VOL 41 NO 26 | JUNE 25 – JULY 1, 2022

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

VOL 41 NO 26 JUNE 25 – JULY 1, 2022

FREE 40 YEARS YOUR VOICE

Community leaders: Sound Transit in a “land grab” for the CID For over a century, mainstream society has encroached on Asians and their land, say community leaders from the Chinatown-International District (CID). Now, it wants to take the rest of it, they say.

Bettie Luke and others last week denounced Sound Transit (ST)’s plans to build through the CID and keep the area occupied with noise, pollution, traffic, and business blockages for a decade. This is yet another invasion in a long series of assaults upon their community.

“ENOUGH! Do not inflict another land-grabbing and exploitive encroachment on our neighborhood!” she wrote in an open letter to the Sound Transit Board of Directors and the Seattle City Council.

The letter, copied to other leaders of the Asian American community, evoked a strong response and elicited similar outrage over what leaders said was institutional racism that had been enshrined in the entire history of their experience in the region. ST’s plans to rip up and choke off the CID, they said, is the culmination of see SOUND TRANSIT on 15

Graphic

by Han B

ui

By Mahlon Meyer NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

Capitol riot investigation

Detroit honors Vincent Chin, Asian American killed in 1982 40th anniversary

DETROIT (AP) — Decades before Chinese immigrant Yao Pan Ma was attacked while collecting cans in New York and Thai American Vicha Ratanapakdee was fatally assaulted in San Francisco, Vincent Chin was beaten to death with a baseball bat in Detroit by two white men who never served jail time.

Forty years later—and amid a rise in hate crimes against Asian Americans— Detroit has partnered with The Vincent Chin 40th Remembrance & Rededication Coalition on a four-day commemoration to honor civil rights efforts that began with Chin’s death and declare the city’s commitment against such violence.

“Although hate crimes existed, Vincent Chin did bring out a flash point for Asian Americans,” Stanley Mark, senior staff attorney at the New York-based Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, said, calling Chin’s death “a seminal moment among Asian Americans.”

Chin, a 27-year-old Chinese immigrant, was at the Fancy Pants Tavern strip club in the Detroit enclave of Highland Park for his bachelor party on June 19, 1982, when a fight erupted. Federal authorities said two autoworkers blamed

■

AP Photo/Corey Williams

By COREY WILLIAMS ASSOCIATED PRESS

Asian American on House Select Committee

Activist and author Helen Zia poses Thursday, June 15, 2022, next to a painting of Vincent Chin in Detroit.

Chin for layoffs at car factories due to Japanese imports. After Chin left the club, the two men tracked him down at a fast food eatery and attacked him, authorities said. Chin later died at a hospital. see CHIN on 14

Rep. Stephanie Murphy

Byung “BJay” Pak

Rep. Stephanie Murphy of Florida, one of the nine members on the House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol, said that she was “proud” to serve on the panel—and called its work essential to “guard our democracy.”

The first Vietnamese American woman elected to Congress, Murphy said that while the events of the riot were “shocking,” perhaps the “most insidious things” were

what transpired prior to the insurrection.

Murphy said that it’s her hope that people watch the hearings “not as Democrats or Republicans or Independents, but rather as Americans to hear the facts about how an elected politician wanted to retain power, and wanted to ignore the will of the people.”

On June 13, former Atlanta-based federal see INVESTIGATION on 14

THE INSIDE STORY A&E Olympic filmmaker needed 2 movies to cover Tokyo turmoil

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A&E South Korean pianist is youngest winner of Van Cliburn International Competition

CONTEST AAPI Heritage Month video & photo contest

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asianweekly northwest

40 YEARS

JUNE 25 – JULY 1, 2022

■ NAMES IN THE NEWS Nguyen receives prestigious humanitarian award

Seike Family Japanese Garden celebration

Liu—who is Chinese Canadian—posted on Instagram that “there is no caption that exists to articulate what I am feeling to be included among such legendary and exceptional people.”

He added, “What if I’m merely a conduit to a much more impactful discussion about a group of people who have struggled to feel seen, respected, and equal? If I happen to be an instrument, a passing storm that changes the tides this particular year, then so be it. I will make as much thunder and lightning as I can while the clouds are here.” 

AAPI Exporter Roundtable

Nam Nguyen

Nam Nguyen, 25, of Seattle will be awarded the UK-based Diana Award— for his work in addressing several social causes, including mental health, public service, and international education accessibility.

Established in memory of Diana, Princess of Wales, the award is given out by the charity of the same name. The Diana Award recognizes exceptional young people who inspire and mobilize their generation to serve their communities and create long-lasting change on a global scale.

Nguyen immigrated to the U.S. from Vietnam in 2013, when he was 16, with minimal English speaking skills. He currently works in finance for BP, and is a graduate student at Johns Hopkins University, pursuing his master’s degree in educational technology. 

The Highline Botanical Garden is having a 60th Anniversary celebration of the Seike Japanese Garden.

All are invited to the June 25 event from 1–3 p.m., which will include taiko drumming, tea, and desserts.

The garden is located at 13735 24th Avenue South in SeaTac. For details, go to highlinegarden.org. 

Simu Liu is one of TIME’s Most Influential People

“Shang-Chi” star Simu Liu has been named one of the most influential people of 2022 by TIME magazine.

Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell, SBA Regional Administrator Mike Fong, and Seattle Port Commissioner Sam Cho attended a special AAPI Exporter Roundtable last month— where a select group of AAPI business owners or exporters were invited.

The attendees were Y.P. Chan, CEO of Avidian Technologies; Martha Lee, president of Ethnic Chamber of Commerce Coalition; Winston Lee, CEO of Junwell; Liam Li, CFO of a large hedge fund in Seattle; Dr. Tom Long, CEO of Haymingway; Dr. Wei-Min Lu, CEO

AAPI Exporter Roundtable in May

of Anchora (Shanghai); Dr. Chris Own, CEO of Voxa; Thuy Van, managing director of ALV and co-CEO of Long Van Group; Carol Ye, CEO of Farm Breeze International; Ben Zhang, CEO of Greater Pacific Industries; and Jeff Zhu, co-founder of Seattle Voctech.

The organizer said part of the key discussion was how the anti-Asian hate climate and how the rivalry between the U.S. and China is impacting all AAPI business owners. 

YOUR VOICE

■ COMMUNITY NEWS

JUNE 25 – JULY 1, 2022

Biden signs bill for national Asian Pacific history museum

By DARLENE SUPERVILLE ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden signed a bill on June 13 that will create a commission to study establishing a national museum on the history of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the United States.

“I’m honored to sign into law something that’s long overdue,” he said at a White House ceremony.

The “Commission to Study the Potential Creation of a National Museum of Asian Pacific American History and Culture Act” creates an eight-member commission to study how to make such a museum a reality in Washington, including whether it should be part of the Smithsonian Institution.

The Senate majority and minority leaders, and the House speaker and House minority leader each would name two members of the study commission.

The House passed the bill in April, and the Senate did so in May, which Biden

had designated as Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.

Biden was joined at the ceremony by Vice President Kamala Harris, the first person of Indian descent to be elected to the position.

Harris’ mother was Indian.

Harris said such a museum will help “fight ignorance” and “dispel misinformation” about Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islander people in the U.S. The Smithsonian is in early planning stages for two new museums, the National Museum of the American Latino and the Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum.

Both the National Museum of the American Indian and the National Museum of African American History and Culture are run by the Smithsonian.

The legislation was sponsored by Rep. Grace Meng, D-N.Y., and Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii. 

asianweekly northwest

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Police arrest suspect in CID stabbing Officers arrested a 31-year-old suspect in connection with a stabbing in the Chinatown-International District (CID) on June 7.

The victim was stabbed in the neck and officers found him at the intersection of 5th Avenue and South Jackson

Street. His attacker had fled the scene.

On June 13, officers were patrolling Westlake Park and recognized the woman from a bulletin about the stabbing.

Police booked her into the King County Jail for assault. 

Kent police fatally shot Viet Do Nguyen KENT, Wash. (AP) — The King County Medical Examiner’s Office has identified Viet Do Nguyen as the man Kent police shot to death.

Nguyen, 27, died from multiple gunshot wounds and his death was ruled a homicide, the Seattle Times reported.

Homicide means only that a person or people caused someone else’s death.

Kent police have said the shooting happened after police responded early on June 13 to a call about a car stopped on Pacific Highway South. The caller reported the driver of the stopped car

appeared to be under the influence of intoxicants. Shortly after police arrived, one officer said on the police radio, “Male has a gun,” according to police.

Kent police said a couple of minutes later, an officer said shots were fired.

Nguyen died at the scene. Nguyen’s last known address was in West Seattle.

Investigators have not released additional information about the shooting, which is being investigated by the Valley Independent Investigation Team. 

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asianweekly northwest

JUNE 25 – JULY 1, 2022

40 YEARS

■ NATIONAL NEWS

Naomi Osaka, LeBron James team up for entertainment venture LOS ANGELES (AP) — LeBron James and Naomi Osaka are becoming teammates in the entertainment world.

Tennis star Osaka and her agent and business partner, Stuart Duguid, are forming a media company called Hana Kuma in partnership with The SpringHill Company, which was created by NBA star James and Maverick Carter.

The announcement on June 21 comes shortly after Osaka and Duguid started EVOLVE, an athlete representation agency.

“There has been an explosion of creators of color finally being equipped with resources and a huge platform,” Osaka said in a press release about her newest venture.

“In the streaming age, content has a more

global perspective. You can see this in the popularity of television from Asia, Europe, and Latin America that the unique can also be universal. My story is a testament to that as well. I’m so excited for what we are building at Hana Kuma. We will bring stories to life with this goal in mind: to make unique perspectives feel universal and inspire people along the way.”

