Women Released in China; Now China Goes After Female Sympathizers

China has been under the human rights microscope in recent news. Enclosed is an article from BBC about how China is targeting a local human rights group called Yirenping after the release of five women who were connected to the organization. These five Chinese women have been held in detention for over a month and this has sparked controversy from human rights organizations on a global scale. These women were planning protests against sexual harassment when they were detained. Beyond the obvious injustice, these women were arrested right before international women's day, which is forcing folks to take a serious look at China's policy's.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-32313650

Learning about Indian Weddings

My physical therapist is an Indian woman from New Delhi. After about two months of very very intimate treatment, we developed a pretty cool relationship. Today we were talking about marriages and she shed light on her own experience with an arranged marriage. Her particular story is that she was born in India to an affluent family, came to SF for college/grad school and at the age of 27 she decided to let her parents help find her a husband. Nita stated that the process took about one year and she went on several dates. If both folks like each other online, they skype or chat, then go on a date, then the parents have to meet and make sure they like each other. I thought that was an amazing step that probably prevents alot of divorce! Nita met her husband, got engaged two months later, and then went to India and got married two months after that. She was completely open to me asking numerous questions and dispelling the myths and western stereotypes regarding arranged marriages. These are some things I learned.

• In New Delhi, the bride is sponsored by her family, they also pay for an incredibly extravagant wedding
• Average wedding in India lasts 7 days. Yes, 7 days.
•  Arranged marriages that were decided from birth is very outdated in Indian culture. Arranged marriages are basically like dating online! There are websites dedicated entirely to an arranged marriage for Indian folks. 
• Caste is still relevant and "status" is asked on nearly all the sites and it is an important factor in dating (no one wants to date below them)
• There are two types of marriages: arranged marriages and "love marriages" 
• After the wedding, the bride is expected to live with her new husbands family anywhere from a few weeks to a few years
• Brides don't plan their weddings. The scope of their choice is the color dress and the jewelry. Her parents decide and plan everything else.
• Indian weddings seem to be more about the parents and their social circle than the bride and grooms social circle,

I was reflecting on some other ethnic wedding traditions, for example, in Vietnamese culture the tea ceremony for the parents is huge and in Mexican culture there are people selected to pay for various parts of the wedding and it is considered to be an honor, in African American culture jumping over the broom is a big tradition, and Jewish folks break the little glass cup and lift the bride and groom on chairs. Catholic folks have to take marriage classes and do a few counseling sessions with the padre before they tie the knot. 

Enclosed is a link that further details Indian wedding traditions

http://www.culturalindia.net/weddings/wedding-traditions/

ME SO HORNY!

The Over Sexualization of Asian Women

For the past two weeks, the news in Asia has been incredibly dry so I wanted to bring up a topic that would spark some discussion. We are very familiar with the oversexualization of the brown female (Latina/African-American), especially in our current society, but it seems like the oversexualization of Asian women has been forgotten pr overlooked. The stereotypes of docile or "overly eager" Asian women are best seen in the media. My example, was from Full Metal Jacket. Possibly the most recollected scene is when two soldiers are sitting at a table in Vietnam and an Asian prostitute approached them and said things like "Me so horny baby, me love you long time". One white male asked, "well what can I get for $10?" and the Asian woman respond eagerly, "Everything you want!". This scene has also been sampled in the 1989 song entitled "Me so Horny" by 2 Live Crew. What are your thoughts? Where/When do you think these stereotypes come from? What effect has it had on the Asian community?

Death By Firing Squad

My blog post last week shed some light on two drug traffickers from Australia who were caught in Indonesia. If you missed it, Many countries, including the U.S. and Australia are pleading with the Indonesian government to release these two prisoners, rather than execute then on death row. Still, Indonesia is adamant about no tolerance and no special treatment for foreign visitors. In fact, the enclosed article to BBC states that these two men, leaders of the "Bali Nine" were transferred to another island that will be their execution cite. They have been sentenced to death by firing squad. To some, this may seem extreme. But again, I ask the question, will harsher punishments for foreigners prevent future crimes abroad? And what if there was more consistency?


http://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-31705745

Vietnamese Tet Festival: San Jose

Last weekend I attended the Vietnamese Tet Festival in San Jose. Living in San Jose, I've seen posters, flyers, and discounted tickets at every restaurant I entered for a couple months now. The festival was at the fairgrounds in East Side, the same place they hold the Native American festival and pretty close to where I grew up. At Tet, there was a beautiful part that included lion dancing which I always associated with more Chinese culture. There was a variety of "game shows" in Vietnamese that reminded me of something I'd see on Asian or Latino cable. There was a lot of karaoke and numerous food stands. THEY HAD BAHN BO..coconut sauce and everything. I included a video that can better articulate the experience of the Tet festival.

Two Australians on Death Row in Indonesia #LockedUpAbroad #WontLetThemOut

I was really interested in this news article I found on CNN. When I took African Studies, I researched the secondary education of females in West Africa and I learned about sexual abuse that occurs in many of the schools. As I dug deeper, I found that the highest rates of sexual abuse of girls in Africa and South East Asia are a result of "sexual tourism". Folks travel to these places, commit their crimes with under age girls, and go back home.

