Community Forum
Dr. Choi says rise in mental health problems among Filipino and Korean Americans may be due to racial distress
In a recent article with the Chicago Sun Times, exploring the incidents of anti-Asian attacks in Chicago, Dr. Yoonsun Choi reports her findings of increased mental health problems in Filipino and Korean American groups starting in 2018. She believes that this rise in mental health problems is due to racial distress, specifically the internalization of and silence surrounding experiences of racial discrimination. Dr. Choi reports her own experiences with racially driven aggression and subsequent silence, and encourages others to speak up.
“Do not internalize these experiences. Don’t self-blame but report. Silence is not going to save anyone.”
Click here to read the full article.
Dr. Choi Discusses anti-Asian Racism and Sexism
On March 22, Dr. Yoonsun Choi appeared on multiple Chicago news outlets – Windy City Live, Chicago Tonight, and ABC7 Chicago – to discuss the ongoing anti-Asian racism and sexism in the United States. Dr. Choi was separately cited in an article published the same day on Reuters discussing the Cherokee County sheriff's department's statement of response to the tragedy which occurred in Atlanta on March 16.
Our Chicago: Taking a stand against anti-Asian violence
From Windy City Live: "Scholars say the latest attack on the AAPI community was sadly unsurprising given the 150% increase in hate crimes against Asians in 2020. University of Chicago Prof. Yoonsun Choi & KAN-WIN Dir. Ji-Hye Kim discussed how they hope leaders respond."
Others Featured: Ji-Hye Kim (KAN-WIN)
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Asian Community Calls for Action in Wake of Deadly Atlanta Shooting
“Chicago Tonight” discusses anti-Asian violence with Inhe Choi of the Hana Center in Albany Park; Grace Chan McKibben of the Coalition for a Better Chinese American Community; and Yoonsun Choi, a professor at the University of Chicago.
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Others Featured: Grace Chan Mckibben (CBCAC)
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Chicago Asian American advocacy groups feel urgency in wake of Georgia spa shootings
Chicago groups that advocate for and work to protect Asian American women from race-motivated attacks say their mission has gotten more urgent, and more attention, since the spa shootings in Georgia.
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Others Featured: Denise Huang (KAN-WIN)
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Go to https://cbcacchicago.org/mission or http://www.kanwin.org/whoweare/ to learn more about the organizations represented here and ways in which you can help.
Harvard Admissions on Trial
10/15: Students for Fair Admissions Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College
On October 15th, the Boston District Court trial against Harvard will begin. On Sunday, the day before the trial, a community rally against Harvard will be held in Copley Square. Those planning to participate in the rally look to speak out on why Harvard should be ashamed of its admissions policies, and how the Fellows of the Harvard Corporation have breached their fiduciary duty to Harvard.
Brief Overview of Alleged Discrimination of Asian-American Students
Harvard has found itself in the middle of a roiling controversy around its "personality rating" factor in the admissions process rating Asian American applicants lower than other races. The yellow bar in the graph below compares Asian American to white applicants.
Q&A with Dr. Shien Biau Woo (President, 80-20 Educational Foundation)
Q: Are there Asian Americans who are well-known to and influential with Harvard?
A: YES! There are quite a few such persons. First and foremost, there is William Lee. He is a Senior Fellow of the Harvard Corporation, the governing board of Harvard. He is also the lead trial lawyer from the law firm of WilmerHale to defend Harvard in this lawsuit. Shown below is a recent picture of him with Harvard's new President Lawrence Bacow (left), holding the Harvard charter.
There are also big donors like (1) the family of Elaine Chao which donated $40 million to Harvard Business School and have a building named after a member of her family, and (2) Brothers Ronnie and Gerald Chan who donated $350 million to Harvard, and have a building named after their father.
Q: What could have caused Harvard to rate the personality of Asian Americans much worse than others, if discrimination was not the reason? Why weren't members of the Harvard Corporation alarmed when the average personality of Asian American applicants was rated much lower than those of other races? Has Harvard's governing Board interacted sufficiently with the above named individuals to know that Asian Americans have a lovely average personality, or at least a personality that is no worse or better than other human being?
A: Great questions! I've also puzzled over that apparent contradiction for a long time. I can't possibly imagine that these individuals could actually have given Harvard the bad impression. Could they?
