By James Tabafunda
Northwest Asian Weekly
 Multicultural representative of APIC Bettie Luke (left) and AJC Director Wendy Rosen (Photos by James Tabafunda/NWAW) |
To many U.S. citizens of Japanese ancestry, the use of the term “Jap” is considered a racial slur with a hate-filled history going all the way back to World War II. Read the full story
By Steven Cong
Northwest Asian Weekly
 Image by NWAW staff |
“Most of the rappers that I grew up listening to were Black,” said George Quibuyen, a Filipino American rapper who performs in the group Blue Scholars. Quibuyen goes by the stage name Geologic. “The average person may or may not listen to hip hop, but the average music listener still associates rap music with Black culture.” Read the full story
By Ninette Cheng
Northwest Asian Weekly
Frances Youn
Frances Youn is a second-generation Korean American, a daughter, a student, and now, a student regent.
Youn, a second-year Master of Business Administration (MBA) candidate at the University of Washington (UW), was appointed student representative to the school’s Board of Regents by Gov. Chris Gregoire.
Youn’s road to becoming a student regent was a long one. The process was three to four months long.
Youn was born and raised in Calgary, Canada. Growing up, she did not know many Asians. She cites her journey to discovering her culture as a big part of her self-exploration. Read the full story
The National Association of Asian American Professionals (Seattle chapter) is providing $1,500 scholarships to two Asian Pacific American High School seniors entering college in the fall. Read the full story
Through Operation Christmas Child (OCC), families can make a difference for a child in need by keeping the boxes from new school shoes and filling them with small gifts. Read the full story
By Sarah Brumfield
The Associated Press
SILVER SPRING, Md. (AP) — Police shot an armed man who took three hostages at the Discovery Channel network’s headquarters Wednesday. All of hostages escaped safely, officials said. A law enforcement official says the gunman has died. Read the full story
By Genaro C. Armas
The Associated Press
SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. (AP) — The Little League aces from Japan ended the United States’ five-year reign as World Series champions. Read the full story
By Mansur Mirovalev
The Associated Press
KOKAND, Uzbekistan (AP) — For one month a year, from morning to night, Dilorom Nishanova grows silkworms, a painstaking and exhausting job. She has been doing it since she was 8. Read the full story
By Jim Gomez
The Associated Press
 Members of a Hong Kong police forensic team examine the tourist bus used in the hostage-hijacking on Aug. 23 by an ex-policeman at the auditorium at Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig City, Aug. 30. (Photo by Noel Celis/AP) |
MANILA, Philippines (AP) — On Aug. 30, Hong Kong forensic experts inspected the bullet-peppered bus in which a hijacker killed eight tourists in Manila last week, as the Philippines tried to calm China’s outrage over the bloodshed. Read the full story
By Vivian Nguyen
Northwest Asian Weekly
Florence Chang
If there’s one concept Florence Chang understands well, it’s the need to help others.
“I have always had a passion for taking care of people and positively changing lives,” said Chang. Chang is the senior vice president and CIO of MultiCare, a nonprofit, integrated health organization based in Tacoma. “Healthcare was an area where I thought I could make the most direct impact.”
Born in Taichung, Taiwan, Chang came to the United States when she was 15 years old and settled in Culver City, Calif. She enrolled at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where she developed an interest in medical technology when she worked as a laboratory assistant. Her duties included research and running tests that help UCLA physicians make correct diagnoses for their patients.
“It was a very rewarding experience that helped pave my way and interest in medical technology,” said Chang of her college job. “Just getting that kind of exposure in a healthcare setting, I saw myself there and learned how I could really make a difference [for people].” Read the full story
By Chinami Tajika
Northwest Asian Weekly
Phyllis Wise
“I was always interested in biology. I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t.”
Phyllis Wise, now the first woman and Asian American president of the University of Washington (UW), still holds a passionate ardor for her research, which seeks to answer fundamental questions about the integration of endocrine and brain functions.
She grew up as a daughter of a distinguished neuroscientist and a nurse. Her parents immigrated to the United States from China in 1938. Her father has a medical degree from Beijing Union Medical College and a doctorate in philosophy from Northwestern University. Her mother has a nursing degree from Yenching University and a teaching nursing education degree from Colombia’s Teachers College.
“When I was very young, I used to go to my father’s lab on the weekends, watching experiments,” said Wise of her childhood. “Science was infused into me all the time.” Read the full story
By Jocelyn Chui
Northwest Asian Weekly
Woodland Park Zoo staff members examine a female red panda to see if she is ready for breeding. (Photo by Jocelyn Chui/NWAW)
Staff members at the Woodland Park Zoo believe that a 3-year-old female red panda is ready to produce offspring in the next breeding season; the animal underwent a full physical examination in early August.
Dr. Darin Collins, director of animal health at the zoo, said the 3-year-old is part of the Species Survival Plans, a cooperative breeding program developed by the American Association of Zoos and Aquariums to help ensure the genetic diversity and demographic stability of endangered species.
“As a 3-year-old animal, she has an excellent body condition, and all of her body systems are within normal range of it,” Collins said. Read the full story
