Asian Outlook | Spring 2018 Issue #1

ASIAN OUTLOOK Vol. XXXIV | Issue 1

Satellite Babies Vocaloid PyeongChang 2018 Olympics

ASIAN

Volume XXXIV, Issue 1

contents OUTLOOK 2

ASIAN OUTLOOK

opinions 4 | 2018 Winter Olympic | Mengshu Ye 6 | “I’m not religious, I’m just Chinese” (Confucianism Today) | Ling-Ling Sally Bishop

arts & entertainment 8 | Vocaloid: Virtual Divas or Instruments? | Nina Ocampo 16 | Satellite Babies | Michelle Pao 10 | Flawless Execution? (A Korean Odyssey) | Brandon Ng 12 | Liu Wen: Asia’s First Supermodel | Camille Guo

conscience 18 | Dysphoria | Darren Yu 20 | Crossword: Common terms relating to Asian Americans | Tod Dotia 21 | Alcohol | Darren Yu 22 | Poems | Michael Angelo 23 | Binghamton Mental Health Zine | Tod Dotia

letter from the editor...

Dear Readers, Welcome to 2018! I hope the holidays have given everyone the chance to unwind and prepare to face the rest of the academic year. That said, the flu season was rather wild this time around.

At least it’s over now, right? It’s still cold and icy out, and the groundhogs predicted six more weeks of winter, so we’ve still got to bundle up for a while as well. Don’t let the dull weather make you falter in your studies! Spring is on its way!

As promised, we’ve launched new stuff for everyone to enjoy.

First and foremost is our podcast, Inside Outlook! You can find the link to the Soundcloud on our Facebook page. Our objective with the podcast is to showcase the Asian and Asian American talent that’s right here at Binghamton University. Feel free to contact us if you’d also like to be part of the podcast; despite our name, we’re not an Asian-exclusive entity. Anyway, in this issue, we’re reminiscing a bit about Asian Night 2017 with our transcript of our interview of the guest performers last year: the Jrod Twins! Their voices and music are amazing! Also, don’t forget about how we brought tears to the audience’s eyes with our spoken word slam! Of course, we continue to uphold the original mission of Asian Outlook throughout all of our endeavors. This time we dive into discussion about common Chinese-American upbringings and what Asians and Asian Americans accomplished at the 2018 Winter Olympics, among other things. Stay tuned; there’s much more to look forward to from us.

We extend our thanks once again to ASU and the other subgroups under its umbrella: BUJA, CASU, KASA, VSA, TASC, and PAL. I would also like to thank my E-Board once again for their hard work and for allowing me to be their Editor-in-Chief again this semester. Most importantly, Asian Outlook would be nowhere without anyone to submit content to our magazine and read the issues, so many thanks to all of our supporters! Take care and see you all next time!

Nina Ocampo Editor-in-Chief, Spring 2018

ASIAN OUTLOOK EXECUTIVE BOARD SPRING 2018 editor-in-chief

Nina Ocampo Secretary Michael Messina copy editors Benny Louie Brandon Ng Thomas Hur conscience editor Tram Duong layout editors Camille Guo Michelle Pao Mengshu Ye Haoran Zhi business manager Tiffany Tung publicity manager Haythi Ei

EDITORIAL POLICY Asian Outlook is the art, literary and news magazine of the Asian Student Union of SUNY’s Binghamton University. Originally conceived and created to challenge, redefine, re-imagine and revolutionize images and perceptions associated with Asians and Asian Americans, Asian Outlook also serves to protect the voice of those in the minority, whether by ethnicity, gender, and/or political orientation. All matter contained within these beautiful pages do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial board. Asian Outlook reserves the right to edit submissions and publish work as deemed appropriate. Prospective contributors are encouraged to discuss their work with the editors prior to submissions.

Articles may be submitted as an e-mail attachment to ao.editor@gmail.com. All artistic and literary pieces may be submitted to aoconscience@gmail.com.

