NAM Ethnoblog: "Did you eat means I love you" Deciphering our families at Christmas - NAM EthnoBlog

A few days before Christmas last year, I cheekily signed off an email to family and friends, “I’ve got a date with Robert Downey, Jr. on Christmas day.”

My mother was pleased to hear that I was going to be with friends on Christmas day since I could not go home, and she asked my brother if he knew anything about my new friend, Robert Downey, Jr.

My brother told her that Robert Downey, Jr. was an actor.

My mother worried about the low income and job insecurity of actors.


My brother explained that Robert Downey, Jr. was not that kind of actor, and that his movie, Sherlock Holmes, was opening Christmas Day.

Oh.

click on link for more: "Did you eat means I love you" Deciphering our families at Christmas - NAM EthnoBlog

AML: Silly Stories with Laura Pershin Raynor at Ann Arbor District Library Pittsfield branch - AnnArbor.com

Posted: Dec 29, 2010 at 6:12 AM [Today]

Children getting restless yet? Parents getting tired yet? There is no better way to revitalize one’s humor in preparation for the new year than to spend the morning with Laura Pershin Raynor, one of my favorite storytellers ever.

On Wednesday, Dec. 29, from 10 to 10:30 a.m,, at the Ann Arbor District Library Pittsfield Branch Program Room, storyteller Laura Pershin Raynor will tell some ridiculous stories, and musician Betsy Beckerman will lead some goofy songs. Together, the group will put together the notes and narration for Pete Seeger’s classic Abiyoyo, based on a South African lullaby and folktale about a boy and his father who, once banished as mischief-makers, become heroes when they find a way to make the dreaded giant, Abiyoyo, disappear.

click on link for more: Silly Stories with Laura Pershin Raynor at Ann Arbor District Library Pittsfield branch - AnnArbor.com

AML: Happy New Year Crafts at Ann Arbor District Library Traverwood branch Tuesday - AnnArbor.com

Posted: Dec 28, 2010 at 6:12 AM

Prepare to ring in the new year with the Ann Arbor District Library program, “Happy New Year Crafts,” Tuesday, Dec. 28 from 2 to 3 p.m., at the Traverwood Branch Program Room. Library staff will have materials ready for children preschool through fifth grade to make silly hats and noisemakers for New Year’s Eve celebrations.

click on link for more: Happy New Year Crafts at Ann Arbor District Library Traverwood branch Tuesday - AnnArbor.com

Adventures in Multicultural Living: "Did you eat means I love you" Deciphering our families at Christmas - AnnArbor.com

A few days before Christmas last year, I cheekily signed off an email to family and friends, “I’ve got a date with Robert Downey, Jr. on Christmas day.”

My mother was pleased to hear that I was going to be with friends on Christmas day since I could not go home, and she asked my brother if he knew anything about my new friend, Robert Downey, Jr.

My brother told her that Robert Downey, Jr. was an actor.

My mother worried about the low income and job insecurity of actors.

My brother explained that Robert Downey, Jr. was not that kind of actor, and that his movie, Sherlock Holmes, was opening Christmas Day.

Oh.

Gotta love our parents.

click on link for more: "Did you eat means I love you" Deciphering our families at Christmas - AnnArbor.com

More news coverage on Vincent Chin plaque installation

AngryAsianMan.com!
http://blog.angryasianman.com/2010/12/new-plaque-commemorates-vincent-chin.html

Chicago Tribune (AP)
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-ap-mi-chinmemorial,0,581915.story

great thorough article that begins with quotes from Van Ong the nurse on duty that night and six photos:
A Rallying Cry: Vincent Chin's Death and the Birth of A Movement - Ferndale, MI Patch

AML: "Chinese and a Movie Day" with Temple Beth Emeth - AnnArbor.com

Posted: Dec 23, 2010 at 6:12 AM [Yesterday]

I was raised Catholic, so my family celebrates Christmas on Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day itself is a quiet one since we are pretty much done as soon as the stockings are opened.

In the spirit of the season, I braved the snow and went to the movies last year on Christmas Day. I was surprised to discover how completely packed the movie theaters were. I could not even get into Sherlock Holmes and had to go home and come back later. I had no idea so many people went to the movies on Christmas Day.

