» Texas Rep Apologies for Remarks on Asian Names
» Four Men Injured in Shooting at Rosemead Restaurant
» Giant to Celebrate Filipino Heritage Night on April 21
» Founders of Asian American Studies Dept. Launch First Book
» Thailand Revokes Thaksin Passport
Compiled by Lian Qiu
Nation
Texas Rep Apologies for Remarks on Asian Names
A Texas lawmaker under fire for saying that Asian-American voters should adopt names that are ‘easier for Americans’ has apologized for her remarks.
State Rep. Betty Brown, R-Terrell, issued an apology Thursday for the comments made during a House Elections Committee hearing on April 7.
Brown said the remark came during a conversation on the difficulty of translating names and that she was referring to transliteration issues when she asked a representative of the Organization of Chinese Americans whether Asian-Americans could adopt names that ‘we could deal with more readily here.’
Ramey Ko, the representative, had testified that people of Asian descent have problems voting because they sometimes list legal names that had been transliterated in addition to common English names on their driver’s licenses or other identification. Brown said she was not asking Ko to change his name.
New York City Councilman John C. Liu, who along with the Texas Democratic party had called on Brown to apologize, said in a statement that the apology was ‘a fair first step,’ but didn’t go far enough. Liu said Brown’s comments during the exchange with Ko went beyond the concept of transliteration.
Brown said in her apology that she understands the ‘diversity of Texas’ and the ‘enrichment’ that Asian-Americans have brought to the state.
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Bay/California
Four Men Injured in Shooting at Rosemead Restaurant
The incident occurred shortly after 9:00 p.m. at the My-Dung restaurant, near Garvey Avenue and San Gabriel Boulevard, Los Angeles County Fire Department Capt. Pat Dolan said. The wounded were all described as Asian men in their late teens or early 20s.
A description of the shooter or shooters, the circumstances of the attack and the motive were not immediately available late Tuesday, Los Angeles County sheriff’s Sgt. Roberta Granek said.The suspect or suspects may have fled the scene in a black Honda Accord, she added.
The critical patient suffered a gunshot wound to his torso, Dolan said. He was taken to an area trauma center. Another wounded man was listed in moderate condition with gunshot wounds to both thighs. Two patients suffered minor gunshot wounds, he added. One was shot three times in the leg, and the other was shot in the leg and foot.The non-critical patients were taken to various area hospitals for treatment.
This was the second shooting in Rosemead in three days. A 15-year-old boy and a 27-year-old man were killed early Saturday when two gang members opened fire on a birthday party in a Rosemead Boulevard motel, Lt. Dan Rosenberg of the Los Angeles County sheriff’s Homicide Bureau said. Three other teenagers were wounded in the shooting, one of them critically, he added.
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Sports
Giant to Celebrate Filipino Heritage Night on April 21
Event: Giants Filipino Heritage Game, Giants vs. San Diego Padres
Description: The San Francisco Giants will hold their annual Filipino American Heritage celebration to highlight the Filipino culture and community, when the Giants face the San Diego Padres at 7:15 p.m. Live cultural entertainment will take place at AT Park beginning at 3 p.m. Hosted by Franco Finn and Jason Mateo, performing artists will include, Mango Kingz, Gabe Bondoc, Legaci, DJ E-Rock (from Wild 94.9), The Company of Westlake School of Performing Arts (hip-hop dance performance), Te Orama (Polynesian youth company of WSPA), Honey Circuit, Eye Eighty, Audiology, Escrima Serada and many others.
Details: $20 Filipino Heritage Game ticket package includes a seat in Filipino Heritage section, access to pre-game Filipino Festival and a limited edition Manny Pacquiao bobblehead; Tuesday, April 21, 3:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m., AT Park, San Francisco,
Contact: Tickets are available only at www.sfgiants.com/Filipino or 415-972-2298.
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Arts/Entertainments
Founders of Asian American Studies Dept. Launch First Book
In 1969, the longest campus strike in United States history, birthed the first and only College of Ethnic studies and Asian American Studies department in the nation at San Francisco State University.
After 40 years since the strike, the Asian American studies department premiered their book titled At 40: Asian American Studies @ San Francisco State, illustrating the experiences of those who founded the program, as well as from the faculty and students who followed in their footsteps.
At the book launch last Friday, authors, faculty and students mingled and heard excerpts from the debuted anthology.
“This is our first major chance to tell our history,” said Lorraine Dong, the Asian American studies department chair. “We have been silenced too long.”
The student-led strike began on Nov. 6, 1968 and protested against racial discrimination, the Vietnam War, the draft and “irrelevant” curriculum, gaining national attention. After the strike ended in March of 1969, the department offered its first courses in September 1969.
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Global
Thailand Revokes Thaksin Passport
Thailand’s government has revoked all the passports held by ex-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra in the aftermath of the protests that paralysed Bangkok.
It leaves the exiled former leader without any legal travel documents.
An arrest warrant has also been issued for Thaksin, who has been calling for a popular uprising in Thailand.
Bangkok is now calm but under heavy security, after violent clashes between police and anti-government protesters left two dead and over 100 injured.
On Wednesday, Thaksin published a statement calling on his followers to pursue their struggle through peaceful means.
He blamed Monday’s violent scenes in the capital solely on the government’s decision to deploy the army against his red-shirted supporters.
-BBC
FolksL
Shades of “The Wire.”
In the latter, “blacks” in Baltimore reached the apogeee, nadir?, of equivalence, in that they were MORE than :”equal” to their “white” opposites.
But those poor benighted “Asian” “youths” who are oshooting an maiming one another in the cause of ladder0-climbing and self-hatred, are one more echo of the “wah-ching” who made public murder a byiword in San Francisco Chinatown restaurants a gneration? ago.
If their parents are loath to discipline them, then the community must do the honorable thing, as in rejecting their misguided and distorted poerceptions of what is important, forget what matters.
Better still, the entire APA community8 should pay full attention to today’s online MSM account of the “extreme right-wing” response to joblessness and the “threat” to Yankee hegemony and self-celebration.
McVeuigh was a one=man example. The neocon variety will be donsiderably worse.
So, foks, turn on the radar, keep an eye to the periphery, and never eelax your guard when it comes to our “betters.”
Meanwhile, check out those “tea parties,” are they kidding?
‘Fraid not. They’re not all that bright.
So,. the Obamas’ income, minus taxes, approaches a mere two=mil. And that Bo is damned cute, not? But the bottom line here is the 64-5hou quiestion: Is he or ain’t he an Oreo? As in continuing idioi9cies with the Israeli oligarchy.
Check today’s Info Clearing House for the ironies and the idiocies.
We have a trillion-dollar superiority to the IED/”pirate” impertinences, but it’s like that classic using a cannon to kill a fly.
Tennis, anyone?
Or should that be badminton?
Ping Pong?
That as well.