Until We Meet Again

This entry is dedicated those folks who have made an impact, big and small, on me. Until we meet again, we will stay connected through love... or Facebook.

You haven't been seeing me for a little while now and most likely, you won't see me for a long while. I have been in DC for nearly three weeks now. After DC, I will be home for about a week before leaving for a semester to study abroad at Beijing University. When the school year ended, I spent about a month at home before leaving for my internship in Washington DC. That month home is one of the most memorable months I've had. Knowing that I had a limited amount of time in California, I decided I had to move quickly--see as many people, go to as many places, do as many things. It was without a doubt cramped but fantastic all at once.

I spent countless trips eating out with friends. I had exciting little summer flings with hotties. I marched in the Los Angeles Pride parade; I have been doing so since freshman year of high school. I had a few trips to the gay club (now that I am in DC I realize how greatly I took for granted LA clubs). I spent a weekend hanging out in San Diego with one of my best buddies--walking on the beach, taking in the gay scene, fun times at the clubs, not so fun times at the gas pump. And most importantly, I had the chance to spend time with family. I took my brother to Knott's Barry Farm and I noticed how fast he is growing up. I don't think I can ever get used to the fact that he is growing up and it will be hard to let go. I visited my cousin in Irvine--had great meals and shopping with her. I saw my sister graduate and still cannot get over the fact that she's an adult and I will remain forever protective.

I am in Washington DC now in the Northwest district in an area called Friendship Heights, or what the director of my internship calls, "Friendship Whites." It's ritzy and glamglam with surprisingly modest homes. It's interesting because it's like suburbia and metropolitan all in one. There is a LV, Gucci, Dior, etc down the street--so there you have it, nothing too interesting, 'nough said about the area. I am living in a four bedroom, one basement, two story house. I live in the basement with a Pomona graduate. We have our own restroom, shower, and separate entrance, which is cool. I live with five other girls from the University of Virginia, Cornell, Reed, University of Florida, and University of Michigan. I can safely say we get along just fine and are drama free. I mean, how much drama can happen with a straight guy who has a girlfriend and a gay guy?

I am interning at the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. My first week there was fabulous--I was introduced to my basic tasks and many things fell within the areas of my interests. It felt a little upity at first--men always wore a shirt and a tie. I work on the 9th floor of the 10 story building. I write articles for their newsletter, draft press releases, have my own research project, and get to watch hearings and Commission meetings. More notably, the EEOC has formed an Asian American Pacific Islander work group focusing on bringing about awareness of Asian American issues within the federal sector. So, they talk about issues such as glass ceiling, model minority myth, discrimination-- things that we talk about in Asian American Studies, but much more grounded and applied, specifically to the federal workplace. It's interesting to see the contesting, contrasting views of "diversity" by these different government employees and a little unsettling too because sometimes the dialogue came dangerously close to revolving around liberal multiculturlist thought.

The politics in the office is interesting too--because there is suppose to be none. Isn't that odd? As a government agency, the EEOC is suppose to be politically neutral. I can say this much--not everyone agrees with each other. Republicans and democrats try to play nice with each other because they must. It's rather amusing. I am most excited about my independent research project, which will focus on Asian Americans and employment law. I will provide an overview of issues relating to AAPI's and the workplace (workplace discrimination, garment work, human trafficking, undocumented labor) and legislation that protects employees. I will conclude with suggestions for policy and programs that will attempt to remedy these issues.

Washington DC is wonderful. Everything is within reach via metro. Shops are fun, restaurants are good (except Asian food) and affordable, and it's pretty. I actually don't mind the humidity and rather enjoy the random showers. Clubs could be better though. I went a straight club called Ibiza (like he Spanish island). The facility was nice. A Chinese couple owns it and it is a pretty mixed crowd--although I have to say men definitely outnumbered women. I didn't have a comfortable experience there though. I went with a new crowd, boys-girls even. I knew the women and barely the men. They assumed I was straight and when you enter the world of straight men--I'm telling you, it's a whole other world with confusing lingo and gestures. I won't go too deep into that. But my point is, I don't think I should have to come out to new people all the time. Straight people never have to come out to me. Straight clubs aren't labeled "straight" clubs. Also, although I see cases when this may lie appropriate, I don't want folks to justify my behavior based solely upon my sexuality. Anyway, from the nature of this internship program to the woman who asked me to show her how to speak Cantonese, to the man who tried to speak to me in Mandarin, and to the man who asked me if I knew Kung Fu, I am always reminded that I am Asian here.

The following week I went to a gay club, APEX. It was fun, but incomparable to the clubs I have been to in LA. It was small, old, and the music was the good 'ole popular hip hop but mixed in boring, redundant beats--all in a room so crowded you had trouble breathing. I met and befriended two deaf guys, which was fun. They had masters in education and knew how to dance based on the feel of the base. DC also has wonderful Ethiopian food and I had a blast visiting the Monuments and Memorials. It really hit home for me then because I had only seen these places in text books and on money but never in real life. It was nice to stand at the Lincoln memorial where Dr. King gave his I HAVE A DREAM speech. Seeing the memorials made me think of how American politics has historically been and continues to be homogenous where a select few are represented and where many are silenced but also how privileged I am and dare I say it--how despite learning about racial formation theory, neoliberalism, the prison industrial complex, environmental racism, I am still patriotic and believe that I have a role and must act based on my privileges and resources.

I am always reminded of home. The hilarious Black women in my office remind me of one of my good friends from Pitzer. The children at the Smithsonian Zoo remind me of my brother. The woman who took my order at the Pan-Asian restaurant reminded me of my mother. The Director of my office reminds me of my father. The old woman who walked across L street with a cane reminded me of my grandmother. The interns in the house remind me of the community I had growing up--the sense of belonging and of solidarity.

I can say that I am learning a lot. I can now cook rice and vegetables. Being at a federal agency, I get a sense of how administrative government works--how complicated and tedious it is to work up the bureaucracy. It's all pretty fascinating to me and has made me consider studying administrative law. Many of the Brown Bag lunches and leadership workshops have been insightful. The session on undocumented students brought to light the injustices of a broken system and made me think that though I may feel displaced and racialized, undocumented folks deal with those same issues but additionally, they face legal persecution and injustice. The law has jurisdiction to treat them as criminals when they have done nothing wrong.

New buddy or old buddy--thanks for sticking around and I look forward to seeing ya'll in the Spring. I will be asking for stories.

Muah!! <3