The 24-year-old Osaka is a four-time Grand Slam champion who also has reached No. 1 in the WTA rankings. She was born in Japan to a Japanese mother and Haitian father; the family moved to New York when Naomi was 3 and she now is based in Los Angeles.

Osaka recently said she would be skipping Wimbledon for the second year in a row. She

has not competed on tour since a first-round loss at the French Open last month.

According to Forbes, Osaka became the world’s highest-paid female athlete in 2020 by earning about $37 million thanks to a long list of sponsorship deals.

More recently, she has been taking steps to broaden her brand beyond the tennis court.

Asked about EVOLVE at Roland Garros, Osaka said: “I think role models are really important, just to see somebody do something—and it makes you feel like you can do the same thing, too. I found it really interesting that there wasn’t a female athlete that’s done this before, but there has been so many men. So I think it’s a journey, and I feel like I’m going to learn a lot on the journey.” 

California home vandalized with anti-Asian graffiti SAN LEANDRO, California — Police in San Leandro, California arrested a man on hate crime charges after multiple instances of anti-Asian graffiti were found on a home along Inverness Street.

According to a news release, someone vandalized a for-sale sign in front of the home on June 18. The spraypainted graffiti on the sign included a racial epithet within an anti-Asian message.

The real estate agent for the home said he did not initially

want to report the incident to police. But the next day, when the graffiti was discovered to be say "NO G**KS" on the home's garage, he and the homeowner collectively decided it was time to speak out.

“I was struggling. I'm Asian and just doing business. I was wondering if I should stand up. We have to call the police," said the agent, who wanted to remain anonymous.

Investigators say the realtor, property owners, and most recent tenants of the home are all of Asian descent.

City of Seattle seeks community members to serve on the Community Involvement Commission APPLICATION DEADLINE: JULY 10 SEATTLE — The Seattle Department of Neighborhoods (DON) is currently recruiting to fill seven vacancies on the Community Involvement Commission (CIC). Current vacancies include positions representing City Council Districts 1, 2, 3, and 7, as well as three at-large positions.

The CIC advises DON and other City departments on coordinated, citywide outreach and engagement activities. The commission is dedicated to holding the City accountable for increasing participation and engagement—especially among communities that have been historically marginalized and underserved.

The Commission is composed of 16 members—seven appointed by the City Council and seven appointed by the Mayor, with one position filled by a young adult through the Get Engaged program. The final

two commissioners are selected by the CIC members.

Commission members will each serve a two-year term, except for the Get Engaged position, which will serve a one-year term.

Commissioners serve in a volunteer capacity and dedicate approximately three to six hours per month to their roles.

If you are interested in being considered, complete the online application by July 10 at 5 p.m. Within the application page, click the dropdown and select Community Involvement Commission under “Which Boards would you like to apply for?”  To learn more about the Community Involvement Commission, visit: seattle.gov/neighborhoods/communityinvolvement-commission.

Nicholas Swyers, 25, was arrested on June 20, and officers recovered evidence linking Swyers to the crime during the execution of their search warrant.

“This is an unfortunate reminder that hate and racism do exist. But, this is also a reminder that the San Leandro Police Department will unequivocally not stand for this behavior and dedicate the necessary resources to bring these perpetrators to justice," said Lieutenant Matthew Barajas. 

KING COUNTY, WASHINGTON NOTICE TO BIDDERS Sealed bids will be received by the King County Procurement Services Section through the County’s E-Procurement system for the following listed bids.

Instructions on how to submit a bid electronically, view any current bid opportunities, express interest, communicate with the Buyer via Message app and/or successfully submit a bid through the E-Procurement system prior, and more are provided on the County’s website: https://kingcounty.gov/procurement/registration King County encourages minority business enterprise participation. King County does not discriminate on the basis of disability in its programs, services, and employment opportunities for persons with disabilities.

KC000498 OPENS: 07/18/2022 ADA Transition Plan Consulting and Related Services Pre-Proposal Conference: Wednesday, June 22nd at 11:00 AM Join via MS Teams (audio only) Conference Call: 1.425.653.6586 Conference ID: 273 060 147# or Join with a video conferencing device at kcsc@m.webex. com Video Conference ID: 119 527 232 0 KC000615 OPENS: 07/26/2022 Transcription Services Pre-Proposal Conference: Tuesday, July 11th at 10:00 AM via MS Teams (audio only) Conference Call: 1.425.653.6586 Conference ID: 200 263 482# KC000620 OPENS: 07/11/2022 Community Engagement Translation Services KC000398 OPENS: 07/19/2022 60% Magnesium Hydroxide Bid Opening: Tuesday, July 19th at 2:00 PM via MS Teams Conference Call: 1.425.653.6586 Conference ID: 116 092 188#

YOUR VOICE

■ NATIONAL NEWS

JUNE 25 – JULY 1, 2022

asianweekly northwest

5

San Francisco man to stand trial in death of Thai man, 84

Vicha Ratanapakdee

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A San Francisco man accused of killing an 84-year-old Thai grandfather in an attack that galvanized Asian Americans and helped spur a successful recall of the city’s liberal prosecutor was ordered to stand trial, a judge ruled on June 17.

The assault on Vicha Ratanapakdee in January 2021 further crushed Asians in America already frightened by a surge of attacks against members of the Asian American and Pacific Islander community, particularly seniors.

Video footage played during witness testimony last week shows Antoine Watson sprinting across a street and knocking down

Suspect in California church shooting accused of hate crime in Laguna Woods.

SANTA ANA, Calif.

A 52-year-old doctor (AP) — Prosecutors who took his mother to have accused a Las the event was killed.

Vegas man of comAuthorities have mitting a hate crime said Chou was by killing one person motivated by hatred of and wounding five in Taiwan, where he was a mass shooting at a Wenwei born and grew up after Taiwanese American David Chou his family was forced church luncheon in from mainland China California.

The Orange County District when Communists took control.

Chou is expected to be Attorney’s Office said on June 17 that authorities added hate arraigned on Aug. 19. He did crime allegations to the murder not enter a plea at an initial and attempted murder charges court appearance last month. filed against 68-year-old David Messages seeking comment were sent on June 17 to public Wenwei Chou.

Authorities have said Chou defenders listed in the online opened fire on a May lunch gath- court record for Chou, who is ering of members of the Irvine being held without bail.  Taiwanese Presbyterian Church

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Ratanapakdee, who was out on his usual morning walk. He died two days later.

Anita Nabha, Watson’s attorney, said he appeared distressed after a stressful encounter with police hours earlier and may not have known the man was elderly, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

Ratanapakdee’s death was one of the stated reasons behind the successful recall of San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin.

Recall proponents said that the liberal prosecutor did not take crimes against Asians seriously, a sentiment disputed by opponents of the recall. 

Officers won’t be charged for man’s death at fire checkpoint SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Four officers won’t face criminal charges for shooting and killing a man armed with a gun who tried to drive through a wildfire evacuation checkpoint near a Northern California marijuana farm last summer, the Siskiyou County district attorney said on June 14.

Soobleej Kaub Hawj, 35, of Kansas City, Kansas, was driving a pickup truck loaded with guns and 132 pounds of marijuana when he ignored orders to turn west onto a main road at a checkpoint June 24 as a lightning-sparked fire threatened a rural Big Springs area near the Oregon border, District Attorney Kirk Andrus said.

The blaze forced thousands to flee.Hawj, who had both amphetamines and methamphetamine in his system, pulled a .45-caliber handgun and pointed it at a law enforcement officer, causing other officers to open fire, Andrus said in a letter to law enforcement agencies explaining his decision, the Sacramento Bee reported.

Hawj was struck several times in the head, chest, arms and legs. In addition to the handgun and the marijuana, investigators found another handgun and two loaded assault rifles with large magazines, the letter said.

The shooting sparked accusations that racism played a role in the shooting of Hawj, who was a member of the Hmong ethnic group.

Authorities last year said the Mount Shasta Vista

subdivision in the Big Springs area had as many as 6,000 greenhouses illegally growing marijuana, with the farms mostly run by people of Hmong and Chinese descent.

The county has tried to crack down on the illegal grows, in part by prohibiting trucked-in water deliveries to Hmong farmers who run illegal operations.

The growers sued and last fall a federal judge issued a temporary injunction against the ban, saying the practice raises “serious questions” about racial discrimination and leaves the growers without a source of water for drinking, bathing and growing food.

In his letter, however, Andrus said the fire checkpoint wasn’t being used to find marijuana but merely to get people out of an area endangered by the fire. Hawj, however, may have thought he would be stopped and searched, Andrus said.

“He had a cash crop in the back of his truck that he apparently was willing to defend,” Andrus wrote.

“He may have had the misapprehension that residents were being funneled into an area where they would be searched for marijuana. He would have been wrong.”

Hawj also had an arrest warrant out of Mesa County, Colorado, where he was wanted for marijuana and firearms felonies, the newspaper said. 

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asianweekly northwest

JUNE 25 – JULY 1, 2022

40 YEARS

■ COMMUNITY CALENDAR THRU JULY 10 EMBODIED CHANGE: SOUTH ASIAN ART ACROSS TIME Seattle Asian Art Museum, South Gallery Fri-Sun, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. seattleartmuseum.org THRU FEB 19, 2023 EXHIBIT, “WE ARE CHANGING THE TIDE: COMMUNITY POWER FOR ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE” The Wing Luke Museum, 719 S. King St., Seattle Thu-Sun, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. wingluke.org/we-arechanging-the-tide

JUN 23

VIRTUAL EVENT: DR. JULIE PHAM DISCUSSES, “7 FORMS OF RESPECT” 7 p.m.

