AG Healey Fights for Workers’ Rights
Attorney General Maura Healey led a coalition of 11 attorney generals, and eight attorney generals and prosecutors, from across the nation to write a letter in support of workers’ rights on November 15.
Artist Profile — Xiaowei Chen
Xiaowei Chen is an artist whose intricate drawings are intended to arouse curiosity in the viewer. Originally from China, she currently resides in Boston and seeks to create works that “explore the emotional states of human experience through two very different cultures,” according to a statement written by art critic Lingsui. Her art was recently displayed in the Pellas Gallery’s exhibition “Utopia X Dystopia.” In this particular show, she was highly influenced by Greek philosophers and ancient stories. “I love […]
Asian CARES Report Addresses Problem Gambling
Heang Leung Rubin, lead researcher of the report, said that one reason why interview subjects chose to gamble was due to a feeling that comes from social and cultural isolation: a very profound kind of boredom.
Boston Asian American Film Festival — building visual connections
This year’s Boston Asian American Film Festival (BAAFF) presented stories that may have unintentionally centered around a common theme of healing, or the medicinal value of movies. A fitting thread for a community “rising together” out of the pandemic. While the previous year’s selection of films seemed to emphasize activism and social and political issues impacting Asians, such as the frontlines of the pandemic and the suppression of media in the Philippines, the featured 2021 productions were slightly more intimate, […]
Prison activity: covid, VOTES, and moratorium
There has been significant activity around legislation relating to Massachusetts prisons, while simultaneously, facilities operated by the Department of Corrections (DOC) have seen a decline in COVID-19 cases. Political leaders have been pushing to pass the Prison Moratorium Bill, which would freeze new prison construction projects for five years. In addition, the VOTES Act was passed in the Senate, giving incarcerated people the ability to vote in elections. According to the DOC’s Special Master’s Report, on August 16, there were […]
The American Rescue Plan — Rescues in Chinatown
Mayor Kim Janey announced on August 10 that she had proposed a $50 million emergency relief plan “to support an equitable recovery and reopening for Boston residents, workers and small businesses, using funding the City of Boston has received from the federal government following the passage of the American Rescue Plan (ARP),” according to a press release from the City of Boston. Boston is expecting to receive Over $500 million through ARP through the end of 2024. While many Chinatown […]
DACA ruling leaves undocumented in limbo
On July 16, the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas ruled that Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) “is illegal,” according to the website of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. DACA is an immigration policy that permits some people with unlawful presence in the country, who came to the U.S. as children, to receive a renewable two-year period of deferred action from deportation and to be eligible for a work permit. Local activists in Boston responded […]
New Josiah Quincy Upper School plans for fall
The development of the new Josiah Quincy Upper School building is on schedule. The construction of the facility on Washington Street will mark a milestone for the school’s community, as students and teachers have been in temporary spaces, which did not accommodate the school’s growing needs, for a long time. While some community members have expressed concerns about the usage of the site and how building will impact the environment, they have also stated that it is important for students […]
Chinatown: The Musical
Company One Theatre and Pao Arts Center held a virtual concert and conversation about a new musical informally titled the “Boston Chinatown Musical,” on August 19. The show was written and performed by Kit Yan and Melissa Li, the 2020-21 C1 PlayLab Pao Fellows, and the artists have given Sampan an inner look at their creative process. “This particular story is based on our own personal experiences in Boston Chinatown,” said Yan. “Melissa’s family lives in Chinatown. Based on some […]
Call for Biden to end Southeast Asian deportations
Under the Biden administration, Southeast Asian refugees have continued to be deported, and in Boston, community organizations and legislators have collaborated to combat the problem. Over the past few years, Greater Boston Legal Services’ (GBLS) Asian Outreach Unit and the Asian American Resource Workshop (AARW) have served as advocates and fought in individual cases. This past June, 15 senators and 44 other representatives joined the Massachusetts House Asian Caucus to sign a statement condemning “the disproportionate rise in deportations of […]