This week, we are pleased to report that two of our past editorial topics have been resolved. The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) has renamed its Yellow Line to Gold Line. Also, Chinese immigrant Qing Hong Wu has been pardoned by New York’s Gov. David Paterson. Read the full story
On the front page of this issue, we ran an inspiring story about Olympic athlete Alexa Loo. At age 37, Alexa Loo realized her dreams of snowboarding for Canada in her home city of Vancouver. Loo wasn’t able to do it alone though. Read the full story
Qing Hong Wu, 29, fell into a bad crowd when he was younger, according to a story in The New York Times (NYT). The child of legal Chinese immigrants, he and two other teenagers mugged four people in 1995 and 1996. Wu pled guilty to the robberies as an adult, even though he was only 16. He didn’t realize that it would have dire immigration consequences later on. Read the full story
J.R. Celski (left) and Apolo Ohno
Remember when we all cheered for Asian Americans Kristi Yamaguchi and Michelle Kwan? Gone are the days when we sat as a nation, riveted in front of our TVs, watching women’s figure skating during the Winter Olympics. So what’s there to cheer for in 2010?
A lot! Two men have stepped into the shoes of Yamaguchi and Kwan as Asian American athletic heroes. And they’re both local guys. The new sport to watch is short track speed skating. Read the full story
On Jan. 16, Houston became the first city in the United States to name a major commercial area after Mahatma Gandhi. The Hillcroft-Harwin area, where the new Gandhi signboards are displayed, is dominated by South Asian businesses. Houston Mayor Annise Parker told Voice of Asia, a community weekly in Houston, that the new district signified the international character of the city. Read the full story
The Hop Sing Tong President Faye Hong receives a plaque from American Red Cross chief operating officer Cynthia Chirot.
On Jan. 12, a 7.0 magnitude struck Haiti. The earthquake’s epicenter was 16 miles west of Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince, causing massive devastation. Seventy percent of the city’s buildings were destroyed. On Jan. 25, Haitian authorities stated that the death toll has exceeded 150,000 people, and as many as 1 million Haitians are homeless. To put this in perspective, the 2008 Sichuan earthquake caused nearly 70,000 deaths. Read the full story
Phyllis Wise
Late last year, the University of Washington’s provost, Phyllis Wise, accepted a position on the corporate board of Nike, which has stirred up contention. Wise is the second highest administrator, behind UW President Mark Emmert.
Some students and faculty argue that serving on the board is a conflict of interest because the UW has a sponsorship contract with Nike, making it the school’s exclusive provider of sports footwear, apparel, and some equipment.
Others are concerned with the ethical implications of sitting on Nike’s board. According to The Seattle Times, the UW Advisory Committee on Trademarks and Licensing, which is composed of staff, faculty, and students, stated that a Nike sub-contractor closed two of its factories in Honduras without paying its 1,800 workers adequate severance. Read the full story
R. Gregory Nokes’ “Massacred for Gold: The Chinese in Hells Canyon” is published by Oregon State University Press
In 1887, more than 30 Chinese gold miners were massacred on the Oregon side of Hells Canyon, the deepest canyon in North America. They wanted the gold dust that the Chinese had painstakingly accumulated. Historians and scholars debate the exact number of miners. Only 11 names are known. The gold was never recovered.
The crime was discovered weeks after it happened, but no charges were brought for nearly a year. Six men and boys in northeastern Oregon were charged — three fled and the others were found innocent.
A cover-up followed, and the crime was all but forgotten for the next 100 years, until a county clerk found hidden records in an unused safe. R. Gregory Nokes, a former reporter and editor for The Associated Press and The Oregonian, was the first to write a story about the murders of the Chinese miners in his 1995 article. His extensive reporting on the subject was a personal mission. This year, he detailed the information he uncovered about the massacre in his book, “Massacred for Gold: The Chinese in Hells Canyon.” Read the full story
Right before the new year, The New York Times ran a story about how the suicide rate is soaring among New York Koreans — it has more than doubled in the last year, from 6 to 15 — even though the total number of suicides in New York City has dropped. Read the full story
American professional golfer Tiger Woods has come under some heat lately for his indiscretions. This is a shock to many, as Woods was not only the highest-paid professional athlete last year, but he has also been a son of the media. Wood’s public image has been very positive and wholesome. Read the full story
Last week, it was announced that King County Executive Dow Constantine’s top aides were six notable people. Two of them are Asian Americans Frank Abe and Sung Yang. Seattle Mayor-elect Mike McGinn named Asian American Phil Fujii as one of his three top aides. Read the full story
Joseph Cao
Some are speculating that it could be one vote that ends U.S. Rep. Joseph Cao’s career. Cao was the only Republican who voted for President Obama’s health care plan, HR-3962.
Cao, the first Vietnamese American to serve in Congress, took office in January 2009 in Louisiana’s 2nd congressional district. Cao is the first Republican to serve in the district since 1890, taking over for William J. Jefferson, who in 2008, faced federal charges of bribery.
Cao, a Roman Catholic, is known for being a moderate Republican and told the New York Times Magazine that the reason he is a Republican is because of the party’s pro-life stance against abortion. Cao took issue with the HR-3962’s abortion funding in its previous version. However, once abortion was taken out of the bill, he voted for it. Read the full story
