPI women and our experiences with #MeToo, racial discrimination, war, immigration, and more. It also celebrates the leadership and power of AAPI women in Education, Business, Technology, and Politics. At the conferences, we bring together AAPI women leaders and our supporters to learn from one another, tell our stories, and to highlight our diverse leadership stories. We invite you to join us to better understand the complex Asian and Pacific Islander diasporas, histories, and experiences. We invite you to come honor the stories and leadership of our communities. We are bringing together some of the most brilliant people to explore what it means to be a self-identified AAPI woman in the United States. We know you are one of them.” Connie Wun, Ph.D., is co-founder of AAPI Women Lead, a non-profit organization that helps to support the progressive social and political platforms of Asian and Pacific Islander communities in the U.S through the leadership of self-identified women and girls. She has spent the last 20 years dedicating her work to ending violence against women and girls of color as a professor, high school teacher, organizer and activist, and mentor. She is also the founder and director of Transformative Research, a consultancy that conducts and trains organizations on community-driven research and data analysis. Her work is informed by her experiences of being born in Oakland, CA, raised throughout working class communities of color in the Bay Area, and as the daughter of Vietnamese refugees. Dr. Wun is currently a Visiting Scholar in the Women and Gender Studies Department at San Francisco State University. She is a former National Science Foundation Fellow, American Association of University Fellow, UC Berkeley Chancellor's Fellow, Mills College Research at the Intersections Fellow, and EdTrust-West Fellow. Some of her publications can be found on Truth-out.org and Feminist Wire as well as in Critical Sociology; Journal of Educational Policy; Race, Ethnicity and Education; and book anthologies on race, gender, school discipline and violence. Dr. Wun received her PhD from the Graduate School of Education at UC Berkeley. Follow AAPI Women Lead: https://www.facebook.com/AAPIWomenLead/ https://www.instagram.com/aapiwomenlead https://twitter.com/AAPIWomenLead

We are honored to be releasing a 3-episode special feature with SEARAC, also known as the Southeast Asian Resource Action Center. “SEARAC is a national civil rights organization that empowers Cambodian, Laotian, and Vietnamese American communities to create a socially just and equitable society. As representatives of the largest refugee community ever resettled in the United States, SEARAC stands together with other refugee communities, communities of color, and social justice movements in pursuit of social equity.” Each month from October to December 2018, Project Voice will be releasing an episode that highlights an important social justice issue that SEARAC is fighting for on behalf of Southeast Asian American families, students, and elders. This month, our topic of discussion will be on our current government’s immigration policies. Oftentimes, the fight for immigrant justice does not uplift or highlight the behind the scenes organizing anchored by the wives, sisters, and community members of those facing deportation, today we are going to have SEARAC share a new resource created by and for families who have been directly impacted by unjust deportation policies.  Particularly, this toolkit centers around the experience of the #ReleaseMN8 campaign in its rise to prominence since its creation in 2016. Katrina, SEARAC’s Director of National Policy, will be imparting us valuable findings from the Southeast Asian American Solidarity Toolkit: A Guide to Resisting Deportations and Detentions from The #ReleaseMN8 Campaign. What is “#ReleaseMN8”? “In August 2016, the families and supporters of eight Cambodian American men in Minnesota—collectively known as the MN8—decided to organize a campaign to fight the sudden detention and orders of deportation of their loved ones. The #ReleaseMN8 campaign wanted the men, all in their 30s and 40s, to return to the communities where they had faced and overcome countless difficulties in their lives. It also sought to inspire others to join the movement to restore human rights to all refugees and immigrants. The #ReleaseMN8 campaign went public in September 2016. The determination and commitment of the MN8, their families, and their supporters led to the eventual release of three of the eight men.”Katrina Dizon Mariategue is the Director of National Policy, leading and coordinating SEARAC’s national advocacy efforts promoting social justice and equity among Southeast Asian American communities. Prior to this role, she served as SEARAC’s Immigration Policy Manager for three years overseeing the organization’s immigration policy and racial healing work. Before coming to SEARAC, Katrina worked in the labor movement for six years at the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO). In 2011, she was elected to serve as DC chapter president of the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance (APALA), the only national Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) union membership organization. In this capacity, she led the chapter’s local advocacy campaigns and organizing work around immigrant workers’ rights, coordinated civic engagement programs for the 2012 elections, and strengthened local networks through extensive coalition building efforts. She also served on APALA’s National Executive Board and co-chaired the organization’s Young Leaders Council.Katrina holds a Master of Public Policy degree from the University of Maryland, College Park, where she also served as graduate coordinator at the Office of Multicultural Involvement and Community Advocacy to advise, mentor, and educate AAPI students on campus. In her free time, Katrina enjoys playing with her 2-year-old daughter, food tripping with her husband, binge watching shows on Netflix, and watching Broadway musicals. Follow SEARAC on: https://twitter.com/SEARAC https://www.facebook.com/searac/ https://www.instagram.com/searac/

Suffering from writer's block? Seek inspiration by listening to author Sharbari Ahmed's journey writing across different genres. She shares why it is important for her to challenge tropes about South-Asians, particularly Bangladeshis and Muslims, in her pieces. I hope you leave feeling motivated to turn your daydreams into stories as I did. - Afsana Oreen Sharbari’s short fiction has appeared in The Gettysburg Review, The Asian Pacific American Journal, Catamaran, Caravan Magazine, Inroads, Wasafiri, Painted Bride Quarterly and Roanoke Review. Her debut novel, Dust Under Our Feet (working title) is forthcoming in 2019 by Amazon India/Westland Publishing.  She is a 2018 Storyknife Fellow and a Tribeca All Access Fellow. She is on the faculty of the MFA program at Manhattanville College and Artist in Residence in the Film and Television MA Program at Sacred Heart University. In 2018, she gave a TEDx talk about grappling with her Muslim identity, entitled, “Between the Kabaah Sharif and a Hard Place.”  She was on the writing team for Season One of the TV Series, “Quantico” on ABC. Most recently she wrote the screen adaptation of Mitali Perkin’s YA novel Rickshaw Girl. Her debut book The Ocean of Mrs. Nagai: Stories was released in November 2013 by Daily Star Books.   Her play Raisins Not Virgins was produced by the Workshop Theater Company and has been performed worldwide. The screenplay version was part of the Tribeca All Access program at the Tribeca Film Festival. She was born in Bangladesh and raised in New York, Connecticut and Ethiopia. She lives in Darien, CT. Follow her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pg/MrsNagai or Twitter @sharbarizohra!

