Jiselle Lee
108 articles
Why we should thank our local Asian American reporters: Gia Vang, Chenue Her and Dion Lim keep marching forward in the face of racism
Asian American reporters, who have become watchdogs for the communities they serve, often receive the brunt of online anti-Asian hate. Local news anchors Gia Vang (Minneapolis), Chenue Her (Des…
Report: A third of Asians in San Gabriel Valley experienced anti-Asian hate during the pandemic
About a third of Asian Americans in California’s San Gabriel Valley said they or their family members have experienced anti-Asian hate during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a survey released by…
Judge tells 72-year-old man stricken with cancer he ‘should be ashamed of himself’ for his un-mowed lawn
Burhan Chowdhury, a 72-year-old man who was diagnosed with cancer in his lymph nodes in 2019, received a citation for overgrown grass in August. Michigan Judge Alexis Krot told Chowdhury on Monday…
Same-sex married couple are first in Taiwan to legally adopt child
A married same-sex couple became the first LGBTQ couple to legally adopt a child together in Taiwan this week. Taiwan’s law on same-sex marriage, passed in 2019, allowed one of the spouses to adopt…
Video: Chinese COVID-19 patients confined to metal boxes in quarantine camps
Photos and videos of quarantine camps in Xi’an were revealed online this week. Twitter user @songpinganq reshared a string of videos taken by quarantined individuals showing the rows of temporary…
School board member says ‘anti-Asian feel’ to new admission policy of country’s top high school
Fairfax County school board member Abrar Omeish is under fire after a text message to another board member about the district’s admissions policy was published by an outside organization. Based on…
Police find remains of Ohio Vietnamese mother missing since 2002
Ohio mom Stephanie Van Nguyen, who was 26 at the time of her disappearance, her 4-year-old daughter Kristina and 3-year-old son John have been missing since 2002. In October, Delhi Township police…
China locks down third city, Anyang, raising total in strict quarantine to 20 million
China locked down the city of Anyang, bringing the total number of Chinese residents in quarantine to 20 million people. Anyang joins Xi’an and Yuzhou as the latest Chinese city to be locked down due…
‘We are systematically not represented’: Alumni group pushes for Dartmouth’s first AAPI studies department
In early December, Dartmouth’s Asian Pacific American Alumni Association (DAPAAA) announced that it will start a fund to be put towards an Asian American and Pacific Islander studies department. The…
Japanese tech giant Panasonic to offer workers 4-day workweek
Japanese electronics corporation Panasonic will now offer the option of four-day work weeks to its employees. The decision was made amidst a growing number of Japanese and global companies offering…
Xi’an woman begging for period products in viral video called ‘dramatic’ on Chinese social media
Residents of Xi’an, a locked down city in China under quarantine, continue to suffer health issues and supply shortages. A video of a woman pleading for period products from a health worker went…
Family of Hawaii grandmother fatally shot at Las Vegas mall push for suspects to be denied bail
Clarice Yamaguchi, a 66-year-old Waipahu resident, was shot and killed during an attempted robbery at the Fashion Show Mall in Las Vegas. Two men have been arrested in connection with the shooting.…
Toronto bakery declare themselves #veryAsian after customer rejections deemed them not ‘normal’
LA LA Bakeshop in Toronto taped a sign to their front door on Tuesday that reads, “Hi there! We are a #VeryAsian bakery,” after customers allegedly walked out of the bakery because it wasn’t a…
COVID locked-down Xi’an sees tragedies, food complications mount
Xi’an’s “zero COVID” policy has forced the city of 13 million people into strict home confinement for two weeks. A woman who was eight months pregnant at the time of the lockdown lost her baby after…
Hong Kong activist sentenced to 15 months in prison over Tiananmen Square vigil
Chow Hang-tung, a Hong Kong pro-democracy activist, was arrested on June 4 last year and charged with “incitement to knowingly take part in an unauthorized assembly” in remembrance of the victims of…
Rosalyn Tang becomes first Asian American, youngest woman appointed to Maryland Court of Special Appeals
Maryland governor Larry Hogan appointed Montgomery County attorney Rosalyn Tang to the Court of Special Appeals on Wednesday. Tang is the first Asian American and the youngest woman to serve on…
Asians Are Strong banner vandalized three days after going up in San Francisco
San Francisco community organization “Asians Are Strong'' put up a banner on Route 101 near the Vermont Street exit in San Francisco on Jan. 1. Three days later on Jan. 4, the banner was vandalized.…
SPD’s first female Burmese officer crossed India-Myanmar border by foot, worked two jobs during high school
Judith Par-Lwei, 23, is the first female Burmese officer to serve at the Syracuse Police Department (SPD). She is also currently the only Asian American female officer at the Syracuse Police…
