Immigrating to the U.S., Biracial Identity, Patriotism, What Defines Citizenship, Asian American Writers with Nina Li Coomes
Explicit content warning
09/10/20 • 38 min
Nina Li Coomes is a writer based in Chicago. Nina grew up in Japan and I grew up in China, so we talk about our experiences immigrating to the U.S. and growing up in the U.S.. We also talk about her writing, language barriers in activism, talking to Asian parents about politics, public school education, patriotism, citizenship, national borders, books recs from Asian American authors, and how hot Gong Li is!
(2:30) - Nina introduces herself and her writing.
(5:00) - Nina's newest essay on Chicago public schools.
(12:00) - Immigrating to the U.S. from Japan, living as a mixed race child in the U.S. and Japan.
(18:00) - The importance of translation and reducing language barriers in activism.
(20:00) - Having political conversations with Asian parents
(23:00) - Patriotism, Imagined Communities
(27:00) - How is citizenship awarded, when is it taken away, how do you prove you're a citizen? Chinese citizenship.
(30:00) - Regional dialects.
(32:00) - Nina's book recs by Asian American authors!
(34:15) - Asian American representation in literature and film. Amy Tan, Crazy Rich Asians, The Half of It, Mulan.
Contact Nancy at:
[email protected]
Website
POC Podcast has an Instagram now!
And a Twitter!
Nina:
Twitter
Instagram
Ode to a Chicago Public School
Book recs:
If I Had Your Face by Frances Cha
How Much of These Hills is Gold by C Pan Zhang
Minor Feelings by Cathy Park Hong
Harmless Like You by Rowan Hisayo Buchanan
Starling Days by Rowan Hisayo Buchanan
Welcome to Progressive Opinions of Color (POC), a podcast that seeks to create space for more people of color in politics and economics. With the 2020 presidential election coming up and the state of the economy during COVID-19, it is more important than ever to think about who we include in the conversations about politics and economics. I am Nancy Wu, your host. I’m also an Asian American woman, an economist, and a huge politics and policy nerd. I triple majored in Economics, Government (Political Science) and Gender Studies at Dartmouth and have a Master’s in Development Economics from Oxford. I work as an Economist full time and have previously worked in economic policy at the White House (under Obama, of course) and progressive think tanks. The goal of this podcast is to engage the Asian American community and other POC and BIPOC voices in an industry that is so heavily represented by old white men. The POC Podcast will host conversations on the 2020 Presidential Election, Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, the coronavirus pandemic, the state of the economy, and other pressing topics in politics, economics, and culture, all through perspectives inclusive of the lived experiences of people of color. Whether you're new to politics or already a huge politics nerd, I hope this podcast inspires community and conversation among us. Join me in reimagining politics and economics with underrepresented voices. The economy is complicated enough. Learn about it through stories from real people.
Nina Li Coomes is a writer based in Chicago. Nina grew up in Japan and I grew up in China, so we talk about our experiences immigrating to the U.S. and growing up in the U.S.. We also talk about her writing, language barriers in activism, talking to Asian parents about politics, public school education, patriotism, citizenship, national borders, books recs from Asian American authors, and how hot Gong Li is!
(2:30) - Nina introduces herself and her writing.
(5:00) - Nina's newest essay on Chicago public schools.
(12:00) - Immigrating to the U.S. from Japan, living as a mixed race child in the U.S. and Japan.
(18:00) - The importance of translation and reducing language barriers in activism.
(20:00) - Having political conversations with Asian parents
(23:00) - Patriotism, Imagined Communities
(27:00) - How is citizenship awarded, when is it taken away, how do you prove you're a citizen? Chinese citizenship.
(30:00) - Regional dialects.
(32:00) - Nina's book recs by Asian American authors!
(34:15) - Asian American representation in literature and film. Amy Tan, Crazy Rich Asians, The Half of It, Mulan.
Contact Nancy at:
[email protected]
Website
POC Podcast has an Instagram now!