Ever since Project Voice has relaunched its brand, I’ve been waiting to share with you my latest interview with June Kaewsith (Jumakae) on healing and transformative justice. What’s so unique about this conversation is that it speaks to me where I am today as a social justice activist. Oftentimes, as social justice warriors, we often navigate through life with strong messages that we often show a lot of passion advocating. But does that mean we always have to live like martyrs? When and how can we begin to take care of ourselves and our body? In this episode, June and I will explore the intersections of social justice and healing. We all have our own trauma and adversity, but for many of us, healing from these experiences is still something that we all as people of color are remembering and learning. Other themes we’ll be discussing include the meaning of alternative spaces of healing, decolonization, and self-care. What do self-care and healing mean to us? What does it mean to decolonize our mind and body? How can we perform self-care/self-healing when the work we do can be emotionally, mentally, and physically destabilizing and retraumatizing for us (i.e. call out culture)? What does it mean to be a healer? June and I found ourselves taking a step back to reflect on our “angry activist phase” and re-examining the intention behind doing the work. Also, on October 2nd, 2018, June will be launching her online summit, Your Story Medicine. Your Story Medicine is 14 days of immersion with changemakers and entrepreneurs in the field of coaching, the arts, and wellness. Join us as we dive into the intersections of social justice and healing. Enjoy free resources and guided meditations from several of our speakers to support you on your journey toward resilience! June M. Kaewsith, also known as "Jumakae," is a multidisciplinary artist, wellness consultant, and storytelling coach. She has conducted spoken word workshops and mural projects with various youth groups, and has facilitated theater skits with community members addressing local issues from workers' rights to environmental justice. As a keynote speaker, she has motivated crowds through her original poetry in high schools, college campuses, and various nonprofit groups throughout California. Clients who have sought her as a storytelling coach are change agents who have gone on to tell their stories on large stages in front of thousands of people, entrepreneurs pitching project proposals and product launches to board rooms for a handful of investors and funders, and individuals or artists seeking confidence in their ability to speak and perform their work publicly. Through her additional practice as a wellness consultant ("Green Tara Guidance"), she is a 200 hr registered yoga teacher trained to work with survivors of sexual trauma through Peace Over Violence and a transformational life coach (which she rephrases as "life doula") with a professional certification from Leadership that Works. With her passion for the arts and somatic learning, she holds self-care and storytelling workshops for organizations and individuals to become more comfortable with their mind and body. "Exercise the heart as much as the mind." You can learn more about Jumakae and contact her at: www.jumakae.com If you would like to learn more about Your Story Medicine: How to Move from Trauma and Resiliency, go to: www.yourstorymedicine.com   

I’ve had the awesome opportunity to interview Jenn Fang of Reappropriate, known as “one of the oldest AAPI feminist and racial activist blogs” on the Net, on Project Voice right before our official rebranding launch! Active for almost 20 years as a blogger, Jenn will speak on how much the online Asian activist community has grown and changed since she started. Along with that, Jenn will share her thoughts in support of the validity and necessity of the Asian American feminist movement. As someone who understands how becoming a voice for the Asian diasporic community can lead to expectations she’s expected to meet because of the role that others see her in, I’ve asked her to also address her critics’ feedback in regards to her beliefs and work under @reappropriate. I highly encourage you to tune in to hear what Jenn Fang has to say on what it means to be an Asian American activist and feminist who is open to learning and growing. Our interview will include topics that range from fighting Internet bullying - a subject hat Jenn and I both feel super passionate addressing - to forming alliances with other POC communities and fighting anti-Blackness within the Asian community, and finally, to exploring what it means to practice radical love in this world that often forgets that conversations and change don’t just take place online but in the real world as well. All I have to say is this: since following Reappropriate, I’ve felt a lot more knowledgeable and convicted with my beliefs as a self-identified, proud Asian American feminist. Jenn Fang is the founder of Reappropriate.co, one of the web’s oldest and most popular blogs dedicated to Asian American and Pacific Islander feminism, pop culture, and politics. Her writing has been featured in several outlets including Quartz, BlogHer, Asian Pacific Americans for Progress, Asian Americans for Obama, Angry Asian Man, and Northwest Asian Weekly. Jenn is also co-curator of AAPI Rewind, a weekly digest of AAPI news and commentary. Follow Jenn at @reappropriate on Twitter and Facebook or her blog at reappropriate.co! Support Reappropriate at patreon.com/reapprorpriate. Project Voice will be launching its new look and logo September 15th, 2018! Please subscribe on our new website so you don't lose touch with us!: projectvoicepod.com.

Vi and J of the Journey to the West podcast and I have come together to discuss how important it is to reach out and collaborate with each other as Asian American content creators. We thought it would be a very valuable collaboration to share about our experiences growing up as Southeast Asians who did not come from an upper middle/middle class background. We’ll be talking about how differences in socioeconomic background and education have led some of us Asian Americans to feel disconnected and invisible within the community; for example, how does our upbringing affect our engagement in academic dialogues about race and identity? How does the role of intergenerational difference contribute to where we stand as a community on the bread and butter issues? We will also reexamine what it means to be “Asian American” - is there a better term for us to claim and use to refer ourselves as a means to establish solidarity through our shared experiences? (Hint: how about Asian diasporic?) Vi and J were some of the first who reached out to me when I was being harassed online, so I’ve also invited them to share their past experiences of being cyberbullied within spaces like Reddit and Twitter. Moving forward, Project Voice will be inviting from activists and content creators to share their fight against toxic Internet culture. Although she is shy in the camera, Vi is an early 20s post grad who enjoys travel and skincare/makeup. She, along with the members, kickstarted JTTW to talk about the things she loves while keeping it real at the same time. J is a 2nd-generation Fil-Am living on the East Coast and a regular voice on “Journey to the West,” a podcast about diaspora issues, topical news & feminism, hosted by Asian women. Her interests include reflecting on social issues and exploring complex identities. Connect with her @j_maraan on Twitter, and catch new episodes of the @JTTWpodcast!