California’s Melissa Ramoso sworn in as Artesia’s first Asian American female mayor
Melissa Ramoso was sworn in as the first Asian American female mayor of Artesia, California, on Dec. 13. The Filipino American has a longstanding career in politics, having worked with several…
Massachusetts’ Sokhary Chau becomes first Cambodian American mayor in US
Sokhary Chau, a 49-year-old Cambodian refugee and former city council member, was sworn in as mayor of Lowell, Massachusetts, on Monday. He now represents the city of more than 115,000 residents and…
China accuses Walmart of ‘stupidity’ for pulling Xinjiang products
Walmart is the latest Western brand to be caught up in controversy while attempting to navigate Chinese politics. Chinese social media users accused Sam's Club, the warehouse retailer owned by…
NY governor Kathy Hochul says racism is a ‘public health crisis’ after signing 6 anti-hate legislations
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed six legislation to address racial discrimination and injustice in the state. The legislation will declare racism a public health crisis, enact the hate crimes…
Cleveland Chinese Americans to make a documentary about the 150-year history of AsiaTown
The Organization of Chinese Americans of Greater Cleveland (OCAGC) is making a documentary to educate the local community about the history of Cleveland’s AsiaTown. The project will document how…
Year in review: Historic wins for AAPI in local elections, redistricting plans loom over future candidates
Many Asian Americans have made history in 2021 by gaining seats in local government elections. Redistricting plans in many parts of the U.S., however, threaten Asian candidates running in upcoming…
Élodie Yung plays a Cambodian doctor who scrubs away the mob’s messes in Fox drama ‘The Cleaning Lady’
“The Cleaning Lady” is Fox’s first primetime drama to be produced by and starring an Asian woman. The show follows Thony De La Rosa, played by Élodie Yung, a Cambodian doctor from the Philippines who…
Students will play video games as part of their curriculum at Japan’s first esports high school
Japan is taking the next step in esports development by opening the country’s first esports high school. The school, Esports Koutou Gakuin, will most likely open in April, according to Kotaku. It…
Woman gives birth to ‘Tesla baby’ in front seat of car driving itself to hospital on autopilot
Yiran Sherry, a 33-year-old Wayne, Pennsylvania resident, gave birth in a Tesla. Her husband, Keating Sherry, helped her give birth to their daughter Maeve Lily while keeping the Tesla on autopilot…
Sofia Chang becomes first Asian American CEO of Girl Scouts of USA in its 110-year history
After 20 years at HBO/Warner Media, Sofia Chang will join Girl Scouts of the United States (GSUSA) as its CEO. She will be the first AAPI CEO at GSUSA in its 109-year history. Girl Scouts of the…
OnlyFans names 36-year-old Mumbai-born Amrapali Gan as its new CEO
OnlyFans founder Tim Stokely steps down after five years as CEO. Stokely is replaced by the company’s 36-year-old Chief Marketing and Communications Officer Amrapali "Ami" Gan. Gan joins the 10% of…
BTS’ Suga becomes first Asian solo artist to ever debut at No. 1 on Billboard Digital Song Sales chart
BTS’s Suga and late rapper Juice WRLD each made their first ever No. 1 hit in their careers. Suga is the first Korean soloist to ever debut at No. 1 on Billboard's Digital Song Sales Chart and, as a…
New Jersey on its way to becoming the second state to mandate teaching of AAPI history
The state legislature passed the bill on Tuesday, after it passed the state Senate in early December and the General Assembly on Monday. If signed into law by NJ Gov. Phil Murphy, the bill would…
China’s government responds after Trump says it ‘destroyed the world’ with COVID, Xi is a ‘killer’
Former President Donald Trump said President Xi Jinping is a "killer" who "destroyed the world" in an interview with Fox News. But he doesn't think that the U.S. should boycott the 2022 Winter…
Chinese American WWII veterans receive long-overdue medals of honor for their service
New York City’s Chinatown recognized and presented service medals to Chinese American World War II veterans for their service. Hundreds of people gathered in New York City’s Chinatown on Saturday to…
Singer Wang Leehom apologizes after ex-wife publicly accuses him of having multiple affairs
The Taiwanese American musician announced on Dec.15 that he is divorcing his wife of eight years Lee Jinglei. Two days later, Lee Jinglei posted a nine page statement on Instagram where she said he…
Chinese ‘queen of livestreaming’ Huang Wei fined record $210 million for tax evasion
China fined top shopping livestreamer Huang Wei 1.34 billion yuan (approximately $210 million) for tax evasion. Huang Wei posted a statement on Weibo where she wrote she was feeling “deeply guilty.”…
Thai teacher continues to rack up TikTok views for individual class greeting video
Teacher Pattrawan Laosombut of Thailand posted a video back in July of herself welcoming students at her classroom door with their chosen greeting. The TikTok video has garnered more than 13 million…
