VOL 36 NO 12 | MARCH 18 – MARCH 24, 2017

PRSRT STD U.S. Postage Paid Permit No. 746 Seattle, WA

VOL 36 NO 12

MARCH 18 – MARCH 24, 2017

FREE 35 YEARS YOUR VOICE

Inclusion tied to diversity

By Jason Cruz NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

We explore the issue of diversity through the lens of three different people and perspectives.

All look to the common goal of serving and including all in developing a better community.

Seattle Chamber seeks input from all

“As we look at this region, we think it is really the place on earth

Seattle Chamber of Commerce CEO Maud Daudon

that might be able to get it right.”

This is Seattle Chamber of Commerce CEO Maud Daudon’s affirmation that the region is capable of balancing a “triple bottom line” approach. “We want a strong economy for our health and wellbeing of our people. We want to be great stewards for where we live and we share a set of values for not leaving people behind in our region.” Daudon added, “It’s really about talent and employing see INCLUSION on 12

ISSUE AIRPORT CHIEF Lance Lyttle on building diversity from the ground up. » see 7

FOOD Bringing Malaysian food home into the American kitchen. » see 9

COMMUNITY » 2 CALENDAR » 6 SUDOKU » 6 ASTROLOGY » 13

Seattle Symphony Hundreds attend “Love Not promotes diversity Hate Community Unity” rally Photo from Seattle Symphony Facebook page

By Arlene Dennistoun NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

see LOVE NOT HATE on 13 Santoor player Anjali Joshi performing Alireza Motevaseli’s Fantasia for Santoor and Accordion.

Seattle is home to many wellknown musicians, such as Jimi Hendrix, Kurt Cobain, Sir Mixa-Lot, Macklemore and Ryan Lewis, etc. There is also a special place for classical musicians in the Emerald City.

Home to internationally acclaimed and one of America’s leading symphony orchestras, the Seattle Symphony is known for its masterful performances and musical programs. The organization also has extensive education and community engagement programs that reach over 65,000 children and adults each year.

Inside the Seattle Symphony

Rosalie Contreras, VP of Communications for the Seattle Symphony, said the Seattle Symphony is committed to diversity and inclusion. Their strategic plan states that they “embrace social and cultural inclusivity, diversity and access, and better integrate these values into our work.”

Their work involves all segments of the organization, and there are staff leaders who work

■

on diversity and inclusion in all areas, from staff training and hiring practices to programming and making their community work more available to wider audiences.

Contreras also said, “We believe that having a variety of perspectives makes us a more vibrant, relevant, and resilient organization. In defining what a diverse organization means for us, we have looked at our culture and power structure along with how we compare to the community we serve, which in this case are the demographics of King County.

We have committed to bringing in more voices on our stage, in our programming choices, among our staff and on our board. Diversity work is at the core of all our work, embedded in everything we do.”

According to Contreras and her team, the Symphony has an 11-point plan for increasing equity and understanding across the organization. So far, they’ve done baseline studies of their staff, orchestra, and board, and they have initiatives underway to bring them closer to our county demographics. They’ve held workshops with

Rally organizers handed out free signs expressing unity and love for the community in response to the March 3 shooting of a Sikh man. One woman displays her gratitude for the power of the sign which she gladly snatched up.

Chinese American students defy longshot odds to get into the Ivy League

By James Tabafunda NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY Goal setting at an early age helps young adults take advantage of their time, not waste it.

Lawson Wong, 18, is a high school senior who has dreamed of going to only one college. He’s been wearing crimson red T-shirts, sweatshirts, and a hoodie with his college’s name in large, capital letters since the sixth grade, making his plan for higher education crystal clear.

Caleb Ren, 18, a Bellevue High School senior, will join Wong as part of a select group of students accepted to attend prestigious Harvard University.

Wong said, “I’m definitely very grateful, and I feel very blessed I have the opportunity to study with such great people and attend such a great institution.”

As a sixth-grader, he toured the East Coast with his family, visiting Boston, New York, and Pennsylvania

Photo by James Tabafunda/NWAW.

By Nina Huang NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

Photo by Arlene Dennistoun/NWAW

An overflow crowd of about 500 people packed the Kent Lutheran Church on March 11 for the “Love Not Hate Community Unity” event. Shocked by the March 3 shooting of a Sikh man in an alleged hate crime, organizers who had hoped for a turnout of 100 people ended up

Caleb Ren (left) a senior at Bellevue High School and Lawson Wong, a senior at Newport High School.

in 2011. He said, “When we were in Boston, of course, we’ll stop by Harvard (three miles northwest of Boston). That’s a must.” see HARVARD on 5

THIS ISSUE SPONSORED BY

see SYMPHONY on 15

412 Maynard Ave. S., Seattle, WA 98104 • t. 206.223.5559 • f. 206.223.0626 • info@nwasianweekly.com • ads@nwasianweekly.com • www.nwasianweekly.com

asianweekly northwest

2

MARCH 18 – MARCH 24, 2017

■ NAMES IN THE NEWS ICHS’ Shahbazian named CFO of the Year

Hermes Shahbazian, chief financial officer at International Community Health Services (ICHS), is the Puget Sound Business Journal’s 2017 CFO of the Year for large nonprofits.

Since joining ICHS in 1994, the nonprofit has grown from 15 employees to nearly 500.

The key to keeping stride Hermes Shahbazian with that change, Shahbazian said, is efficiency. “This strive to improve efficiency and effectiveness has not stopped, since technology keeps improving and we need to keep pace with the new technology.”

Shahbazian says ICHS’ flexibility will be crucial in adapting to changes in the healthcare industry.

ICHS offers affordable health care services to King County’s Asian, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities.

Carmen Loh, the vice president of finance for Thrive Washington, was Business Journal’s CFO of the Year for small nonprofits. ■

Harrells to receive Charles Odegaard Award

Seattle City Councilman Bruce Harrell and his wife, Joanne Harrell, a University of Washington (UW) Regent and Microsoft executive, will receive the Charles Odegaard Award in May. The award is given Bruce Harrell and Joanne Harrell to community leaders who exemplify UW President Odegaard’s commitment to diversity.

Joanne has served on the Seattle Urban League and as head of United Way of King County, while Bruce has provided pro bono legal work for small businesses and vol-

unteered as a trustee with the UW Alumni Association. ■

Chin is new Boys & Girls Clubs of King County CEO

Dr. Lisa Chin is the new president and CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of King County.

Previously, Chin founded and served as executive director of Year Up Puget Sound, a job training and internship program that helps low-income young adults with education and career opportunities. She’s also served as Dr. Lisa Chin executive director of Jubilee Women’s Center, a provider of transitional housing for homeless women. Chin earned her bachelor’s degree from Wellesley College and doctorate from UCLA. ■

Client appreciation at Wing Luke

Buckley & Associates hosted a client and referral appreciation event for its clients at the Wing Luke Museum on Feb. 23. More than 60 people attended.

Buckley has offices in the International District and Tacoma. Its CEO, Erica Buckley, is a member of the Junior League of SeErica Buckley and paralegal Mary Zhu attle, and a member of the Treehouse Young Professionals Board.

She was honored in 2015 by the Northwest Asian Weekly for being a “rising star” for her work and contributions to the community. ■

35 YEARS

■ COMMUNITY

Seattle homeless told to leave for new shelter

SEATTLE (AP) — A Seattle homeless shelter is trying to figure out alternative sleeping arrangements for 75 men who will be displaced once the city takes over the building and puts a new homeless shelter there.

KOMO-TV reported on March 14 that Operation Nightwatch offers men a place to stay overnight in the lobby of a building in Seattle’s Chinatown-International district.

The organization has received notice that it must stop using the building by May 10 to make way for the Navigation Center, the city’s new 24/7 homeless shelter.

Rev. Rick Reynolds with Operation Nightwatch says he’s been told the city will help them find a new spot, but he’s not sure whether the group will be able to afford it.

The city’s Human Services Department said in a statement it wants to ensure Rev. Rick Reynolds Operation Nightwatch can continue its services uninterrupted. 

MARCH 18 – MARCH 24, 2017

YOUR VOICE

asianweekly northwest

■ COMMUNITY NEWS Police, FBI seek tips, offer reward in shooting of Sikh man KENT, Wash. (AP) — Police in suburban Seattle and the FBI are asking for the public’s help in the shooting of a Sikh man, who says the gunman told him to go back to his country.

Authorities said on March 9 that they’re offering a $6,000 reward.

The FBI is offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to the successful resolution of this assault case, with racially motivated actions. The FBI hopes that this reward is an additional incentive for people to come forward with information.

Anyone with information that can help identify this individual is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) or the Kent Police tip line at 253-856-5808. Police are investigating the March 3 shooting as a hate crime. The victim was struck in the arm.

3

Kent Police Cmdr. Jarod Kasner says they haven’t had reports of any similar incidents.

Police and the FBI haven’t identified a suspect, but describe him as a 6-foot-tall white man with a medium build, dark hoodie, dark clothing, and a mask covering the lower part of his face.