As a part of Project Voice’s rebranding movement, I’ve been reaching out to speakers outside the U.S. and putting more focus on identifying the podcast as a platform for the Asian diaspora all over the world. This time, we’ll be learning about the Asian activist community and culture in Australia. In today’s podcast, I have invited Erin Chew, who I first heard about through her work on YOMYOMF.com, will be sharing her knowledge about the history of Asian Australia as well as what’s been hot on the current agenda for the organization she founded, the Asian Australian Alliance. Moving forward, Project Voice will be inviting from activists and content creators to share their fight against toxic Internet culture. Erin Chew will share her bit on her combat against online bullying during her active years online.  Erin Wen Ai Chew (周文愛) is an Australian entrepreneur, policy advisor and social activist, who is just about to complete a Masters of Human Rights. Erin is the founder for the Asian Australian Alliance, which is a grassroots advocacy based network with its primary aim of advocating for the common interests of the Asian Australian community. The Asian Australian Alliance is now a national brand and has around 20 conveners working on different areas and sectors. These sectors include: Asian Australian Alliance, Asian Australian Alliance Women’s Forum, Asian Australian Alliance Young Leaders, Asian Australian Rainbow Alliance and the Movement for Asian Australian Academics. Via Erin, the Asian Australian Alliance has created positive change for the community and highlighted the issues of concern at a mainstream level. Examples include, running a national campaign against the changes of Section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act, speaking to the media against racism and discrimination, and highlighting the issues of the bamboo ceiling. Erin has been featured in many media platforms including, The Guardian Australia, Sydney Morning Herald, SBS, ABC News, News.com.au, Daily Mail Australia, The Age, Canberra Times, The Australian and the Australian Financial Review. Erin has also written for SBS News, The Guardian and other media platforms in the USA and the UK on issues of cultural diversity and social cohesion.

Personal finance and self-care have been on my list of topics to cover for a long time. For those who may need some guidance on adulting, this is for you. When I graduated from college, I remember how overwhelmed I felt not knowing where to start when it came to personal finance and investing. So, when I felt like I had it down, I thought having an introductory podcast episode on financial independence would be helpful and empowering for our listeners.   Lucky you, all you need to do is tune in to hear some savvy real world tips that Bella and I are excited to share after experiencing our own trial and errors: from opening up a savings account, to choosing the right retirement and investment options, to finding ways to pay off credit card and student loan debts, and more! And to end our interview, we'll touch on self-care: how we take care ourselves while experiencing the stress of managing our finances!   Born in Yangon, Myanmar (Burma) and raised in the USA, Bella Aung is an aspiring political scientist and a Master degree candidate at Simon Fraser University, Canada. She has Burmese, Mon, Karen, and British backgrounds. Aiming to become a non-partisan political analyst, she currently is working on two research projects: Why Visible Minority Women are Underrepresented in the Minority-Majority city of Vancouver, and Immigration Policies Regarding the Syrian Refugee Crisis in French and Canadian Cities. When she’s not doing academic stuff, she loves petting cats and eating yummy Asian food.   Get in touch with Bella here!: Instagram: https://instagram.com/bella_dicaprio Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bellatsaung/    

For Angela and me, video games means more than your typical button mashing experience. In fact, video (and computer) games brought many of our nerdy selves together during dark times of the white heteropatriarchy and its systems of oppression. “Do you game?” may be the life-changing question we all need to ask as we venture through different worlds during our journey to find the people who truly resonate with our personal mission. Tune in to hear how gaming has played a huge role in helping us battle through our childhood days and how it has led us to discovering online and offline communities that reflect our need for Asian diasporic representation and solidarity. So, what do you say? Will you join us in this episode? Angela Wu is a first-generation, Chinese-Vietnamese photographer and botanist from the Bay Area. Angela's background is in ecology and botany, and she has her own photo business as well as working as a lab technician in plant-based pharmaceuticals. Angela's work intends to provide a means to bring representation to people of color in media. When she's not working in the lab or taking photos, you can find me gaming online! 0752AM.CO instagram.com/0752AM twitter.com/0752AM gaming links: battlenet id: seven52am#1179 steam: seven52am

Content warning: trauma On the list of topics that I wanted to cover on my podcast, dealing with trauma was one of the most challenging to do as it would require someone who would be open and ready enough to share their past on our platform. Serendipitously, I had the honor of interviewing Due Quach, author of the viral Medium piece, “Poor and Traumatized at Harvard” and founder and CEO of Calm Clarity, a program that dedicates itself to showing us “how to control negative urges, deal with toxic stress, and overcome adversity by tapping into the true potential of our brain.” “Master mind-hacking with Harvard graduate, non-profit founder, and social entrepreneur, Due Quach in CALM CLARITY: How to Use Science to Rewire Your Brain for Greater Wisdom, Fulfillment, and Joy  (Penguin/TarcherPerigee; Trade Paperback Original; ISBN-13: 978-0143130970; 384 Pages/$17.00; May 15th). Part memoir, part guidebook, Due's personal healing journey from PTSD inspired her to develop the Calm Clarity program that corporations and universities across the country are now using to help stressed out employees and disadvantaged students like Due. It is chock full of science-based tips, tricks, and activities to improve your brain, and the Vietnam refugee and Philadelphia native leads readers from the destructive natures of Brain 1.0 and 2.0, to Brain 3.0, or what she defines as the ultimate calm clarity.” A refugee from Vietnam and a graduate of Harvard College and the Wharton MBA program, Due Quach overcame the long-term effects of poverty and trauma by turning to neuroscience and meditation. After building a successful international business career in management consulting and private equity investments, Due traveled throughout Asia to study various contemplative traditions and then created the Calm Clarity Program to make mindful leadership accessible to people of all backgrounds. She’s also the author of the new book Calm Clarity: How to Use Science to Rewire Your Brain for Greater Wisdom, Fulfillment, and Joy. Due also founded the Collective Success Network by convening first-generation college students and professionals to create innovative approaches to address the challenges faced by first-generation college students from low-income communities.   Follow Due and her Calm Clarity program here: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/calmclarity Twitter: https://www.instagram.com/calmclarityorg/ Instagram: https://twitter.com/calmclarityorg Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/calmclarityorg YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3ftPxJaYUNS5Mc494lHNqg LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/calmclarity   Follow Project Voice: facebook.com/projectvoiceaaw instagram.com/projectvoiceaaw projectvoiceaaw@gmail.com  