Register at https://tinyurl.com/ bdhhwzcb

25 THE SEIKE FAMILY JAPANESE GARDEN KANREKI CELEBRATION Highline Seatac Botanical Garden, 13735 24th Ave. S., SeaTac 1-3 p.m. highlinegarden.org

16TH ANNUAL SEATTLE IRANIAN FESTIVAL’S THEME IS THE “CELEBRATION OF IRANIAN WOMEN” Seattle Center 11 a.m.-6 p.m.

30 VIRTUAL EVENT: THE FUTURE OF JAPAN-U.S. RELATIONS, THE QUAD, AND INDO-PACIFIC COOPERATION WITH AMBASSADOR OF JAPAN TO THE U.S. KOJI TOMITA 11 a.m.-12 p.m.

Register at https://bit.ly/3NRmY9r

JUL 7

8-10

16

THE LATEST INTIMATE PORTRAIT FROM HONG SANG-SOO, “IN FRONT OF YOUR FACE” Northwest Film Forum July 8, 8-9:30 p.m.

July 9 & 10, 5-6:30 p.m.

Tickets at brownpapertickets.com/ event/5453104

CID FOOD WALK Seattle’s C-ID 11 a.m.-4 p.m.

Sign up for a booth https://bit.ly/3O1tE4g

9

THE LATEST INTIMATE PORTRAIT FROM HONG SANG-SOO, “IN FRONT OF YOUR FACE” Northwest Film Forum July 16, 4:30-6 p.m.; July 17, 3:30-5 p.m.

Tickets at brownpapertickets.com/ event/5453104

OUTDOOR PARTY IN CANTON ALLEY Canton Alley South, Seattle 1-6 p.m.

Register at https://bit.ly/3mpIW7h

9 & 28

16 & 17

SEP 10

C-ID NIGHT MARKET FESTIVAL Seattle’s C-ID 1-9 p.m.

Sign up to be a vendor, https://bit.ly/3zi6qmu

MICHAEL POLLAN WITH JANE C. HU, “THIS IS YOUR MIND ON PLANTS” Town Hall, 720 Seneca St., Seattle 7:30 p.m.

CLUB MEETING WITH JENNIFER ADAMS VEHICLE RESIDENT OUTREACH 11:30 a.m.– 1 p.m.

For Zoom link, contact rotaryofseattleid@gmail. com

8

13 & 14 20

IN-PERSON EVENT WITH BETSY AOKI, IN CONVERSATION WITH COOKIE HIPONIA, “BREAKPOINT” Third Place Books 7 p.m.

Register at thirdplacebooks.com

THE LATEST INTIMATE PORTRAIT FROM HONG SANG-SOO, “IN FRONT OF YOUR FACE” Northwest Film Forum July 13 & 14, 7:30-9 p.m.

Tickets at brownpapertickets.com/ event/5453104

Receive maximum value of write off for your taxes. Running or not! All conditions accepted. Free pickup.

Call for details, 855-635-4229.

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SEATTLE ASIAN AMERICAN NATIVE HAWAIIAN/PACIFIC ISLANDER WOMEN ARTISTS UNITED IS A VISUAL CAMPAIGN TO FIGHT THE TIDE OF ANTI-ASIAN VIOLENCE AND XENOPHOBIA Posters will be free to public

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CID FOOD WALK Seattle’s C-ID 11 a.m.-4 p.m.

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JUNE 25 – JULY 1, 2022

YOUR VOICE

■ ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

asianweekly northwest

AP Photo/Petros G

iannakouris

Olympic filmma ker needed 2 movies to cover Tokyo turmoil

By YURI KAGEYAMA ASSOCIATED PRESS

TOKYO (AP) — Naomi Kawase, the director of the official film of the Tokyo Olympics, acknowledged she was taken aback at first about her assignment. That was late in 2018 when she got the commission from the International Olympic Committee.

The job never got any easier.

Japanese public opinion was divided about holding the Games after the COVID-19 pandemic postponed them for a year, and the costs kept climbing. Tokyo is regarded as the most expensive Olympics on record.

There were scandals, topped by the resignation of Yoshiro Mori, the head of the organizing committee, just months before the Olympics opened. Disgruntled artists charged with designing the opening and closing ceremonies also resigned.

It was only after Kawase decided to focus on the athletes in so-called Side A, and on much of the turmoil in Side B, that she felt sure about how to handle all the material.

Each two-hour segment has been released as a separate film—titled “Official Film of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 Side A“ and “Official Film of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 Side B.” “I never wavered,” she said in a recent interview with The Associated Press. “There was suddenly this giant divide, the world sank into a troubled mood, and people were forced to spend their time without easy answers.”

Side A and Side B, released recently in Japanese theaters, were like “twins,” she said. When seen together, they tell what she called “the human condition“ exposed by the Olympics.

She said talks are underway for global streaming, but nothing has been decided.

Kawase recently returned from the Cannes Film Festival, where Side A was featured.

Kawase won the Camera d’Or at the festival in 1997. She has served as a competition judge at Cannes. In 2007, she won the Grand Prix at the event.

Sifting through about 5,000 hours of footage was a challenge Kawase said she had not dealt with before—like working through a mathematical puzzle.

One driving theme is a message about gender inequality.

Japan, with the world’s third largest economy, consistently ranks low on gendergap studies with females underrepresented in boardrooms and political leadership.

Kawase said she has personally suffered as a female director in Japan.

Side A shows—among many other things—an Olympian who is competing after giving birth.

Side B shows horrific imagery of the 2011 tsunami in northeastern Japan.

Some Olympic events, like the torch relay, were held there to highlight the region’s reconstruction.

Side B also depicts some of the humble players, like the man in charge of grooming the grounds at the National Stadium in Tokyo, or the chef overseeing food served for athletes at the Olympic Village.

Dramatically highlighting the sexism theme is Mori, whose face popped up often in close-ups.

Mori, a former prime minister, was forced to resign as the president of the Olympic see KAWASE on 13

7

Naomi Kawase in Cannes, southern Fran directed the offici al documentary of ce, in May 2022. She the Tokyo Olympi cs.

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asianweekly northwest

40 YEARS

JUNE 25 – JULY 1, 2022

■ ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT An 18-year-old from South Korea has won the 16th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, one of the top showcases for the world’s best pianists.

The competition held in Fort Worth, Texas, ended on June 18 with Yunchan Lim becoming the competition’s youngest winner of the gold medal.

His winnings include a cash award of $100,000 and three years of career management.

The silver medalist was Anna Geniushene, a 31-year-old from Russia, and Dmytro Choni, a 28-year-old from Ukraine, took the bronze medal.

Lim told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that he’ll discuss with his teacher what the next move for his career should be.

“I am still a student and I feel like I have to learn a lot still,” Lim said. “This is a great competition and I feel the burden of receiving this great honor and award so I will just push myself to live up to the honor I received today.”

The competition was founded in 1962 in honor of the celebrated pianist Van Cliburn, who lived in Fort Worth. Cliburn, who died in 2013 at age 78, played for U.S. presidents, royalty and heads of state around the world. He is best remembered for winning the first International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow in 1958, at the height of the Cold War. The competition is traditionally held every four years. This year’s competition was originally scheduled for last year but was postponed due to the pandemic. 

Ralph Lauer/The Cliburn via AP

South Korean pianist is youngest winner of Van Cliburn International Competition

In this photo provided by The Cliburn, the winners of the 16th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, silver medalist Anne Geniushene, left, from Russia, gold medalist Yunchan Lim, from South Korea, and bronze medalist Dmytro Choni, from Ukraine pose for a group photo on June 18, following the final concerts at the Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth, Texas.

■ WORLD NEWS

Duterte’s daughter takes oath as Philippine vice president

AP Photo/Manman Dejeto

By JIM GOMEZ ASSOCIATED PRESS

Philippine Vice President-elect Sara Duterte, left, the daughter of outgoing populist president of the Philippines, is greeted by incoming Philippine President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. after oath-taking rites in her hometown in Davao city, southern Philippines on June 19. Duterte clinched a landslide electoral victory despite her father's human rights record that saw thousands of drug suspects gunned down.

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Sara Duterte, the daughter of the outgoing populist president of the Philippines, took her oath on June 19 as vice president following a landslide electoral victory she clinched despite her father’s human rights record that saw thousands of drug suspects gunned down.

The inauguration in their southern hometown of Davao, where she’s the outgoing mayor, comes two weeks before she assumes office on June 30 as specified in the Philippine Constitution. President-elect Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Duterte’s running mate, will take his oath in Manila on June 30.

“I’m not the best or the most intelligent person in the Philippines and the world but nobody can beat the tough-

ness of my heart as a Filipino,” Duterte, who wore a green traditional gown, said in a speech after she took her oath before a Supreme Court associate justice, her hand resting on a Bible held by her mother.

“The voice of 32.2 million Filipinos was loud and clear—with the message to serve our motherland,” Duterte said, referring to the votes she got, to an applause from thousands of supporters.

Fondly called by supporters as “Inday Sara,” the mother of three called for national unity and devotion to God and asked Filipinos to emulate the patriotism of the country’s national hero Jose Rizal. She cited long standing social ills facing Filipino children, including poverty, broken families, illegal see DUTERTE on 13

YOUR VOICE

■ CONTEST

JUNE 25 – JULY 1, 2022

asianweekly northwest

9

Presented by Northwest Asian Weekly & Seattle Chinese Post

AAPI HERITAGE MONTH

video & photo contest CONTESTANT #3 My family celebrated Asian American Pacific Heritage month by making dumplings. It was a lot of fun and they were really yummy!

CONTESTANT #1 We celebrate two festivals during the year, Lunar New Year and Mid-Autumn Festival. During the festival, the whole family gather together in the yard for delicious foods and fruits. We decorate our yard with traditional lanterns and display mooncakes to enjoy the beautiful full moon.

