Chinese, Community, Education, International, Media, Writing
Teaching in China: One Perspective
By LORETTA MINET
Asian Media Access had the opportunity to visit and get to know nine students visiting from Hunan China and three teachers. AMA youth sat down with the students to find out about the youths lives in China and the students got to learn a little bit about being a teen in America. Despite some language barriers, everyone was able to communicate with each other.
Awards/Recognition, Laotian, Spoken Word, Storytelling, Writing
Saymoukda Duangphouxay Vongsay (Photo by Joseph Forman. Hair and makeup by Ashley Vongsouvanh)
Minnesota based Saymoukda Duangphouxay Vongsay became the first writer to receive the Alfred C. Carey Prize in Spoken Word Poetry, August 1, 2010, in recognition of her poem, “When Everything Was Everything.”
Brandon Lacy Campos, a writer and community activist, established the Prize in Spoken Word Poetry to honor the memory of his late grandfather, Alfred Charles Carey, described as a “hard working construction worker and family man from Northern Minnesota, who raised a family of eight, including three children not biologically his own.
Events, Laotian, Performance Art, Spoken Word, Storytelling, Writing
For the very first time in 30 years, leading Lao American poets, playwrights, rock stars and filmmakers from across the country will gather July 14, 2010 at the historic Loft Literary Center for a one-night-only reading and performance of art, culture, memories and dreams. Seats are limited, but there will be free refreshments and door prizes. This event is free to the public and starts from 7pm to 9pm at 1011 Washington Ave. S, Minneapolis.
Mali Phonpadith is a Lao American writer/poet based in Washington DC., will be attending the National Lao American Writer’s Summit in Minneapolis this month. (Contributed photo)
By Bryan Thao Worra
AAP staff writer
Mali Phonpadith is a Lao American writer/poet based in Washington DC. The co-founder of Reflections Within, Phonpadith has been writing poetry, short essays and short stories for over 20 years internationally. She has over 400 pieces of written work and was nominated as Best Poet of the Year by the International Society of Poets in 2007.
Phonpadith has been a tireless activist within the community, and often volunteers many hours and resources to the causes she loves, including the Young Professional Leadership Group, the International Society of Poets, the National Association for Women Business Owners, the Lao Heritage Foundation, Arts of Falls Church.
She is also an active volunteer with Teatro de la Luna. In August she will be coming to Minnesota to participate in the national Lao American Writers Summit gathering at the Loft Literary Center in Minneapolis.
Asian American Press had an opportunity to interview her recently.
Asian American Press: What do you do when you’re not writing?
Mali Phonpadith: I spend a lot of time with my family, friends, and clients listening to their hopes, goals and dreams. They become my inspiration on so many levels- including ideas for my creative writing.
I do my best to give of my time to non-profit organizations that speak to my passions. This allows me to live a life where I am thinking bigger than myself, knowing that my support and actions to these causes will have significant impact on others and communities.
AAP: How did you get started writing?
MP: I was 12 years old. I had recurring dreams, the same one for almost two months: black feet, muffled sobbing in my ear, and sirens in the background. My mother told me later that I was recalling the day we escaped Laos. At that moment, it hit me! So much takes place in our lives that we forget, repress, or push aside. I did not want to live my life without documenting meaningful experiences so that’s when I started “journaling” … later, in High School, my English teacher pointed out that my writing was not necessarily “journal entries”, they were poetry.
AAP: How do you find time to write?
MP: In the evenings- it’s a part of my daily ritual, like carving out meditation time. I also schedule a creative writing day onto my calendar when I have a deadline- such as assignments from my editor as I work to publish my first book.
AAP: Why are you excited by the Lao American Writers Summit?
MP: I am excited about the Lao Writer’s Summit because I believe every person (writer/artist or not) wants a sense of belonging and community. This is an opportunity to bring like-minded, passionate writers together to share ideas, learn from one another, and teach each other new ways of expression. I am excited to bring the Lao people together and have a more powerful voice through our writing. I am excited about expanding my own personal network of creative minds.
AAP: What’s one of the best things someone has said to you about your writing?
MP: “Everytime I read something you write, I wonder if you someone entered into my mind because you are the voice, I am not able to speak.”
AAP: Do you have any advice for younger writers?
MP: Share your work. Include others in your life that you trust to provide constructive critism and positive feedback. Be open to others’ work so you can learn of different styles. Like any craft, practice and write from the heart. ο
Awards/Recognition, Books, Hmong, Writing
Burlee Vang
Sacramento, CA (June 15, 2010) – Burlee Vang, of Fresno, Calif., is the winner of the 2010 Swan Scythe Press Poetry Chapbook Contest. According to the editors of Swan Scythe Press, one of the U.S.’s most prestigious poetry publishers, Vang’s winning manuscript is titled “The Dead I Know: Incantation for Rebirth.”
Catzie Vilayphonh
By Bryan Thao Worra
AAP staff writer
Catzie Vilayphonh is a Lao American writer and performer based in Philadelphia, who is a regular visitor to Minnesota. She will return in August for the national Lao American Writers Summit on August 13-15th at the Loft Literary Center.
Arts, Spoken Word, Theater, Writing
Saymoukda Vongsay
Minnesota writer Saymoukda Vongsay is organizing Operation Gynocracy: A 1 Night Stand With 12 Women on July 28, 7:00 p.m. at the Black Dog Cafe on 308 Prince Street in Lowertown Saint Paul. Curated with Hmong American writer May Lee-Yang and featuring DJ Kool Akiem on the 1s and 2s, “Nothing is sacred, politically correct, or too sensitive to touch as twelve women will let the kitty out of the bag through poetry, prose, song, and laughter,” according to Vongsay.
Arts, Filipino, Theater, Writing
Minneapolis (July 14, 2010) – The Playwrights’ Center has named Lisa Brimmer, Reginald Edmund, Kathryn Haddad, Shira Naharit, and Eric “Pogi” Sumangil as the 2010-11 Jerome Many Voices Fellows.
Underwritten by a grant from the Jerome Foundation, the Many Voices Fellowship program enriches the American theater by offering playwriting fellowships to Minnesota artists of color. Many Voices is designed to increase cultural diversity in the contemporary theater, both locally and nationally, through cash grants, education, and opportunities to develop new work with theater professionals.
Announcements, Books, Events, Writing
The Speculations Reading Series, hosted by the multicultural speculative fiction organization SF Minnesota, continues this month with free readings by acclaimed novelists, William F. Wu and Rob Chilson, on Thursday, July 29, 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. at the Loft Literary Center, 1011 Washington Ave. S, Minneapolis.
Announcements, Arts, Awards/Recognition, Hmong, Writing
St. Paul, Minn. (July 5, 2010) – The General Mills Foundation, the Art and Martha Kaemmer Fund of HRK Foundation and the Jerome Foundation announce the 2010 Travel and Study Grant Program recipients. Thirty-three grants totaling $137,601, ranging in size from $1,500 to $5,000, were authorized. The Travel and Study Grant Program awards grants to emerging artists in Minnesota and the five boroughs of New York City, and arts administrators in Minnesota. Funds support travel for professional development.
Korean Adoptees Ministry celebrates 10th Anniversary
PaDao Yang leads youth leadership development arts program
Mu Performing Arts prepares for new season
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