Last month, I had an amazing opportunity to speak with Lisa Pradhan, a fellow Smithie alum who is an active member of The Appendix Collective, “a  Bay Area collective of Asian American womxn + queer artists reclaiming personal, intimate and diasporic narratives of intergenerational memory and trauma.” In this episode, we learn more about Lisa and their fellow team members’ work on this year’s May 10th exhibit on heartbreak or

"Empowering Voices: AAPI Power Through Media, co-hosted by Smith College Asian Students Association, Vietnamese Students Association, and Pan Asians in Action, provides a platform on campus for Asian American and Pacific Islander voices, bringing light to issues about identity. Content creators Sahra V. Nguyen and Jessica Nguyen use various mediums to raise awareness of AAPI identity and how it intersects with traditional cultural values. They will speak on how to challenge stereotypes, break away from a minority status, reclaim individual identity, and redefine what it means to be Asian American."   On March 31st, 2018, I was invited to speak with Sahra Vang Nguyen at my alma mater. For those of you who were not able to come see the event in person, here is the recording of my speech and our Q&A session! For the Q&A session, you can skip to 11:12! Our first question pertained to how we as digital content creators approach the sharing of narratives in an ethical manner. My response to this question was about being aware of how I framed my questions. By being careful about how I phrase my sentences, I am able to avoid sharing narratives based on my own preconceived notions.   Watch the video here:    To follow Sahra Vang Nguyen, check out below: http://www.sahravang.com/ @oneouncegold on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram   "Sahra V. Nguyen is a writer, director, and filmmaker currently based in Brooklyn, New York...   Mid-2016, Sahra sold her second documentary series to NBCNews.com, 'Deported,' which follows the grassroots fight to end deportation of Cambodian Americans from the U.S. to Cambodia.  Under her own production company, One Ounce Gold, she filmed the doc in Seattle, Philadelphia, New York City, and Cambodia. You can watch “Self-Starters” and “Deported” on NBCNews.com, Roku, AppleTV, Amazon Fire, YouTube, and Facebook."

Jumpstarting a career in the entertainment industry is a terrifying decision you could make in life, especially if you are a woman of color. But who says that you have to make a big, scary move in order to reach your dreams when deep down, all you really care about is being able to showcase your work to the people who matter to you? Whether it's acting, writing, or something else, I believe that there is little stopping you from sharing your story - it's just as a dramatic life-changing decision to start small and to start creating. In this podcast, I had the amazing opportunity to invite Paget Kagy of "Kat Loves L.A." to share her journey with us on how she went about starting a webseries on her own, learning to juggle between acting, writing, and producing, and yet, still staying true to herself and her visions while facing all the demanding challenges that came with the project. And as for me, to finally have found a romantic comedy starring and written by an Asian American woman was my hopeless romantic teenage girl dream coming true!   Season 1 just ended, but I'm impatiently waiting for more!   Here's an IMDb Synopsis of "Kat Loves LA:" "Kat Park finds herself fresh out of a relationship and in a quarter-life rut where seemingly nothing in life is going her way--she's jobless, loveless, and generally stuck in life. When she's set up on a blind date with Andrew Park, an unlikely friendship develops as they team up to take on adulthood together, helping each other overcome the struggles of career, dating, and finding the beauty in an otherwise ordinary life."   To watch the first episode, click here!: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2zEJLiaIi0   Paget Kagy is the writer/producer/actor of "Kat Loves LA", a new romantic comedy webseries now available on YouTube. She hopes to continue her journey in representing Asian Americans on screen in ways that progress multi-dimensional narratives, and showcase new emerging talent.   YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCp4DD8wkWtI2MRA-g9sZapg Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/katlovesla/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/katlovesla Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katloveslaseries/

Let's do a little throwback and talk about how we all had a time in our lives when we wanted to be the Yellow Ranger. Now, many of our awesome selves have become one. In today's episode, YLWRNGR's Lauren Espejo will share her personal experiences of how she has fought against the Model Minority Myth through her involvements in the world of social media, the digital arts and Asian American activism.  Lauren Espejo is a Filipino-American graphic designer and blogger based in New York City. Lauren's fine art has been featured in 9 exhibitions including the Greenpoint Gallery, Dr. M.T. Geoffrey Yeh Art Gallery, and the Angel Orensanz Foundation. Her design work for Liberty Mutual has been featured on Inc. BrandView. In 2016, she created the Asian-American blog and social media accounts, YLWRNGR (Yellow Ranger), to create a safe space where Asian-Americans share their culture and experiences. Check out the blog & socials to join in on the convo! Blog:https://ylwrngr.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ylwrngr/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/ylwrngr Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ylwrngr/  

We're back after a brief hiatus with season 4! After giving time to how I wanted to steer forward with Project Voice, I realized how there are still so many changemakers out there who are giving back to our community through their own projects and initiatives that I'd like to help raise awareness for. My vision for Project Voice has been to turn the podcast into a safe space for Asian women to share their narratives growing up in the U.S. While many of these narratives had been about our past experiences, I want to switch gears to focus on the present, what we're doing now to keep our community moving forward. So, we're going to kick off the new season with Elizabeth Yang and her global virtual summit, Hmong Women Take on the World (HWTOTW). After discussing with Elizabeth about how despite having no country, Hmong women continue to stay strong and thrive all around the world, I could see why she is so passionate about supporting the resilient tribe that she chooses to represent. In this podcast, we will learn about Elizabeth's inspirations behind taking action and visions for HWTOTW. Elizabeth Yang was inspired by a conversation with her 7-year old daughter to ignite the Hmong Women Take on the World movement. She believes in bettering the world and amplifying those in pursuit of better.   Elizabeth brings 10+ years of experience in Fortune 50 companies driving innovative new growth businesses in R&D, product development, and leading and coaching teams. From ideas to concept to marketplace launches, she brings a convergence of experience in generating value in products, services, and business models that tap into her background across healthcare, education, staffing, and retail.   She enjoys the challenge of being a Research & Development Innovation Program Strategy Director at a top Fortune 10 global healthcare IT innovation company alongside being the founder and CEO of her own company, Better With Company, which is where Hmong Women Take on the World sits as a global social brand experience platform. She also advises startups and is passionate about mentoring emerging leaders, women, and girls. Elizabeth believes this new way of co-creating global social brand platforms -- the fusion of social media, marketing, technologies, and experiences -- amplifies specific messages into the world faster than ever before.    Curiosity and making an impact drive her continuous learning. Her sweet spot is Human Factors in Behavior Economics, Design Thinking, Emerging Technologies, and Productivity in High Performance.   She enjoys traveling, reading and a good laugh. You’ll find her mostly embarking on life adventures with her amazingly, handsome husband and adorable minions — her two kids —  in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.A.   Follow Elizabeth Yang & Hmong Women Take on the World: Website: www.HmongWomenTakeontheWorld.com Twitter: @hmongwomenday (to follow HWTOTW) or @elizabethyangix (to follow Elizabeth Yang)  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hmongwomenday Email: hmongwomentakeontheworld@gmail.com