CONTESTANT #2 I love learning Chinese and exploring Asian culture. 这是汉服 CONTESTANT #4 These are some photos I took when our class celebrated Asian culture and traditions.

We learned many things, made some pretty art, and ate some delicious food.

CONTESTANT #5 This is my friend pouring tea when my Chinese class celebrated AAPI heritage month.

CONTESTANT #6 I took this picture while we celebrated AAPI heritage month.

CONTESTANT #7 Making mini origami lanterns and cranes in honoring the craft and skill that was developed by the people in Japan.

CONTESTANT #11 China table from“Heritage Night”event in Seattle Country Day School on April 27, 2022.

SPONSORED BY

CONTESTANT #9 Our family has heritage of MalaysianChinese and Malaysian-Kadazandusun.

Picture taken during Cultural Heritage Night at our daughter’s school.

(Parents were wearing Kadazandusun traditional costumes, while kids were wearing Cheongsam and Changshan)

CONTESTANT #8 Growing up, I took for granted all the Chinese buns my parents would pick up from the local Chinese bakery, still warm from the oven. Now that I live 30 minutes away from the closest bakery, I wanted to give my half-Chinese daughters that same memory by learning to bake fresh pineapple bun (“bolo bao”) right in our home kitchen.

CONTESTANT #12 India table from“Heritage Night”event in Seattle Country Day School on April 27, 2022.

CONTESTANT #13 Taiwan table from“Heritage Night” event in Seattle Country Day School on April 27, 2022

CONTESTANT #10 Students in Seattle Country Day School were learning how to distinguish wheat noodles from rice noodles through observing noodle packages from a variety of Asian countries and areas: Thailand, South Korea, Japan, China, Taiwan, and Hawaii.

VOTING DEADLINE:

JULY 4, 2022

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WINNERS AND PRIZES WILL BE ANNOUNCED JULY 14.

ELLEN FERGUSON

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asianweekly northwest

40 YEARS

JUNE 25 – JULY 1, 2022

■ PUBLISHER’S BLOG COVID ISN’T OVER

We still have to protect ourselves When Covid-19 erupted into Washington state in 2020, I wondered with anxiety, “Will I get it?” After 26 months, the question remains. But the difference is, I am no longer anxious or afraid…even though someone in my orbit did get Covid.

Is it because of the vaccines and medicine curing Covid? Is it because of low death rates, as well as hospitalization rates? Does it have to do with those who got Covid, only having mild symptoms? All of the above. However, the most important lesson I learned during the last two years is from Americans who didn’t prioritize their health, and hence, died from Covid.

It’s hard for me to fathom why so many are anti-vaccine. Without health and vitality, you can do nothing.

Without health, you can’t fulfill your dreams, you can’t make wise decisions, you can’t take care of yourself or your loved ones.

Before Covid, I understood the significance of my health only in theory. I didn’t do everything to support a healthy body. My mind was so stressed and my body so exhausted and depleted even after I took a trip to South America to recharge. It didn’t help much.

The goal I set during Covid was to regain my health. What does a healthy mind and body entail? Exercise, sleep, rest, hydration, and good nutrition.

Accomplished in all five areas, I feel a monumental difference in my mind and body in 2020 and now. It’s as if I have a totally different body and mindset.

I feel wholesome now, physically and mentally.

Covid doesn’t scare me now. We all have to evaluate what we should do to enhance our overall health and I did.

Covid will last for a while. People who are in my circle got infected with Covid, including two employees, my friends, and loved ones, but their symptoms were mild and they have since recovered. Just take a look at Covid-19 rates. It’s still high, although hospitalization is down compared to last year. It doesn’t matter what age group you are in, the virus doesn’t discriminate. They attack and infect you anytime and anywhere. What’s worse, most people got infected and had few clues how and where they got it. The symptoms don’t appear immediately, which means they could infect other people before symptoms arrive.

Restaurants are crowded. No one checks proof of vaccination cards or negative testing anymore. Airlines and the airports are often packed. People are not wearing their masks. The public environment is more dangerous than in 2021. But temptations keep invading us, telling us to go out in crowded areas, eat in congested places, and doing things we know will pose risks to make up for what we have lost in 2020 and 2021. What do we do now?

VITAMIN C OR SALT WATER Always have vitamin C at home. A constant ally, it boosts your immunity.

Sometimes, I take it with me when I go out. Not taking chances is a valuable practice. There were times when I came home with my head heavy, and I didn’t feel well. After taking vitamin C, I would stay home until the next day. Make sure you sleep well that night. Rest well. A good night’s sleep is the body’s best defense.

If you don’t have vitamin C, rinse your mouth with salt water. Covid tends to stay around your throat and nose as you breathe in the air. Salt water kills germs and to some extent the virus. Don’t wait until the next day.

After you rinse with salt, rinse out your mouth with fresh water so you don’t get cavities.

Some of my relatives are more paranoid. They instantly wash the clothes they wear after they go out every time. Then they take a shower to make sure the potential virus is washed out.

Photo by Assunta Ng

AVOID CROWDS

use Covid as an incentive to reset SLOW DOWN your health! I did. In fact, it was the In contrast to 2020, when everything best gift Covid could have given me. on my calendar was canceled, now, Living longer shouldn’t be the goal; it has been filling up fast with many living longer with a full life, no pain or events, including dining out. Now that sickness should. most businesses have reopened and If you need to lose weight, do it events are in full swing, we are tempted now. Exercise and eat less, especially carbohydrates and sugar. Better yet, cut out sugar completely. It’s hard the first few days, but it will get easier as time goes by.

You may even train your taste buds to taste food with less sweetness. If you need a substitute to replace sweets, have a bowl of your favorite soup instead. Soup is filling and satisfying.

It will decrease your From top left: Boiled purple yam, onions stir-fried with shrimp with garlic and ginger; vegetables with bone broth, garlic, and ginger; craving. Start now, and stir-fried three kinds of mushrooms with garlic and ginger it’s not too late. to enjoy and participate in everything.

Eat healthy. Try a plant-based diet Pick and choose, don’t overdo it or be and eat less meat. Eat more seafood ingreedy. No need to do it all at once. stead. I recently prepared boiled purI try to limit myself to two events a ple yam; onions stir-fried with shrimp week. At most, three. The reasonable thing to do is to reschedule. Think of it this way, we have been waiting for over two years to play or have fun enjoying activities we want. What’s one more week of waiting!

Photo by Assunta Ng

Here are what I do to ensure my safety and protect my health:

In masks, Lisa An performs with other violinists for Korean Music Association concert at Benaroya Hall on June 12

For the last two years, I took only one trip, despite my love for travel. If a restaurant is packed, I cut my visit short or choose another restaurant.

I prefer venues like the Seattle Symphony Orchestra at the Benaroya Hall, which still checks vaccine cards or negative testing, and requires masks.

Father’s Day was a popular day for restaurants. We arranged with our son to celebrate Father’s Day in a restaurant the following week instead of the actual day, so we could avoid crowds.

WATCH YOUR DIET During the earliest part of Covid, people with pre-existing conditions such as obesity and diabetes were at great risk, and still are. Why not

with garlic and ginger; boiled two kinds of vegetables with bone broth, garlic, and ginger; and stir-fried three kinds of mushrooms with garlic and ginger.That’s our dinner.

Whatever I cook, ginger and garlic are necessary ingredients to add immunity to my body. They are my essential ingredients every day as they have anti-inflammatory properties.

MASK UP In many events, I am the rare creature with a mask on. I don’t worry what people think. I couldn’t care less if they say I am weird. It’s not that I am afraid to get sick, it’s the consequence of affecting the publications of both Northwest Asian Weekly and Seattle Chinese Post. Nor do I want to burden anyone in my family.

I have seen people make one tiny mistake and they can get seriously ill.

So wearing a mask is worth it.

NEW HABITS Whenever I meet with strangers now, they often extend their hand. What

Photo by Assunta Ng

By Assunta Ng NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

Prepping ginger and garlic

see BLOG on 16

JUNE 25 – JULY 1, 2022

YOUR VOICE

■ LETTER

asianweekly northwest

11

Latest transportation project in CID feels like a land grab LETTER TO SOUND TRANSIT, SEATTLE CITY COUNCIL

By Bettie Luke MULTICULTURAL/ DIVERSITY TRAINER FOR EDUCATION AND BUSINESS In my previous letter regarding Transit plans in the Seattle Chinatown-International District (CID), I made a recommendation which I want to amend. I initially thought Sound Transit’s 4th Avenue option would work, but after much thought and research, I oppose any kind of encroachment to the CID. The CID is the last remaining ethnic neighborhood in Seattle and the cultural home to the Asian community. Any transit plans in CID would be exceedingly damaging to this historic neighborhood.

Past years of intrusive encroachment into the CID have shared a common undercurrent of racial disregard for our people, resulting in loss of land use and increased safety issues.

I am 80 years old and a diversity trainer who has conducted training in 36 different states across the nation. Born and raised in Seattle, I am Chinese American. I have walked along the streets of Chinatowns for eight decades and witnessed repeated destructive changes in both the old Chinatown and the CID. I can recall memories of playing in a building in the old Chinatown when it was located near the waterfront on 4th Avenue South and South Washington Street. The city of Seattle and transit projects have steadily encroached upon the CID in six major disruptive ways in my memory.

1) The 2nd Avenue Access road was cut through to gain quicker access from downtown to the Train Station. That road helped dismantle the old Chinatown neighborhood. We lost our location.

Chinatown then moved southeast about a half mile and built in the current blocks— the CID, now affected by the new transit plans.

2) We lost CID land when construction of I-5 cut through the eastern half of the CID, destroying blocks of businesses and housing and bringing heavy, neverending car fume pollution. Air quality was intensely impacted for residents, workers, and visitors. This heavy and harmful encroachment currently continues non-stop day and night.

