SNAP!SNAP! Published quarterly by the Asian American/Pacifi c Islander Resource Center, UC Santa Cruz Spring 2009Vol. 10 No. 3

S h a r p N e w A l t e r n a t i v e P e r s p e c t i v e

In this Issue...

2 Facutly Spotlight: STEVE MCKAY

4-5 Keynote Speaker: KENT WONG May 14, 2009...more details on Asian Heritage Month 2009

3 AA/PI Hertiage Month 2009 “Deconstruct to Reconstruct”

7 Senior Farewell

8 Student Led Seminars

Winner of 8 Academy Awards!!see pg. 6

Watching the news lately, one would think all self identifi ed Asian Americans, 4% of the United States population (US Census Bureau), were lonely outcasts waiting to go on shooting sprees. An ex-ample given and construed by the media was the comparison between the shootings last month in the Binghamton, New York immigration and refugee services center to the Virginia Tech massacre two years ago.

The shooters Jiverly Wong and Seung-hui Cho were both loners bent on revenge. Each killed numerous people in a “premeditated” manner, and later killed themselves. Due to repeated coverage by the media, they became the new face of Asian Americans; people to be feared. Mainstream media focused on their eth-nicity, their cultural background, and their immigrant status; while glossing over the prejudices the shooters faced everyday.

Xenophobia and discrimination against immigrants aside, the fact remains, Wong and Cho were both mentally ill and needed psychological attention. Studies and articles like the one by Keh-Ming Lin and Freda Cheung, “Mental Health Issues for Asian Americans” (Psychiatric Services, 1999) show Asian American Pacifi c Islanders (AA/PIs) experiencing various emotional and behavioral issues. They also mentioned the idea that AA/PIs “tend to underuse existing services except those that are culturally appro-priate and linguistically compatible.”

While the AA/PI community is too

diverse to make generalizations about religious, cultural, language, and immi-gration history, many recent immigrants and their families undergo tremendous pressure. These pressures stem from acclimating to a new environment in the United States. Due to experiences with racism and language barriers, many are not inclined to seek needed medi-cal attention especially among older generations of Asian Americans who are unfamiliar with Western medicine.

Additionally, the negative percep-tions of mental illness in most Asian cultures becomes imposed as a personal issue; something not to be discussed out-side the immediate family or community. Also, perceptions of Asian Americans as the “model minority”, achieving financial and educational success, as well as having low crime rates and high family stability, perpetuates the lack of mental health resources for AA/PIs.

We need to bring awarness behind the lack of knowledge about mental health with Asian Americans, and lack of usage in resources. We shouldn’t worry about an-other shooting, because quite frankly there are far more people who suffer from men-tal illness who don’t make the headlines.

At Virginia Tech, two years ago, and eight months after the massacre, a young Korean American, student Daniel Sun Kim committed suicide. Similar to Seung-hui Cho, there were apparent signs of depression, emotional distraught, and previous attempts of sui-cide. CNN reports Virginia Tech chang-

ing its practice in student’s health and welfare in the wake of Daniel’s tragic death that occurred. However, it makes me wonder how these new measures will help those contemplating suicide.

Here at UCSC, we have the Counsel-ing and Psychological Services (CPS) that provide the proper service for students. We have student-initiated courses like Asian American Pacifi c Islander Profes-sors (AA/PIP) Coalition, and Pilipino His-torical Dialogue (PH.D) with the purpose to bring awareness and educate students on the issues regarding mental health in the AA/PI community. Student organiza-tions like the Community Unifi ed Student Network (CUSN) and Asian American Pacifi c Islander Student Alliance (AA/PISA) are outlets for students spread awareness on campus. We also have the Asian American Pacifi c Islander Resource Center (AA/PIRC) that provide informa-tion and events to AA/PI’s on campus.

Perceptions of Cultural Variations By Linden Chiu & Olivia Leung

SNAP!Spring 2009 2

Faculty Spotlight

FACULTY SPOTLIGHT: Steve McKayBy Randy Nguyen

Steve McKay, Assistant Profes-sor of Sociology at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Steve is of Fili-pino and Scottish-American descent.and was raised in Daly City, California.

Steve received his B.A. degree in Political Economy of Industrial So-cieties from UC Berkley, a M.A. in Southeast Asian Studies, and a Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. After completing his studies, Steve pursued his research on Filipino seafarers; he also used this as an opportunity to research his own identity and to travel.

Like many young Asian Ameri-cans, Steve struggled with his iden-tity as a child, however he knew not to identify himself with the associ-ated stereotypes. In fouth grade, Steve and his friends teased a Japanese-American student, calling her oriental. When she tried to point out to Steve that he’s oriental as well, he respond-ed, “No, I’m not oriental, I’m Asian.”