I have decided to take a break from Podcasting. Project Voice will be on an open hiatus until further notice. I think it’s time for me to leave some time out to re-prioritize what I want to do next in my life. I think I’ve reached a stage where the majority of the conversations that I wanted to put out in the world has been done on Project Voice and although I know that my curiosity and passion for social justice is never-ending, I feel what needed to be said has been said for now. To my each and every one of my listeners, thank you for listening and keep your eyes out for a few potential bonus episodes on our Podcast. Otherwise, I hope to see you soon in season 4 (or on another project under my name!). Thank you for tuning in to the finale of season 3. Much love, Jess Follow Project Voice: www.projectvoiceaaw.com facebook.com/projectvoiceaaw twitter.com/projectvoiceaaw projectvoiceaaw@gmail.com

For my final interview of season 3, I had the honor of interviewing Cherisse Datu, the co-designer behind the upcoming video game, The Girl Who Sees in this episode. Both Cherisse and I quickly connected over our passion in designing and creating content through digital media. Not only do we hope to encourage our listeners to let go of their feelings of guilt and discomfort from navigating in such White/ignorant spaces, we also hope that our experiences shared in this episode will inspire others to find their own means of disrupting these kinds of spaces as well. Cherisse Datu is a video producer and game designer. She received her Masters in Game Design from American University and was a JoLT (Journalism and Leadership Transformation) Fellow studying the Intersection of Game Design and Journalism with a grant from the Knight Foundation. She's worked with ESPN’s The Undefeated, Al Jazeera’s The Stream, Extra Credits, and Fusion. She’s a game designer for The Girl Who Sees, a Filipino fantasy-adventure game. She was chosen as Google Jump Ambassador and is currently working on a VR project on Asian-American experiences and identity.   Follow Project Voice: www.projectvoiceaaw.com facebook.com/projectvoiceaaw twitter.com/projectvoiceaaw projectvoiceaaw@gmail.com

Full disclosure: my friend Fatema and I decided to redo our first take because we wanted to make sure that you'll be able to take away everything that we've had planned to share for today's episode topic: how we as loved ones can support those who have been diagnosed with depression. Like many other mental health disorders, depression goes on a spectrum and the issue of being diagnosed with it is interrelated to a number of factors, including one's own cultural background. Simply put, we can't deny the fact that being raised as an Asian woman makes it more challenging to initiate dialogues about having depression. Although we've touched upon the topic of depression before, I wanted to readdress it from a more third-person perspective. How do you as loved ones keep yourself engaged in these discussions of depression? After hearing about Fatema's interest and involvements in depression prevention research, I invited her to share her findings as well as her personal accounts of how she carefully navigates within the field of research. In the research field, one cannot apply their own personal observations so easily. However, on Project Voice, we'll have the exciting opportunity to hear Fatema share her personal connections and observations about depression as well. We hope that you find the information and advice provided to be helpful and applicable to your lives. Fatema is a project coordinator at the Youth Emotion, Development, and Intervention Lab at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, where she manages a depression prevention study for teens. Fatema is interested in becoming a therapist, researcher, and advocate for youth from diverse cultural backgrounds who are struggling with eating disorders, depression, and anxiety. In her spare time, she loves to bake, kickbox, and travel. Follow Project Voice: www.projectvoiceaaw.com facebook.com/projectvoiceaaw twitter.com/projectvoiceaaw projectvoiceaaw@gmail.com

Project Voice is going to be a bit unconventional here with our topic of the day: how to blend into the White world as an Asian woman. This interview wouldn't be a success if it wasn't for the creative thinking of Ashley of @angryfeministworkouts. Episode 32 definitely has a head-turning title - and that's really what Ashley and I wanted at the end of the day. The question and central message here is, how do we convert super White dominant spaces into POC friendly spaces? To answer this, we thought that we could have a little fun listing all of the sh*t that's been said to us Asian women on a day-to-day basis and all of the sh*t that we're expected to regurgitate to make ourselves more palatable to White society; we've split up what we wanted to share into four categories: travel, friends and family, food, and general cultural faux paux. Trust me, we could've had more.    Ashley Hermosura is the founder of Angry Feminist Workouts, an Instagram community created because “after you get hit on, sometimes you want to hit back.” It’s ideally for folks who would like a safe space after they feel mistreated from living in the misogyny of the patriarchy (which can also come from women too!) She believes in taking back white spaces (finance, politics, media, beauty, etc.) and is dedicated to creating workshops and classes to break down the collective makeup of these industries and allow for more marginalized communities to enter and thrive and revolutionize these spaces. While a huge advocate of Asian American art and artists, she still thinks Asians have a lot to learn when it comes to community and the goal of Angry Feminist Workouts is to allow a place for healing, growth, and development, unlearning and empowerment of anyone who has ever felt their power taken away from them.     Follow Project Voice: www.projectvoiceaaw.com facebook.com/projectvoiceaaw twitter.com/projectvoiceaaw projectvoiceaaw@gmail.com  

There is always something to share about when it comes to growing up as children of immigrants, especially when it comes to stories of adversities that have helped shape us to who we've become today. So, I thought what better person to talk to than Amy? Amy Huang credited her experiences working at her family's Chinese restaurant and struggles with assimilating to the American culture that led her to be the independent, strong woman that I am proud to call a close friend of mine. One lesson that I would like to highlight as you dive into this episode - which was also what peaked my interest in interviewing Amy is: if you are fortunate enough to have family who has been supportive to you throughout your life, stick up for them when they have no one to support them. We don't just stop there, though. At 41:07, I had the privilege of having Amy share the current challenges that she's faced working in Corporate America, one of them in which includes the seemingly never-ending microaggressions that we still continue to receive from our fellow colleagues as Asian women in the workplace. Not only that, we also will explore and critique the meaning of what it means "to fit in the work culture" and "to be professional" in work environments that to begin with, already lack diversity. Amy is a 23-year-old Chinese-American originally from Phoenix, AZ. She currently resides in Boston, MA, where she is completing pharmacy school. Growing up working at a restaurant, Amy has cultivated an ambition to make the most of her opportunities. As a first generation Chinese-American, Amy tells stories of her experience as part of an immigrant family with humor. She is also a working professional and an advocate for more women and diversity in the workforce. As a close friend who hears her stories, I believe that her unique perspective on life should be shared with the world. (To me, Amy is the true meaning of grit) Follow Project Voice: www.projectvoiceaaw.com facebook.com/projectvoiceaaw twitter.com/projectvoiceaaw projectvoiceaaw@gmail.com

