An Essay on ‘If You Were Queen’
SAN FRANCISCO — The 2005 Cherry Blossom Queen Pageant Committee is now qualifying candidates for the 2005 Northern California Cherry Blossom Queen Pageant.
The 38th annual festival will be celebrated on April 16 and 17 and April 23 and 24 next year. The cherry blossom queen will be selected at the gala pageant to be held at the AMC Kabuki Theater the evening of April 16. She will reign over the festival and until the next pageant.
Applicants must submit an essay (up to 500 words) explaining why she desires to represent the Japanese American community as cherry blossom queen. Complete requirements and an application form may be viewed at the pageant’s web site at www.sfcherryblossompageant.com, or contact Glenda Okamura at (415) 202-0353.
Cisco Network to Connect 200 Chinese Cities
SHANGHAI, China — U.S. network-equipment giant Cisco Systems Inc. said it has been chosen by China’s biggest telecoms company to build a next-generation backbone network.
The deal with China Telecommunications Corp. follows a pledge earlier this year by Beijing to step up purchases of U.S. telecoms equipment, a promise sought by the U.S. government as a way of redressing the massive U.S. trade deficit with China.
In the past six months, state-owned China Telecom has signed deals worth more than $100 million with San Jose, Calif.-based Cisco.
The backbone network, known as the China Telecom Internet Protocol Next-Generation Network, will connect more than 200 cities. Cisco will also provide equipment for the backbone network serving provinces in central, eastern and southern China where the biggest share of Chinese companies and Internet traffic is concentrated.
Regents Won’t Check Off on ‘Multiracial’ Box
LOS ANGELES — University of California regents rejected a proposal to add a “multiracial” box to application forms. Critics complained the plan would make it harder to collect data on minorities.
The regents’ educational committee voted 12-1 against the additional category.
Regent Ward Connerly, who is of European, American Indian and African ancestry, argued the box would give students more options in defining themselves and recognize a growing segment of the population.
“Multiracial is an identity for some people,” he said. “They don’t want their kid to choose between this or that.”
Opponents said the UC’s current policy of allowing students to check as many boxes as apply follows federal guidelines and produces more reliable data. “We don’t define ourselves by what box we check,” said state Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, a regent.
‘The Child in Me’
EVENT: The Child In Me art exhibition
BACKGROUND: Ed Young is an award-winning children’s book author and illustrator.
INTERESTING: Born in China, Young incorporates traditional Chinese art such as paper cutting and Western art techniques in his work. He has illustrated tales such as Lon Po Po and the Indian fable Seven Blind Mice.
DETAILS: Runs through Jan. 2, San Francisco Main Library, www.sfpl.org.
‘Rediscovering Oakland’s 19th-century Chinatown’
An exhibit of new findings about the rediscovered Chinatown on San Pablo Avenue is now open at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center as a permanent exhibit. Presented by UptownChinatown.org, it aims to help let people know about the upcoming archaeological work, what might be at stake and how they can have a voice in deciding the outcome. The center is located at 388 9th St., Ste. 290, in Oakland, Calif.