Table of Contents

Editor's Note

Cover Story

Taste Buds

Events Calendar

May 2008

© Copyright ColorsNW Magazine

- Reading Room
- iSalud! [To your health]
- Family Fun - International Children's Festival
- News Briefs
- Diversity Matters
 

READING ROOM

Reclaiming Patriotism
Seattle-area author Eric Liu shows us how
 
These days, the word “patriotism” has new connotations. For many, patriotism has become a habit; it’s the national anthem we wade through before the ball game. In the liberal climate of the Northwest, patriotism has come to embody something old-fashioned and archaic – a blind devotion to one's flawed country that is so 30 years ago.

And in this climate enters “The True Patriot.” The self-proclaimed “pamphlet” by local authors Eric Liu, an Asian-American educator, and Nick Hanauer, a white entrepreneur, is not a book in the traditional sense. There is no story and no protagonist. Rather, it is an argument to redefine what patriotism means. Liu and Hanauer argue that patriotism is actually progressive, not old-fashioned. In the book, Liu writes “Progress to us means trying always to live up to ideals and beliefs that we are measuring ourselves up against.”

The truth is that the book says nothing new or radical, and Liu – a former speechwriter for former President Bill Clinton and currently a professor at the University of Washington’s Evans School of Public Affairs – is proud of it” "We really want to hearken back to the era, the founding era,” he explains. “When ideas mattered – when citizens of every background self-owned their politics. When it was necessary to publicly state what you believe and why. We wanted to pay homage to that era.”

Reading the book is like reawakening a memory of that day in high school when we learned about the framing of the American Constitution. We felt a sense of urgency upon learning that this country’s founding fathers, who individually sacrificed for a greater cause, shared the belief that all people were equal.

“True Patriot” is a book that is read slowly. For one, Liu’s and Hanauer’s writing is very deliberate. But secondly, because the book isn’t plot-driven, reading it isn't a race to the end. Instead, the “True Patriot” strives to engage us, talk with us and make us think about what it means to put one’s country above one’s self – not blindly, but methodically and morally. It’s about accountability and responsibility. The book forces us to question what our rights are, why they are important and why we work hard to protect them. – Stacy NGUYEN
 

i SALUD ! [To your health]

Heart Health in Salons and Barbershops

There is more credence to the adage “when you look good, you feel good,” thanks to salons participating in the “Power to Live Smart” program across Pierce and King counties.

Power to Live Smart is a collaborative program between the American Heart Association’s Cultural Health Initiatives and Washington State Department of Health. The no-cost program has participation from 14 Pierce and King County salons and barbershops that serve primarily African-American clientele. “Power to Live Smart makes barbers and beauticians key partners in improving the health of the African-American community, a population least likely to have regular blood checks. This program has been shown to work in other parts of the county and we hope to achieve that success here,” says Kristin Wurz, who oversees the Cultural Health Initiatives program for the American Heart Association in Washington.

Stylists and barbers in these salons have been trained to talk to their clients about heart disease and stroke. The program includes a blood pressure check and discussion of the results. The stylists and barbers receive support in the way of periodic visits from a nurse.

According to the Department of Health, African Americans have higher rates of death from heart disease and stroke than most other racial groups. African Americans in Washington also have high rates of hypertension, a leading cause of heart attack and stroke.

To learn more, call 206.632.6881 or the Washington State Department of Health at 888.438.2247. - Carolyn J. WRIGHT

Salons & Barbershops participating in Power to Live Smart:
Pierce County
A&M Beauty Supply & Salon
Creative Cuts & Styles
Divas Hair Studio
Goodfellas Barbershop
Lakewood International Hairport
Melody’s Salon
Sam & Terry Barbershop
Valentino’s Salon
Seattle
A New You Beauty Salon
Hair Studio 57
Hodges Hair Quarters
Salon LaRoche
Tee’s Beauty Salon
Valentino Barbershop

FAMILY FUN

Seattle International Children's Festival:
Nurturing the global spirit in youngsters
A few highlights from Planet Earth!
 
May 12-17 in Seattle, May 19 in Tacoma
www.seattleinternational.org  or 206.684.7338

PETRONA MARTINEZ – Columbia
Hailing from Colombia, 69-year-old Latin Grammy-nominated Petrona Martinez is the heiress to a long tradition of bullerengue singers, including her mother, grandmother and aunts. Thought to be one of the “world’s most authentic Afro-Columbian voices,” Martinez’ fresh, colorful voice and innate sense of rhythm beckons multigenerational audiences – a living proof, as she says, that it “takes a lifetime to become an overnight success.” www.myspace.com/petrona_martinez 
Performances: The Davey Jones at Fisher Pavilion
Weekdays/Nights/Saturday/Also in Tacoma

REEM KELANI – U.K. / Palestine
Born in Manchester, U.K., to a mother from Nazareth and a father from Jenin, Reem Kelani was raised in Kuwait. In her later years, she gathered folk songs from women in Lebanese and Palestinian refugee camps. Her 2006 debut album, “Sprinting Gazelle – Palestinian Songs from the Motherland and the Diaspora,” culminated 20 years of research to recreate diaspora longing into traditional songs – a powerful affirmation of the existence of a Palestinian cultural identity. www.reemkelani.com
Performances: The Davey Jones at Fisher Pavilion
Weekdays/Nights/Saturday