Today, I have the pleasure and honor to interview Emiko of Her Confidence Her Way, a Podcast series with a mission to guide Japanese women towards having self-confidence and living a meaningful life. So, for every episode, I aim to make the topic applicable to the Asian/Asian American community but for this one, I wanted to tune into a more specific audience and that is, of course, the Japanese/Japanese American women listening out there. Despite the fact that Japan is one of the most technologically advanced countries of our time, like many other countries, it still has room for improvement for gender equality. We will be discussing on Japan's current state and progress in its agenda for women empowerment. Emiko Rasmussen is a Confidence Building Coach, Virtual Mentor, Host of Her Confidence Her Way Podcast, Speaker and Leader of the Her Confidence Her Way Community. She helps Japanese women who don’t feel confident because of their self-limiting beliefs and language/cultural barriers. Emiko empowers Japanese women to be more confident by helping them break through their fears and discover their gifted talents so that they can do what they really want to do and live a meaningful life without worrying about someone else’s opinion.   Follow The Emi Style: Podcast: http://apple.co/2hMg5Iz http://www.theemistyle.com/ https://www.facebook.com/TheEMIStyle/ https://twitter.com/theemistyle Follow Project Voice: www.projectvoiceaaw.com facebook.com/projectvoiceaaw twitter.com/projectvoiceaaw projectvoiceaaw@gmail.com

Intersectionality is probably one of my favorite words of all time. In this episode, we will be covering some aspects of our identity that we may forget and overlook now and then when we're initiating dialogues about our struggles. Originally, I wanted to talk about how solely class plays a role in our lives, but my friend (who will be remained anonymous during this interview) and I learned that you just can't talk about class without talking about other identity x-factors (i.e. citizenship status and education).   Follow Project Voice: www.projectvoiceaaw.com facebook.com/projectvoiceaaw twitter.com/projectvoiceaaw projectvoiceaaw@gmail.com

In season 1, I have released an episode about what it means to be a part of the mixed Asian experience; this season, I wanted to add on to our discussion by exploring the intersection of Black and Asian identities as it is crucial to be aware of the fact that there is also a diversity of narratives of not just within the Asian/Asian American community but within the mixed Asian/Asian American community as well. Feeling inspired after watching Blasian Narratives, I invited Mieko Gavia to speak and share about her perspective and journey with self-identity as a Blasian American and the politics behind being labeled as mixed race, especially when it comes to mixed identities that don't center on whiteness. If there's anyone who would like to share their narrative as a non-white mixed Asian woman on Project Voice, please let me know! Mieko Gavia is a writer, actress, and all-around oddball from Indianapolis, Indiana. After graduating from Oberlin College with a degree in Theater, Mieko followed the classic scenario of a small-town girl with big-city dreams and hightailed it to NYC. When she’s not acting or writing, Mieko can be spotted foraging in used bookstores or wherever cheap food abounds. You can catch her at http://www.blackrevolutionarytheatreworkshop.org and www.miekogavia.org  Follow Project Voice: www.projectvoiceaaw.com facebook.com/projectvoiceaaw twitter.com/projectvoiceaaw projectvoiceaaw@gmail.com

Welcome to another episode of Project Voice! Today, we will be discussing about a topic that surprisingly, is not brought up as often as it should be and that is disability! In this episode, Maya Ghorpade, Doris Jung, and I will be sharing our personal, intersectional experiences on growing up as Asian women with disabilities. Whether they are physical, mental, or intellectual, disabilities deserve to be included in every platform of discussion for marginalized communities. Tune in to learn about how having a disability affects every aspect of our lives, why more attention needs to be put forth on disability support services, and what kinds of efforts we can make to engage others in discussions on disability. Maya is an 18 year old first generation Indian-American. She is a student at New York University's College of Nursing, and has plans to help revolutionize access to healthcare for People of Color. She enjoys making art, visiting museums, trying new foods, and taking naps. Her goal in life is to be at a place where she feels at peace with all of her intersecting identities. Doris is a tiny 20-something year old full time paralegal by day and fashion illustrator and content creator by night! She runs a blog called "I Wear Shirts as Dresses" (iwearshirtsasdresses.com) to share her life as an individual with dwarfism and a lover of fashion. As a second generation Korean-American, she aims to bring awareness of disability and dwarfism in the Asian-American community, as disability is often a topic kept hidden in the dark.   Follow Project Voice: www.projectvoiceaaw.com facebook.com/projectvoiceaaw twitter.com/projectvoiceaaw projectvoiceaaw@gmail.com

***Content warning We can dedicate an entire mini series on mental health issues, but today, we'll be hearing Terra Hoy's personal hardships of mental health. This interview is the second episode of a 2 episode special on Project Voice. If you haven't listened to our first one, please check it out (we covered transgender identity issues, he-he)! Content warning: we will be diving into questions about anxiety, depression, and suicide. We will be listening to Terra's take on how mental health has played a role during her transition during the past couple years. Terra is a queer, transgender womxn of color who is passionate about intersectional feminism. She intends to tackle institutional oppression, primarily focusing on healthcare for minority populations, including the socially and economically displaced, those LGBTQ+, people of color, and many more who are mis- or underrepresented. She is excited to share a bit of her perspective on Project Voice and hopes to utilize this platform to inspire other womxn and femme people of color. In time, she will lead in a policy-oriented career and education. She has the privilege of attending the University of Washington's School of Public Health to pave way towards a career reflecting her values and possibly enroll in the Evan's School of Public Policy and Governance. Check out her blog post on She Has Drive, a collective of authors that explore the issues facing women - it is titled "A Letter to my 12-Year-Old Self:" https://www.shehasdrive.com/home/2017/6/27/a-letter-to-my-12-year-old-self 9.15.18: Project Voice has rebranded! Connect with us @projectvoicepod: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/projectvoicepod Instagram: http://instagram.com/projectvoicepod Twitter: http://twitter.com/projectvoicepod