A suspect sketch shows the man with thick, dark eyebrows, and brown eyes.

Callers to Crime Stoppers may remain anonymous and are eligible to receive an additional cash reward of $1,000 if the information given leads to an arrest and charge of the person(s) involved. The FBI’s reward applies to information leading to an arrest. ■

Trump’s new travel ban faces multiple courtroom tests

By Ben Nuckols and Gene Johnson ASSOCIATED PRESS President Donald Trump’s revised travel ban was scheduled to be scrutinized in federal courtrooms across the country on March 15.

In Maryland, a U.S. judge was expected to hear arguments from the American Civil Liberties Union and others who want to stop the new directive and more than a half-dozen states are trying to derail the executive order affecting travelers from six Muslim-majority nations.

Hawaii’s lawsuit is heading to federal court in Honolulu.

In Washington state, Attorney General Bob Ferguson

is pushing for a hearing before Judge James Robart, who halted the original ban last month.

Ferguson wants Robart to apply the ruling to the new ban.

Ferguson says the new order is unconstitutional and harms residents, universities and businesses, Attorney General Bob Ferguson especially tech companies such as Washington state-based Microsoft and Ama-

zon who rely on foreign workers.

California, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, and Oregon have joined the claim. Federal lawyers say the revised travel ban is “substantially different” from the original directive.

Immigrant advocacy groups and the ACLU are also suing in Maryland. They want a judge to issue an injunction, saying it’s illegal to reduce the number of refugees in the middle of a fiscal year.

The lawsuit is broader, but the ACLU expects a ruling on that part of the case even if other aspects of the ban are blocked elsewhere. 

asianweekly northwest

4

MARCH 18 – MARCH 24, 2017

■ WORLD NEWS On Trump trademarks, China says it treats applicants equally

By GERRY SHIH ASSOCIATED PRESS BEIJING (AP) — China assesses all applications for trademarks equally in a transparent process, a top Chinese regulator said on March 10, after Beijing awarded U.S. President Donald Trump preliminary approval for a trove of trademarks in a move that has drawn scrutiny.

The process by which Trump and a related company

were granted provisional approval for 38 trademarks “strictly conforms” to Chinese regulations, said Zhang Mao, chief of China’s State Administration for Industry and Commerce.

Critics fear foreign governments might gain leverage from Trump’s global portfolio of brands. Democrats in Congress were critical of Trump after The Associated see TRADEMARKS on 11

Dozens mark birthday of Indian engineer killed in America

By OMER FAROOQ ASSOCIATED PRESS HYDERABAD, India (AP) — Dozens of people held a candlelight vigil in southern India on March 9 to mark the birthday of an Indian engineer shot dead last month in Kansas in an attack the FBI is investigating as a possible hate crime.

In addition to marking Srinivas Kuchibhotla’s 33rd birthday, the people in technology hub Hyderabad also protested what they say is a rising wave of hate crimes in America.

According to witnesses, the gunman yelled “Get out of my country” at Kuchibhotla and his colleague Alok Madasani before opening fire at a bar in Olathe, Kansas, a suburb of Kansas City.

Srinivas Kuchibhotla Madasani and another bar patron were wounded.

Adam Purinton of Olathe was arrested at another bar after telling a bartender he shot two people he described as Iranian. He remains jailed on murder and attempted murder charges.

The participants in Hyderabad included the family of Kuchibhotla.

The marchers held candles as well as posters decrying attacks on Indians in the United States in recent days.

The placards had slogans such as “Wake up India” and “Stop

Racism, Stop Hate Crime.”

“This gathering is a reflection of the growing concern and disquiet among Indians over the safety and security of their people in the United States,” said M. Rajkumar, who heads an organization of parents who have children living and working outside India.

Rajkumar said he blames U.S. President Donald Trump’s speeches for the increasing attacks against Indians in America. ■

www.buckleylaw.net

Seattle Office 675 S. Lane St. Suite 300 Seattle, WA 98104 Office: (206) 622-1100 Toll free: (800) 404-6200 Fax: (206) 622-0688

Our law firm has recovered over $200 million for clients

35 YEARS

Tacoma Office Wells Fargo Plaza Suite 1400 Tacoma, WA 98402 (appointment only)

Our Attorneys & Staff Proudly Serving the Community

 Auto accidents  Back & neck injuries  Brain damage  Wrongful Death  Permanent Disability  Pedestrian Accidents  Quadriplegia/Paraplegia

 Slip & fall  Product Liability  Contingent fees (no recovery, no fee, costs only)  Same day appointments  Before & after work appointments available  Free initial consultation  Home & hospital visits available

Member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum Selected as Super Lawyer Selected as Top 100 Trial Lawyers in the United States Member of Several Bar Associations

■ NATIONAL

Hawaii teacher: ‘I won’t teach’ undocumented immigrants HONOLULU (AP) — A teacher for Hawaii’s largest high school has been harshly criticized for sending an email to staff at his school saying he was refusing to teach immigrant students in the U.S. illegally.

Campbell High School teacher John Sullivan used his work email on March 8 to reply to a group of messages about parents keeping students out of school due to fears of being deported.

“This is another attack on the President over deportation,” Sullivan’s email said.

“Their parents need to apply for immigration like everyone else. If they are here in the U.S. illegally, I won’t teach them.”

Officials declined to say whether Sullivan had been disciplined by the school’s principal but state Department of Education spokeswoman Donalyn Dela Cruz said Sullivan’s message was “disheartening and concerning.”

“We want to reiterate that the public school system, we service all students,” she said. “In this case, hopefully lessons have been learned.”

Sullivan later told KHON-TV that his email was worded poorly. He said he meant to say that he cannot teach students who do not come to class.

President Donald Trump last month directed his administration to more aggressively enforce immigration laws and to accelerate deportations of people in the country illegally.

Campbell Principal Jon Henry Lee emailed faculty and staff hours after Sullivan sent his email, asking them not to use the school’s email system to express political opinions.

He also reminded faculty that a code of conduct prohibits teachers from discriminating against student based on their nations of origin.

“If a student is enrolled and registered in our school we will service them to the best of our ability just like all other students,” Lee said.

Campbell High School is in Ewa Beach and has 3,125 students. ■

YOUR VOICE

■ NATIONAL NEWS

MARCH 18 – MARCH 24, 2017

asianweekly northwest

5

Now-fired Preet Bharara Two critically ill in San Francisco after drinking boasts of ‘absolute toxic tea independence’

By LARRY NEUMEISTER ASSOCIATED PRESS NEW YORK (AP) — A Manhattan federal prosecutor who says “absolute independence” was his touchstone for over seven years as he battled public corruption announced on March 11 that he was fired after he refused a request a day earlier to resign.

Preet Bharara, 48, made the announce-

HARVARD from 1 “I just thought, ‘Why not?’ Everyone’s heard about the college, and it’s arguably one of the top universities.” Harvard was ranked second in the Best National Universities category in U.S. News and World Report’s 2017 Best Colleges last September and first in the world last year by the Center for World University Rankings.

“So it’s like, why not aim for that goal?” he said.

Wong has played soccer and the piano since the first grade and said, “I just try to do my best in the two activities. I wouldn’t say I’m exceptional, but because of the amount of time that I’ve put in, they’re both my passion.”

With only a few friends during his first year in the Bellevue School District, he says seventh grade at Tyee Middle School was the worst year of his school career. He said, “I was sad. I wasn’t depressed, but I’d say every day at lunch, I’d sit by myself.”

In his junior year at Newport High School, he realized he wasn’t the only student who felt that way and chose to do something about it.

ment on his personal Twitter account after it became widely known hours earlier that he did not intend to step down in response to Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ request that leftover appointees of former President Barack Obama quit.

“I did not resign. Moments ago I was fired,” Bharara said in the tweet.

In a statement hours later, he said: see BHARARA on 14

“The best way to involve myself in the school was to become the president of the school,” he said.

Wong serves as ASB president at Newport High School. Combined with good grades, a focus on the SAT and ACT tests, and a commitment to varsity soccer and the piano, he has kept Harvard admissions officers from finding reasons not to select him.

He said, “It was never I’m going to do this so I can get into Harvard until the beginning of college application season.”

Competition for a Harvard education is fierce. As one of the top American universities, it received 39,494 applications for its Class of 2021, establishing a new record for the third year in a row. Broken down into ethnic groups, 21.8 percent of applicants identified as Asian American.

Harvard has the lowest acceptance rate among the eight Ivy League colleges and the second lowest acceptance rate of 100 colleges in a recent U.S. News and World Report study. Based on the fall 2015 entering class, Harvard’s acceptance rate is 6 percent — tied with the Juilliard School and Columbia

KING COUNTY REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS ADVERTISEMENT Proposals will be received for #E00486E17, Design Services for the South Segment Green to Cedar Rivers Regional Trail Project; by the King County Procurement and Payables Section, 3rd Floor, 401 Fifth Avenue, Seattle, WA 98104, until 12:00 PM on April 17, 2017.