This article deals with the issue of two Australians on death row in Indonesia for drug trafficking charges. The Indonesian government has had numerous pleas to release these two men back to Australia, but they have remained steadfast in their conviction that these men should be put to death.

I related this to what I learned in my previous class because they are similar situations but with radically different approaches to accountability. If foreign countries took a firmer hand to tourists breaking the laws would there be less "sexual tourism" or drug trafficking?

Let's take Mexico for example. Granted, you can bribe your way out of almost everything, but if you get caught stealing in Mexico, you go to "Mexico jail". Folks definitely go there for fun, but for the most part, you know not to mess around in Mexico, or Indonesia for that matter!

However, I think there should be more consistency in the ways that countries deal with foreigners who commit serious crimes. Any thoughts??

http://edition.cnn.com/2015/02/17/asia/australians-indonesia-death-row/index.html

Remember the South Korean "Nut Case"?

A few months ago there was this huge ordeal about a Korean stewardess serving peanuts that came in the package instead of serving them on a plate to a passenger, she was fired and kicked off the plane. Cho Hyum-ah, who was in charge of that stewardess, now faces 10 years jail time for her actions that followed. She reportedly threw the employee manual at the girl who served the nuts, made her get on her knees and beg forgiveness, and then ejected the air stewardess *vision of her getting thrown out of the plane*.

So Cho Hyum-ah, the daughter of the Korean air Chief, now faces charges like coercing employees to give false testimony and interfering with the execution of duty. I thought the article was interesting. Actually I think the entire "Nut Case" is interesting. And I wouldn't mind having some folks like Cho Hyum-ah working for some U.S. airlines in order to help elevate our standards of customer service. (half joking).

www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-31059032

Grandmama Ba

In today's class discussion we loosely covered the role of women within some eastern religions. I thought it would be important to share my story and shed light on an interesting topic. In Theravada Buddhism, women have the opportunity to hold the title of "bhikkhuni," similar to a nun. They are very respected within the Buddhist community. These women shave their heads, dress in the traditional orange robes, do not own anything, and they live in monasteries. I grew up in a very Vietnamese household. Though I am mixed (Latina, Black, Native American, Scottish), my aunt (VERY Mexican and Black) married a Vietnamese immigrant around the time I was 2 years old. They lived with me and my ma until I was about 9. Our families became one and my new uncle James' mother became my babysitter while my mad worked. I called her Ba (like a sheep) it is Vietnamese for Grandmother. This woman knew a handful of English words but she managed to have the greatest impact on me. She was a buddhist nun and because they couldn't own property, her house was converted to a monastery. I actually lived there for a while and my everyday childhood life was surrounded by buddhist monks. I learned to pray and make spring rolls and ate hella banh bo. I must have looked ridiculous; this little brown girl referring to a Vietnamese monk as her grandmama and holding her hand while we walked around costco. She died of breast cancer when I was 10 but I learned so much from her. She didn't have any grandkids yet but she treated me like her own. As a child, I spoke very little Vietnamese but I was able to learn first hand about the principles of Buddhism and, even to this day, I still try to live my life based on the Buddhist teachings I learned from the dopest monk grandmama in the world. Learning about Buddhism in the textbook is rather interesting for me, as I am able to connect academia to some of my earliest childhood memories. When we were discussing the role of women in some Buddhist religions, I remembered my Grandmama Ba, but then I realized how little of a role women have in some other religions. What does the role of women mean in the bigger picture of religion? Just some thoughts.

Oil Prices down, But Gas Prices Are Scheduled to Skyrocket. China, that's why.

I...LIVE...IN..AMERICAAAAA

For the past few weeks, maybe even a month, I hear James Brown singing "Living in America" every time I fill up the tank on my Honda Civic for about $24. Yes, $24, this translates to about $50 bucks a month for my eco-friendly Honda compared to the 200 I was spending not that long ago. I think we have all been enjoying the low cost of gas and hoping that these prices are here to stay. I've seen a few articles expressing different viewpoints and explaining a loss of jobs or paycuts for folks who depend on the higher gas prices. Recently I found this article on my facebook, and though it is NOT referring to the price of oil, it is referring to the price of gas. The article I enclosed is about how the cost of a utility bill will increase at least $300.00 over the next couple years. I did the math. I have a three bedroom condo with VERY low utility usage. My PG&E bill is about $30 every month. Adding $300.00 annually translates to nearly doubling the cost (additional $25 each month; total $50).

In class we've began discussing Asian countries emerging as these powerhouses that could squish us if they so desired. This article explains how the cost of the gas we use to heat up our water and our homes will increase dramatically because China is willing to spend three and four times what we pay for it and our domestic market is shifting. "The bottom line is that gas prices are set to soar because the long-sheltered domestic market is being linked to global prices via exports." So, gas exports to Asia will drive up our prices. It's difficult for me to explain so I suggest reading the article at the bottom.

I found this interesting because it makes me wonder what this means on a greater scale? What else is going to be effected by this increase? What other domestic markets are going to be effected by global prices and exports? As we blindly and idealistically enjoy the low cost of oil, which may not even be here to stay, we have to acknowledge the cost of gas that will potentially skyrocket and the fact that China is making things a hell of a lot more competitive.

http://www.smh.com.au/business/comment-and-analysis/local-gas-prices-set-to-soar-as-exports-to-asia-get-under-way-20150118-12rl6c.html