3) We lost CID land when the Kingdome was built. This stadium dismantled a swath of affordable housing for Asian elders and brought constant sport event traffic to the CID. With the additional stadiums built, encroachment of traffic and air pollution enormously increased.

These two stadiums do not bring people to eat and shop in the CID. Instead, the CID is used as a parking lot! Additional loss to CID businesses results from folks who are not sports fans, but want to eat or shop in the CID, skipping the trip because they cannot find parking.

4) A few years ago, a rail was installed down 8th Avenue South from Jackson Street to Dearborn Avenue so buses could travel to the bus barn off Dearborn Avenue. The metal rails and the traffic create safety and walking issues. There are elder housing units and health service clinics on both sides of that rail in the street. I walk with a walking stick and every time I cross that section of 8th Avenue, I have to step carefully, so I do not fall. Further loss to the CID was when 8th Avenue South became a one-way street, resulting in the loss of the 8th Avenue South entry street into the CID from Dearborn.

5) The Navigation Center was established in a building on 12th Avenue South and South Weller Street, with no notice, no neighborhood input, and became housing for the homeless who face greater obstacles (mental health, addiction). This risky imposition sounds like institutional racism to me. The Navigation Center brought a new set of people who were not associated nor interested in business and community in the CID. Immediately, safety issues became an increasing and continuing problem to the elders, community organizations, businesses, and visitors wanting to eat and shop in the CID. 6) The 12th Avenue South and South Jackson Street intersection in the northeast corner of CID has a bus stop in each corner. Day and night, buses crisscross in all directions, bringing constant pollution, gas fumes, safety and walking issues as an unending encroachment.

Furthermore, a rail system was installed on Jackson Street down the length of CID, creating traffic density and additional walking and driving dangers.

This is another street where I worry about tripping on the rails.

It is interesting to note that in the early days, restrictive covenants, red lining, and discriminatory practices restricted Asians to the CID, as the only place we could live. After all the years we have embraced the CID as our home base and center of culture, we now are faced with new threats of outside interests wanting to take away our land and impact our community.

Both 4th and 5th Avenue proposals feel like a land grab. These choices would destroy as many as 21 CID businesses, plus loss of buildings, jobs, residents, and patrons. The prolonged 10-year construction would create constant obstacles to restaurants, shops, businesses, events, and organizations.

Not only would many small businesses be lost, but the bigger businesses that stay in the district would have unseen and increasing loss from people avoiding the area because eating, visiting, and shopping would be hampered by 10 years of constant construction noise, vibration,

These encroachments would not happen to a white neighborhood! dust and detours, and parking problems. The CID cannot survive and thrive under these conditions.

Extensive reports were prepared by the Wing Luke Museum and Uwajimaya, detailing the great harm to their organizations.

Reflecting upon the earlier six encroachments, I see that each major action contained an element of institutional racism, where decisions were made for mainstream gain and our community getting no gain but paying the price in safety and health. Worse, all combined, past encroachments have created a situation of serious environmental racism, where our neighborhood is subjected to intense and never-ending concentrations of toxic fumes. The CID is literally boxed in on all sides with constant heavy traffic— Jackson Street on the north, I-5 on the east, the two stadiums on the south, and the train station and underground transit system on the west side. The CID cannot escape the unrelenting toxic airways.

These proposed CID encroachments would not be planned in the downtown district or Pioneer Square—that would destroy so many buildings and businesses.

These encroachments would not happen to a white neighborhood!

I noticed that a “Race and Equity Tool Kit” was listed in the Sound Transit report.

More than any other part of the overall Transit plans, the CID plans needed the application of this Tool Kit. However, I

wonder if the Tool Kit is listed in the report as a mere formality and implication that it was considered. I found no evidence that it was actually used.

It is an act of systemic racism if the Tool Kit was not actively, honestly, and realistically applied.

If the Race and Equity Tool Kit was truly used, I believe it would have concluded that the plans would be a catastrophe for the CID. The report cites it “would not impact neighborhood cohesion.” What kind of lame non-benefit is that? In fact, our community has a stronger unity in our opposition to this project.

These plans are the worst encroachment of the CID that I have ever seen in my 80 years.

All proposed options should be thrown out.

Our neighborhood should be a TRANSIT STOP on the line, not a transit staging center to send people to other parts of the city.

Every encroachment into the CID has NOT been for our benefit. We end up paying the price of safety, health endangerment, and economic loss. Even if it was unintentional or unconscious, every encroachment has contained some form of mainstream racism—systemic racism, institutional racism, economic racism, and/ or environmental racism.

ENOUGH! Do not inflict another landgrabbing and exploitive encroachment on our neighborhood! The most sane and humane choice is NO Transit plans in the CID. 

KING COUNTY, WASHINGTON NOTICE TO PROPOSERS Proposals will be received for KC000435, Engineering Services for Taxiway A4 and A11 Rehabilitation and Reconstruction; by King County Procurement and Payables Section until 12:00 PM on 07/13/2022.

This contract is funded by the Federal Aviation Administration.

There is a 20% minimum requirement for Washington State Office of Minority and Women’s Business Enterprises Certified Federal Small Business Enterprise (SBE) firms on this contract.

Total Estimated Price: $ 200,000 King County, in accordance with the provisions of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (78 Stat. 252, 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000d to 2000d-4) and the Regulations, hereby notifies all Proposers that it will affirmatively ensure that any contract entered into pursuant to this advertisement, disadvantaged business enterprises will be afforded full and fair opportunity to submit proposals in response to this invitation and will not be discriminated against on the grounds of race, color, or national origin in consideration for an award.

Prospective proposers can view more details at: https:// kingcounty.gov/procurement/solicitations Contact: Debbie Hall, debhall@kingcounty.gov, 206-263.7873

12

asianweekly northwest

JUNE 25 – JULY 1, 2022

40 YEARS

■ NATIONAL NEWS

Nguyen to face Raffensperger for Georgia secretary of state

By JEFF AMY and KATE BRUMBACK ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia Democrats chose state Rep. Bee Nguyen as their nominee for secretary of state, a position that assumed new importance after former President Donald Trump cast doubt on Georgia’s 2020 election results by making false claims of widespread voter fraud.

Nguyen defeated former state Rep. Dee Dawkins-Haigler in the primary runoff on June 21 and is set to challenge Republican incumbent Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger in November’s general election. The significance of the position was highlighted by Raffensperger’s appearance as a witness the same day before the U.S. House Jan. 6 committee.

“For the first time in our state’s history, an Asian American woman is going to be a nominee on a statewide ticket,” Nguyen, the daughter of Vietnamese immigrants, told supporters. “The question that I’ve been asked as I’ve been on this campaign trail for 14 months has been, ‘Will Georgians vote for an Asian candidate?’ The answer is yes, Georgians will.”

Meanwhile, Republicans had no statewide runoffs but were voting in four congressional races. Trump had endorsed candidates in two of those races and both were defeated.

In the 10th Congressional District east of Atlanta, trucking company owner Mike Collins beat former Democrat Vernon Jones, who had been endorsed by Trump,

Rep. Bee Nguyen

in a runoff to become the Republican nominee. Collins, the son of former congressman Mac Collins, was narrowly the frontrunner in the eight-candidate May primary, while Trump’s endorsement helped push Jones into second place.

In the 6th District in Atlanta’s northern suburbs, emergency room physician Rich McCormick held off Trump-backed lawyer Jake Evans. That race has revolved around accusations by each candidate that the other was insufficiently conservative.

The secretary of state’s race was the most high-profile of four Democratic statewide runoffs, with nominees also being selected for lieutenant governor, labor commissioner

and insurance commissioner.

Trump targeted Raffensperger after the 2020 general election for failing to overturn his narrow loss in the state.

Raffensperger—who won the praise of some Democrats for refusing to bend to pressure from the former president— dispatched a challenge from a Trumpendorsed primary challenger without being forced into a runoff.

With Trump and his allies pushing false claims of widespread voter fraud in Georgia, Nguyen highlighted her work in the General Assembly to debunk false narratives and stand up for voting rights.

“We will remind Georgians that Brad Raffensperger ain’t our friend and we deserve better,” Nguyen told supporters.

“We deserve a secretary of state who will uphold the law and protect our freedom to vote. We can have both, y’all.”

She has served in the state House since winning a 2017 special election to succeed Stacey Abrams in a district that includes parts of the city of Atlanta and is vice chair of the state Democratic Party. Abrams, who endorsed Nguyen in the runoff, is seeking the Democratic nomination for governor after narrowly losing the election to Republican Gov. Brian Kemp in 2018.

A statement from Nguyen’s campaign included comments from many of the state’s top Democrats touting her strengths.

Abrams said Nguyen is “a lifelong advocate for the people of Georgia, and her work on the front lines to protect our democracy

and the freedom to vote exemplifies the courage and tenacity needed in our next Secretary of State.”

Dawkins-Haigler called the Democratic primary campaign “spirited” but said her low fundraising haul and lack of party backing stacked the deck against her in the runoff.

“However, we still ran a race full of integrity, and now that it’s over I’m going to make sure that the Democrats still try to win in November,” she said in a phone interview.

There were few policy differences between Nguyen and Dawkins-Haigler with both stressing the need to increase voter education and work more closely with local election boards to ensure universal access to free, fair and secure elections. They both also said Raffensperger is no election hero, targeting his endorsement of a sweeping election overhaul passed last year by Republican state lawmakers.

In southwest Georgia’s 2nd Congressional District, Republicans have high hopes of knocking off 30-year Democratic incumbent Rep. Sanford Bishop. GOP voters chose real estate developer Chris West over former Army officer Jeremy Hunt in that race.