I wondered how many of those people had also gone out for Chinese Food first.

click on link for more: "Chinese and a Movie Day" with Temple Beth Emeth - AnnArbor.com

Plaque honoring murdered Asian man, Vincent Chin, unveiled in Ferndale

From WXYZ News:



Plaque honoring murdered Asian man, Vincent Chin, unveiled in Ferndale

Vincent Chin case Legal Milestone Plaque Installation and all media coverage

UPDATED Jan 3, 2011

Vincent Chin Case State Bar of Michigan Legal Milestone installation is today, Wednesday, December 22, at Noon at the Post Bar (formerly Golden Star Restaurant where Vincent Chin once worked) in Ferndale, Michigan. The first meeting about the case was held at that location in March 1983.

Today's program is hosted by the City of Ferndale. Everyone is invited to attend. Ferndale Mayor Covey indicates that the place can hold 140 people. The Post Bar is located at 22828 Woodward, east side of Woodward, just north of 9 Mile Road in Ferndale.

The event is covered on page 1 of the Detroit Free Press today.

link to the Free Press article: http://www.freep.com/article/20101222/NEWS05/12220383/1001/NLETTER09/82-beating-death-spurred-changes-in-Michigan-law?source=nletter-news

link to Ferndale Mayor Craig Covey's press release:
http://coveys-corner.blogspot.com/2010/12/why-we-are-proud-to-host-vincent-chin.html


Media coverage of installation of Vincent Chin case 34th Legal Milestone Plaque by State Bar of Michigan on December 22, 2010, Ferndale, Michigan

Channel 7 WXYZ tv: a great video story here, with interviews with two of Vincent Chin's friends and part of Frances' speech:
Plaque honoring murdered Asian man, Vincent Chin, unveiled in Ferndale

Detroit News article with video (with summary of case) by AAJA member Ankur Dholakia:
Vincent Chin memorial unveiled in Ferndale | detnews.com | The Detroit News

The AP! Fabulous photos:
Ferndale memorial unveiled to honor Vincent Chin - Times Union

Michigan Radio print article:
MICHIGAN RADIO: Michigan Asian Americans, lawyers honor Chin (2010-12-22)

Great summary with key quotes from Oakland County Daily Tribune and Macomb Daily:
Legal milestone in Ferndale marks Vincent Chin fatal beating case - dailytribune.com
same article as above:
Legal milestone in Ferndale marks Vincent Chin fatal beating case - macombdaily.com

Observer Eccentric Newspapers:
Ferndale roadside plaque honors memory of hate-crime victim | hometownlife.com | the Observer & Eccentric Newspapers and Hometown Weeklies

great thorough article that begins with quotes from Van Ong the nurse on duty that night and six photos:
A Rallying Cry: Vincent Chin's Death and the Birth of A Movement - Ferndale, MI Patch

AngryAsianMan.com!
http://blog.angryasianman.com/2010/12/new-plaque-commemorates-vincent-chin.html

Chicago Tribune (AP)
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-ap-mi-chinmemorial,0,581915.story

Legal News
www.legalnews.com/oakland/1004154/

8Asians.com Michigan Remembers Vincent Chin
http://www.8asians.com/2010/12/23/michigan-remembers-vincent-chin/

Frances Kai-Hwa Wang's articles in Adventures in Multicultural Living columns:
Jan 2, 2011: ADVENTURES IN MULTICULTURAL LIVING: The legacy of the Vincent Chin case for the Asian American civil rights movement and all of ushttp://annarbor.com/passions-pursuits/the-legacy-of-the-vincent-chin-case-for-the-asian-american-civil-rights-movement-and-all-of-us/
June 20, 2010: ADVENTURES IN MULTICULTURAL LIVING: Remembering Vincent Chin 28 years laterhttp://www.annarbor.com/passions-pursuits/remember-vincent-chin-28-years-later/

Articles that ran before the ceremony:
Great Detroit Free Press article with quotes from Roland Hwang, Jim Shimoura, Mayor Craig Covey, and Van Ong who was the emergency room nurse-on-duty at the hospital when they brought in Vincent Chin that night, as well as a summary of the legal changes the occured:
Vincent Chin's beating death spurred changes in Michigan law | freep.com | Detroit Free Press

Patch.com article with photo of workers installing the plaque:
Ferndale To Honor Vincent Chin, Asian Pacific American Movement - Ferndale, MI Patch

June 20, 2010: ADVENTURES IN MULTICULTURAL LIVING: Remembering Vincent Chin 28 years later http://www.annarbor.com/passions-pursuits/remember-vincent-chin-28-years-later/

more links to other articles coming soon.

