Here’s a conference I wish I could attend, but my schedule and budget don’t allow a weekend trip to LA on Saturday, March 23. Organized by the tireless Jeff Yang, who has a long history as a chronicler of Asian America and is currently a columnist for the Wall Street Journal covering AAPI topics in his perfectly titled “Tao Jones” blog, “Beyond the Bad & the Ugly” is a first-ever summit on Asian American stereotypes.
It’s also a kickoff for the “Shattered” tour, a book-signing tour featuring Yang and various collaborators including Parry Shen, Keith Chow, Jerry Ma and others. The team have published “Shattered: The Asian American Comics Anthology,” a second volume and sequel to “Secret Identities,” the first anthology of comics starring Asian American superheroes, and written and drawn by Asian Americans.
The theme of “Shattered”/”Secret Identities” fits with “Beyond the Bad & the Ugly” because the comics are all about dispelling the wimpy stereotype of Asians in American pop consciousness, and pointing out that Asians are missing from the superhero pantheon. (Note: Stan Lee seems to have gotten the hint; he’s created a new superhero who’s Chinese named The Annihilator.)
Riffing off the comics anthology and the stereotype theme, Yang has assembled an awesome lineup of panels and speakers (see below for the schedule), and the day-long confab promises to be an empowering affair for all who attend.
For those of us who don’t live in La-La Land, and can’t afford to ever-increasing airfares (I’m starting to hate you, Frontier — a flight that used to cost a hair over $300 now costs over $1000!), Yang is trying to set up online livestreaming of the panels and is trying to raise money for the cameras and personnel through IndieGoGo: “Put Beyond the Bad & The Ugly Online!”
There are levels of donations starting as low as $10 with Shattered swag available as premiums, and I can hardly wait for my buttons, book and t-shirt (even though I’ve already bought the book from Amazon).
Hurry, though: There are only seven days left in the IndieGoGo campaign, and they’ve raised $2,870 so far of the $7,500 needed to livestream the conference. If the campaign doesn’t reach its goal, nothing happens and all pledged donations are returned unspent.
But don’t let that happen. Donate to the fund — even $20 helps. Because I for one would love to sit at home in Colorado on March 23 and watch “Beyond the Bad & the Ugly” via the Internet. I’ll surround myself with good Japanese food and pretend I’m in Little Tokyo, in person at the Japanese American National Museum.
Here’s the full schedule for the “Beyond the Bad & the Ugly” conference:
Saturday, March 23, 2013, Japanese American National Museum, 100 N. Central Avenue, Los Angeles in the heart of Little Tokyo.
9 am-9:30 am (and through day):
REGISTRATION
9:30-10:00 am
BRIEF WELCOME: Dr. Greg Kimura; Jeff Yang
10:00-11:00 am
Opening Plenary: IS THIS STEREOTYPE REALLY NECESSARY?
[moderator] Keith Chow, editor at large, SHATTERED
Parvesh Cheena, actor, NBC’s OUTSOURCED
Beau Sia, poet, author, THE UNDISPUTED GREATEST WRITER OF ALL TIME Andrew Ti, blogger, YO IS THIS RACIST?