Total Estimated Price: $550,000 There is a 10% minimum requirement for King County Certified Small Contractor and Supplier (SCS) firms on this contract.

All solicitation documents are published at: https:// procurement.kingcounty.gov/procurement _ovr/login. aspx?ReturnUrl=%2fprocurement_ovr%2fdefault.aspx Contact: Paul Price, 206-263-9309, paul.price@kingcounty. gov or Tina Davis, 206-263-2939, tina.davis@kingcounty.gov

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Two people are critically sick in San Francisco after drinking tea from the same Chinatown herbalist.

The tea leaves bought at Sun Wing Wo Trading Company contained the plantbased toxin Aconite, the Department of Public Health said on March 10.

A man in his 50s last month and a woman in her 30s this month became critically ill within an hour of drinking the tea, and both remain hospitalized, health officials said.

Each person grew weak then had lifethreatening abnormal heart rhythms that required resuscitation and intensive care.

Aconite, also known as monkshood, helmet flower and wolfsbane, is used in Asian herbal medicines. But it must be processed properly to be safe.

Health officials are working to find the original source of the tea leaves, and they

University.

Ren also visited the East Coast as a seventhgrader. He said, “I think the college that stood out to me then was Columbia because it was glamorous, and it was in New York City, and I liked the environment.”

He’s involved with Model UN (a studentled simulation of the United Nations General Assembly) as the director of KINGMUN’s inaugural U.S. Senate committee. On March 12 at Benaroya Hall, he will perform Piano Concerto in F by George Gershwin.

“I said I’ll apply to Harvard (Early Action) just to see what happens, and I saw what happened, and I kinda like the result,” he said.

By applying to Harvard’s Early Action program — the application deadline is Nov. 1, two months before most admission deadlines — both Ren and Wong are not obligated to enroll and are given their senior year to decide which college to attend from all of their admission offers.

On Dec. 13, 2016, they received messages of acceptance while at school.

“They came out at 2 p.m,” Ren said. “I found out that I got into Harvard. I freaked

are warning others to stop consuming it.

“Anyone who has purchased tea from this location should not consume it and should throw it away immediately,” said Dr. Tomás Aragón, health officer for the city and county of San Francisco. `”Aconite poisoning attacks the heart and can be lethal.” ■

out. I did a lap around the school.”

As Wong picked up his parents at SeaTac International Airport from their trip to Singapore the next day, he realized they received the e-mail from Harvard. He said, “I see my mom crying, and I see my dad with her. She comes over to the driver’s side. She gives me a hug, and my dad is smiling.”

Malia Obama, the eldest daughter of former President Barack Obama, will join both men for fall 2017 semester in Cambridge, Mass.

“That’s why we go to Harvard for the networking opportunities and the friends that we’ll be making, that we share similar characteristics with and also extremely different ones that we can build off each other and change the world hopefully,” Wong said. ■ For more information on Caleb Ren’s performance with the Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestra, go to syso.org/events/concerts.

James can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

asianweekly northwest

6

MARCH 18 – MARCH 24, 2017

■ COMMUNITY CALENDAR MAR 16

SEATTLE LABOR LAW WORKSHOP 606 Maynard Ave. S., Seattle 11:30 a.m.–1:30 p.m.

206-973-6896, 206-406-9886

17 & 18 STG PRESENTS AND LIVE NATION WELCOMES ALI WONG Moore Theatre, 1932 2nd Ave., Seattle 7–10 p.m. stgpresents.org DAISO LYNNWOOD STORE GRAND OPENING CELEBRATION Across from Macy’s Lynnwood, 18920 28th Ave. W. #111, Lynnwood 10 a.m.

RSVP to facebook.com/ events/1661416054160928

17–19 12TH AAINA SOUTH ASIAN WOMEN’S FOCUS FESTIVAL Seattle University, 901 12th Ave., Seattle 7–9 p.m. aaina.tasveer.org/2017

18 VIETNAM, ESSENCE OF YESTERYEAR 9 Shorecrest Performing Arts Center, 15345 25th Ave. N.E., Shoreline 7–9 p.m. $20 425-361-2265, vietmelody.org

33RD DISTRICT LEGISLATORS TO HOST TOWN HALL IN KENT Kent City Hall, 220 Fourth Ave. S., Kent 10 a.m.–12 p.m.

360-786-7664, 360-786-7868, 360786-7834

35 YEARS

■ AT THE MOVIES

“C O M F O R T”

TALK AND SIGNING WITH AUTHOR SANDRA VEA, “MASAO” Kinokuniya Book Store, 525 S. Weller St., Seattle 2 p.m.

206-587-2477

18 & 19 OPENING CELEBRATION FOR OASIS, FUJI BAKERY, AND ELLENOS Uwajimaya, 699 120th Ave. N.E., Bellevue 11 a.m.–3 p.m.

19 HATE CRIME INFORMATION SESSION North Bellevue Community Center, 4063 148th Ave. N.E., Bellevue 3:30–5 p.m.

21 TAP-SEA PRESENTS: TAPPY HOUR Tavern Hall, 505 Bellevue Square, Bellevue 5–8 p.m.

TONY ARMADA’S FAREWELL PARTY Swedish Cherry Hill Campus, Education Center James Tower Lobby, 500 17th Ave., Seattle 3–5 p.m.

22 AN AFTERNOON WITH JORGE CHAM, CREATOR OF PHD COMICS! UW, HUB, Room 145, 4001 E. Stevens Way N.E., Seattle 3:30–5 p.m.

By Vivian Nguyen NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY Two passing ships in the night, a sun allergy, and comfort food. It may not sound like the ingredients to a romantic film, but they make up the ones found in “Comfort” — a movie now available on iTunes, Amazon, and Google Play.

Written by filmmaker, director, and writer William Lu, “Comfort” is a charming story that follows two characters who are both a little lost in their lives. Actor Chris Dinh plays Cameron, a lonely, mild-mannered late-night courier who’s complacently roaming the streets of Los Angeles at night, even though he harbors big dreams of becoming a chef.

Through a serendipitous meeting on the job, he meets Jasmine. Played by actor Julie Zhan, Jasmine is the feisty, passionate daughter of an entrepreneurial businessman and she’s expected to take over the family business. Like Cameron, Julie isn’t happy with the direction of her life or her familial obligations.

The theme of comfort

As its namesake might suggest, comfort plays an important role in the film. It comes in obvious references, such as the comfort foods Cameron and Jasmine eat, to more abstract and less obvious examples. “[The film] has to do with comfort food

and the comfort of home, but it’s also about how being comfortable can be the one thing that’s actually counterproductive,” said Dinh. “As people, we are constantly struggling between ambitions and the everyday reality where things are already comfortable. Being comfortable is being your own worst enemy.”

Dinh’s character Cameron is an example of this. Viewers meet Cameron in a state of complacency where he isn’t living to his full potential. Though their interaction is brief, Cameron and Jasmine learn from each other, bringing the other out of their respective comfort zones through understanding and encouragement.

“Sometimes, you really do meet these impactful people — someone who’s meant to change the course of how you’re living and set you on the right path,” said Dinh.

“And that might be it. There’s no ‘happily ever after’ but maybe that’s exactly what it’s meant to be.”

How the story came to life

Dinh and Lu first met in the mid-2000s at a wrap party for one of Lu’s short films.

The two chatted and connected over what was then Lu’s rough draft for “Comfort,” which immediately resonated with Dinh. “[The story] made me smile,” said Dinh.

“I thought, ‘That actually sounds like a small film that I’d like to watch.’ It was a see COMFORT on 12

View the solution on page 14

Assunta Ng

Account Executives

John Liu

rebecca@nwasianweekly.com

Ruth Bayang

kelly@nwasianweekly.com

Publisher assunta@nwasianweekly.com Associate Publisher john@nwasianweekly.com Editor editor@nwasianweekly.com

Han Bui

Layout & Web Editor han@nwasianweekly.com

Rebecca Ip Kelly Liao John Liu

john@nwasianweekly.com

George Hira

ghira@nwasianweekly.com

The only weekly English-language newspaper serving Washington’s Asian community. The NW Asian Weekly has one simple goal: “To empower the Asian community.”

The Editorial Board reserves the right to reject any advertisement, letter or article.

Subscriptions cost $40 for 52 weeks of the NW Asian Weekly and $30 for 52 weeks of the Seattle Chinese Post. The NW Asian Weekly owns the copyright for all its content. All rights reserved. No part of this paper may be reprinted without permission.

412 Maynard Ave. S., Seattle, WA 98104 • t. 206.223.5559 info@nwasianweekly.com • ads@nwasianweekly.com • www.nwasianweekly.com

YOUR VOICE

■ PROFILE

MARCH 18 – MARCH 24, 2017

Aviation director makes a case for diversity in the Port of Seattle

By Tim Gruver NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY With over 25 years of experience in airport operation and management, Lance Lyttle is something of a world traveler himself.

A native of Jamaica, Lyttle spent years traveling abroad on business from Canada to Brazil, before working in the Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport as its assistant general manager and later the chief operating officer of Houston Airport System.