CONTACT POLICY Uninvited contact with writers and contributors is forbidden under punishment of pain. Please direct all questions, comments and complaints to ao.editor@gmail.com. interested in contributing?

E-mail us at:

ao.editor@gmail.com

For more info check us out on facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/asianoutlook/

Look at our past issues on Issuu: https://issuu.com/asianoutlook

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(Photo: Kyodo) North Korea and South Korea marched under a ‘unification flag’ at the 2006 Winter Olympic Games in Turin, Italy.

T

HE 2018 WINTER OLYMPICS LAUNCHED ON FRIDAY, FEB. 9 THIS YEAR. This event attracted people’s attention from all over the globe. Here are some of the highlights from the 23rd Winter Olympics: Peace in Motion?

There is no doubt that the unified team of North and South Korea marching together was the biggest highlight in this year’s Olympics. During the opening ceremony, the North and South Korea teams marched out together under a unified flag. It was a moment many had anticipated; the last time they appeared together in an international event was 11 years ago, during the Winter Olympics in Italy.

In addition to the marching, the opening ceremony also saw a historic handshake happen between Kim Yo-jong, Kim Jong-un’s sister and Moon Jae-in, President of South Korea. It was a significant step forward for the South and North Korea after the decades of tension. At the same time, on the other side of the opinion on the signal of peace sent

by North Korea, critics believe that the successful reunion of North and South Korea in international events will only help Kim Jong-un to achieve his own agenda. The Olympics event was dominated by North Korea, South Korea invited North Korea before and got rejected. The sudden decision made by North Korea was only announced about a month

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2018 Winter Olympic

By Mengshu Ye

before the Olympics. South Korea is becoming a chess piece used by North Korea to create a temporary peace when it has the nuclear weapon.

Whether North Korea has more complex purposes than seeking permanent peace, Olympic certainly lowered the tension between South and North Korea for now and showed the world a glimmer of hope for peace between two rival countries.

that Russia was banned from the 2018 Winter Olympics.

Mirai Nagasu’s Triple Axel American figure skater Mirai Nagasu made history on Feb. 11 when she landed the triple axel and became the first American woman ever to land a triple axel in Olympics.

Eight years ago, Mirai entered the 2010 Winter Olympic and won fourth place in the ladies’ event. Mirai was born in California and started skating at age 5. Growing up, she spent a lot of time in her parent’s sushi restaurant in Arcadia, California and worked hard towards her skating dream. During one of her interviews, Mirai expressed her opinion on Asian American athletes: “Growing up there weren’t a lot of Asian Americans in sports, and there’s a bit of a stigma that says Asian Americans are more the ‘nerdy type,’ so for me to be a part of this successful sports team that has so many Asian Americans and to represent that side of the U.S. means a lot to me.”

“So for me to be a part of this successful sports team that has so many Asian Americans and to represent that side of the U.S. means a lot to me.”

Russian ban The Russian team was absent from the Winter Olympics this year. During the Olympics’ opening ceremony, Russian athletes entered without the Russian flag as “Olympic athletes from Russia”. The complete ban on Russia in the Olympics this year was due to the state-run doping program by the Russian government. In 2014, a documentary featured this affair that drew the attention of the World Anti-Doping Agency and the International Association of Athletics Federations. After the investigation, on Dec. 5, 2017, the International Olympic Committee announced

(Xin Li / Getty Images) Mirai Nagasu of USA competes in the Ladies Single Skating Short Program on day twelve of the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/09/sports/olympics/opening-ceremony.html?action=click&contentCollection=Asia%20Pacific&module=RelatedCoverage&region=Marginalia&pgtype=article https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LtpJ4zQG-9I http://www.isuresults.com/bios/isufs00010220.htm

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“S

O WHAT RELIGION ARE YOU?” asked my manager as we were stocking shelves. He is a friendly Christian Ecuadorian man who goes to church every week. I was sixteen and this was my first part-time job in America. I thought about his question for a bit, since my parents never took me to church or temple every week I just said, “I don’t have one.”