In the other statewide Democratic races, Charlie Bailey beat Kwanza Hall for lieutenant governor, William Boddie defeated Nicole Horn for labor commissioner, and Janice Laws Robinson bested Raphael Baker for insurance commissioner. 

■ ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

At 88, an undiscovered painter makes his museum debut at Wing Luke

By Margo Vansynghel CROSSCUT.COM Republished with permission On a cold, January afternoon in 2019, curator and art consultant Lele Barnett walked into a stately brick house in Edmonds and discovered what must have been one of the largest stashes of art she had ever seen: hundreds of paintings, calligraphy drawings and sketches stacked on top of each other, hanging on the walls, lying in flat filing cabinets—all made over the past 40 years by Victor Kai Wang.

“It was like stumbling upon buried treasure,” Barnett recalls.

With her decades of experience placing art in private and corporate collections, she could easily imagine some of these swirling, semiabstract landscape paintings on the walls of a major museum. But most of the works had never left Wang’s home.

When Wang arrived in the U.S. from China in 1980, he faced challenging years as a newcomer.

But art proved a respite, says Barnett, who spoke extensively with Wang and his children about his experience.

She sees a similar “reorientation

to joy” in the work of the others featured in this show: Seattle artist Tuan Nguyen, who fled Vietnam with his parents; Jean Isamu Nagai, a Japanese American born in Washington state and now based in Los Angeles; and Guyana-born, Denver-based

Suchitra Mattai, whose art often explores the journey of her Indian ancestors, who worked as indentured laborers on sugar plantations in colonial Guyana.

“All of these artists felt disoriented,” Barnett says, explaining the title of the show, “being in this new surrounding or trying to fit in with these other kids—and then [found] art to help them reorient themselves.”

Nguyen’s surreal wallhangings, Mattai’s fabric installations and Nagai’s pointillist paintings have been exhibited relatively widely. But even the most in-the-know art connoisseurs have probably never heard of Victor Kai Wang. Until early 2019, neither had Barnett.

Wang doesn’t have a website, and barely any internet presence at all. But an email from Wang’s sons had piqued her curiosity.

At his Edmonds home, when she flipped through his paintings—

some up to 5-by-7 feet—Barnett’s jaw dropped. Amid the imagery, she could discern the “scholar’s rocks,” towering mountains, jagged cliffs and waterfalls of the traditional Chinese paintings she grew up with in her own Chinese American household. But Wang had taken these elements further into abstraction.

Painted with marking-pen ink on paper traditionally used to print photos, the dark green of the forests blotted out like a Rorschach test. White waterfalls flowed with negative space and rocks appeared weathered into cragged strata. The shapes of semidiscernible natural elements looked swirled and wrung out, much like Francis Bacon’s tortured portraits. Wang’s unique technique lent the works an ethereal but immediate, highly contemporary quality. see WANG on 16

JUNE 25 – JULY 1, 2022

YOUR VOICE

■ ASTROLOGY

asianweekly northwest

13

Predictions and advice for the week of June 25–July 1, 2022

By Sun Lee Chang Rat—Things have changed a bit since your last go around. Take the time to familiarize yourself with the new rules.

Dragon—There is a difference between giving advice and taking over. Avoid crossing the line from one to the other.

Monkey—Look beyond the label to see if there is anything of substance. You may be surprised at what you find.

Ox—Instead of questioning why you were invited to the party, focus your energy on getting the most out of the experience.

Snake—While others turn away, you have the courage to open your eyes and see the truth for what it is.

Rooster—Instead of tackling the whole puzzle all at once, start with the pieces that fit first and go from there.

Tiger—Beginning anew might sound intimidating at first, but it is also an opportunity to break out of a rut.

Horse—You aren’t afraid of a little hard work, which mixed with a little luck, is a recipe for success.

Dog—Has there been some excitement this week regarding an unusual event? The dust should settle in a few days.

Rabbit —A chance for a pause may be a blessing in disguise, helping you to regroup and be even more effective.

Goat—Are you hanging on too tight? Letting go can be difficult at first, but also quite freeing.

Pig—Based on your observations, there is a trend that is emerging. However, don’t jump on board just yet.

WHAT’S YOUR ANIMAL SIGN? RAT 1912, 1924, 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008, 2020 OX 1913, 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, 2009, 2021 TIGER 1914, 1926, 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998, 2010, 2022 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, 2018 PIG 1923, 1935, 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007, 2019

*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.

DUTERTE from 8 drugs, bullying and online misinformation and asked parents to ingrain in them the values of integrity, discipline, respect for others and compassion.

President Rodrigo Duterte, 77, led the VIPs in the heavily guarded ceremony at a public square near city hall in the port city of Davao, where he had also served as a longtime mayor starting in the late 1980s. His family, hailing from modest middle-class background, built a formidable political dynasty in the restive southern region long troubled by communist and Muslim insurgencies and violent political rivalries.

Duterte’s presidency has been marked by a brutal anti-drugs campaign that has left thousands of mostly petty suspects shot dead by police or vigilantes. The drug killings are being investigated by the International Criminal Court as a possible crime against humanity.

The electoral triumph of Sara Duterte

KAWASE from 7 organizing committee following offthe-cuff remarks that women talk too much, which leads to long meetings.

“If you get that close with faces, there are moments in people’s expressions, even in the tiniest movements of their eyes, when you see through what they are really thinking,“ Kawase said.

Mori was replaced by a woman, politician and former Olympic

and Marcos Jr. has alarmed left-wing and human rights groups because of their failure to acknowledge the massive human rights atrocities that took place under their fathers, including late dictator Ferdinand Marcos.

Marcos Jr. and Sara Duterte campaigned on a vague platform of national unity, without clearly addressing activists’ calls for them to take steps to prosecute the elder Duterte when he retires from politics.

One of the president’s sons, Sebastian Duterte, will succeed his sister as Davao mayor, and another son, Paolo Duterte, won a seat in the House of Representatives in the May 9 elections. The outgoing president’s late father was a former Davao governor.

Philippine elections have long been dominated by politicians belonging to the same bloodlines. At least 250 political families have monopolized power across the country, although such dynasties are prohibited under the constitution. Congress—long controlled by members of powerful clans

bronze medalist Seiko Hashimoto.

Other women were also added to the organizing committee leadership after Mori’s resignation.

They are seen in the films.

“It’s becoming very clear now that there are many aspects of Japanese society that need to change,“ Kawase said. “When society works as a larger system, what is truly precious gets overlooked, and what happens becomes so superficial.” 

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targeted by the constitutional ban—has failed to pass the law needed to define and enforce the provision.

While Sara Duterte, 44, refused calls by her father and supporters to seek the presidency, she has not ruled out a future run. She topped pre-elections surveys for the president last year and won with a huge margin like Marcos Jr. Aside from the vice president, she has agreed to serve as education secretary, although there were talks that her initial preference was to head the Department of National Defense, a traditional springboard to the presidency.

Still, the education portfolio would provide her first national political platform, especially with plans to resume physical classes soon after the country was hit hard by two years of coronavirus pandemic outbreaks and lockdowns.

She thanked her Davao supporters and said she decided to hold her inauguration in one of the country’s most developed cities to show her pride as a southern provincial

politician who rose to a top national post.

Duterte finished a medical course and originally wanted to become a doctor but later took up law and was prevailed upon to enter politics starting in 2007, when she was elected as Davao vice mayor and mayor three years later.

In 2011, she drew national attention when she was caught on video punching and assaulting a court sheriff who was helping lead a police demolition of a shanty community despite her plea for a brief deferment. The court official sustained a black eye and face injuries and was taken by her bodyguards to a hospital.

Despite her public feuds with her father, Sara Duterte had her hair shaved a year before the 2016 elections as a show of support for his candidacy.

He won the single six-year mandate by a huge margin on an audacious but failed promise to eradicate illegal drugs and corruption in three to six months, and constant public threats to kill drug dealers. 

KING COUNTY, WASHINGTON NOTICE TO PROPOSERS Proposals will be received for KC000600, ARCHITECTURAL AND ENGINEERING SERVICES FOR CEDAR HILLS INTERIM FACILITY OFF-SITE RELOCATION; by King County Procurement and Payables Section until 12:00 PM on 07/13/22.

This contract includes development and submittal of an Equity and Social Justice (ESJ) Innovation Plan. The ESJ Innovation Plan details the approach, strategies, and actionable steps that will be taken to maximize the participation of Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) and Women Business Enterprise (WBE) firms. Both MBE and WBE firms must be certified by the State of Washington Office of Minority and Women’s Business Enterprises.

Total Estimated Price: $400,000 Prospective proposers can view more details at: https://kingcounty. gov/procurement/solicitations Contact: John Kim, johkim@kingcounty.gov, 206-263-5825

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INVESTIGATION from 1 prosecutor U.S. Attorney Byung “BJay” Pak who found no evidence to support false claims of voter fraud in Georgia and resigned under pressure from former President Donald Trump, testified in front of the committee.

He said claims made by the former president’s attorney Rudy Giuliani were “false” and that his replacement also found no evidence to support numerous claims seeking to undermine Georgia's election results.

The main claims made by Giuliani baselessly alleged that “suitcases of ballots” were illegally counted in Fulton County at State Farm Arena, and that election workers intentionally scanned batches of ballots multiple times to alter the election results.

CHIN from 1 The Vincent Chin 40th Remembrance & Rededication commemoration started on June 16.

It comes as crimes against people of Asian and Pacific Islander descent have increased, fueled in part by the COVID-19 pandemic. Some in the U.S. say bigots have been emboldened by then-President Donald Trump, who often disparagingly referred to the virus as the “Chinese virus.”

“This recent spike of anti-Asian violence because of COVID and antiChina rhetoric deals with geopolitical things,” Mark said. “The rhetoric is: China is the boogeyman.”