And a Twitter!
Nina:
Twitter
Instagram
Ode to a Chicago Public School
Book recs:
If I Had Your Face by Frances Cha
How Much of These Hills is Gold by C Pan Zhang
Minor Feelings by Cathy Park Hong
Harmless Like You by Rowan Hisayo Buchanan
Starling Days by Rowan Hisayo Buchanan
Welcome to Progressive Opinions of Color (POC), a podcast that seeks to create space for more people of color in politics and economics. With the 2020 presidential election coming up and the state of the economy during COVID-19, it is more important than ever to think about who we include in the conversations about politics and economics. I am Nancy Wu, your host. I’m also an Asian American woman, an economist, and a huge politics and policy nerd. I triple majored in Economics, Government (Political Science) and Gender Studies at Dartmouth and have a Master’s in Development Economics from Oxford. I work as an Economist full time and have previously worked in economic policy at the White House (under Obama, of course) and progressive think tanks. The goal of this podcast is to engage the Asian American community and other POC and BIPOC voices in an industry that is so heavily represented by old white men. The POC Podcast will host conversations on the 2020 Presidential Election, Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, the coronavirus pandemic, the state of the economy, and other pressing topics in politics, economics, and culture, all through perspectives inclusive of the lived experiences of people of color. Whether you're new to politics or already a huge politics nerd, I hope this podcast inspires community and conversation among us. Join me in reimagining politics and economics with underrepresented voices. The economy is complicated enough. Learn about it through stories from real people.
Previous Episode
Is the Rising National Deficit Bad? Are the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Good Economic Indicators? Inflation and Interest Rates? GDP?: Q&A with Nancy Wu
Economist Nancy answers all your questions about the economy!
S&P 500 and Nasdaq at record highs (and as of 9/3, dropping again)? What is GDP and is it the right measure of an economy's success? What are alternatives to GDP? What's up with the rising deficit? Will we have inflation? What about interest rates?
(1:15)- What are flaws of using the S&P 500, Dow Jones, or NASDAQ to measure the economy?
(1:45)- What are these stock indices?
(3:15) - S&P 500 and Nasdaq set new records in September, showing optimism in the economy.
(4:00) - THE STOCK MARKET IS NOT THE ECONOMY! The economy is still far from recovering. 16 million people are still unemployed.
(4:45) - THESE INDICES ARE NOT THE STOCK MARKET! These indices give disproportionate weight to tech.
(5:30) - How should we be measuring the strength of the economy, if not the stock market? What is GDP?
(5:45) - Downfalls of GDP. What does high GDP mean for the environment?
(7:15) - Alternatives to GDP: Andrew Yang's human metrics and Kate Raworth's Doughnut Economics theory.
(9:10) - My thoughts on how to measure economic success.
(9:30) - Is the national deficit increasing not a problem or a huge problem? I’ve heard both!
(9:45) - Difference between deficit and debt.
(10:00) - What the media is saying about the dangers of rising deficits and it's all bullshit.
(11:00) - Debt to GDP.
(11:15) - Deficit in the context of the CARES Act and COVID.
(11:40) - Goal of deficits is to raise GDP and prevent a WORSE AND LONGER RECESSION.
(12:00) - Interest rates are low. What that means for the deficit and debt.
(12:30) - When stimulus packages work: is the economy demand constrained or supply constrained?
(13:45) - SHOULD WE WORRY ABOUT INFLATION?
(14:10) - What happened to the economy during COVID?
(15:30) - How do we finance the stimulus? Not taxes!
(15:50) - Inflation again, and interest rates.
(17:25) - My thoughts on dumb economics and politicians. What is the goal here? To ensure that people have necessary resources, not an artificial metric that critics don't even understand!
(19:25) - My investment strategy with index funds and S&P 500 long term investment and returns for retirement.
Contact Nancy at:
[email protected]
POC Podcast has an Instagram now!
