Month: October 2022

Meet and Greet with Graham

Leave a comment


By Chamiya Carnathan

Have you ever wondered what candidates running for DC Council member in DC are thinking of the rising violence against Asians and Pacific Islanders? On Friday, October 14th, 2022, my classmate, Penelope Morris, and I, along with the Executive Director of Globalize DC, met Graham McLaughlin in the home of Allister Chang and discussed with him the issues of anti-Asian hate. 

Graham McLaughlin is an Executive at a Fortune 10 company. For eight years, he rented rooms in his house to men out of jail or federal prison to support former inmates in the District. He also frequently hosts events at his home: Sunday meals for talking about religion, Thursday dinners for ex-offenders to learn business skills, and Pancake Saturdays for ex-offenders rebuilding their lives as well as anyone else in the mood for brunch and chat. He received an endorsement from the Washington Post stating that his top priorities include reducing crime and discrimination against LGBT residents. 

Because he knew about our Japanese Tamago #Stop Asian Hate Project, Allister Chang, Ward 2 Member on the DC State Board of Education, invited Globalize DC, as well as several of his own friends, to his home to meet Graham McLaughlin and raise concerns about affordable housing, violence against ethnic groups, support for teachers, and more. “On your education page, I see that you’re passionate about getting children the education that they need,” I said in response to one of the numerous inquiries Graham received, “The social studies standards don’t provide enough information on Asian American history, so I was curious what you thought about inclusion of Asian American standards.” Graham retorted that while he agrees that the standards fall short of meeting their full potential in terms of Asian American content, he lacks the necessary background to speak on the subject of curriculum and Asian American history. In response, Penelope asked if he would be open to collaborating with AAPI organizations to discuss the inclusion of more Asian American history in the DCPS Social Studies Standards. In response, Graham said that he definitely would work with AAPI organizations to advance Asian inclusion in education in the future. This response fit Graham’s character, as he seemed to appreciate the need for collaboration in order to resolve many of DC’s concerns.

In conclusion, meeting Graham McLaughlin was a terrific opportunity to learn about the political philosophies of prospective Council members. I learned from meeting Graham that he was an honest man who was aware of his talents as well as areas where he still needed to learn more. 

Stop Asian Hate – Picking up where we left off

Leave a comment


By Penelope Morris

As Globalize DC’s Japanese Plus program starts up again after two years, we are excited to get back to our #Stop Asian Hate Project that we began in the spring of 2021. The project began as a way for us to give back to a community that we, as DC high school students of Japanese, are interested in. We feel that because Asians and Asian Americans have contributed so much to American culture, it is our responsibility to help fight against the rise in anti-Asian/AAPI hate that has taken place since the start of the pandemic.

So as a group, we reviewed the DC social studies standards and made note of places where Asians were mentioned (unsurprisingly, there weren’t many), and places where we believed more content about Asian/AAPI history could be added in order to increase knowledge and understanding of Asians and Asian Americans among DC public school students. Then, we testified before the State Board of Education in June 2021 to advocate for the implementation of these changes, because we believe that the best way to combat hate in the long-term is to educate others about Asian and AAPI history. Now, as we finally resume work on this project, we are looking to organize programming to connect DC students with experts in the field of Asians and Asian Americans in education, such as Professor Sohyun An of Kennesaw State University and Allister Chang, a member of the DC State Board of Education, as well as other members of the Asian and Asian American community here in our own city. We are excited to continue this very important work!

We hope interested DC students and others will join us. You can learn about our work so far at www.japaneseplus.org/jt-stop-asian-hate-project/.

If you’re interested in learning more or want to get involved, please email sally@globalizedc.org.

Would you go to Temple University Japan?

Leave a comment


By Chamiya Carnathan

SY2022-2023 is my junior year. It means tough classes, building relationships with teachers, giving advice to underclassmen, and most importantly, worrying about college. I had no clue where I wanted to go for college, but on October 15th, Ha Nguyen talked to Japanese Plus about Temple University, Japan. 

Temple University, Japan Campus (TUJ) is an international campus of Temple University in Philadelphia. TUJ is officially recognized by Japan’s Ministry of Education and offers American bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in Tokyo. Studying in Japan was an option that I wanted to do but I wasn’t sure if I needed to be proficient in Japanese. Luckily, TUJ’s classes are taught in English and no Japanese proficiency is required. Ha Nguyen explained that even though the classes are taught in English, TUJ is a gateway towards immersing yourself in Japan’s culture, language, and history. And even though Temple University is an American college, TUJ has students from Australia, Brazil, Taiwan, and many other countries. 

The best part of TUJ is that it is affordable. The average annual tuition and fees at TUJ is about 44% less than out-of-state and 60% less than private colleges or universities for tuition and fees. You can apply for TUJ through the college app and there are no specific requirements for applying for a college out of the country. There is also student aid and scholarships that I can apply for if I want to go to TUJ.

Part of my junior year experience is stressing about which college I want to apply for. Because of Ha Nyugen, she opened up a path that I never knew existed. I now have a secondary option for my original plan. Even one of the past Japanese Plus members, Asa Marshall, is currently attending Temple University in Japan. Who knows, maybe I’ll attend TUJ too.

You can learn more about Temple University, Japan Campus right here: https://www.tuj.ac.jp/ug/about