Links to the speeches and content at the Vincent Chin case 34th Michigan Legal Milestone Plaque Installation Ceremony, December 22, 2010, Ferndale, Michigan

Covey's Corner: Full Text of the Mayor's Remarks, Vincent Chin Memorial:
Covey's Corner: Full Text of the Mayor's Remarks, Vincent Chin Memorial

Full Text of Frances Kai-Hwa Wang's Remarks: The facts of the Vincent Chin case and the activism that followed

link to content of Roland Hwang's remarks:
The legal changes that occured because of the Vincent Chin case

link to content of State Bar Association of Michigan Janet Welch's remarks: Michigan Legal Milestones

Full text of both plaques:
Milestone Plaque Wording

AML: Winter solstice crafts at Ann Arbor District Library Mallett's Creek branch Tuesday - AnnArbor.com

Posted: Dec 21, 2010 at 6:12 AM [Today]

Can you believe that it is not winter yet?

Welcome the arrival of winter with the Ann Arbor District Library program, “Winter Solstice Crafts,” Tuesday, Dec. 21 from 2 to 3 p.m. at the Malletts Creek Branch in Program Room AB. Library staff will have materials ready for children preschool through fifth grade to make beautiful winter crafts and decorations.

The Library website also suggests these books about the winter solstice.

click on link for more: Winter solstice crafts at Ann Arbor District Library Mallett's Creek branch Tuesday - AnnArbor.com

New America Media Ethnoblog: The difference a cool voice of authority (like Santa) can make beyond Christmas - NAM EthnoBlog

Dec 20, 2010 10:30 AM, New America Media Ethnoblog

Last week, I went on a first grade field trip to Kensington Metropark. The naturalist assigned to our small group, Manfred Schmidt, took a few extra moments to learn to pronounce the beautiful names emblazoned on the children’s nametags (Indian names, Korean names, Chinese names, Greek names). He said by way of explanation that he was from Germany.

click on link for more: The difference a cool voice of authority (like Santa) can make beyond Christmas - NAM EthnoBlog

Adventures in Multicultural Living: The difference a cool voice of authority (like Santa) can make beyond Christmas - AnnArbor.com

Posted: Dec 19, 2010 at 6:12 AM

Last week, I went on a first grade field trip to Kensington Metropark. The naturalist assigned to our small group, Manfred Schmidt, took a few extra moments to learn to pronounce the beautiful names emblazoned on the children’s nametags (Indian names, Korean names, Chinese names, Greek names). He said by way of explanation that he was from Germany.

When he showed us the bat house, he told the children that bats look like flying mice and were called fledermaus in German. He also told them about an opera of the same name. My six-year-old son, Little Brother, actually remembered that song from the University of Michigan Halloween concert.

As our little group marched back towards the nature center at the end of our hike, the naturalist taught the children how to count in German, and the children taught him how to count in all of their languages, too. Eine, zwei, drei, vier. Yi, er, san, si.

Not only did the children have chickadees eating out of their hands, they also got an inadvertent lesson in language, culture, and music. Nothing heavy-handed, it was just small talk; but it was small talk that made those cultural differences okay. Never mind that mom and dad probably say all those same things every day, but the naturalist was a teacher and a person in authority.

click on link for more: The difference a cool voice of authority (like Santa) can make beyond Christmas - AnnArbor.com

Voices of Adoption RainbowKids.com: AML: Will you have a Kung Pao kosher Christmas? - The importance of your child's Chinese heritage at Christmas

December 19, 2010/ Frances Kai-Hwa Wang/ Voices of Adoption RainbowKids.com: AML

I once had a Jewish housemate who explained the different types of silverware her family needed to keep kosher — one set for meat, one set for dairy, and one set of disposable chopsticks for Chinese take-out. She also described how Jewish people go out for Chinese food on Christmas day because Chinese restaurants are always open (and back then, the only other people not celebrating Christmas). I never knew how critical my culture was for her culture.

click on link for more: Adventures in Multicultural Living: Will you have a Kung Pao kosher Christmas? - The importance of your child's Chinese heritage at Christmas

"Mai-Thu Perret: An Ideal for Living" exhibit opening at U of M Museum of Art (UMMA) - AnnArbor.com

Posted: Dec 16, 2010 at 1:39 PM [Dec 16, 2010]

Contempory Swiss artist Mai-Thu Perret’s exhibition, “Mai-Thu Perret: An Ideal for Living,” opens at the University of Michigan Museum of Art (UMMA) this weekend, Saturday, Dec. 18, and runs through March 13, 2011. This is the first large scale North American survey exhibition of Mai-Thu Perret's work. It includes many works never before shown in North America, as well as new work created specifically for this exhibition.