A womxn is not defined by her body. On this episode, I had the honor of inviting Terra Hoy to share with us her narratives of growing up as an Asian American and coming out as transgender. Key topics that we will be covering today will include trans-legitimacy, gender dysphoria, self biases and expectations from loved ones and society. This is the first interview of our 2 episode special - tune in in a couple of weeks for another episode with Terra! Next time, we will be refocusing on the importance of mental health. Terra is a queer, transgender womxn of color who is passionate about intersectional feminism. She intends to tackle institutional oppression, primarily focusing on healthcare for minority populations, including the socially and economically displaced, those LGBTQ+, people of color, and many more who are mis- or underrepresented. She is excited to share a bit of her perspective on Project Voice and hopes to utilize this platform to inspire other womxn and femme people of color. In time, she will lead in a policy-oriented career and education. She has the privilege of attending the University of Washington's School of Public Health to pave way towards a career reflecting her values and possibly enroll in the Evan's School of Public Policy and Governance. Check out her blog post on She Has Drive, a collective of authors that explore the issues facing women - it is titled "A Letter to my 12-Year-Old Self:" https://www.shehasdrive.com/home/2017/6/27/a-letter-to-my-12-year-old-self 9.15.18: Project Voice has rebranded! Connect with us @projectvoicepod: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/projectvoicepod Instagram: http://instagram.com/projectvoicepod Twitter: http://twitter.com/projectvoicepod

What does it mean to be an activist in this day and age? In today’s episode, my awesome friend, Jennifer Li, and I will be covering topics ranging from how you can be involved as an activist for your Asian/Asian American community - whether it’s through social media, on the ground protests, or something else, why it’s important to support the Black Lives Matter movement, what it means to be a “good white ally,” and what we should do as a community under the Trump presidency.  Besides listening to this Podcast episode, we’d greatly encourage others to take the time out to learn the history of Asian America so that we can better understand how we got here and where we can go from here. Jennifer Li is a digital advocacy strategist and social justice activist. She comes up with creative campaigns and tackles her projects with unparalleled passion and efficiency. Jennifer is currently the California State Director of Rise, multi-sector coalition of sexual assault survivors and allies working to empower all survivors with civil rights.   She launched the #takedownjulienblanc campaign in 2014 that got a pick-up artist banned from several countries. Her personal work has been covered by CNN, Times Magazine, The New York Times, The Guardian, The Huffington Post, BBC, Japan Times, Tokyo Vice, The Independent, The Washington Post, Salon, Gawker, Jezebel, Think Progress, The Daily Beast, Al Jazeera, and more.   9.15.18: Project Voice has rebranded! Connect with us @projectvoicepod: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/projectvoicepod Instagram: http://instagram.com/projectvoicepod Twitter: http://twitter.com/projectvoicepod

Last year, I had a life crisis that threw me into a whirlwind of questions for me - and I have to say, subconsciously trying to live up to the model minority myth made the experience worse: What do I really want to do with my life? Am I really happy with sticking to this one path? Is the 9-5 city work lifestyle really for me? So, I sought out the advice of someone who I looked up to since I was a girl, my older cousin, Thanh Ho (she also goes by Jenny or Clementine). Her words actually changed my life since. In this week’s episode, you’ll have the opportunity to hear her story after her decision to quit Corporate America. This Podcast episode isn’t meant to criticize those who’ve chosen the traditional, stable 9 to 5 work life, but it’s more to critique our fears and our society and family’s perception of what success means. Screw the model minority. What other people think about you do not define you. Start living the life that YOU want. Thanh is a 1st generation, 27-year-old Vietnamese American - born in Vietnam and grew up in the United States.  She graduated from the University of Southern California, majoring in International relations. Currently, she's working as an artist in New Zealand. Her interests include permaculture, hiking, singing, acting, and dancing. Her life goal is to grow and give to the best of her ability. 9.15.18: Project Voice has rebranded! Connect with us @projectvoicepod: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/projectvoicepod Instagram: http://instagram.com/projectvoicepod Twitter: http://twitter.com/projectvoicepod

I didn’t think releasing one episode on the queer Asian American experience could be justified as having enough content that’s representative of the LGBTQIA Asian/Asian American community, so I’m making a return to share more of such narratives  - this time, the interview will be from perspectives of two fellow Smith College alumna friends of mine: Samantha and Shay. As you can tell from the title, we’ll be sharing our thoughts on why we need to break down heteronormative expectations from romantic relationships and and begin normalizing queerness instead. Sam is a 1.5 generation Taiwanese-American who recently made it to her third decade. She isn’t into labels which is why if she had to pick, it would be some all-encompassing one like “queer” or “depends on the day”. She’s currently a professional student working on her Ph.D. at Tufts University in neuroscience. Her hobbies include fantasy football, drinking bourbon and making lists. Her life goals include feeling like an adult one day. Shay is a Boston transplant originally from Long Island that is currently working in the fast paced world of Digital Marketing. She enjoys trying new restaurants, bringing in baked goods for her coworkers, planning elaborate themed dinner parties and hanging out with her nieces and nephews as much as possible. A current activity is wedding planning which is both equally exciting and anxiety inducing. Her goal in life is to have a happy home with lots of space and nice things that serves as a central point for friends and family to flock to. 9.15.18: Project Voice has rebranded! Connect with us @projectvoicepod: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/projectvoicepod Instagram: http://instagram.com/projectvoicepod Twitter: http://twitter.com/projectvoicepod