From March 19, 2020, through the end of last year, people of Asian and Pacific Islander descent reported 10,905 incidents—from taunting to outright assaults, according to Stop AAPI Hate, a national coalition based in California.

The Justice Department said that in 2020, more than 8,000 single-bias incidents involved 11,126 victims—up from 7,103 incidents the previous year.

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Pak said then-Attorney General William Barr asked him to investigate the claims before Barr might have to discuss it at the White House.

“We found that the suitcase full of ballots, the alleged black suitcase that was being seen pulled from under the table, was actually in an official lockbox where ballots were kept safe,” he said. “Unfortunately, during a Senate hearing, Mr. Giuliani only played a clip that showed them pulling out the official ballot box from under the table and referring to that as a smoking gun of fraud in Fulton County. But in actuality, in review of the entire video, it showed that that was actually an official ballot box that was kept underneath the tables.”

Giuliani’s claims were almost instantly debunked by elections officials who explained that nothing illegal or

Bias over race, ethnicity and ancestry was behind nearly 62% of the incidents.

President Joe Biden last year signed the bipartisan COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act, which expedited Justice Department reviews of anti-Asian hate crimes. His administration has spent recent weeks in meetings with Asian American leaders to discuss the violence. K-pop sensation BTS visited the White House last month to speak with Biden about combating the rise in hate crimes targeting Asian Americans.

Helen Zia, an activist in Detroit at the time Chin was slain and now executor of an estate named after Chin and his mother, Lily, said anti-Asian racism that was going on in the 1980s is similar to what is happening today.

“This is a common thread for the history of Asians in America whether it’s an economic crisis or somebody to blame for the World Trade Center being destroyed: It’s Asians, yellow and brown people that have historically been scapegoated and blamed for these things,” she said.

“It goes to a threat that is more than a

couple of hundred years old—blaming a group that is seen as the foreverenemy alien.”

To the horror of Zia and many others, neither of the two men accused of beating Chin received any jail time. Ronald Ebens pleaded guilty to manslaughter, while his stepson, Michael Nitz, pleaded no contest.

Each was sentenced to three years’ probation and fined $3,700.

“These men are not going to go out and harm somebody else,” Wayne County Circuit Judge Charles Kaufman, who has since died, explained at the time. “You don’t make the punishment fit the crime; you make the punishment fit the criminal.”

The declaration shocked many.

“The sentence put a target on every Asian American’s head,” said Zia, who is now an author living in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Ebens and Nitz also were later acquitted of federal civil rights charges.

Federal prosecutors had said Ebens blamed people of Asian descent for problems in the U.S. auto industry, and killed Chin because of his race. The

untoward was happening—something an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Georgia Bureau of Investigation, and others concluded as well.

Pak’s testimony came in a day that painted a picture that most of Trump’s advisers and confidants knew the election was not stolen and that many claims Trump promoted were false, yet Trump seemed to ignore those advisers in favor of people like Giuliani and attorney Sidney Powell, who now both face lawsuits over false claims they made about voting machines and election results after 2020.

Georgia has played a prominent role in the Jan. 6 committee process so far, with Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and his top deputy slated to testify in a future hearing. 

defense admitted Ebens killed Chin, but said he was drunk and had been provoked.

The Associated Press was unable to reach Nitz for comment. A voicemail message was left at a telephone number listed for Ebens.

“There was a full expectation (Ebens and Nitz) would receive the full wrath of the criminal justice system,” Zia said. “I think the family—people— thought the justice system was going to work.” 

SOLUTION from SUDOKU on page 6.

YOUR VOICE SOUND TRANSIT from 1 those efforts. As a result, Luke wrote, “The most sane and humane choice is NO transit plans in the CID.” Luke said she had made a previous recommendation that she Bettie Luke now wanted to amend.

“I initially thought ST’s Fourth Avenue option would work, but after much thought and research, I oppose any kind of encroachment on the CID,” she wrote.

(See the full letter on page 11).

A CENTURY OF ENCROACHMENTS The harms inflicted on the Asian community stretch over its entire history, yet today, it constitutes “the last remaining ethnic neighborhood,” Luke wrote.

“Any Transit plans in the CID would be exceedingly damaging to this historic neighborhood. Past years of intrusive encroachment into the CID have shared a common undercurrent of racial disregard for our people, resulting in loss of land use and increased safety issues.”

Luke is the sister of the late Wing Luke, who was assistant attorney general for the state of Washington and later became the first person of color elected to the Seattle City Council. Recalling memories of her childhood in a Chinatown that no longer exists due to transportation projects of the time, Bettie Luke listed the cataclysmic encroachments that the Asian American community has had to endure.

“The Second Avenue access road was cut through to gain quicker access from downtown to the train station. That road helped dismantle the old Chinatown neighborhood. We lost our location.

Chinatown then moved southeast about a half-mile and built in the current blocks— the CID, which is now affected by the new transit plans,” she wrote.

The next encroachment was the construction of the interstate freeway which bisected the neighborhood and brought about choking fogs of exhaust from the freeway and other traffic.

“We lost CID land when construction of I-5 cut through the eastern half of the CID, destroying blocks of businesses and housing and bringing heavy, neverending car fume pollution. Air quality was intensely impacted for residents, workers, and visitors in the CID. This heavy and harmful encroachment currently continues non-stop day and night,” she wrote.

The third assault was the construction of the Kingdome in the 1970s.

“We lost CID land when the Kingdome was built. This stadium dismantled a swath of affordable housing for Asian elders and brought constant sport event traffic to the CID,” she wrote. “With the additional stadiums built, encroachment of traffic and air pollution enormously increased. These two stadiums do not bring people to eat and shop in the CID. Instead, the CID is used as a parking lot!”

The result, she added, is that the CID suffers as stadium-goers use up parking spaces needed for business.

“Additional loss to CID businesses results because folks who are not sports fans, but want to eat or shop in the CID, skipping the trip because they cannot find parking,” she wrote.

What followed were the construction of rail lines and the establishment of bus stops on every corner of the northeast side of the neighborhood.

A further loss to the CID was that Eighth Avenue South became a one-way street, meaning it could no longer be used as an entry street into the district.

And then the city built the Navigation Center in the CID—swamping the

JUNE 25 – JULY 1, 2022 neighborhood with people experiencing homelessness.

“With no notice, no neighborhood input, it became housing for the homeless who face greater obstacles, such as mental health and addiction,” wrote Luke. “This risky imposition sounds like institutional racism to me.”

“Immediately, safety issues became an increasing and continuing problem to the elders, community organizations, businesses, and visitors wanting to eat and shop in the CID,” she wrote.

Finally, the northeast corner of the CID, 12th Avenue and South Jackson Street, has had a bus stop built on “every one of the four corners.”

“Day and night, buses crisscross in all directions, bringing more constant pollution, gas fumes, safety and walking issues as an unending encroachment,” she wrote.

Connie So, president of OCA Asian Pacific Advocates of Greater Seattle and a teaching professor in American Ethnic Studies at the University of Washington, on Connie So reading Luke’s letter added several events that served to magnify the understanding of the harm done to Asians in this region, while describing ST’s nod to the district’s culture as specious.

“ST describes the CID as a ‘hub of cultural importance for Seattle and its Asian American communities,’ but does not acknowledge the historical, systematic displacement and gentrification of the neighborhood by local government agencies,” she wrote.

So mentioned an 1886 riot that attacked and looted the homes of Chinese living here and forced them from the city.

She also referred to the incarceration of 120,000 Japanese and Japanese Americans during World War II in concentration camps. Their imprisonment was often used as a pretext by white supremacists to justify grabbing their lands.

SOUND TRANSIT: THE LATEST PREDATOR AGAINST PEOPLE OF COLOR? Luke said the CID was singled out because it was a community of color.

“These proposed CID encroachments would not be planned in the downtown district or Pioneer Square—that would destroy so many buildings and businesses.

These encroachments would not happen to a white neighborhood!” she wrote.

So said that ST treats white neighborhoods differently than those of color.

“There is a history of ST’s differential treatment between Black, Indigenous, and communities of color versus predominantly white neighborhoods. For example, when the Roosevelt community pushed and advocated for a below ground alternative, ST acquiesced. In contrast, South Seattle communities were not offered an alternative that addressed their concerns around retail and residential displacement, traffic congestions, and public safety. ST’s history of ignoring the concerns of communities of color continues to be seen in proposed segments for the CID regional station,” she wrote.

Luke emphasized that the current CID was for many years the only place Asians could live. Real estate brokers and neighborhood associations from the beginning of the 20th century found ways to write into their contracts that land in other parts of the city could not be sold to people of color, and in some cases, Jews.

Even when U.S. Supreme Court rulings overturned such “restrictive covenants” as illegal, brokers and communities found

ways to enforce them, such as threatening violence against the children of families of color if they moved into a white neighborhood. Real estate agents were also threatened with being blackballed if they sold houses to Blacks, Asians, or Jews.

“It is interesting to note that in the early days, restrictive covenants, red lining, and discriminatory practices restricted Asians to the CID, as the only place we could live. After all the years we have embraced the CID as our home base and center of culture, we now are faced with new threats of outside interests wanting to take away our land and impact our community,” wrote Luke.

Of the current options laid out by ST for the CID, Luke said both the Fourth and Fifth Avenue options would destroy as many as 21 CID businesses and engender the loss of jobs, residents, and patrons.

“The prolonged 10-year construction would create constant obstacles to restaurants, shops, businesses, events, and organizations,” she wrote. “The CID cannot survive and thrive under these conditions.”

asianweekly northwest

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“I implore each of you to make the bold and necessary decisions to retain and protect a vulnerable and diverse community as valuable as Jean Chen the Pike Place Market,” wrote Jean Chen, a retired Boeing continuous quality improvement consultant. “This would cement Seattle’s continuous reputation of supporting families and assisting local businesses to thrive.”