Despite growing up speaking his native country’s official language, English, communicating with his audience was not always perfect for Lyttle.

“One of the biggest transformations that I had to make was to focus a whole lot on speech, because I had to do a lot of presentations and a lot of public speaking,” Lyttle said. “One of the things was if I spoke too fast, some people would have difficulty understanding, especially with [my] strong accent. I had to learn to really slow how much I spoke, but also I had to focus on how I pronounced certain words.”

Today, Lyttle serves as the managing director of the Port of Seattle’s Aviation Division, which welcomes millions of immigrants like himself every year. While he considers himself lucky to have been a part of diverse workforces, Lyttle wants the Port of Seattle to be the kind of welcoming environment that recruited him.

“I highly value diversity and inclusion of opinions. I always take into consideration the opinions and thoughts of the team before making a decision. This leadership style is particularly useful to me at Sea-Tac, where I have an extremely talented team,” said Lyttle.

Lyttle believes that maintaining a diverse workforce should be the priority of any business to best represent and connect with the people they serve.

“The benefits of having a diverse workforce is a broad perspective rather from various different employees that may have a different experience, different background, a different way of viewing problems, a different way of viewing solutions,” Lyttle said. “Having a diverse team at an airport or any other organization is usually reflective of what the makeup or the diversity of the community is.”

The Port of Seattle plans to create 100,000 new jobs by 2025 and devoting 40 percent of its expenditures to local small businesses. Much of that work depends on the port’s communication with local minorities and immigrant communities, who make up the primary focus of the port’s hiring efforts.

Luis Navarro, director of the Office of Social Responsibility, said that maintaining relationships with communities around the Puget Sound are essential to the port’s goals of equity, inclusion, and equal access to job opportunities.

“Equity is measured in our attitudes,” Navarro said.

“It is measured in the ways that we project ourselves to

asianweekly northwest

7

Lance Lyttle

the community, and therefore showing communities and particularly communities of color and disadvantaged communities that the Port of Seattle is a friendly place where they want to apply for jobs.”

A 2013 study conducted by BBC Research found vast racial disparities in construction and construction consulting contracts awarded by the port.

According to the study, Native Americans were awarded 42 of every 200 contracts. Asian Pacific Americans were awarded 29. Latinos were awarded only 21. Subcontinental Asian Americans were awarded only eight.

While Lyttle’s former workplaces in Texas and Georgia allowed for businesses to set certain diversity goals in their hiring efforts, Washington state prohibits racial or gender preferences by state and local government under Initiative 200.

According to Lyttle, the port plans on funding its construction projects in the near future through federal grants that Initiative 200 could not place recruitment restrictions on.

In the meantime, Navarro said that outreach remains critical to ensuring that the people of the Puget Sound can call the Port of Seattle home.

“We want communities of color and women in particular to be encouraged to apply for those jobs, either directly with the port, or with our tenants, who will be creating see LYTTLE on 12

asianweekly northwest

8

■ EDUCATION

35 YEARS

MARCH 18 – MARCH 24, 2017

Photos provided by Edmonds Community College

Diversity in education

MESA students who met with U.S. Representative Rick Larsen

MESA students visiting at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.

By Assunta Ng NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

ECC to improve the low representation of women and people of color in the workplace of science and technology.

The traditionally underrepresented students in STEM fields, including Blacks, Native Americans, Hispanics, Pacific Islanders, and women, can take advantage of Washington MESA programs (funded by the National Science Foundation), so they can achieve their full potential and contribute in those fields.

Diversity is a broad word at Edmonds Community College (ECC). So diverse that it even covers former inmates.

With 46 percent being students of color (over 26 percent are Asian Pacific Islanders), ECC is one of the most diverse colleges in Washington state.

President Jean Hernandez said, “Given the current political climate, diversity shouldn’t just be focusing on ethnic backgrounds. Religious backgrounds and where

people are coming from…” are part of this diverse community.

“It’s the many backgrounds that make us a stronger country,” she said.

To reach students of different needs, ECC offers programs and grants for gender-specific students, low-income students, first generation students going to college, as well as veterans. Currently, there are about 200 veteran students enrolled at ECC.

MESA

In 2010, MESA (Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement) was created at

Female faculty

It is not enough to have scholarships and

programs to recruit females in their MESA programs. These students need a support system and role models to stay in the program.

Hernandez said ECC has made an effort to hire more female faculty, so female students can feel comfortable. It also provides a variety of classes, such as physics, mathematics, and chemistry.

Former inmates

One prisoner can cost taxpayers over see EDMONDS on 12

MARCH 18 – MARCH 24, 2017

YOUR VOICE

■ FOOD

asianweekly northwest

9

THE MALAYSIAN KITCHEN 150 recipes for Simple Home Cooking

By R. O’neil Edwards NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

Christina Arokiasamy

Book cover

book. She not only explained what we were doing, but the far more useful why we were doing it. Arokiasamy made the wok-fried spaghetti with kale and sambal, a modern take on the classic comfort food mee goreng. She then had me use the exact same dish.

The only difference is that she used a wok and I used a non-stick skillet found in most kitchens, which shows that these simple, yet flavorful meals could be done in any kitchen by a cook of modest skill.

Not only did I understand what she was doing (in part thanks to reading the book), I found myself believing I could make the dish before I even put on an apron. Before cooking, I sat down and asked her a few questions over tea and edamame.

Photo provided by Christina Arokiasamy.

Containing easily prepared, yet flavorful recipes, “The Malaysian Kitchen” combines personal reflection, cultural perspective, and a useful introduction to Malaysian home cooking. The recipes are surprisingly simple in a good way, giving the reader a sense of “I can actually make this.” In the Pacific Northwest, we are blessed with access to most of the ingredients, but the book accounts for those not so fortunate. By giving alternative ingredients that actually work well, Christina Arokiasamy removes many of the obstacles novices stumble over when trying new cuisine types without sacrificing a sense of authenticity.

If I could describe the book in one word, it would be “useful.” I have many cookbooks where I simply look at the index and find the recipe I want. For people just beginning to explore Malaysian cuisine, the words between the recipes are not only enjoyable, but actually add value. The included spice chart and commentary on using a mortar and pestle are worth the read regardless of cuisine type.

Arokiasamy’s attention to history — her own as well as Malaysian history — is quite useful to understanding the food.

Influenced by the diverse influences of Malaysian cuisine (Indonesian, Chinese, Indian, and Portuguese), recipes range from preparation of simple sauces like sambal (an Indonesian/Malaysian hot sauce) to popular Penang street food like mee goreng (fried noodles), to tandoori broiled salmon. After a gentle but informative foundation section, the recipes are logically grouped into basic core groups like soups, salads, vegetables, rice and noodles, meats, etc.

There is even a fascinating section on health benefits of various spices.

Fortunate enough to live near Arokiasamy, I had the pleasure of spending an afternoon of conversation, learning, and cooking with her. Talk about an author standing by her

Hokkien noodles with shrimp and cabbage.

Q: What is your personal favorite dish to eat and prepare?

A: I have a lot of favorites. I could never pin down just one. Every dish is a memory preserved.

Memories of my mother’s school box lunches. Memories of family gatherings on Saturdays. Some of my favorites are the Malaysian laksas. It’s noodles. It’s warm and sustaining. It encompasses all of Malaysian aromatics. There are layers of flavors — shallots, garlic, lemongrass, galangal, and more. When I am cutting and preparing, it brings back memories of plucking from our garden.

If this was my last meal, I would be very happy. Not something I would make every day, but something I

Tumeric fried chicken.

would make if I wanted to indulge myself.

Q: How would your mother feel about some of the non-traditional ingredients used in the book?

A: I was once die-hard “authentic.” This is the way my mother cooked. My grandmothers cooked. As I traveled, I realized not everyone is able to park their car, go into an Asian shop, beat traffic, get a ticket just to get one see MALAYSIAN KITCHEN on 11

asianweekly northwest

10

35 YEARS

MARCH 18 – MARCH 24, 2017

■ PUBLISHER’S BLOG

OPINION

A white CEO’s leadership role in diversity Ken Colling’s examples to emulate

From left: Glenn Gregory, Skip Rowland, Ken Colling, and Donald King.

many prominent Blacks when Colling first came on board. To his surprise, Colling said, “I already met them.”

Under his leadership, Goodwill sponsored many people of color events,

including the Northwest Asian Weekly’s 30th anniversary banquet. In fact, he approached us to be a sponsor before we even asked.

Colling attended so many of the ethnic community events in one election year, three nights in a row, that Seattle City Council President Bruce Harrell noticed.

Running for City Council seat at the time, Harrell asked Colling, “What office are you running for?”

“We all have a lot to learn about diversity, however, this is not a reason for doing nothing,” said Colling in his remarks. “I think it’s important to have an environment where people feel comfortable discussing and asking questions. If a person says something considered wrong or biased and gets attacked, will that person say anything more? No, and he/she will not have learned anything, and will continue to think the same.”