Surprised, he said “But you’re so nice!” I just laughed out of confusion on why being nice and being religious seem to correlate for him. After my shift when I got home, I couldn’t stop thinking about his question. I realized even though I’m not religious, my moral code is indeed black and white. When I first moved to New York from Taiwan during my sophomore year of high school, I was too busy assimilating myself that I forgot how deeply I was in fact influenced by the fundamental Chinese Confucianist beliefs that I was taught as a kid. I’m not religious, I’m just Chinese.

What does it mean to be Chinese? Aside from the political conflicts between mainland China and Taiwan, being Chinese is not defined by today’s borders, instead it is a rich culture cultivated through five thousand years of history and shifting borders. Running deep in the marrow of Chinese culture is the belief system that is Confucianism.

This article merely reflects my own experiences growing up in a very strict Chinese household in Taiwan. I do not claim to be an expert in religious studies or Chinese history, but I do have extensive knowledge on the two subjects through 10 years of Taiwanese public education and my longstanding interest in both subjects.

Most schools today in China and Taiwan teach Confucius Analects from a very young age right up until college.

Even though it is taught as literature, the belief system is almost religiously obeyed just without the concept of God. Every day after I finished my school work, I would have to recite and memorize long paragraphs of the Analects and other related Chinese literature just like my mother did when she was younger. My grandfather was one of the

intellectual elites in China before the communist party took over and he fled to Taiwan with the rest of the KMT Democratic Party leaders. The definition of an “elite” in Chinese culture has never been the same as it is in western culture, meaning having money is not the goal; instead having knowledge is.

China and Taiwan today have been influenced by so many other cultures and religions, our traditions have taken a back seat in our daily lives just to keep up with globalization and westernization. However, one can be of another religion and still follow the teachings of Confucius, since it is already so ingrained in Chinese culture. Many first-generation Chinese kids who are raised abroad aren’t necessarily formally introduced to the Analects, but their parents unintentionally practice the “rules” of Confucianism in their daily lives, and their kids end up subconsciously influenced.

Coming to Binghamton I have met all different types of students of Chinese descent. The level of influence Confucianism has on these students vary on a wide spectrum, some of them unknowingly. Last year I had a roommate who was an international student from Beijing so I started communicating with her exclusively in Chinese and I realize that I have forgotten a lot about my mother tongue and the culture itself in just 4 years of leaving Taiwan. So I signed up for a Confucius Analects class that also fulfills a Gen Ed credit. Sitting in a classroom with mostly international Chinese students and the Professor teaching only in Mandarin I was experiencing a little bit of a culture shock even though it is my own culture. It made me realize how much I loved and missed my culture. It is always important to not forget where you come from and to celebrate your culture no matter where you are from.

For the readers who aren’t familiar with Chinese culture, the three big picture “rules” of Confucianism are: 1. The importance of filial piety (treating your parents with reverence); 2. Obedience to honorable people (anyone who is considered of higher position than you); 3. Being Humble (including minimalistic). The goal of

“I’m not religious, I’m just Chinese”

By Ling-Ling Sally Bishop

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(Photo from ilookchina.com) Confucius with students.

Confucianism to maximize social harmony if everyone does their part in following the “guidelines.” Maybe this might help you reference why lots of Chinese people you may know share these similarities when they go about their lives.

What is Confucianism? It is complex with many detailed “rules”. Unlike some religions, if you “sin” or go against the teachings of the Analects, you are not condemned by any gods but by the judgements of your own neighbors. In order to be the best version of yourself, the more you live your life “by the book”, the better example of a human being you are according to Confucius, and the more respect you gain from society.

