Updates

I wrote an essay about my mother that was in my collection of Emil Amok columns in my book Amok back in 2000. I read it here, along with a preamble on the podcast, because I’ve too often given short shrift to my mom’s story, in favor of my dad’s. But my mother’s story was pretty incredible too. Sh

Donald Trump’s classless firing of FBI director James Comey, just days after Comey reportedly asked for more money for an investigation into the Trump campaign and Russia, elevates the situation to historic levels. There is only one word to describe Donald Trump going forward. Nixonian. Nixon’s t

My late mother, the wise Filipina, would always say, “Your health is your wealth.” And when her health failed, she was thankful for her health care through Medicare. And now after today, we’re a step closer to the danger zone. I talk about #TrumpNoCare on the podcast. But we won’t let the threat to

I guess Dr. David Dao didn’t want to drag it out. He didn’t need 100 days. Neither did United. CEO Oscar Munoz continues his apology tour in the media with a new report that heralds changes in service, including an increase in fees from $1,350 to $10,000 for bumped passengers. Dao’s settlement amou

While you’re marching on Earth Day at a science march near you, take your earbuds and listen to Emil Amok’s Takeout. I mean, you’re going to march, aren’t you? If you’ve doubted that the environment is a racial justice issue, listen to Miya Yoshitani of the Asian Pacific Environmental Network (APE

When the U.S. drops the “mother of all bombs” on Afghanistan as a worldwide message, it’s time for a little sobering perspective. Maybe we could take a little more time to treat all people with a little more respect, fairness and dignity in our everyday lives. Person to person. And certainly, corpo

It is the unmistakable screech heard round the world. By now, you’ve surely seen that looping video, strung together from the good citizens with cell phone cameras who have learned that video doesn’t lie (below via Washington Post). It loops on all your newsfeeds and on TV like a modern Zapruder f

Mr. America First, Donald Trump, the man who never met a wall he didn’t like, has no compassion for the undocumented. Same for the 24 million people he’d gladly lop off Obamacare, or the countless others impacted by his pro-military budget. He’s never shown any real concern for Syrian refugees. But

Art Shibayama, 86, was in Washington, DC and stood by the “Unfinished Business” display at the National Museum of American History. He was there with his friend, Blanca Katsura, also 86. Both were just 12 when they became part of a shameful and little-known episode of U.S. history. Shibayama and

We already know how hard it is to get justice in America. It might get even harder. In my AALDEF podcast, I talk to two Asian American professors who have filed a discrimination suit against the University of Michigan. The professors filed in Michigan state court. But where federal laws are conc

I admit I wasn’t sure if Islamophobia was going to be beaten back and stopped this time around. But now a Native Hawaiian judge in the nation’s most Asian American state has spoken for all. Maryland piled on for good measure after the Hawaii court’s decision. But the effect is the same. Trump’s re

If you still haven’t heard the story of Srinivas Kuchibhotla, don’t worry. It’s unclear if even Donald Trump knows, remembers, or cares. Sort of like his health care promises. In his joint address before Congress, the MCOWH (man currently occupying the White House, in case he is still #NotMyPresid

In our podcast Emil Amok’s Takeout, I list off the key points about Travel Ban 2.0. Six out of the seven original countries are involved: Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen. Only extensive lobbying got Iraq taken off. There are also exceptions made for green card and visa holders, as we

The media, wanting so desperately to say something nice about Donald Trump, seemed to go out of their way to praise the president for his performance before a joint session of Congress last week. Trump seemed to find the right key to being presidential. Like maybe he finally gets it? Nyet. The pr

If you’re Asian American, you may have your head down and not be paying attention to all the new proposals on immigration and border security. But a new proposal could impact Asian Americans and their families and friends. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has proposed this idea: to col

This is Oscar Weekend, a time when we’re supposed to escape the humdrum of everyday life for the uplifting fantasies of movie-dom. And then everything changed, when real life turned into “Trump, the presidency.” I even liked the most popular movie of 2016, “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” mostly fo

February 19 is the 75th anniversary of the signing of Executive Order 9066 by President Franklin Roosevelt. It was the start of a nightmare for Japanese Americans who were rounded up and placed in internment camps during World War II. How did it happen? And could it happen again to another group?

The man who should be called Twitter Trump, the current White House resident, recently learned a lesson when he found out federal district judges are more than “so-called judges.” And those 9th Circuit appeals court judges, they’re no pushovers either. They know an abuse of power when they see one

It was around half-time of what would turn out to be one of the greatest Super Bowls ever. The Atlanta Falcons were handily beating the New England Patriots 21-3, and everyone thought it was over. (It wasn’t.) And then Lady Gaga flew in on a wire to bring things to life, singing, among other things,

UNSTRANDED: Eman Ali, 12, and her father Ahmed, sat before media at San Francisco International Airport on Super Bowl Sunday. They are among the first to travel to America after the travel restrictions from seven predominantly Muslim nations were lifted on Friday. Ahmed Ali is a Yemeni American, b