Once Colling set the tone, his people started bringing diversity up in conversations and also began telling him about their successes and disappointments.

In 2007, the late Bob Santos, a community activist, and some Little Saigon members organized a protest at Goodwill over its multi-million-dollar development project that included a mall and housing.

Colling could have been angry and felt betrayed, especially after his support of ethnic organizations. But no, Colling harbored no ill feelings towards those protesters and he didn’t take it personally.

Santos and Colling remained friends. For years, Colling even called Santos on his birthdays to wish him well.

The development was scaled down to a $14-million building for job training and service center. During its construction, Colling and his team selected a diverse team of contractors.

To foster diversity at Goodwill, Colling began at the top — with its board of directors. “I never took the approach of “You are Asian, want to join our board?” he said. He researched to find people who had the expertise Goodwill needed, and who also added to their diversity. When he started, the board had two people of color out of 24. When he retired about two years ago, it had seven out of 19, more representative of the community and the people it served.

At first, Colling said he hesitated to accept Tabor’s honor because there were other people more deserving. Quoting a Northwest Asian Weekly editorial, he said, “When you deflect or deny praise, you’re basically contradicting them. You are saying, they don’t have good judgment … we need to simply say “Thank you.”

No, Ken, we thank you. Not just for being a long-time reader and subscriber.

Our appreciation extends beyond that. His speech at the Tabor’s luncheon inspired the Asian Weekly to do this week’s special diversity issue.

Are there any other white CEOs in Seattle who have done successful diversity work? Let me know so we can recognize them, too. ■ Assunta can be reached at assunta@nwasianweekly.com.

Photo by Assunta Ng/NWAW

A CEO has immense power to create change. But few have a good track record on diversity, especially white men. Tabor 100, a group of Black leaders, recognized former Goodwill CEO Ken Colling at the Rainier Club last year. He is special among hundreds of white CEOs because of his focus on diversity in his personal and professional world.

Even though Colling was new in town from California when he started as Goodwill’s head, one of the first things he did was to join Tabor 100 as an active member.

As Colling headed to his first Saturday morning meeting, he recalled his late wife Jeannie asking, “What meeting are you going to again?”

“Tabor 100,” he replied. “It’s a great organization of Black small business owners.”

“You do know that you are not Black, nor a small business owner, right?” she said.

Colling said it is important to support nonprofit ethnic organizations, and not by paying lip service.

Ship Rowland, former president of Tabor 100, said he tried to introduce Colling to

Photo by Assunta Ng/NWAW

By Assunta Ng NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

MARCH 18 – MARCH 24, 2017

YOUR VOICE

asianweekly northwest

11

OPINION

■ COMMENTARY

Where are the women, people of color?

By Ruth Bayang NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY It was a capacity crowd on March 1 at Tony Robbins Live! at ShoWare Center in Kent, Wash.

The bestselling author and superstar life coach to Bill Clinton and Oprah Winfrey spoke longer than expected, but the 7,000-strong crowd did not seem to mind.

Attendees left in a “beautiful state” — something Robbins referred to in his presentation. There was a sense of euphoria and hope and “let’s get it done!”

It was the culmination of a day-long event that also featured marketing genius Gary Vaynerchuk (via a 3D hologram) and Robert Herjavec of ABC’s Shark Tank.

All had something valuable to offer. All said something that contributed to my life.

Still, I was struck by the fact that there were no women on stage. Or any persons of color.

In fact, one of the speakers, who was pitching his “Publish a Book and Grow Rich” bootcamp, said that male speakers far outnumber women. And that there is a demand for women.

And this is not unique to so-called “motivational” events.

Last month, the American Institute of Architects

TRADEMARKS from 4 Press reported that the potentially valuable trademarks had been granted, raising questions of conflict of interest.

“All domestic and international applications are evaluated uniformly,” said Zhang, whose administration oversees the country’s trademark office. He was speaking at a news conference on the sidelines of China’s annual session of its ceremonial national parliament.

The recent provisional approval of Trump’s trademarks came at a pace that some experts view as unusually quick.

Zhang said the office receives more than 3 million

Tony Robbins

(AIA) received intense criticism following an initial announcement of a lineup of its upcoming annual conference that featured no women. Many voiced their criticism and some signed an open letter calling for the AIA to take more meaningful action to address gender inequity in the profession. Elizabeth Diller, the founding partner of Diller Scofidio + Renfro, will now deliver a keynote address at that conference.

applications every year, but they are moving at a scheduled pace. “We have to work overtime to examine them. We’re proceeding at the planned rate,” Zhang said. “Our system is widely transparent about every step of the process.”

Democrats in Congress have been pushing Trump to sever financial ties with his global businesses to avoid potential violations of the emoluments clause of the U.S. Constitution, which bars federal officials from accepting anything of value from foreign governments unless approved by Congress.

The monopoly right to a successful brand in a market like China can be worth huge sums. Former top ethics lawyers

Finding women speakers is a continual challenge, even in fields where there are lots of women. Unconscious bias leads people to suggest male speakers first. When women do get asked, some conference chairs have said that women are much more likely to say “no” due to being busy and not wanting to travel so much, childcare issues, and not really seeing the benefit to their career.

There might be a bit of impostor syndrome going on here as well where women may have something useful to say, but will immediately assume that their message isn’t important — or they are not the right ones to bring it forward. Or they decline because they think they are being invited as the “token” woman.

Are there gender-specific blockers that are preventing women from becoming a part of the speaker community?

Ladies, is there even a speaker community in your industry?

Conference chairs can’t increase diversity in their speaker lineups if no women even submit to speak. So ladies, and especially women of color, it’s time to step up and let the world hear your message. ■ Ruth can be reached at editor@nwasianweekly.com.

from the administrations of Barack Obama and George W. Bush say any special treatment from Beijing in awarding Trump intellectual property protection would violate the Constitution.

Drawing on public records from the Trademark Office of the State Administration for Industry and Commerce, the AP compiled a detailed list of 49 trademarks Trump’s lawyers applied for in 2016, even as he railed against China on the campaign trail. On Feb. 22, seven of those marks were rejected, though public records do not indicate why.

China granted preliminary approval for 38 marks on Feb. 27 and March 6. Four applications are pending. ■

Q: Do you worry as Malaysian food gains more popularity, it ingredient. I learned that if I take everyday may experience a “watering ingredients that are in most homes, like down” to cater to American dried pasta and cook it softer, it becomes tastes?

person wants to add touches of their own, it makes the food more interesting. Food is not a restriction.

where people won’t approach it is not good either. The beauty of Malaysian food is, it is many cultures in a spoonful. Someone who has tasted Indian food will say “I taste that.” Someone who has eaten Chinese food will recognize the influence, already a beautiful tapestry of flavors. If a creative

A: The layering of flavors is unique. From the shallots, to the sambal to the sweet soy sauce, there is a familiarity of flavors going on that is unique to Malaysian fried rice.

It’s like your palate is at a party.

The thing I appreciated most about Arokiasamy’s hospitality and willingness

MALAYSIAN KITCHEN from 9

very much like Asian noodles. The beauty of Malaysian food is, it is so multicultural.

My book teaches you the difference between how my mother cooked and how the Western world cooks. They would learn to cook with all the joy and the authentic flavor using familiar ingredients.

I think my mother and grandmothers would be very proud because I literally took their recipes and translated it for new generations and generations to come.

Q: With so many influences, A: You have to have a broad look. what would distinguish Whenever you take something authentic something like Malaysian and dilute it, there is danger it can lose its fried rice (nasi goreng) and soul. However, safeguarding to the point say Chinese fried rice?

to share her insights on food was how similar her in-person style was to her writing. Gentle, friendly, patient, her instructional style will make a serviceable cook out of the willing. With minimal frustration. I am looking forward to trying every recipe in this book and adding my own unique twists (stir-fried bok choy with bacon and garlic being my next meal). ■ The Malaysian Kitchen will be released on March 21, 2017.

Russell can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

KING COUNTY NOTICE TO BIDDERS Sealed bids will be received for C01129C17, Construction of Cedar Hills Regional Landfill (CHRLF) Area 8 Refuse Facility and Area 7 Stage 3 & 4 Closure Project; by the King County Procurement and Payables Section, 3rd Floor, 401 Fifth Avenue, Seattle, WA 98104, until 1:30 PM on April 6, 2017. Late bids will not be accepted.

Brief Scope This project is to develop Area 8 with various erosion and sediment controls, storm water controls, composite liner system, leachate collection systems, landfill gas collectors, and piping and structures; excavation; establishment and management; leachate systems; landfill gas headers; and sludge removal; and close

Area 7 Stage 3 and 4 with various stripping and subgrade preparation; interim and final cover systems, landfill gas interceptors and laterals; contaminated surface water structures and ditches; erosion and sediment controls; temporary tire wash system and Neptune Maximus Series.