For a Chinese millennial living in the capitalist melting pot that is America, it is hard to convince myself not to abandon Confucianism and Chinese culture. Sometimes it all seems so trivial to follow one belief system when there are so many people believing in other teachings or sometimes none at all. For example, to play a part in creating social harmony by keeping your head down is a sign of weakness in the western world, and it goes against all capitalist ideals. We see this in social media and Hollywood movies today. Often Chinese characters are portrayed as weak and sheepish, when in fact showing that you are humble is held at high regards in Chinese culture.

At the end of that day, I truly believe that loving my parents, honoring others, and staying humble are the right things to do despite the fact that the capitalism western culture may perceive those qualities as weaknesses. So I will continue to follow Confucianism to the best of my abilities, and never apologize for being Chinese.

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Virtual Divas or Instruments?

VOCALOID

By Nina Katrina

Hatsune Miku (Graphic: Businesswird)

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HOSE THAT HAVE SURFED THE INTERNET AND SEEN AN ANIMESTYLE CHARACTER THAT WASN’T FROM AN ANIME, MANGA, OR VIDEO GAME HAS LIKELY SEEN A VOCALOID. A Vocaloid is, at its core, a voice synthesizer. Voice synthesizers are the vocal equivalents of virtual instruments in that you put musical notes and lyrics into the program, and then the program will produce the notes in the form of a singing voice. To create realisticsounding vocals is not a light task, as anything other than a flat and empty note takes plenty of fine tuning and other editing. Vocaloids derive their voice banks from editing the pre-recorded phonetic sounds of a voice actor. Early Vocaloids sounded obviously robotic, almost like extra-heavily autotuned recordings.

As technology improved and later Vocaloids started sounding more realistic, people have raised concerns about the possibility of Vocaloids replacing human singers in the future. Looking at the history and the current fanbase of Vocaloid, it doesn’t seem likely, but also not impossible.

Vocaloids had a rocky start, though it smoothed out rather quickly later on. The very first Vocaloids were Leon and Lola, produced and distributed by the British company Zero-G Limited back in 2004. They lacked avatars on their box art; it was the later Japanese companies that started the practice of designing avatars for the voice banks.

Then Crypton Future Media, a Japanese company, created the first Japanese Vocaloids, MEIKO and KAITO. Vocaloids failed to sell well at first due to a lack of interest in vocal synthesizers, to the point where the companies took them off the shelves for a while. Then Crypton released the first Vocaloid to use the improved VOCALOID2 engine, Miku Hatsune. Unlike the earlier Vocaloids, the company decided to market her differently than their previous products: as a virtual diva.

Their marketing proved a huge success and propelled Miku to fame in Japan. Crypton then used the momentum from her popularity to create other Vocaloids, upgrades for their existing Vocaloids and improved VOCALOID engines. As of this writing, the software has reached the VOCALOID4 edition, along with many Appends, or add-ons to the software that enable different variations on the voice bank’s base intonations. Even today, Crypton dominates the Vocaloid market at large and Miku remains the undisputed mascot of Vocaloid. Other companies also started creating Vocaloids after witnessing Crypton’s rise using the technology. While Japanese and English continue to be the most commonly employed Vocaloid languages, some other companies are branching out and using other languages, such as the Chinese Vocaloids Luo Tianyi and YAHNE by Bplats, Inc. and Spanish Vocaloids Clara and Bruno from Voctro Labs.

The Vocaloid fandom is full of enthusiasm. Since Vocaloid is simply a software, composers can produce all sorts of genres of music with them.

Sometimes producers, mostly the Japanese ones, release albums full of the songs they’ve created using Vocaloids for Vocaloid fans to buy. Fans from all over the world work to translate Vocaloid songs, draw art of the avatars, create promotional videos

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Yuezheng Longya (Graphic: Vocaloid Wiki)

(PVs for short) that serve as music videos and cover songs using both the original lyrics and trans-lyrics into various languages. The Japanese video site Nico Nico Douga serves as the biggest hub of Vocaloid fan activity in Japan, while Youtube is the biggest international base. Besides the usual merchandise like dolls and keychains for the mascots, Crypton has also worked with Sega to release a video game series called “Project Diva” for various consoles. In an increasingly popular trend, Vocaloids feature in live concerts where giant holograms of the avatars sing and dance around on stage, both in Japan and overseas.