There will be a docent-led tour Sunday, Dec. 19, at 2 p.m., and the artist will be coming to Ann Arbor for an artist's talk on Jan. 19, 2011.

click on link for more: "Mai-Thu Perret: An Ideal for Living" exhibit opening at U of M Museum of Art (UMMA) - AnnArbor.com

AML: Detroit blues diva Alberta Adams coming to Ann Arbor District Library Thursday - AnnArbor.com

Posted: Dec 14, 2010 at 6:12 AM [Dec 14, 2010]

This Thursday, Dec. 16, 7-8:00 p.m., the Downtown Ann Arbor District Library will host an amazing blues and jazz concert with Detroit blues diva Alberta Adams and the RJ Spangler Trio.

From an Ann Arbor District Library statement:

Alberta Adams has long been the undisputed Queen of the Blues in Detroit. She was born on July 26, 1917 and celebrated her 93rd birthday this year. She started as a dancer in the late 1930s and has been doing it ever since. Along the way she toured with T-Bone Walker, Louis Jordan, Cleanhead Vinson and even played the Apollo Theater with Dizzy Gillespie.

It is amazing that a woman born in 1917 is still out there still performing with such power. She continues to represent the real old school and is still touring. She returned to the Apollo last spring! Alberta received two historical awards from the State of Michigan this summer and has more Detroit Music Awards than she can count. She is a Lifetime Achievement Award winner from the Detroit Blues Society.

click on link for more: Detroit blues diva Alberta Adams coming to Ann Arbor District Library Thursday - AnnArbor.com

Adventures in Multicultural Living: Reading Rosa Parks and Pearl Harbor with others - AnnArbor.com

Posted: Dec 12, 2010 at 6:12 AM [Dec 12, 2010]

When I was in elementary school, I was taught that at the end of a long day in 1955, an old and tired seamstress with aching feet sat down on a public bus in Montgomery, Alabama, and was just too tired to get up and give up her seat to a Caucasian passenger. I always imagined thick white orthopedic shoes, and I felt the heaviness of her exhaustion weighing her down in her seat, and I thought that it was an accident or coincidence that she started the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the civil rights movement in America.

That story lived undisturbed in my mind until almost 30 years later, when I heard Reverend Jesse Jackson proclaim at her funeral in Detroit that she was not tired that day at all, she was a freedom fighter. I was surprised to then see photographs of how young she was at the time, only 42, and how elegantly she was dressed. I discovered that she was not the first person to be arrested for refusing to give up her seat, but she was chosen to be the test case because she was the one with the character and social status and personality deemed necessary to stand up to the challenge. It took moving to Michigan, where she later made her home, for me to learn how very political and intentional her action was that day.

click on link for more: Reading Rosa Parks and Pearl Harbor with others - AnnArbor.com

AML: "Fourteenth Annual Evening of Sacred Song" vocal concert on Saturday - AnnArbor.com

Posted: Dec 10, 2010 at 2:37 PM [Dec 10, 2010]

The Fourteenth Annual Evening of Sacred Song will take place this Saturday, Dec. 11, at 7 p.m. at Temple Beth Emeth/St. Clare Episcopal Church (also known as Genesis of Ann Arbor), 2309 Packard Road, Ann Arbor.

Sacred Song is a multi-ethnic choral group singing a capella and accompanied songs from around the world. Members of the ensemble include LaRon Williams, D. Yarrow Halstead, Robin Wilson, Gae Winn, Laura Machida, AT Miller, Barbara Stahler-Sholk, Edie Lewis, Mary Anne Perrone, Craig Kukuk, Cassandra Compton-Montgomery and Nancy Harknett.