Estimated contract price: $44 million Mandatory Pre-Bid / Site Tour: March 16, 2017, 1:30 p.m., and March 30, 2017, 1:30 p.m. Cedar Hills Regional Landfill Trailer and Conference Room #C, Maple Valley, Washington. A site tour will be conducted immediately following the conference.

Hardhats and safety boots are recommended for site tour. FAILURE TO ATTEND ONE OF THE

MANDATORY MEETINGS AND SITE TOUR WILL RESULT IN A NON-RESPONSIVE BID DETERMINATION. A sign in sheet will provide evidence of attendance. It is your responsibility to ensure your sign in and out.

There is a 15% minimum Apprentice Utilization Requirement on this contract.

There is a 15% minimum requirement for King County Certified Small Contractors and Suppliers (SCS) on this contract.

Complete Invitation to Bid Documents, including all project details, specifications, and contact information are available on our web page at: https://procurement.kingcounty.gov/ procurement_ovr/default.aspx

asianweekly northwest

12

MARCH 18 – MARCH 24, 2017

INCLUSION from 1 all the talent, as much as we can grow to sustain that.”

One of the more important components of this is enhancing inclusiveness and diversity.

The Chamber operates as a nonprofit business association with 2,300 member companies that represent approximately 7,000 employees. It has a broad geography. Most of its work is done in the City of Seattle, although it works along broader geographical borders. The Chamber works on three specific areas: public policy, advocacy, and events.

“The events are intended to connect businesses with one another, businesses with elected officials, and businesses with training,” said Daudon.

The Chamber stresses inclusion in its purpose. “We need everybody to be welcome in our workforce, we need everyone to have an opportunity in our community,” explained Daudon.

Diversity is important to the Seattle Chamber of Commerce. Representative of its inclusiveness, it was the first to endorse marriage equality in the nation. The Chamber has set up metrics to review the composite of the businesses.

Its goal is to mirror the business community and its diverse make up. While they do not have all the information on the LGBT community, it has a data on gender and racial diversity within the business community. The Chamber is committed to ensuring that it has a board of directors that reflects the diversity of the business community, a staff that reflects our full community and events, and speakers and an audience that represent the diversity. “We are making progress, but we have a long way to go,” stated Daudon.

“We are continually trying to learn how to get better at attracting people and making it a welcoming environment for people of all types and with different kinds of identifications.”

Daudon notes that it takes cultural work for the Chamber. The staff has initiated a monthly conversation about race to help the goal of the Chamber, as it makes the issues more top of mind for people. Alicia Teel of the Chamber notes that the discussion has touched on a variety of topics, including race and sports, and race and fiction.

In addition, the Chamber has reciprocal agreements with ethnic and minority chambers of commerce. Essentially, if a member joins an ethnic chamber of commerce, they are automatically a part of the Seattle Chamber of Commerce.

This has helped the Chamber engage and understand the needs of the ethnic and minority communities.

As an example, the Chamber worked with Taylor Hoang during the minimum wage debate and she now sits on the

35 YEARS

Chamber’s board. Hoang founded the Ethnic Business Coalition and is the owner of the Pho Cyclo Café restaurants.

The Chamber is an advocate of immigration reform, “but not in the sense of making it more restrictive, but making it more open and making it more accessible to stay and work here if it’s their choice,” explained Daudon. She notes there are many successful immigrant business owners who are Chamber members.

The Chamber has tried to recap the opinions of some of its members voicing the concerns of the Trump administration’s first travel ban (at the time of the interview, the Chamber had yet to release a statement on the administration’s second travel ban). Daudon noted that some have expressed concerns about national security in response to the opposition on the first travel ban issued by the president.

“The tech community is so dependent on being able to have a global workforce and we are a very trade dependent state as well. International trade requires you to be globally fluent.” Daudon added, “We economically need to have our tentacles everywhere and that requires having a lot of people who represent those constituents that you are trying to do business with.”

Longtime business professional says diversity helps business bottom line

Nate Miles has over 25 years of experience in private business. “I think that we’ve come quite a ways in understanding that diversity really can be good for the bottom line whereas before, it was something that was a nice thing to do and felt like they had to do it.”

Industry research and studies from various universities suggest Nate Miles that diversity aids businesses.

“When you bring much more diversity, you bring more points of reference and many more people with differing points of view. It brings better solutions from more than just ‘one set of eyes.’”

In Miles’ view, he sees that the most successful instances of diversity in business occur when people are authentic.

“You can’t just go out and buy an ad in a newspaper or a table at a banquet,” said Miles. He insists that companies must authentically and actively engage in communities.

Miles, who currently is Vice President of Strategic Initiatives at Eli Lilly, stated that company outreach such as Habitat for Humanity and the United Way’s Day of Caring are good examples of companies allowing their employers

LYTTLE from 7

EDMONDS from 8

sponsoring events, and meeting with minority business leaders can all be a part of those efforts.

“We knew that we had to do more outreach to ensure that more Black, Latino, Asian, and Native Americanowned businesses had better access to opportunities,” Navarro said. “So we’ve focused our efforts at ensuring those communities knew of the opportunities. We’ve worked and continue to work with our prime contractors to ensure that all communities of color see the opportunities as opportunities and come in to the port either as direct contractors or subcontractors.” ■

$31,000 a year to feed, house, and guard, according to the Independent Budget Office report.

For individuals who have been incarcerated, there is no guarantee they won’t end up reoffending and going back behind bars. Since these former inmates have been absent from society, they need a lot of support to restart their life and be able to sustain a living.

Turning their lives around requires not only education, but housing and jobs. Working with the Department of Corrections, ECC is one of the few colleges which offer programs for former inmates. Hernandez said the immediate need is to improve their work skills so they can get better jobs.

Tim can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

COMFORT from 6 story that made me feel good.”

Although they lost touch after, the story stayed with Dinh for years to come.

Then, one night, Dinh thought of the script and reached out to Lu, asking if he had ever finished it. Lu hadn’t and even credits Dinh with being his “Jasmine” — that is, the person who prompted him to get outside of his comfort zone and actually finish the script for “Comfort.”

“I’m a romantic at heart,” said Lu. “I wear my heart on my sleeve and I always knew that I wanted to make a story about my values: do good, be kind to others, and maybe good things will happen to you.”

Making a film with an Asian American male protagonist was also important to Lu. “There is this notion out there of what Asian American masculinity is and it doesn’t match how I see the world … it was important to have an Asian American

to engage with communities. Despite the fact that it takes workers away from a day of work and is very expensive, it benefits the companies as it creates awareness and fosters brand loyalty within communities.

Miles states he would like to see more companies actively work with depressed communities and areas affected by unemployment. “I’d like to see companies make more of an effort to go directly to some of the hardest hit areas with their jobs, so they can use the jobs in a much more socially impactful way.” While this addresses the role of economic empowerment, it would also vicariously address issues of diversity.

Serving a diverse community, a part of Seattle Fire Chief’s role

“It’s more than a simple definition in my mind. Diversity is inclusion. It ties to the attitude of inclusion,” stated Seattle Fire Chief Harold Scoggins.

“It’s having a positive attitude toward the inclusion for the betterment of the organization, city, and community.”

“We’re serving a diverse com- Chief Harold Scoggins munity and it’s important to us to treat the community with dignity and respect.” Scoggins added, “Internally, we’ve done a lot of things to better represent the community we serve.”

The Fire Department participates in a race and social justice initiative through the City of Seattle. The program strives to end institutionalized racism and race-based disparities in city government.

Roughly, there are approximately 70 females within the Seattle Fire Department. Scoggins also noted that 85-97 percent of the organization is Caucasian. He believes that there are challenges in messaging to address the disparities. With respect to the small number of females within the department, Scoggins notes that there is a perception that it is a physically demanding job and while it does require physical fitness, he believes that the challenges are surmountable by both males and females of a variety of abilities. ■ The Seattle Fire Department is planning a recruitment campaign this summer and encourages all to apply.

Jason can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

Despite all the attractive scholarships, grants, and financial aid available, Hernandez said enrollment is declining by about 2 to 3 percent over the previous year. With the booming economy, community colleges are competing with job opportunities.

“The world of work is changing dramatically,” said Hernandez. “In the next five years, 60 percent of all jobs will require at least a two-year degree. My advice is take one or two college classes every quarter, and before you know it, you will finish your two-year degree and then continue on to your bachelor’s for those higher paying jobs.”  Assunta can be reached at assunta@nwasianweekly.com.

male lead who can be a romantic interest for someone.”

In fact, one of the most notable aspects about “Comfort” is how the cast is predominantly Asian American, but the characters are not specifically bound by race in any way.

“There is a tricky line here,” said Lu. “As a filmmaker, I’ve wanted to tell stories with people that look like me. If you’re too didactic or preachy with the writing, you’re shouting to your audience.

I wanted these characters to speak for themselves and let audiences experience the film. The only conscious decision [about using Asian characters] was to make things not seem so conscious.”

“In the end, it does affect the film overall,” said Dinh on using Asian American actors in lead romantic roles.