However, the Vocaloid community has also faced its share of problems, both internal and external. The fact that Vocaloids were marketed as instruments in Japan and singers for the rest of the world also led to some arguments over the nature of Vocaloid itself. Adding to the problem, the names of the voice banks often take precedence over those of the song producers in fans’ memories; the departure of famed and highly influential Vocaloid producer Wowaka from the community in 2011 highlighted this issue. Wowaka released several albums of songs featuring Miku from 2009 to 2011; he said the community made him feel unimportant by crediting the Vocaloids for creating the songs he composed. Animosity between Japan and other Asian countries like China and Korea has manifested in the fandom as well. When SBS A&T released the Korean Vocaloid “SeeU” in 2011, the international community accepted her like any other Vocaloid, but Japanese fans largely ignored her or openly declared dislike for her on both Nico Nico Douga and Youtube, even after the company added a Japanese voicebank for her later in the year. Unrelated to the other issues, copyright laws get somewhat confusing concerning Vocaloids due to their nature as a program that anyone can use. For example, Vocaloid songs often get reprinted to Youtube from Nico Nico Douga without the original producer’s permission, and whether cover songs are illegal or not remains mostly up in the air.

Overall, Vocaloids have made a shift from being intended as professional musical tools to a software that anyone can enjoy, complete with cute faces. Given the fact that the avatars of Vocaloid voice banks generally receive fictional pop idol treatment complete with fan-given personalities, human singers’ worries become more understandable. Part of the appeal of using Vocaloids lies in their abilities to hit notes that real people couldn’t hope to achieve and to sing at unnaturally fast paces. On the other hand, the editing that occurs after recording phonetics from a voice actor inadvertently serves to mold the voice bank to a specific standard of sound; if one doesn’t pay careful attention to the nuances in many Vocaloids’ sounds, they might all sound similar before the listener becomes more familiar with the voices’ nuances. Real singers don’t undergo the same level of voice editing, so there’s more variety overall in their voices. Besides, Vocaloids have always been a rather niche market compared to more traditional styles of music. As of now, the future will most likely remain dominated by human singers while Vocaloid continues to gain popularity. http://vocaloid.wikia.com/wiki/Vocaloid_Wiki https://aminoapps.com/c/vocaloid/page/blog/wowaka-returns-to-vocaloid-community/bN7h_oum3rd70EpR28GJeJnBRpWE4qv http://www.vocaloidotaku.net/index.php?/topic/30085-seeu-hate/?s=7fb36fea98ad501b52137fbbd2972c03

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Satellite Babies

By Michelle Pao

I

WAS WALKING DOWN TO THE BUS STOP WITH MY FRIEND, LINDA, when we started sharing random facts about ourselves. When she learned that I have never been to China, or on a plane, she spurted, “I didn’t know who my parents were until I was five.” Prodding her forth to tell me more, she revealed that she was sent to China as an infant and her grandparents took care of her until they led her to the airport and she flew on her own. Once she got off the airplane, a strange man gave her a toy, telling her that he was there to pick her up. Little did she know, she was looking at her father for the first time. She immediately started to cry, missing what she knew as her home, her family and surroundings.

This story happens all the time. I’ve always wondered: Do parents send their children to their grandparents because of Confucianism or is there some other underlying reason?

