TO #StopAsianHate, let’s celebrate Asian Excellence with the following examples.
- STEVEN YEUN AND RIZ AHMED. The last time two actors of Asian descent competed in an acting category at the Oscars was in 1984, when Chinese/Khmer Haing S. Ngor won the best-supporting actor trophy for The Killing Fields (eerily being currently replicated in Myanmar) over Japanese-American Pat Morita for The Karate Kid (its “sequel” Cobra Kai is currently a hit TV streaming series.)
This year, we have Korean-American Steven Yeun (Minari) and UK-born Pakistani Riz Ahmed (The Sound of Metal) competing in the best actor category.
Yeun’s and Ahmed’s nominations sends a clear message to Academy voting members who are predominantly older, white and male that acting excellence isn’t exclusive to white, Western actors.
Ahmed, 38, is also the first Muslim to be nominated as lead actor. “To be honest, I just feel like however people can find themselves in this moment, however they can find a connection to this moment, is beautiful to me,” he told the Los Angeles Times. “What matters to me is that these moments of celebration, these moments of collective recognition, are actually moments where as many people as possible can recognize themselves in it. And so that’s all that really matters to me. And I’m really pleased if this is an opportunity for more people than ever before to connect to a moment like this.”
“It’s probably a bummer that [I’m the first Asian American best actor Oscar nominee]. This is a hard one for me. As great as it would be to set a precedent or be part of a moment that breaks through a ceiling, I personally don’t want to be ensnared by that moment, either. The truth that I’m trying to understand for myself is who I am, individually,” Yeun, 36, told Variety. “I’m happy to serve a larger moment for the community. And I’m happy to push narratives and show who we are because I am that, too. I am an Asian American and the pride I have for that is immense.”
- NAOMI OSAKA. She is the first Asian ranked No. 1 by the World Tennis Association, for 25 weeks in 2019. She was born in Japan to a Haitian father and a Japanese mother but has lived and trained in the United States since she was three years old. At 23, she has won four Grand Slam titles and is the current Australian and US Open champion.
The US Vogue January 2021 cover girl is also a vocal activist for Black Lives Matter. In February, at the height of unprovoked attacks on elderly Asians, she tweeted: “The amount of hate, racism, and blame for Covid toward the Asian community is disgusting. The fact that this topic is not very widely covered makes me concerned…. And while I’m here, saying ‘Ching Chong’ and ‘shrimp fried rice’ when talking about/to a Asian person isn’t cool. You aren’t funny, it’s not a joke and you’re beyond pathetic.”
- VINCENT BUENO. The singer/musician/producer/performer, proudly posting on his Instagram, declared that he “is the 2021 Eurovision Song Contest Entry for Austria and representing the Philippines all over the world.” Vincent’s singer-father is from Manila while his nurse mother is from Nueva Vizcaya. Michael Cinco, the Dubai-based Filipino couturier, shared with me the exciting news that he will be dressing up the Vienna-born tenor at the
finals on May 18 to May 22 at the Netherlands. Vincent, 35, was internally selected by Austrian broadcasting TV ORF.
- KELLY MARIE TRAN. While guesting on Jimmy Kimmel Live, the host gushed over her exquisite cocktail dress. It was a Michael Cinco. The Californian, born to Vietnamese refugees, was promoting the wonderfully life-affirming Raya and the Last Dragon, making Kelly Marie the first Southeast Asia Disney princess. (Our Lea Salonga doesn’t count.) She seemed to be in happier place now after being subjected to vicious online bullying (her Instagram remains blank) after her turn in Star Wars.
“Do not blame yourself if someone is not educated enough to understand that there are different types of people in the world who exist and who deserve to be heard,” Kelly Marie, 32, told the New York Times regarding race. “Do not internalize racism, do not internalize misogyny, make space for yourself and ask for what you want, because no one else is going to make space for you.”
- H.E.R. In 2019, during an appearance at The Late Late Show with James Corden, the enigmatic H.E.R. (Having Everything Revealed) was already proudly announcing her Filipino ancestry. “I’m half-Filipino and Filipinos love karaoke,” she said. “So yeah, I love to sing, I’ve always been around music my entire life and I just gravitated toward instruments.” With 13 nominations in three years, four Grammys at 23 years old and an Oscar nomination best original song for “Fight for You” from Judas and the Black Messiah, Gabriella Sarmiento Wilson is proving to be more successful as fellow half-Pinoy Bruno Mars.
- KELSEY MERRITT. The Fil-Am stunner teased on Instagram an endorsement shoot with Bvlgari Parfums, the “olfactory language of Italy.” The Kapampangan beauty is seen holding a bottle of Dolce Estasi Eau de Parfum from the new Bvlgari Allegra range. I smell another sweet smell of success for this PMAP and Kashieca model.
- LEYNA BLOOM. With her spread in the Sports Illustrated swimsuit special, Leyna becomes the second trans model after Brazilian Valentina Sampaio and the first Afro-Asian to be photographed for the magazine. She also follows fellow halfie Kelsey Merritt at Sports Illustrated. She has appeared for Dior Makeup and walked for Tommy x Zendaya at Paris Fashion Week. In her acting debut in Danielle Lessovitz’s Port Authority, at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival, she became the first transgender woman of color to be featured in a leading role.
The New York Times asked her recently: What about critics who say that you are promoting stereotypes?
Replied the outspoken Model Activist member (with Aine Rose Campbell, Cameron Russell, Ebonee Davis and Nimeu Smit) and proud Blaan, “I’m promoting something that has been missing in the world: trans beauty in all shapes and all sizes. I’m representing Filipina, I’m representing Black, I am representing people who have been immigrants. For them, I’m a vessel of change.”
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