“The fact that more filmmakers are taking that chance — not just with Asian Americans, but having diverse actors in general — I appreciate that. We’re the

result of what happens when one of those filmmakers takes a chance on diversity, especially knowing the climate of the industry today.”

On the horizon

With its festival circuit completed, Lu said the film will continue to release on additional digital platforms in the coming months. There is also talks of taking “Comfort” on an academic tour.

The team is currently reaching out to University of California campuses with large Asian American student bodies in hopes of igniting discussion with college students about the film and other relevant issues.

“Right now, we’re just trying to get more eyes on the film,” said Lu. “If any campuses wish to participate, let us know!” ■ Vivian Nguyen can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

YOUR VOICE

■ ASTROLOGY

MARCH 18 – MARCH 24, 2017

asianweekly northwest

13

Predictions and advice for the week of March 18–March 24, 2017

By Sun Lee Chang Rat — You won’t always be where you are now, which is why it is important to take advantage of the special circumstances while you can.

Dragon — A single-minded focus can help you zero in on a problem, but don’t tune out the periphery completely.

Monkey — Rather than trusting that things are going well, it is worthwhile to check in once in a while to avoid unpleasant surprises.

Ox — Are you tired of making excuses? Today is the day that you start doing what you have been meaning to all along.

Snake — Someone you love has been wanting to discuss a sensitive topic with you. Your listening skills are needed more than your judgment.

Rooster — Your head is telling you one thing, but your heart is leaning another direction. Deferring to the latter could take you on a wild ride.

Tiger — There is more than one way to address a pressing concern. Talking through the options with a trusted friend is a good start.

Horse — Hoping for a desirable outcome is different than doing something about it. Your input is crucial to achieving what you want.

Dog — Does it seem like you are constantly cleaning up another’s mess? Stop and give them a chance to handle it.

Rabbit — Be wary of accepting a gift with strings attached. As much as you want one, the other might just be too unpalatable.

Goat — Is something obscuring your view?

Perhaps finding another vantage point is the quickest way to see what you are missing.

Pig — Are you waiting for someone to show you where to go? Seek out a path if one is not forthcoming.

What’s your animal sign?

Rat 1912, 1924, 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008 Ox 1913, 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, 2009 Tiger 1914, 1926, 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998, 2010 Rabbit 1915, 1927, 1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999, 2011 Dragon 1916, 1928, 1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000, 2012 Snake 1917, 1929, 1941, 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001, 2013 Horse 1918, 1930, 1942, 1954, 1966, 1978, 1990, 2002, 2014 Goat 1919, 1931, 1943, 1955, 1967, 1979, 1991, 2003, 2015 Monkey 1920, 1932, 1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004, 2016 Rooster 1921, 1933, 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005, 2017 Dog 1922, 1934, 1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994, 2006 Pig 1923, 1935, 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007

Photos by Arlene Dennistoun/NWAW

*The year ends on the first new moon of the following year. For those born in January and February, please take care when determining your sign.

Harjinder Singh Sandhu (front, left) sang prayers and spoke at the rally.

A diverse community of 500 gathered, spilling out into the church lobby in Kent.

Organizers Satwinder Kaur (left), and Bailey Stober, had hoped for 100 people to attend the rally. Instead, 500 showed up.

LOVE NOT HATE from 1

Numerous community leaders spoke, and all expressed gratitude for the larger than expected turnout. Kent Mayor Suzette Cooke reminded the audience of Kent’s motto — “Bringing the world home,” because of the diversity of the city.

Kent Police Chief Ken Thomas noted the support from the FBI, King County Sheriff, many police chiefs across the state, and Washington State Patrol.

Regarding the ongoing investigation, Thomas said about 35 agents and officers had re-canvassed the area for information. Thomas expressed the goal of his office to stop all crime, especially hate crimes.

Maya Vengadasalam, Vice President of the Kent School District Board, shared her experience as a new immigrant in Kent more than 20 years ago. She began public service in the school district and the city after her son was bullied in school as a small child. Love does conquer all, she said, but there’s more. “We need to be aware of all the issues we’re facing in our communities because we’re dealing with it in isolation, and until we feel accepted for our different views and practices, it will be impossible to resolve issues.”

Vengadasalam urged folks to understand immigrant issues and talk with each other. Many people have no idea how much the Sikh community works to raise awareness because “our communities’ belief system” doesn’t lean towards self-promotion. She reminded the audience that many children in the Sikh community were and are bullied and harassed.

Dr. Jasmit Singh, a Seattle-area community leader, made an impassioned plea to define America. He scanned the audience and noted the different races, ethnicities, colors, and backgrounds. “THIS is what America looks like.” The crowd exploded in applause.

“What is going on today? Where have we gone wrong?”

Singh asked the crowd. Many communities feel unsafe.

When new graffiti marred a Capitol Hill Jewish temple, Singh wondered, “What is wrong with us? Where are empathy, compassion, and love for each other? How is this hate coming out? Doesn’t our heart hurt when we find out a young black Muslim boy was found hung somewhere?

Hung! Where did we go wrong?”

Singh dreams of an America where children aren’t worried about being bullied in school or being separated from their parents. He dreams of an America where a grandparent doesn’t fear walking down the street because he’s wearing a turban and a beard, or where a Muslim woman wearing “the beautiful hijab” feels unsafe in public because someone may pull it off her.

“That is the dream I have — a dream of a country that is beyond fear,” said Singh, reflecting upon Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I have a dream” speech. The crowd stood applauding. “I dream of a country where truth defines us — not hate-mongering and fear.” Singh urged the audience to stand next to a victim of discrimination and speak up when they see it happening.

“Take the religious labels off. If you can’t work with your neighbor … if your understanding of God causes you to hate, to ignore, or to kill, you left God a long time ago,” said Reverend Leslie Braxton to a standing ovation. “We fight with ballots, not with bullets. We fight with love; we fight with unity. Everyone is afraid of all the violence, but people must be “bold enough to say something when we see something.”

State Senator Karen Keiser also urged the crowd to look out for bullying or hate and report it. The “hate is out there — it’s among us. And we must treat it as a public health menace. It’s contagious.”

State Rep. Mark Hargrove spoke of the pain of fear causing us to look over our shoulders. State Rep. Pat Sullivan, visibly shaken, expressed concern and bewilderment about how the shooting of a Sikh man could have happened in “our Kent community.” By coming together, people have said, “that’s not who we are.”

Diane Narasaki was one of the event’s last speakers and said, “We must stand with all those who are under attack right now.” After everything speakers had already stated, she had only one word to say — “Amen.” ■

adding more and more seats, as people spilled out into the lobby of the church.

Although touted as a rally, there was no sign waving, marching, or shouting. Bailey Stober, who identifies himself as the first 25-year-old, biracial South King County resident to chair the King County Democrats, and Satwinder Kaur, a member of the East Indian Connection and a Kent City Council candidate, had rallies planned on the same day at different times and places. As soon as Stober heard Kaur scheduled to hold a rally outside, he saw the weather forecast of rain and a chilly 47 degrees.

He called Kaur, and they immediately teamed up, and the peaceful event occurred inside the church.

Stober kicked off the event by announcing the gathering was not a political event. “We do not have any room here for politics — this is not about one side or the other. We’re here as a community. There’s enough nonsense going on outside of this room — we don’t need to have it in here.”

The crowd roared its approval with loud applause.

“I have told the speakers if they veer in that direction (politics), I will definitely tackle them.” Stober said they wanted to emphasize nonpartisanship and bring people together without being divided by politics, religion, zip codes, or class, and to come together as “one community and say that we are South King County strong.”

“We are not going to accept or tolerate hate, bigotry, discrimination, or bullying in any form in any of our cities in too often overlooked South King County,” said Stober.

As chair of the King County Democrats, Stober said it’s important to have a seat at the leadership table and ensure diversity. Kaur told the hundreds of people in attendance that their presence showed “we will not tolerate hate crimes in our community.”

The event began with Sikh prayer through song. The prayer group told the crowd “our country is at a crossroads,” and the way for a nation to remain great is “inoculate love and respect among its people. There is great beauty in the mosaic of a country with many different cultures.”

Arlene can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

asianweekly northwest

14

MARCH 18 – MARCH 24, 2017

BHARARA from 5 “Serving my country as U.S. Attorney here for the past seven years will forever be the greatest honor of my professional life, no matter what else I do or how long I live. One hallmark of justice is absolute independence, and that was my touchstone every day that I served.”

He said Joon H. Kim will serve as acting U.S. attorney in his absence.

The Justice Department confirmed Bharara was no longer U.S. attorney but declined to expound.

Just over three months ago, then-President-elect Donald Trump asked Bharara to remain as U.S. attorney in Manhattan and Bharara told reporters that he had agreed to do so.

Bharara was appointed by former President Barack Obama in 2009. In frequent public appearances, Bharara has decried public corruption after successfully prosecuting over a dozen state lawmakers, Democrats and Republicans alike.

Sessions’ decision to include Bharara’s name on the list of 46 resignations of holdovers from the Obama administra-

tion surprised Manhattan prosecutors.