At the time, Steve believed “ori-ental” had a negative connotation, and choose to identify as Asian because it was a neutral decision. Steve saw himself as an American and didn’t identify himself as belonging to a certain ethnicity until he met people from various parts of the country.

When Steve went abroad to Ger-many, he left the Bay Area, which he mistakenly believed was a micro-cosm of the United States. While he studied in Germany, he began to re-ally identify himself as a minority.

In Germany, Steve was able to see the true signifi cance of what it meant to be a minority. As he puts it, to know where you come from, “colors the way you then approach your own self.”

After going abroad to Germany, Steve returned to the United States to complete his academic endeav-ors at UC Berkley. After graduation Steve was not ready to look for a job.

and decided to further his education in graduate school.

At this point, Steve was still curious and unwilling to commit to a particular ca-reer. He wanted to go abroad and apply the knowledge he gained to real life situations.

He signed up for a pro-gram called Volunteers in Asia (VIA), which led him to stay in Central Java, Indonesia for two years. There he took part in an organization that did community development called Appropriate Technol-ogy. Through participation in the organization and deal-ing with the development and community activities in South-east Asia, Steve developed an interest into looking at his per-sonal history connected to the region, and the role of labor and social movements.

Currently, Steve’s research empha-sizes on Filipino merchant seafarers. The research will allow Steve to learn about why Filipino men are the preferred group to be hired as merchant seafarers. Steve mentioned that in the globalized industries in the world, one out of every three workers on merchant ships is Fili-pino. Through this statistic, he linked la-bor market positions to cultural stereo-types involving Filipino men. Steve’s research will help him learn why Fili-pino men are the best seafarers, leading to the construction and navigation of racial identities and meanings.

His desire to fi nd out more about himself and understand where he be-longed in context with history led him to do his research in the Philippines and, in the process, allowed him to shed light on many issues pertain-ing to Filipinos and the Philippines.

Professor Steve McKay has pub-lished and touched on many issues per-

taining to labor and the labor markets, political sociology, globalization and social change, migration and racial for-mation in Southeast Asia. His previously published book, Satanic Mills or Silicon Islands? (2006 Cornell University/ILR Press) is about gender stratifi cation in high-tech productions in the Philippines. But his current research, on Filipino sea-farers, explores issues of race, identity and masculinity in a global labor niche.

Steve Mckay’s research on Fili-pino seafarers gave him the opportu-nity to connect to his own identity, a chance that not many AA/PI’s get to experience. Through his education-al and childhood experiences, we are encouraged and motivated to pursue our own journey to fi nd our identity.

For more information on Volunteer in Asia (VIA), visit their website www.viaprograms.org

SNAP!Spring 2009 3

Instituted by Congress in 1978, the fi rst week in May was designated Asian Pacifi c American Week to commemorate contributions made by Asian American/Pacifi c Islanders (AA/PIs) in the United States, later expanded to a month in 1990. The month of May marks the arrival of the fi rst Japanese immigrants to the United States (1843) and the Transcon-tinental Railroad completion built by nu-merous Chinese laborers (1869). Now a month long celebration, Heritage Month provides a space to raise awareness of AA/PI issues, experiences, and com-munity. Students initiated UCSC’s fi rst APA Heritage Month Program in 1993. UCSC’s 2009 Asian American/Pa-cifi c Islander (AA/PI) Heritage Month theme, “Deconstruct to Reconstruct,” strives to debunk stereotypes of AA/PIs as the “Model Minority.” Misrep-resentation of AA/PIs as academically successful and without problems down-play the struggles of the broader AA/PI community. The Model Minority image has also been used to place AA/PIs as a “wedge group” against other minority groups. Furthermore, high expectations prevent AA/PI students from seeking resources and support services for their education. By deconstructing these and other misrepresentations, AA/PIs can reconstruct their individual identities. This year, the Heritage Month Plan-ning Committee brings the com-munity three events to raise aware-ness and celebrate the differences.

All events free of admission!

Deconstruct to ReconstructBy Theresa Tsao

Cultural Celebration Night

Wednesday, May 27, 20097:00 – 9:30 p.m. College 9/10 Multi-purpose Room

Cultural Celebration Night (CCN) is the capstone event closing AA/PI Heritage Month at UCSC. Highlight-ing the diverse AA/PI communities on campus through an evening of food, art, and performances, CCN encourages the campus community to refl ect on personal histories, cultural background, and current identities.