On May 7th, 2017, I was invited to speak as a spring speaker for the Asian Pacific American Coalition (APAC) at Northwestern University. I'd like to thank everyone who had helped organize this event. Speakers included Olivia Park of Sad Asian Girls, Jessica Nguyen of Project Voice, and artist and writer Larissa Pham. "They will be discussing how they use art and media as outlets for political and social activism. Come through to meet these RAD ASIAN GIRLS." - APAC The Asian Pacific American Coalition (APAC) is a student-organization at Northwestern University that strives to raise Asian/Asian American awareness and community-building on campus. This recording was taken by a video recorded and edited by Northwestern University student Seri Lee. Olivia Park is a graphic designer and the co-founder of Sad Asian Girls, an alias used by her and Esther Fan to make social/political work that surrounds their identities as East-Asians who are living in western spaces. Olivia Park is a Korean-American woman born in Queens, NY and raised in Metro-Atlanta, GA. Her partner, Esther Fan is a Taiwanese-Canadian genderqueer femme raised in Vancouver, CA. Their studio practice is currently based in Providence, RI. Sad Asian Girls have been featured on multiple platforms such as PBS, Huffington Post, NowThis, Dazed Digital, Nylon, i-D, Milk, Elephant Mag, Gal-dem, and Banana Mag. Currently, Olivia and Esther are touring around institutions, such as Princeton, Yale, Wellesley, Duke, and Columbia, in the United States to share their SAG story. View their work here: http://www.sadcontent.com/work/ Jessica Nguyen is the host of Project Voice, which is a Podcast series dedicated to increasing visibility on narratives from Asian America and spearheaded by the voices of Asian American women. As the host, Jessica hopes that this series will act as a digital space where members of her community can go to for guidance and resources. Jessica is also a freelance content creator working on numerous projects such as blogging, photography, video and copywriting. Jessica is a Vietnamese-American woman who grew up in the suburbs of Chicago, but is currently based in Boston, Massachusetts. She used to have a hard time sharing her voice since she was not able to communicate in English in the beginning. It held back her confidence to speak her voice. After learning to express herself through writing and creating her podcast, Jessica is now more confident on sharing her voice and mission to the world. Visit her work here: http://www.projectvoiceaaw.com Larissa Pham was born in Portland, Oregon and graduated from Yale University in 2014 with a degree in History of Art and Studio Art with a concentration in painting. "Her art and writing has appeared or is forthcoming in The Paris Review Daily, Guernica, The Nation, Rolling Stone, Adult Mag, Nerve, New York Magazine, Maxim, ELLE, Dazed, Salon, Adbusters, GOOD, The Rumpus, The Hairpin, Gawker, VICE, The Intentional, Packet Bi-Weekly, The Yale Literary Magazine, and elsewhere. She is the author of Fantasian, a New Lovers novella from Badlands Unlimited, out October 25, 2016. You can purchase Fantasian here, or in stores worldwide." View her work here: http://larissapham.com Read our transcript here!: https://www.projectvoicepod.com/blog/2018/8/9/episode-21-rad-asian-girls-a-panel-on-art-race-and-gender 9.15.18: Project Voice has rebranded! Connect with us @projectvoicepod: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/projectvoicepod Instagram: http://instagram.com/projectvoicepod Twitter: http://twitter.com/projectvoicepod    

I’m starting off the season with a topic very close to my heart: growing up as a child of refugee immigrant parents. My friend, Saroeun, and I will be sharing our personal struggles growing up as first-born children of immigrant parents who moved because they didn’t have t choice - from overcoming barriers with the English language to helping our parents translate in day-to-day situations to guiding our younger siblings to a better life as Southeast Asian Americans. I hope that this 2-episode special will help people understand better where we’re coming from and why today’s immigration issue should hit close to everyone’s heart. Here is part 1. Look forward to next week for part 2! Here is part 2 of our 3rd season episode premiere. I made the conscious choice to not omit any parts of the conversation because I thought some of the emotional value would be lost if I had. I apologize for the length of the conversation but I do hope you understand why I’m leaving the conversation uncut. Saroeun Moungyiv is a 1st generation Cambodian American. She has a cosmetology license and is a nail technician at her mother's shop. Her ambition is simply to help her parents' dream of becoming business owners come true and hope to have people understand the value of true happiness in themselves and in life. Read our transcript here!: https://www.projectvoicepod.com/blog/2018/8/15/episode-20-im-proud-to-be-a-child-of-refugee-immigrant-parents-part-2 9.15.18: Project Voice has rebranded! Connect with us @projectvoicepod: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/projectvoicepod Instagram: http://instagram.com/projectvoicepod Twitter: http://twitter.com/projectvoicepod

SEASON 3 is FINALLY HERE! I’m starting off the season with a topic very close to my heart: growing up as a child of refugee immigrant parents. My friend, Saroeun, and I will be sharing our personal struggles growing up as first-born children of immigrant parents who moved because they didn’t have a choice - from overcoming barriers with the English language to helping our parents translate in day-to-day situations to guiding our younger siblings to a better life as Southeast Asian Americans. I hope that this 2-episode special will help people understand better where we’re coming from and why today’s immigration issue should hit close to everyone’s heart. Here is part 1. Look forward to next week for part 2! Saroeun Moungyiv is a 1st generation Cambodian American. She has a cosmetology license and is a nail technician at her mother's shop. Her ambition is simply to help her parents' dream of becoming business owners come true and hope to have people understand the value of true happiness in themselves and in life. Read our transcript here!: https://www.projectvoicepod.com/blog/2018/8/15/episode-19-im-proud-to-be-a-child-of-refugee-immigrant-parents-part-1   9.15.18: Project Voice has rebranded! Connect with us @projectvoicepod: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/projectvoicepod Instagram: http://instagram.com/projectvoicepod Twitter: http://twitter.com/projectvoicepod

We are going to end season 2 with a 2-in-1 bang! Fighting work discrimination and aspiring whiteness are some pretty heavy topics that my anonymous friend and I were able to discuss within less than an hour, amazingly enough - perfect for all of you individuals out there who just want the straight truths while you're on the get go. We've heard of how being seen as the model minority has hurt us a million times already, so why not put it into context while bringing up the flaws of our modern day American workplace system? For example, how do we combat microaggressions that we see day to day at work? Later on in the episode, we will touch upon some of us whose subconscious desire is to become white or like white and discuss how what it means to aspire whiteness is different from what it means to be labeled as "whitewashed." My speaker for this week's episode is a South Asian woman who is currently working at an business consulting firm in the U.S. Her areas of interest include labor economics, environmental economics, immigration and economics of inequality, anti-trust and competition. Outside of work she enjoys exercise, coffee, talking long walks and engaging in conversations about social justice and politics. Read our transcript here!: https://www.projectvoicepod.com/blog/2018/8/15/episode-18-combatting-work-discrimination-and-aspiring-whiteness 9.15.18: Project Voice has rebranded! Connect with us @projectvoicepod: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/projectvoicepod Instagram: http://instagram.com/projectvoicepod Twitter: http://twitter.com/projectvoicepod