While it is customary for a new president to replace virtually all of the 93 U.S. attorneys, it often occurs at a slower pace. Sessions lost his position as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Alabama in a similar sweep by then-Attorney General Janet Reno in 1993.

New York Sen. Charles Schumer, a Democrat, said in a statement on March 10 that he was “troubled to learn” of the resignation demands, particularly of Bharara, since Trump called him in November and assured him that he wanted Bharara to remain.

After Bharara met Trump on Nov. 30, he emerged from the meeting to say Trump had asked him to remain in the job he has held since his appointment in the summer of 2009 and he had agreed.

Schumer said that by requesting immediate resignations, Trump was “interrupting ongoing cases and investigations and hindering the administration of justice.”

Bharara, who was once lauded on the cover of Time magazine as the man who is “busting Wall Street” after successfully prosecuting dozens of insider traders,

35 YEARS

has in the past few years set his sights on prosecuting over a dozen state officeholders — Democrats and Republicans — including New York’s two most powerful lawmakers.

It also recently was revealed that Bharara’s office is investigating the financial terms of settlements of sexualharassment claims against Fox News by its employees.

The request from Sessions came as Bharara’s office is prosecuting former associates of Democratic Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo in a bribery case. Also, prosecutors recently interviewed New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio as part of a probe into his fundraising.

The request for resignations came just days after Trump claimed that Obama tapped his telephones during last year’s election. FBI Director James Comey privately asked the Justice Department to dispute the claim because he believed the allegations were false. Bharara worked for Comey when he was U.S. attorney in Manhattan under President George W. Bush.

Last week, the quick-witted Bharara initiated a new personal Twitter feed

with one of his first tweets perhaps intentionally delivering multiple messages.

In it, he linked to an AP video of a Senate hearing focusing on whether federal prosecutors were fired for political reasons.

“This Senate hearing on political interference (at) DOJ was 10 yrs ago today,” Bharara wrote. “Is that me in the background? Boy I’ve aged.” ■

SOLUTION from SUDOKU on page 6.

SERVICE DIRECTORY NEOPRIME CHINESE 80’ Seattle lake Front

Mandarin lessons for children and adults in Bellevue, WA

425-533-2897 www.npchinese.com

Build Your Dream Home!

Build Your Dream Home!

quiet fishing lake in city limits

$850,000 $950,000

dkatt88@gmail.com 12,000 sf paddleboard, canoe , f l y f ish from your dock

quiet fishing lake in city limits 12,000 square feet paddleboard, canoe, fly fish from your dock

DKATT88@GMAIL.COM

The American Legion Cathay Post 186

Serving the community since 1946

cathaypost@hotmail.com

IRENE RAJAGOPAL 王征

206-625-9104 www.herrmannscholbe.com

Immigration & Business Attorney 移民商业律师 English and Chinese bilingual 中英文法律服务

206-643-7538

irenerajlaw.com  Irene@irenerajlaw.com 14205 SE 36th St. Suite 100, Bellevue, WA 98006

» Personal Injury» Airline Disasters» Bicycle Accidents

» Wrongful Death» Dog Bites » Pedestrian Accidents

Mandarin, Cantonese & Korean Interpreter available

NORTHWEST COMMUNITY CHURCH ******* CHRIST CENTERED *******

11715 N Creek Pkwy S # 110, Bothell, WA 98011

425-402-4445

ncc@northwest.org | northwest.org

HONG LAW FIRM, PLLC

For placing an ad in Classified section, contact John Liu at

Bankruptcy Chapter 7  Personal Injury Landlord-Tenant  Simple Wills

JOHN@NWASIANWEEKLY.COM

Frank S. Hong, Attorney at Law avvo.com

The deadline to place a classified ad is Tuesday.

206-856-8291  honglegal@gmail.com

MARCH 18 – MARCH 24, 2017

YOUR VOICE

asianweekly northwest

15

“You’ve been a keystone for the international community as a vital source of news and information. Thank you for your unwavering dedication to reflecting the heart and voices of the greater Seattle Asian community for 35 years.”

— Karen Yoshitomi, Executive Director, Japanese Cultural & Community Center of Washington “Since I first ‘discovered’ the paper while shopping in the International District, I’ve been an avid reader for over two decades. The high quality, in-depth original journalism, and broad spectrum of accurate news coverage has kept me captivated from my college days, through my early career, and into my professional life.

We need a news outlet that is not afraid to tackle the controversial issues from all sides, especially on topics regarding Asians and Pacific Islanders that is sometimes glossed over by other news agencies.”

— Peter Kwon, SeaTac City Councilmember

The only weekly English-edition newspaper serving the Asian community in the state of Washington for 35 years.

Send in your thoughts to editor@nwasianweekly.com.

Join us for our 35th Anniversary Celebration dinner on Oct. 21 at China Harbor restaurant. For tickets, please email rsvp@nwasianweekly.com or call 206-223-0623. To sponsor the event, contact Assunta Ng at assunta@nwasianweekly.com. For more info, visit nwasianweekly.com/35years.

Photos provided by Seattle Symphony FB page

SYMPHONY from 1

Sensory Friendly Concert

Sensory Friendly Concert

experts on racial equity that include stakeholders from all areas of the organization, and they’ve also held “in-reach” opportunities for experiential learning where the board, staff, and musicians strengthen their understanding of the people they’re serving. In addition, they are also intentionally recruiting diverse members at the board level.

As a top 20 major orchestra in the United States, they have musicians from all over the world auditioning to be a part of the ensemble and draw from a national and international talent pool.

Approximately 25 percent of Seattle Symphony members are immigrants to the United States. Fifteen percent of the orchestra is made up of minorities (Black, Asian, and Latino) compared to 34 percent of the King County minority population.

Contreras also explained that there are many people in the organization who identify as LGBTQ, and they support them with LGBTQ-friendly employee policies. In the past two years, they’ve brought more visibility to their LGBTQ family by participating in the annual Seattle Pride parade.

In fact, next season composer Alexandra Gardner will have a residency at the Symphony. In this residency, LGBTQ homeless youth will get the opportunity to create a new composition that will be performed by Seattle Symphony musicians.

Students learn to sing and play orchestral repertoire, then perform along with the Seattle Symphony from their seats in a highly participatory concert at Benaroya Hall.

Each season, participation in the program has grown — from two schools and 200 participants in the pilot year to 114 schools and 11,100 participants in the fifth year of the program. This is due to district-wide commitments and partnerships with the Seattle Public School district’s Creative Advantage program, Highline School District, and North Kitsap School District.

Music education at an earlier age

Global and cultural inclusion

“Unfortunately, there are many barriers to participation.

We’re working to address this starting at the earliest ages with our Tiny Tots concerts (ages 0-5) through Link Up, which serves over 10,000 school children, and through side-by-side concerts that mentor youth. Over time, these activities help to diversify the talent pool from the earliest ages, and inspire and encourage those who are interested in music,” Contreras explained.

In Link Up, the Seattle Symphony’s school program for students in grades 3–5, students are invited to join the Symphony in an interactive and engaging program.

It’s important for the Symphony to work on the local level to increase diversity in access to music and music education.

The Seattle Symphony doesn’t just serve the local community, but the organization supports global inclusion.

When President Donald Trump announced the first executive order that banned visitors from seven countries from entering the United States, the Symphony reacted by hosting a free concert featuring the music from the banned countries, “Music Beyond Borders.”

Contreras said that the Symphony partners with representatives of Seattle’s Asian community to create an annual event celebrating the rich and exciting Asian cultures. They invite community groups to perform. This

year’s Celebrate Asia event will take place on May 12 and will include a world premiere by A.R. Rahman.

Connecting with diverse communities

In addition to celebrating diverse cultures, the Symphony hosts Sensory Friendly Concerts, a new program designed specifically for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and other disabilities. Families with children aged 5-8 can enjoy small chamber works and participatory group song in the Soundbridge Seattle Symphony Music Discovery Center. This year, they will highlight a different social skill at each concert, and offer opportunities for families to connect with one another. The next Sensory Friendly Concert performances will be on April 22 and April 23.

Contreras also described the Prison Project which began in October 2011 with the simple idea of performing a small concert at Monroe Correctional Complex. Ninety-seven percent of the offenders in Washington prisons will return to the community. Everyone that attended the event on Oct. 25, 2016 has a release date that is less than four years away.

“We learned that while the people in prison may be separate from the rest of the community now, they may not always be. Our work is helping to inspire hope and healing.

Since 2011, we have continued to deepen our relationship with the Monroe Correctional Complex and the Washington Corrections Center for Women in Gig Harbor,” she added.

At a community level, Community Connections is the Symphony’s commitment to expanding relationships with our community. The organization builds bridges with diverse communities in the region through Symphony concerts, access to complimentary tickets, music making, and co-created community performances. Community Connections currently involves more than 60 local nonprofits representing youth, cultural groups, health services, military/veterans, senior citizens, and social service organizations. ■ Nina can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.

asianweekly northwest

16

MARCH 18 – MARCH 24, 2017

35 YEARS