Deconstruct to Reconstruct Forum: AA/PI Access and Retention to Higher Education

� ursday, May 21, 20096:30 – 9:00 p.m. College 9/10 Namaste Lounge

� is forum presents the access and retention challenges facing Asian American/Pacifi c Islander students in higher education and at UCSC. � ese topics include mental health, underrepresentation of students, the lack of Asian American Studies, as well as research information. � e panel includes:Robert Teranishi: Associate Professor at New York University Justin Lee: UCSC Counseling Psychological ServicesVickie Nam: UCSC Psychology Ph.D Candidate, Editor of “Yell-Oh!” Girls Terisa Siagatonu: Engaging Education (e2) Co-chairKia Vue – Asian American/Pacifi c Islander Perspectives (AA/PIP): Facilitator

Asian American / Pacifi c Islander Heritage Month 2009

HEY PEOPLE! GETTING INVOLVED, MEETING NEW PEOPLE, OR BECOM-ING A VOLUNTEER INTEREST YOU??

Contact Theresa Tsao at heritage-month2009@gmail.com or call at (831) 459-5349.

UCSC 2009

SLUGMINTON TOURNAMENT

COMING SOON!UCSCBADMINTON.WORDPRESS.COM

Cesar Chavez Convocation and AA/PIHeritage Month Keynote Speaker

� ursday, May 14, 20097:00 – 9:30 p.m., College 9/10 Multi-purpose Room

� is year the collaboration between the Chicano/Latino Resource Center, and the Asian American/Pacifi c Islander Resource Center (AA/PIRC) brings Kent Wong (Director of the UCLA Center for Labor Research and Education and Asian American Studies Professor) to honor the memory of César Chávez, his achievements, commitment to social justice/civil rights, his unrelenting eff orts to cultivate grassroots leaders, and his successful formation of the United Farm-workers Union(UFW). Wong’s activism highlights the cross-cultural issues that communities face.

SNAP!Spring 2009

Film Review

6

Running Time: 121 minutes

Director: Danny Boyle

Co-director: Loveleen Tandan

Starring: Dev Patel, Freida PintoMadhur Mittal, Tanay Chheda, Ayush-Mahesh Khedekar, Azharud-din Ismail, Rubina Ali, Anil Kapoor, Irfan Khan

Struggling in the SlumsBy: Theresa Tsao

COURTESY OF FOX SEARCHLIGHT PICTURESWhat experiences helped Jamal Malik become a millionaire?

A) Dunking himself in a pool of ex-crement to see his childhood idolB) Witnessing the death of his own mother in an anti-Muslim riotsC) Pretending to be a tour guide at the Taj Mahal

D) All of the above.The answer is D, Jamal Malik’s path-way to success did not come without a price. Director Danny Boyle’s movie ad-aptation of “Q&A” by Indian author Vikas Swarup presents a suspenseful, yet touching movie, “Slumdog Mil-lionaire.” The eight Academy Award winning fi lm intricately weaves to-gether a heartwarming rags to riches story. In the beginning of the movie, the audience meets main character Jamal Malik (Dev Patel) as a contestant on the game show “Who Wants to be a Millionaire.” This scene then transi-tions into Jamal being harshly inter-rogated. Jamal’s amazing streak of correct answers on the show, raises suspicion and is subsequently taken into custody. Was it possible that a lower caste boy, who dug landfi lls to make ends meet, answer these trivial questions? Was he cheating? But as Ja-mal reveals the details of his traumatic childhood with brother Salim (Madhur

Mittal) and childhood crush Latika (Freida Pinto), the interrogator begins to realize that the knowledge of his answers were purely coincidental. While many critics dismiss this fi lm to be like any another rags to riches story, Slumdog’s distinction lies in presenting a much grimmer reality to this fairy tale. While Ja-mal seemingly leads a happily ever after life; he loses an extremely important part of him, his brother. From the beginning scenes of Ja-mal and Salim’s childhood, it is apparent that their personalities are considerably different. Salim is portrayed as the brash, impulsive dynamic while Jamal is shown to be thoughtful and considerate. The two depend and complement each other, and struggle to make ends meet. But as Salim uncovers the power of the gun, he uncovers a dangerous personality pushing Ja-mal away. This fi lm sets itself apart from other stories by highlighting that outcomes can be completely dif-ferent even under the same circum-stances. Jamal and Salim spend every waking moment with each other until their teen years, yet both of them end up in different life-

s t y l e s . Is this really a fairy tale after all? S l u m -dog Mil-l ionaire s e a m -l e s s l y c o m -b i n e s the story of two

brothers, a friend, and strikes audi-ences with a reality check of what many around the world face. Check out this movie and you won’t be dis-appointed.

