Disney’s “Turning Red” is one of the first mainstream movies that follows characters of Asian descent and goes through the cultural beliefs of the main character, a Chinese Canadian girl who must deal with her family’s connection with giant red pandas. “Turning Red” has broken barriers in talking about topics such as puberty and intergenerational…
Ring! Ring! Ring! As fast as I could, I raced my way across the soccer field to be the first in line for my fifth grade class before the teacher led us back into the dull, eraser-scented, fluorescently lit classroom. As I swayed from side to side, waiting for what seemed like forever in the…
As I scrolled through the news one morning, I saw the phrase “very Asian” on a headline. I immediately shuddered. Without even looking for the context, I felt threatened and upset by this. The words “very Asian” reminded me of times when my “Asian-ness” or “Indian-ness” was highlighted in a way that made me feel…
When I was in third grade, I vividly remember my teacher handing out photocopies of a map, instructing us to draw ourselves next to the country our parents were from. When I noticed that Sri Lanka wasn’t on the map, I asked my teacher what to do, but she told me to use India instead…
I’ve always been quite fond of my name—Iris. My mother’s decision to name me after the rainbow goddess turned out to be fitting for the years to come as I grew up between a clash of cultures and identities. The different colors of what I had seen, felt and experienced shaped who I am today. …