J.T. Tran, love consultant and LA Weekly columnist
Jen Wang, blogger, DISGRASIAN
Gene Yang, graphic novelist, AMERICAN BORN CHINESE and LEVEL UP
11:00-12:00:
Keynote Conversation: ORIENTATIONS
[moderator] Professor Jack Tchen, author, NEW YORK BEFORE CHINATOWN: ORIENTALISM AND THE SHAPING OF AMERICAN CULTURE, 1776-1882
Jack Shaheen, author, REEL BAD ARABS; former CBS News Middle East consultant and Professor Emeritus of Mass Communications from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville
William F. Wu, author, THE YELLOW PERIL: CHINESE-AMERICANS IN AMERICAN FICTION, 1850-1940
(CO-PRESENTED BY NYU A/P/A INSTITUTE)
12:00-1:00:
Keynote Conversation: SEXTYPES
[moderator] Jeff Yang, columnist, Wall Street Journal Online, editor-in-chief, SHATTERED
Helie Lee, director, MACHO LIKE ME, documentary on six months as a man Keni Styles, adult film star
1:00-2:00
Lunch Break
2:00-3:00
Breakouts A: “What We Teach and Show”
TAMING TIGERS: GETTING BEYOND STEREOTYPES IN PARENTING AND EDUCATION
?[moderator] Daren Mooko, associate dean of students, Pomona College Julie Kang, blogger, Geisha School Dropout
Cynthia Liu, cofounder, K-12 News Network
Jason Sperber, cofounder, Rice Daddies
Paula Yoo, author, GOOD ENOUGH; producer, EUREKA
SCREEN ADJUSTMENTS: GETTING BEYOND STEREOTYPES IN MEDIA
[moderator] Jocelyn Wang, blogger, 8Asians
Stephen Dypiangco, National Film Society
Patrick Epino, National Film Society
Brian Hu, artistic director, Pacific Arts Movement (organizers of the SDAAFF) Jerry Ma, art director, SHATTERED
Jude Narita, theater artist and activist, FROM THE HEART Steve Nguyen, Channel APA
??3:00-4:00
Breakouts B: What We Do and Say
??MOVE THIS: CAMPAIGNS THAT WORK
?[moderator] Lisa Lee, blogger, Thick Dumpling Skin; diversity program manager, Facebook
18 Million Rising (Jenn Pae/Cynthia Brothers)
Eileen Chow, Visiting Associate Professor, Duke University
Generations of War (Traci Akemi Kato-Kiriyama, founder, Tuesday Night Café) Racebending (Michael Le)
??THE POLITICS OF PERCEPTION
?[moderator] Ling Woo Liu, executive director of the Fred Korematsu Institute Linda Akutagawa, President & CEO, Leadership Education for Asian Pacifics Tanzila Ahmed, voter engagement manager at Asian Pacific American Legal Center
Jay Chen, Hacienda Heights school board member, congressional candidate
??4:00-5:00
Special Panel A: WHEN IS IT OKAY TO LAUGH? Ethnic Humor that Works
?[moderator] Jenny Yang, comedian, organizer, DIS/ORIENT/ED comedy tour D’Lo
Kiran Deol, director and comedian
Andrew Fung (The Fung Brothers)
David Fung (The Fung Brothers)
Joe Luu, comedian
Greg Watanabe (18 Mighty Mountain Warriors)
??Special Panel B: MAN BITES DOG—How Stereotypes Shape the News
?[moderator] Richard Lui, anchor, MSNBC
Leslie Berestein Rojas, Immigration and Emerging Communities reporter, Southern California Public Radio
Mei Fong, Pulitzer Prize winning former reporter, Wall Street Journal Wendy Lee, Business Reporter, Southern California Public Radio
Andrew Lih, associate professor, USC Annenberg School of Communications
(CO-PRESENTED BY THE ASIAN AMERICAN JOURNALISTS ASSOCIATION– LOS ANGELES CHAPTER)
5:00-6:00
Closing Plenary: CHANGING THE GAME
[moderator] Oliver Wang, cultural critic, Assistant Professor of Sociology, CSU- Long Beach
Christopher Chen, producer, LINSANITY
Jay Caspian Kang, editor, Grantland; author, THE DEAD DO NOT IMPROVE Ted Kim, EVP, CJ Entertainment America
Deepa Jeeva, head of production, YOMYOMF Network
Mike Le, creator and executive producer, K-TOWN
Benson Lee, director, PLANET B-BOY; BATTLE OF THE YEAR: DREAM TEAM Parry Shen, actor, BETTER LUCK TOMORROW; managing editor, SHATTERED
?
6:00-6:30
“ALL IN”: CLOSING Q&A/ROUNDTABLE
6:00 to closing
??SHATTERED: The Asian American Comics Anthology Reception
(open to all attendees and others by invitation)
Isn’t this cool? Wish you could be there but you can’t? Wouldn’t you want to support the IndieGoGo campaign so you can watch online?