SNAP!Spring 2009 7

Class of 2009 Senior’s Last Words

Farewell

“Being a part of the 15th annual PCC for the 1st time, opening Talaga as the announcer for the show.” - Phil Lucero, Oakes College, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

What advice would you leave for the undergraduates?

“Besides the naked run, it is incredible when everyone comes together for student initated outreach welcome night. You are able to see the diversity and the power of student activists on this campus coming together at UCSC.” - Charissa Dimacali, Oakes College, Health Science

“When I met someone who turned out to be my roommate. It was a start of a lasting friendship ” - Chatty Arcales, College 10, Business Management Economics, Accounting

“Keep on truckin’ ” - Randy Nguyen, Stevenson College, Sociology

“Take the initiative!!!!! Your education is in your OWN hands.” - Theresa Tsao, College 9, East Asian Studies

“Taking part of ISHE (Inspiration for Scholars of Higher Education) for the fi rst time. I got to connect with other Hmong people on campus, and learn about various issues that were never mentioned back home in my family. It was a real eye opener, and a great way to meet people similar to myself.” - Kia Vue, Kresge College, Sociology

“I would tell them what the past SOAR advisor, Leon, told us, ‘Lean into your discomfort.’ Push yourself to take on roles you never thought you'd take.The best place to do it is in college cause you got the support and resources to truly learn and grow.” - Christopher Michael Keaneu Dioquino Guevarra, College Ten, Film and Digital Media and Politics

“Make sure you fi nd a place here on campus that you can call home because home is where the heart is. “ - Nirav Monty Prasad, Merrill, Business Management Economics

What is your favorite memory here at UCSC?

SNAP!Spring 20098

Education

Four years ago, Professor Judy Yung retired after 14 years of teaching Asian American study courses within the American Studies department at UCSC. Since then, they have not hired a tenured, Asian American Studies pro-fessor. In fact, the Administration has yet to establish an Ethnic Studies department, a promise made to students 25 years ago, in combination with the current lack of Asian American studies course representation on campus.

The Asian American Pacifi c Islander Professor (AA/PIP) Coalition, which formed in response to the situation, is dedicated to making sure Asian American studies is suf-fi ciently represented at UCSC. Out of this coalition, the Asian American Pacifi c Islander Perspective class was formed in collaboration with the Asian American Pacifi c Islander Resource Center (AA/PIRC), the Asian Pacifi c Islander Student Alliance (APISA), the American Studies and Sociology departments, and the Asian American fac-ulty on campus. The AA/PIP class is committed to creating an ongoing dialogue around the question, “What does it mean to be Asian American Pacifi c Islander?” We hope that by offering this course, introductory AA/PI studies course will remain available, and a tenured AA/PI studies profes-sor will be hired. But in no way do we see this course re-placing the responsibilities and obligation of the university.

Pilipino Historical Dialogue (PH.D)Four years ago, Professor Judy Yung retired after 14

Pilipino Historical Dialogue (PH.D)Pilipino Historical Dialogue (PH.D)

Asian American Pacifi c Islander Perspective (AA/PIP)

This course has been offered for the past six years, though the idea and development process of Pilipino Historical Dialogue (PH.D) originated nine years ago. During the 2002-2003 school year, the Core members of the Filipino Student Association (FSA) were the fi rst par-ticipants in Pilipino Historical Dialogue. Their year-long independent research was presented in the Spring of 2003. In the Spring of 2004, Pilipino Historical Dialogue was offered as an independent studies course, with an emphasis on education through Filipino history. It was also the fi rst year that Pilipino Historical Dialogue was utilized as an in-dependent studies class open to enrollment. These courses have been offered because of the absence of a consistently taught Filipino studies class(es) within the school curricu-lum. We continue this Pilipino Historical Dialogue course in hopes to articulate the experiences and struggles of the Filipino community to change and challenge mainstream education, and to continue the discourse of Filipino history.

Student Directed SeminarsWith the absence of a formal Asian American Studies program at UCSC, students created seminars through ethnic organizations, Filipino Student Association and Asian Pacifi c Islander Student Alliance. Their curriculum includes topical discussions, fi lms, and interactive activities to engage participants.

The Asian American/Pacific Islander Resource

Center & Asian and Pacific Islander Student

Alliance presents ...