Satellite babies is a term for the young children who

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were born in the country, leave, and then return back to the country. When they return, it is usually in time to start school in the U.S. There are many variations of satellite babies. There are those who are sent to Asia when they are five, and return for college. There are also infants who remain in the Asian country while their parents immigrate to the States. The extended family usually takes care of these children. There are three main reasons why these children are left to the extended family’s general care. The first would be that it is costly to raise children in the city. To raise a family of four in New York City, the annual cost would be $98,722. Taking into account that the parents are new immigrants, it would take them time to adjust to their new setting as well as find jobs, make money to provide for themselves and learn English. Another major reason is the practice of three-generation childcare. It helps preserve culture, with grandparents teaching the younger generation proper manners, values of the family, and other

traditions. It is also a way to teach the children an important language other than the native tongue they are supposed to know.

While getting an experience to familiarize oneself with their real “home” is a plus, there are some rather adverse effects. There are those who come back, not being familiar with English. Then they are teased and regarded as ‘fobs’. Fresh off the boat persons may get bullied for having an accent and have a difficult time adjusting to the new culture. There has been a study of satellite babies’ behavioral patterns. Although it may not apply to all of these children, some tend to have attachment disorders. They are constantly on the edge of their seat, wondering if anyone is looking after them and afraid that they will be forgotten. There are also trust issues as some of their parents may have lied to them, telling them they would visit them in China, but in the end didn’t.

Currently, there are places emerging from places like Flushing, Queens to help these children adjust to the new place that they are in, to close the gap between their parents and themselves, in hopes to help children recognize who they are, to help them grow and to help their parents grow as well.

(Name has been changed to retain privacy)

https://www.npr.org/sections/ ed/2016/10/13/492860463/born-in-the-us-raised-in-china-satellite-babies-havea-hard-time-coming-home https://www.brickunderground.com/ blog/2015/08/heres_how_much_itll_ cost_you_to_raise_a_family_in_nyc https://www.theatlantic.com/video/ index/491843/the-confusing-lives-of-chinese-american-satellite-babies/

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A

(tvN) Scene from Episode 13

(asianwiki) Poster for A Korean Odyssey

Korean Odyssey A

Korean Odyssey has been one of the best contenders for that title in recent times.

The action-fantasy K-drama spinoff of Journey to the West was mired in its third set of speed bumps this past month, further dropping the ratings of what had the makings of a hit series. It started in December – while the second episode was broadcasting, it had not yet gone through most stages of post-production. In a fight between one of the four male leads and paranormal beings, the stunt

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(tvN) Promotional Photo for Hwayugi.

(A Korean Odyssey)

(tvN) Scene

(tvN) Scene from Episode 3

By Brandon Ng

The Opposite of Flawless?

http://asianwiki.com/A_ Korean_Odyssey http://layar-sinopsis.blogspot.com/2018/02/hwayugi-korean-odyssey-episode-13-part-2.html

wires had not been edited out, giving it the appearance of a 70’s Hong Kong action film. Almost twenty-five extra minutes of advertisements followed before the broadcast resumed, and even then it had not been fixed. A scene of a still image that was supposed to have a demon in the background had not been placed properly, and the green screen filled the shot. Minutes later, more stunt wires removed any sense of mysticism in the episode before it was finally taken off the air.

It didn’t stop there, though. Even ignoring the striking similarities of the romantic side of the plot to Dokkaebi, where the difference in age between the male and female lead numbers in the hundreds, and the female lead is supposed to be 19, A Korean Odyssey found its storyline far overshadowed by more news – a stuntman in the cast had fallen 100 feet (for reference, about the height of a 9 story building) while working on set and been paralyzed from the waist down and suffered severe head trauma. A lawsuit by MBC Art, the stuntman’s employers, soon followed, and the series was delayed another two weeks while the situation was being investigated by the Korean Ministry of Employment and

Labor and its police departments.

Now, even its actors are coming forward to complain about the sleep deprivation and tight schedule of the drama, with many shots being changed on the spot.

News about its Director, Park Hongkyun, has come out in rapid fire about his “page scripts” – scripts handed out to the actors less than a week before their performances, with less than a fraction of the show. It’s been riddled with continuity errors and fiascos, and the star-filled cast of the show has performed somewhat poorly. The show’s lead was still in military service when the show first started recording, and even until a month in, leading to many scenes with somewhat poor transitions and a more difficult drama to watch in the early episodes.