Since 1995, proceeds from this December concert have been donated to local nonprofit organizations that affirm the values of social justice and spiritual inclusiveness. This year, proceeds will be donated to the Women's Center of Southeastern Michigan, which serves the needs of men, women, children and families of our community.

click on link for more: "Fourteenth Annual Evening of Sacred Song" vocal concert on Saturday - AnnArbor.com

AML: Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra's annual Sing-along-with-Santa Saturday - AnnArbor.com

Posted: Dec 10, 2010 at 2:24 PM [Dec 10, 2010]

What better way to get ready for Christmas than a good old fashioned caroling party with Santa and steel drums? Only at the Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra’s annual Sing-along with Santa, which will be taking place this Saturday, Dec. 11, 4 p.m. at Bethlehem United Church of Christ, 423 S. Fourth Ave., Ann Arbor.

Every year, the Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra fills the church with cute little girls in red velvet dresses and journeys around the world alongside Santa to explore different global musical themes. Past years have featured “Feliz Navidad” on the Chinese erhu, Puerto Rican singers and Indonesian angklung.

This year will feature the Rudolf Steiner Steel Drum Band and Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra members Barbara Sturgiss-Everett and Lori Zupan.

click on link for more: Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra's annual Sing-along-with-Santa Saturday - AnnArbor.com

AML: 'What it means to me to be Arab American' art exhibit at U of M Duderstadt Center Gallery - AnnArbor.com

Posted: Dec 7, 2010 at 9:59 AM [Dec 7, 2010]

The “What it means to me to be Arab American” art exhibit continues through Wednesday, Dec. 8 at the Duderstadt Center Gallery on the North Campus of the University of Michigan. Organized by a student group within the course, "Introduction to Arab American Studies" with Professor Nadine Naber, the exhibit features photographs and artwork by young Arab Americans including Laya Charara, Mohanad Mohammed, Derek Fawaz and more.

click on link for more: 'What it means to me to be Arab American' art exhibit at U of M Duderstadt Center Gallery - AnnArbor.com

AML: 'Terrorists, Harems, and Veils? — Breaking Stereotypes of Muslim Women' with Najah Bazzy at U of M Tuesday - AnnArbor.com

Posted: Dec 7, 2010 at 1:32 PM [Dec 7, 2010]

“Terrorists, Harems, and Veils?—Breaking Sterotypes of Muslim Women” featuring Najah Bazzy promises discussion, film clips and food on Tuesday, Dec. 7 at 7 p.m., 3512 Haven Hall, Ann Arbor.

From an email announcement from the University of Michigan Center for Middle Eastern and Near Eastern Studies: “Najah Bazzy is a transcultural Nurse Clinical Specialist with extensive background in critical care nursing and special expertise in Arab and Muslim health care, beliefs and practices. She is CEO of Diversity Specialists and Transcultural Health Care Solutions. She is also the Executive Director and Founder of Zaman International, a nonprofit humanitarian organization which provides ‘hope for humanity.’”

click on link for more: 'Terrorists, Harems, and Veils? — Breaking Stereotypes of Muslim Women' with Najah Bazzy at U of M Tuesday - AnnArbor.com

InCultureParent: Is Christmas any less Christian if you put up a Bodhi Day tree?

November 30, 2010, InCultureParent.com

One of my daughter’s Jewish friends from preschool once said that she liked coming to our house this time of year because we were the only other people who did not have a Christmas tree, either. Her mother described the conflict her child felt at school having to do Christmas-themed art projects such as decorating trees, which, regardless of what you call them, are still Christmas trees. Even a 5-year-old could see this. Is Christmas any less Christian if you put up a Bodhi Day tree?

It felt good to know that she found comfort in our home, although I had to confess that the real reason we did not have a Christmas tree at that time was that we used to always travel over the holidays. I was raised Catholic. We do celebrate Christmas. However, we did it reflexively.

So then I nearly scared my children to death with the pronouncement, “Now that we’re Buddhist, maybe we shouldn’t celebrate Christmas anymore.”

You can imagine their response, “NOOOOO!!!!”

click on link for more: Is Christmas any less Christian if you put up a Bodhi Day tree? | InCultureParent

AML: Remembering Rosa Parks and Dec. 1, 1955 - AnnArbor.com

Posted: Dec 1, 2010 at 7:55 AM [Dec 1, 2010]

Today is the 55th anniversary of the day Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a white passenger on a Montgomery public bus (which can be seen at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn). She was not the first person to refuse, but her refusal and subsequent arrest is the one that set off the Montgomery Bus Boycott and all that followed.

There are some interesting thoughts for today at TeachingTolerance.com.

click on link for more: Remembering Rosa Parks and Dec. 1, 1955 - AnnArbor.com