Friday June 12th, 2009

2:00 PM - 5:00 PM

@ Music Recital Hall

Asian American/Pacifi c Islanders Year-End

CeremonyClass of 2009

For more information please contact AA/PIRC @459-5349 or email aapirc@ucsc.eduCo-sponsored by Student Union Assembly (SUA) and Community and Resource Empowerment (CARE)

Courtesy of the academic co’s of the Student Directed Seminars

Spring 2009 9 SNAP!

Another year, another amazing show! The Filipino Student Association (FSA) held its annual Pilipino Cultural Celebration (PCC) on April 24 and 25, 2009. The perfor-mance included collaborative efforts from FSA aspects—Pagkakaisa Dance Troupe (Filipino Folk dancing), Isang Himig (a cappella group), People Power (acting), Ha-luan (Hip Hop), Kasama (ballroom dance), and Tech Crew. Now in its 18th year, the PCC planning committee, which consisted of the coordinators of the different performing aspects in FSA, worked hard yearlong creating a performance central-ized on the theme of family. Audiences learned about the dynamics within Filipino families living in the United States as well as observe the clash between fi rst-gener-ation children and their elders. Arlan Mendiola, one of the People Power coordina-tors, said, “The message that I hope people take away from watching this year’s PCC is that never forget to appreciate the family that has been there for you.” The PCC 18 cast tackled the stage and put on for two great nights a cultural celebration.

Chinese Taiwanese Union (CTU)Chinese Taiwanese Union (CTU) is a student-run organiza-tion. It focuses on the development of Chinese-Taiwanese cultural awareness through events, activities, and socials. The members and staff of CTU constantly strive to make the events as exciting and accessible as possible, thus making it welcoming for more students and faculty to participate. CTU’s past events brought together many familiar and new faces, but at the end of each event, everyone leaves with

some understanding of one another. Some of our other past events included a Do-It-Yourself Dumplings Night in celebration of Chi-nese New Year. CTU also collaborated with CSA as the food committee in their annual Chinese Lunar New Year Banquet. Later in the

quarter there are plans for a “Tour of Taiwan” event. For more information please contact CTU.UCSC@gmail.com

Japanese Student Association (JSA)

The Japanese Student Association (JSA) was formed in Winter 2009. It provides opportunities for those who are Japanese, Japanese-American, learning Japanese, or interested in learn-ing about Japanese culture, to meet one another, as well as have fun!

We would like to thank those who came to our Te-maki Night (where we made temaki rolls) and/or Movie Night (Spirited Away)! We hope that you can attend our future events. For updates on future events, please e-mail jsaucsc@gmail.com so we can add you on our mailing list, or join our JSA Face-book group! If you have any suggestions, questions, or comments, please feel free to

contact us! We look forward to seeing you soon! Arigatou!

Pilipino Cultural Celebration

As a part of the Indian Student Organization, here at UCSC, we try to display our culture through song and dance in order to help other people better understand our culture. Our annual culture show show-cases various dances from all over India that range from classical all the way to modern popular culture. The purpose of our culture show is to entertain as well as educate other students about our rich culture.

A few of the acts that were included in this year’s culture show were: Bhangra, Giddha, Fusion, Bharatanatyam, Dhol performance, and the Fashion Show. Each of these dances/acts spans from North India to West India, and goes all the way down to South India. This brings a wide array of culture to our stage through the various art forms of dance. For m ore information please contact DESISLUGS@yahoo.com.

Journey to India

Asian American/Pacifi c Islander Resource CenterUniversity of California, Santa Cruz339 Bay Tree Building1156 High StreetSanta Cruz, CA 95064Phone: (831) 459-5349Fax: (831) 459-2469www2.ucsc.edu/aapirc

Map

SNAP! StaffAdvisors

Copy Editors

Contributors

Nancy I. KimKa Yee ChiuMonty PrasadOlivia LeungRandy NguyenTheresa TsaoElisa ToratePaul VoRosie MarquezLinden ChiuJohn KuanGreg ThomasHiroki HiranoPH.D FacilitatorsAA/PIP FacilitatorsMCF

AA/PIRC Internships are a great way to get connected with UCSC’s Asian American/Pacifi c Islander community, plan small and large scale events, and gain experience in publications and outreach.

Student internships are for the 2009-2010 academic year. Interns can earn 2 units each quarter of independent studies course credit, which re-quires 5-7 hours a week committment along with the completion of a fi nal course paper. Students will work with other interns as well as the AA/PIRC Director and Program Coordinator.

If you are interested to apply for Fall or Winter 2009, please contact the AA/PIRC at aapirc@ucsc.edu or call 459-5349. Deadline is June 1st.

Asian American/Pacifi c IslanderResource Center

Internship Opportunities