ST, contacted the day before press time, had not responded by press time.

However, according to Betty Lau, cofounder of Transit Equity for All (TEA), the city of Seattle has informed ST it needs to pause for six to nine months. 

“SYSTEMIC RACISM BULLS##T” Luke furthermore decried what she said was lip service given to a “Race and Equity Tool Kit” by ST. “I found no evidence that it was actually used,” she wrote. “It is an act of systemic racism if the Race and Equity Tool Kit was not actively, honestly, and realistically applied.”

If it had been used, “it would have concluded that the transit plans would be a catastrophe for the CID.” Al Young, the first Chinese American to become a nationally-recognized drag racing champion, as well as a lifetime educator, joined Luke in denouncing proposed Al Young routes of construction.

“This systemic racism bulls##t has to be called out,” he wrote. Both routes “are unacceptable.”

Young suggested running the construction through Pioneer Square, “a ‘historic neighborhood’ that is neither truly historic nor a neighborhood. What story does it really tell? And who really lives there?”

As for the CID, he said, it is “an American chronicle of tenacity, perseverance, and community.”

Others compared the threat to the CID as a possible foreshadow of what has already happened to the Black community.

“This reminds me of what happened to Seattle’s Central Area, a historically Black community that was a safe haven to Black Americans that were instrumental in building this country. It was always okay to build freeways and infrastructure in already vulnerable and marginalized and poorer communities. We all lose when we as a society don’t honor and respect our diverse communities. Are we going to continue this colonial legacy in the name of ‘progress?’” wrote community member Irmtraut Brielmaier.

Losing the CID would be as disastrous for the region as the loss of the Pike Place Market would have been decades ago, when development wanted to crush the tourist attraction and community advocacy saved it.

Lau also provided the community with action steps members could take: Stay up to date by viewing the TEA website: https://transitequityforall.org/ Make a two-minute public comment (half a typed page) at the June 23 Sound Transit Board meeting (https://www.soundtransit. org/get-to-know-us/news-events/calendar/ board-directors-meeting-2022-06-23) After commenting, email a copy of your remarks to emailtheboard@soundransit. og and council@seattle.gov with cc to Nicole.kistler@seattle.gov The board of ST is spread out over the region. Find friends, relatives, or colleagues to contact their representatives in: Everett (Mayor Cassie Franklin: cfranklin@everettwa.gov), Auburn (Mayor Nancy Backus: nbackus@auburnwa. gov), University Place (Kent Keel, ST Chair and UP City Council member: kkeel@cityofup.com), Renton (City Council member Ed Prince: eprince@ rentonwa,gov), Lynnwood (Mayor Christine Frizzell: mayor@lynnwoodwa. gov), Tacoma (City Councilmember Pos. 8 Kristina Walker: Kristina.walker@ cityoftacoma.org), Kenmore (Mayor David Baker: dbaker@kenmorewa.gov), and Fife (Mayor Kim Roscoe: kroscoe@ cityoffife.org).

Also contact Snohomish Executive Dave Somers: dave.somers@co.snohomish. wa.us and Pierce County Bruce Dammeir: https://www.piercecountywa.gov/ FormCenter/Executive-20/ExecutiveContact-Us-176.

Pick up SAVE the CID posters from the Chong Wa office for taping up in shop windows. Contact TEA for pick-up times.

Anyone may contact Sound Transit Board Member and Secretary of Transportation Roger Millar: https://wsdot.wa.gov/about/ contacts/send-us-your-feedback Mahlon can be contacted at info@nwasianweekly.com.

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40 YEARS

JUNE 25 – JULY 1, 2022

WANG from 12

Also reusing clothing is Seattle-based artist Tuan Nguyen, whose family fled the Vietnam War to the U.S. when he was a child. Eight tiger skins line the wall.

Instead of fur, these are made from T-shirts Nguyen has deconstructed and ripped apart, blotting them with bleach and ink.

“They’re about assimilation…. The kinds of skins that we wear,” Barnett explains.

Lining another wall are a series of sculptures made from wood panel, gesso, acrylic, driftwood and canvas. With dead branches sticking out and parts swaddled or patched together, the sculptures look like nests that might have been made by a velociraptor. They are imbued with a sense of suffering. Nguyen calls these his “pain bodies,” after an Eckhart Tolle concept, the residual and accumulated pain that lingers in your body and brain.

“What he’s trying to do in his work is healing cultural collective pain,” Barnett says. But, she adds: “He’s also taking apart the medium of painting, finding his way through that pain with experimentation.”

So is Jean Isamu Nagai, the Seattle-born artist who now works from L.A. and often incorporates unconventional materials in his paintings. In the three works on view at the Wing Luke, you can see the granules of pumice he has mixed in with his paints. The volcanic rock adds another layer, suggesting the rub of cultural assimilation that Nagai struggled with, the grit required to survive. The large, bright, semiabstract paintings (whose pointillism recalls traditional Indigenous Australian painting), shimmer with

Photo by Assunta Ng

“This one was my favorite, immediately,” Barnett says, during a recent visit to the Wing Luke. She gestures toward a large painting titled “Red Cliff”—one of those she selected from the stacks in Wang’s studio. On it, a vague, tigerlike face disappears into a swirling, merging mass of rocks and vegetation. Drips and discoloration bleed through the surface. “I can’t believe it’s from 1989,” Barnett says. “It looks like it was painted this year.”

The 1980s were a difficult period for Wang, who had studied art history and philosophy in Guangzhou, China, but had been forced into manual labor during the Cultural Revolution. After moving to the U.S., Wang painted signs for restaurants and washed dishes, raising his two sons largely alone while his wife, who is half American, struggled with PTSD caused by her internment in a “reeducation” camp during the Cultural Revolution.

A job doing color correction at local photo studio Yuen Lui—regionally known for the school photo business— would deliver him his artistic breakthrough: Wang found huge amounts of scrap photo paper, on which he started to paint with marking-pen ink and a thick brush, which renders a watercolorlike, translucent effect. He figured out that a special solvent could dilute the ink, working as an eraser of sorts, which gave him the power to create negative space in a way that watercolors don’t usually allow.

“It was such a difficult time for him, with his wife going through that,” Barnett says.

“So when he struck on this new technique, he was so excited.” It was this innovation that brought him joy, she says. “And it has helped him heal.”

The joy found in innovation echoes through in the work of the other artists in the show. Case in point: the flamboyant, feather-topped fabric installation by Suchitra Mattai. Displayed in an oblong, hallwaylike room, strings of braided vintage saris cascade from the ceiling and spill out onto the floor.

“She’s always trying to tell that story of [her ancestors] crossing the Atlantic, having this difficult journey, being taken from their homes to basically be slaves,” Barnett says of Mattai. “But [she turns] the story into one that’s more joyful and reimagines it, giving them more power, especially the women.”

University of Washington in-person celebration dinner

BLOG from 10 happened to the elbow bump during the pandemic? People have forgotten so soon that handshakes and touching are one way to pass the virus.

We have also forgotten to wash our hands before we eat. Whenever you go to restaurants, remember to do so before your meal. When you go home, the first thing you should do is to wash your hands.

I appreciate that many restaurants and events have rearranged a new way of dining. The University of Washington’s in-person celebration dinner, honoring Frank Irigon, had pre-set their 8-course meal on their table, except desserts, for

guests to serve themselves. This eliminates the number of times the waiter had to come to our table. The waiter who goes from table to table will pose a risk of passing any types of germs. The Nisei Vets Hall’s Chow Mein fundraising dinner changed to a drive-up service to protect the Hall, volunteers, and guests.

Fighting Covid is a long battle. We can’t control Covid, but we can exercise the art of patience. As George Savile, an English politician said, “A man who is a master of patience is master of everything else.”  Assunta can be reached at assunta@nwasianweekly.com.

splendid sunset hues — orange and yellow and purple and pink. The warm, inviting colors are another artistic approach to healing, Barnett says.

Barnett started putting together the show in January 2019, and the exhibit’s message has become even more relevant since. “We needed healing before the pandemic, but we need healing more than ever right now,” she says.

“And I’ve always believed that art has … the power to heal.” That belief applies not just to the viewer, but to the artists.

And, in a way, it has proved true for Barnett herself.

Her chance encounter with Wang’s work has reminded her of the joy of discovery, too. “As an art adviser, I visit commercial galleries, travel to art fairs and follow auction records,” Barnett reflected in a recent email. “I get caught up in the art market and often forget what it’s like to have a spiritual experience with art.”

“Victor has done nothing but that. He doesn’t sell his work; he doesn’t want attention or fame,” Barnett wrote (in fact, he told her, in 2019, “Don’t make me famous”).

“He has been able to stay pure with his art and focus on creating and innovating as a spiritual journey.”

This is likely to change now, and Wang is somewhat reluctant to see it happen. But at 88 years old, he decided he should put his collection—and legacy—in his descendants’ hands. His sons, both successful in tech, want people to experience and enjoy his work.

“I’ve already had such an amazing response after posting some of the pieces on Instagram,” Barnett wrote.

“An adviser friend messaged saying she has a client for these, and [asked to] please send pricing. It feels strange— and kind of wonderful, in a way—to promote an artist who can't be bought,” she said. (While the oeuvre is now in the hands of his sons, Wang told Barnett he’d prefer not to see the works sell in his lifetime.) “It’s giving me a moment to simply love art, to find and enjoy beauty, and that’s what Victor wanted.”

That’s evident when Wang shares his thoughts about the artist’s search—and the human longing—for beauty in a documentary about him (made by one of his sons).

“Everyone loves beauty,” he says. “Not just beauty in terms of appearance,” he explains, “but also in how we live, how we care about society, how we look after one another—this is all beauty.” 