AMAZONES – Women Master Drummers of Guinea, West Africa
In reflections of her life growing up in the villages of Guinea, Africa, Mamoudou Conde often wondered why she’d never seen women break into traditional African drumming. Because women had been banished from touching the “Master Drum” in its birthplace, Guinea, they rarely pursued the art anywhere else in the world. Deciding to change this construct, Conde, of New York, created master classes to teach women the art of djembe drumming; later, she launched “Amazones – Women Master Drummers of Guinea.” Jubilant and hypnotic, the ensemble of women drummers combines “pounding enthusiasm and intensity with rhythmic virtuosity.” www.amazoneswomandrummers.com 
Performances: Bagley Wright Theater, Seattle Center
Weekdays/Saturday/Tacoma

News Briefs

In Memoriam
Community says farewell to Marine Maj. William G. Hall, 38
During his second deployment as a Marine in Iraq, Maj. William G. “Billy” Hall trained Iraqi troops to take over the duties of U.S. soldiers and spoke positively of the work being done in the war zone. Shortly before leaving for Iraq in mid-February, the 1987 graduate of Garfield High School in Seattle was selected for promotion to the rank of lieutenant colonel of the Third Low Altitude Air Defense Battalion, based at Camp Pendleton near San Diego, and would have received his promotion this year.

Maj. Hall was injured by an improvised-explosive device March 29 and died the following day in Iraq’s Anbar province. The 38-year-old African American is remembered for his quiet strength and respect for tradition as well as a “maturity beyond his years,” according to his obituary published by The Seattle Times.

After finishing high school, Maj. Hall earned a bachelor’s degree from Washington State University, where he enrolled in the college’s Reserved Officer’s Training Corps (ROTC) program. During his 15-year career in the Marines, Maj. Hall served in Georgia, California and Japan. He is survived by his wife, Xiomara Hall; daughters Tatianna and Gladys; stepsons Xavier and Xander; all of Temecula, CA; his mother Mildred Hall of Seattle and his sisters Dolores Perry of Seattle and Margie Bell of Renton.

Beloved Asian-American leader passes away at 84
Affectionately named “Uncle Ben” by the Seattle Asian-American community, Ben Woo spent an active life as the director of King County’s Construction and Facilities Management Department, president of the Seattle chapter of the American Institute of Architects, and head of the Chinatown-International District Preservation and Development Authority.

But beyond his professional titles, Woo was a source of unending counsel to up-and-coming community activists in the Seattle area. He provided a “sixth sense” and the “second opinion” when local leaders in the Asian-American community needed it most. As an original supporter of the Wing Luke Asian Museum, according to the Times, Woo worked with the museum’s executive director Ron Chew to sustain funding for museum operations. Always active in politics, in 1982, Woo transformed his living room into a makeshift campaign headquarters for former Washington governor Gary Locke.

The father of five died Feb. 8 from heart failure after suffering a stroke in November. He was 84. He is survived by his wife, Ruth Woo, a political activist in the Seattle area; four siblings, George Woo, Nina Matheson, Emma Louie and Barbara Radke; his daughter, Teresa, and four sons, John, Jeffrey, Roger and Philip. – Meg KRUGEL

DIVERSITY MATTERS
by Nani JACKINS PARK

For seven years ColorsNW Magazine has operated with a commitment to illuminating issues relevant to communities of color. We believe our communities hold great knowledge, wisdom and insight. We also believe there’s great power in writing our own stories and speaking out and using our voices.

That’s why the first thing we did when we launched ColorsNW Diversity Training & Consulting Services, the newest addition to the ColorsNW family of diversity resources, was ask you to share your perspectives.

We asked you to tell us who you are, what you do and what matters to you with regard to diversity. We asked you how culturally competent you believe leaders, organizations and businesses in our region to be. We also wanted to know your thoughts on the biggest barriers faced by our communities, as well as what holds the greatest promise for progress.

We thank the hundreds of people who responded to our ColorsNW Diversity Survey or who attended one of the three Town Meetings held in February. Your feedback was powerful, moving and insightful.

For example, you communicated in various ways that conversations about racial and ethnic identity, particularly as they relate to multiracial people, are complex and just beginning. You expressed a collective belief that our political and community leaders – those with power to influence policies and resources that impact our communities – need to develop greater levels of cultural competency (which we define as being equipped with the knowledge and skills needed to work effectively across diverse cultural dynamics). And in addition to addressing the barriers we are experiencing, you shared your vision for positive change.

To access more results from our Diversity Survey and Town Meetings, please go to www.colorsnw.com/training/speakout.html.  If you have questions about the information listed, please contact Nani Jackins Park, at nanijp@colorsnw.com.


Nani Jackins Park is the executive director of ColorsNW Diversity Training & Consulting Services, and has over 20 years of experience promoting diversity and equity issues. To reach Nani, email nanijp@colorsnw.com.