If you can get past the swamp A Korean Odyssey has found itself in, though, it’s not necessarily a terrible show. The actors are within the top tiers of Korean dramas, and it has a good mix of horror, action, and romance (though I’m obviously not the best judge). Its sound track is not bad, and the story itself evokes a certain level of emotional response when binge watched. Most of its problems are condensed into the first half,with some scenes not making sense or in an incorrect order. My recommendation is, if you won’t be bothered by continuity errors, to watch it while you’re procrastinating for your next exam.

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LIU WEN Asia’s Bona Fide Supermodel

By Camille Guo

C

HINESE MODEL LIU WEN HAS BECOME A FIXTURE WITHIN THE INDUSTRY. She was the first Asian model to land an Estee Lauder cosmetics campaign and the first to walk as a Victoria’s Secret Angel. Wen has also walked a record 74 shows in New York, London, Milan and Paris for the Autumn/Winter 2009 season, followed by 70 for Spring/Summer 2010, making her the second most-booked catwalk model that year. The New York Times in 2012 dubbed her as “China’s first bona fide supermodel”. As a child she was very tall and always hunched her back. This led to her parents sending her to modeling camp to improve her posture. Her modelling career launched with a coincidental beauty contest, the New Silk Road World Model Contest, in 2005. Despite entering the contest to win the grand prize - a computer -, Wen immediately landed full-time work with features in China’s Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar.

However, when she abandoned her plans to work as a tour guide to go to Beijing, things were not smooth. She went through periods of depression because when she just arrived, she lacked experience and struggled to represent herself in the best light. At first she did not understand English and “just listened to the music and followed my feelings.” Despite that, she persisted through and gave credit to her Hunan roots for her tenacity. She told herself, “Things would only be bad for a day. Not a month. Or a year. As long as I did well on my next task, I believed that success would come inevitably.” Her persistence shined through when she caught the eye of international stylists and casting directors and was signed with Parisian modelling agency Marilyn. Wen debuted on international fashion week catwalks in 2008, walking for Burberry, Trussardi, Chanel and Jean-Paul Gaultier. Consistently posing for the best photographers, walking fashion month’s top shows and simply being her charming self in street style photos, Liu has gained a high-profile series of admirers. Designers like Anna Sui and Phillip Lim rely on her to bring glamour to their collections, philanthropist Wendi Murdoch counts her as a friend, and everyone seems to agree that she embodies the best of what the business has to offer.

As one of the few Asian models to break through fashion’s glass ceiling, she takes her position as a role model seriously. “It’s a turning point,” explains Liu via email from Beijing to Vogue. “Being a supermodel is when this career transforms from a job into something that now involves social responsibility. A part of your world now also belongs to everyone else. Your behavior and attitude can now impact others in a greater way, so there is now a responsibility to inject some positive energy into the world!” Her Marilyn Agency president, Chris Gay says, “She has already achieved historis success as a model. China’s influence in the fashion world will be tremendous both from the standpoint of every Western fashion brand wanting to establish their presence there, as well as Chinese brands, designers, and models having more of a global impact.” https://www.businessoffashion.com/ community/people/liu-wen https://www.vogue.com/article/liu-wensupermodel-takes-manhattan-by-storm

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CONSCIENCE

Photo by Pamjpat on Pixabay

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Photo by Jilbert Ebrahimi on Unsplash

dys phoria

By Darren Yu

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Photo by pedrofigueras on Pixabay

A poem about ADHD/Anxiety, inspired by music artist Crywolf and conversations I’ve had with friends

T

he first espresso shot gives me euphoria In the form of blissful ignorance from all of my usual distractions Like gum wrappers and the sound of loud keyboards And loose, sloppy conversations about people I will never meet

I become so distracted by my own wreckage That I become desensitized to life, I can only focus on piecing together broken glass That’s here and there, but never together And I only see parts of my bitter reflection Through shards of glass that once formed a window

The second espresso shot gives me dysphoria And that blissful ignorance is exchanged For a violent heartbeat, driving way past the speed limit But enough to catch up to my subway train of a brain

And they still blame me for it, It’s the bad friend who borrows my time and never returns it, It’s the abusive relationship I can’t get out of, Because it’s not a disorder, If it were in a thesaurus, And you looked for synonyms, There’d be one word: Godforsaken.

