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Mash-Up Round-Up: Reclaiming Wellness + Steven Yeun’s Story

You can't commodify tradition.
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The week of February 6, 2021 was an aerobics video with a side of military coup; gangs of outcast orcas ruling the seas; and possibly the greatest poem we’ve ever read.

RIP Corky Lee. Thank you for helping us see ourselves.

Mash-Ups In The News

The Many Lives Of Steven Yeun

Born in Seoul, immigrant to the U.S., he has every Asian-American kid’s kindergarten class photo: front row, bowl cut, white shoes. He codeswitched from church to school, from Korean community to white. Overnight, he became one of the most recognizable Asian-American actors in the country. In Minari, he plays a father and makes his own father feel seen. 

What’s a typical immigrant story? Steven Yeun shares his own. 

via NY Times

Reclaiming Asian Wellness Foods

Dried citrus peels, umeboshi, ginger — as traditions get commodified, you lose the connection and community it came from. That’s what these Asian Americans are trying to rebuild and reconnect. 

And reminder: Food can totally change our relationships, and our relationship with food can be totally changed by a burned esophagus.

via SF Chronicle

How The Pandemic Has Upended The Lives Of Thailand’s Sex Workers

Sex work in Thailand has allowed thousands to save money, afford luxuries, and support their children, siblings, parents, and grandparents. When the tourism industry collapsed, their industry went with it.

via NPR

The First Human-Composting Funeral Home In The U.S., Is Open For Business

“…I’ve found it to be a very graceful and beautiful way to go…It’s the natural way, the way every living thing in history has eventually been cared for, from an apple core to a human.” 

From body to soil to life again, we’re reminded of our incredible talk with Alua Arthur, a death doula who helps people through the process of death. 

via The Columbian

Americans Are Buying Millions More Firearms

More than 2 million guns were sold in January, an 80% jump from last year. It could be stockpiling under “threat” of gun reform, the collapse of trust in police, an increase in hunting, or all of the above, plus some. 

via Washington Post

Canada Declares The Proud Boys A Terrorist Group

“These groups are unfortunately active in Canada and around the world…Their violent actions and rhetoric are fueled by white supremacy, anti-Semitism, racism, homophobia, Islamophobia and misogyny.”

via Washington Post

The Lifelong Isolation Of Two Elderly Sisters in India

Gayatri and Swati Goswami are both albino, treated as outsiders in their own community. Their nephew, a photographer, documents their lives in gorgeous images, making their lives visible even in isolation.

via New Yorker

City Landmarks Downtown Brooklyn Rowhouse Believed To Be Underground Railroad Stop

“Mom always wanted the building to become a community-controlled cultural center where Black people can celebrate our history and culture. Today we are one step closer to that dream, and we hope that today’s events open the floodgates for the recognition of other Black landmarks.”

via Gothamist

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