Welcome to Progressive Opinions of Color (POC), a podcast that seeks to create space for more people of color in politics and economics. With the 2020 presidential election coming up and the state of the economy during COVID-19, it is more important than ever to think about who we include in the conversations about politics and economics. I am Nancy Wu, your host. I’m also an Asian American woman, an economist, and a huge politics and policy nerd. I triple majored in Economics, Government (Political Science) and Gender Studies at Dartmouth and have a Master’s in Development Economics from Oxford. I work as an Economist full time and have previously worked in economic policy at the White House (under Obama, of course) and progressive think tanks. The goal of this podcast is to engage the Asian American community and other POC and BIPOC voices in an industry that is so heavily represented by old white men. The POC Podcast will host conversations on the 2020 Presidential Election, Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, the coronavirus pandemic, the state of the economy, and other pressing topics in politics, economics, and culture, all through perspectives inclusive of the lived experiences of people of color. Whether you're new to politics or already a huge politics nerd, I hope this podcast inspires community and conversation among us. Join me in reimagining politics and economics with underrepresented voices. The economy is complicated enough
Next Episode
Asian American History, Why Immigrant Parents Support Trump, Compulsory Antiracist Education, East Coast vs West Coast Asians with Nicole Zhao
Today's guest is Nicole Zhao, a native New Yorker who will talk about the importance of antiracist education. We have lots of history on structural inequities, systemic racism, and the different experiences within Asian immigrant communities and across racial groups. We grew up in very different communities and Asian American experiences. I was NOT woke at all in high school, and Nicole went to a high school that required standardized testing and an application to get in! We, unfortunately, both have Trump supporting parents. How do you talk to parents about that, and take into consideration how their immigration stories have shaped their beliefs? We also recount some racism and micro aggressions we’ve faced.
(2:00) - Nicole's introduction. The diverse community in Queens.
(2:30) - How did growing up NYC vs. California shape political beliefs?
(6:15) - What is a specialized high school?
(10:45) - Education on the history of the U.S. should be embedded in the K through 12 system.
(11:45) - Asian American history is erased from social studies.
(12:00) - The Page act and how laws shaped racial stereotypes about Asians today.
(14:40) - Importance of gender studies.
(15:30) - How Nancy was a republican misogynist and racist in high school and college changed that.
(22:00) - Classes in college that were life changing.
(24:00) - Asian solidarity and the formation of Asian American as a political and racial group.
(25:00) - Asian Black Solidarity and taking to Asian parents about #blacklivesmatter. (32:30) - Trump supporting Asian Parents. Why immigrants like Trump.
(37:00) - Different ideals of America from immigrant parents.
(40:00) - Racial identity as a west coast Asian.
(41:30) - Facing racism and microaggressions in college, sorority rush, running, and work.
Contact Nancy at:
POC Podcast has an Instagram now!
And a Twitter!
Nicole:
Instagram
Twitter
Rice's Diversity Education Must Include Anti-Racism
Welcome to Progressive Opinions of Color (POC), a podcast that seeks to create space for more people of color in politics and economics. With the 2020 presidential election coming up and the state of the economy during COVID-19, it is more important than ever to think about who we include in the conversations about politics and economics. I am Nancy Wu, your host. I’m also an Asian American woman, an economist, and a huge politics and policy nerd. I triple majored in Economics, Government (Political Science) and Gender Studies at Dartmouth and have a Master’s in Development Economics from Oxford. I work as an Economist full time and have previously worked in economic policy at the White House (under Obama, of course) and progressive think tanks. The goal of this podcast is to engage the Asian American community and other POC and BIPOC voices in an industry that is so heavily represented by old white men. The POC Podcast will host conversations on the 2020 Presidential Election, Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, the coronavirus pandemic, the state of the economy, and other pressing topics in politics, economics, and culture, all through perspectives inclusive of the lived experiences of people of color. Whether you're new to politics or already a huge politics nerd, I hope this podcast inspires community and conversation among us. Join me in reimagining politics and economics with underrepresented voices. The economy is complic
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