They see me way past the speed limit, And they try to be steering wheel, brakes, and directions All at once And when they crash me, they blame me Even though they’re living their days in 24 hours And I’m living my days in 12

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Common Terms relating to Asian-Americans

By Tod Dotia

http://www.rsdb.org/races https://blog.oup.com/2015/02/ fresh-off-the-boat-asian-american-experience-language/

Across 2. (Slur) An Asian American who has lost their heritage. Yellow on the outside, white on the inside 3. (Slur) a term for unskilled Chinese workers, especially on U.S. railroads 5. A phrase used to describe immigrants that have arrived from a foreign nation and have not assimilated into the host nation’s culture. Some considered it a slur 7. The phenomenon by which young professionals of Asian descent are often trapped in low-level, lowmobility jobs 8. (Slur) A term used to refer to a Chinese person. now often regarded as a mildly contemptuous or patronizing term 9. Considered offensive because it dates back to a period when Asians were considered savages and Asian women were all seen as sexual objects 11. (Slur) An Asian-American who has lost their heritage. Yellow on the outside, white on the inside. (yep, this is another term with the same definition)

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Down 1. Combination of individual, cultural, and organizational factors or barriers that impede Asian Americans’ career progress toward leadership roles inside organizations (Jane Hyun). The term derives from “glass ceiling” 4. A racist and xenophobic fear of colonialism: that people of Asian descent are “foreign invaders” intent on taking over Western civilization 6. A reaction in some Asians in which a person develops redness after consuming alcoholic beverages 10. (Slur) Asian equivalent of “N-word” for blacks.

Two possible origins: the dictionary definition is “A narrow opening or slit”, meaning a reference to their eyes. Or could also refer to the sound of someone working on a railroad, which Chinese immigrants helped build in 1800’s America. Technically only refer to Chinese, but used for all Asians Answers can be found on page 22 (upside down).

I

started you off with a Sangria, A cocktail to you is like a panacea, And if alcohol’s a disinfectant, Tequila is my purifier, And if body parts were devices, Your lips were my humidifier We turned into those Half-hour long lovers, That you see On your shitty Netflix TV shows, That you hear your friends brag about, And you secretly want one You never deny a free drink, But they’re not actually free, You pay for today’s drinks With tomorrow’s happiness, Because we were friends Turned into lovers, But it doesn’t work The other way around We texted the next day, Like we were strangers, So when you told me, You don’t remember that night, I knew you were lying, Like when you said you love me Maybe it was a stutter, But what you meant was, You only love me, When you’re drunk

Alcohol

By Darren Yu

Vol. XXXIV, Issue 1

21

(Wikimedia Commons) Agrostis hyemalis drawing

Poems

By Michael Angelo

“Why I Never Did” To see that whole heart in most candid of colors To see that face bleed back into the masses To see that fantasy shatter (ever so fragile in shards)

(Pexels) Light

Is to see my heart bleed, stabbed with reality

“The Dancer in the Dark” A Haiku In the dark she shines In the light she fades away When can she be seen?

(Public Domain Pictures) Liquid

“Cold Sheets” Waken wanting warmth Feel cold sheets Wet pillow

1 bamboo ceiling 2 banana 3 coolie 4 yellow peril 5 fresh off the boats 6 sticky floor 7 chinaman 8 oriental 9 chink 10 twinkie

22 ASIAN OUTLOOK

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Vol. XXXIV, Issue 1

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