Top News

December 9, 2023 0

Believing There’s an ‘Average’ Asian American is a Dangerous Assumption

In a collection of his autobiographical writings published in 1907, the American writer Mark Twain cited approvingly a little aperçu that there are three kinds of lies – lies, damned lies, and statistics. Would you cross a river that is four feet deep on average? Hopefully not, since it might be a foot deep in parts and seven feet deep in other parts: four feet deep on average, surely, but not necessarily safe to cross.What if you are diagnosed with […]

December 8, 2023 0

Asian American Civic Association Hosts Talk on Violence in Boston

by Brandon Wong and Yizhen Zhang

The Asian American Civic Association hosted Violence In Boston, another in its ongoing series of community forums on November 30, 2023. In a packed room of residents from Chinatown, South End, Quincy, Springfield, South Boston, Dorchester, Roxbury, Hyde Park, Jamaica Plain, Malden, East Boston, Chelsea, Charlestown, Brookline, Brighton, Newton, Somerville, Arlington, and Cambridge, they came to meet MBTA Superintendent of Transit Police Richard Sullivan; Deputy Superintendent of Community Engagement for the Boston Police Nicole Grant, Chief of the Civil Rights […]

December 8, 2023 0

Quincy Upper School to Open by Summer, Says Principal Chang

by Derek He

The new Josiah Quincy Upper School faced several challenges during its development — the COVID-19 pandemic, supply chain disruptions, and a $30 million cost increase. But now the opening is near. To find out about the planned opening, Sampan spoke with Richard Chang, principal of the Josiah Quincy Upper School about the project to date. Sampan: How is the construction progressing as we close out 2023? Are there any structural changes from the original plans?Chang: The project management team anticipates […]

November 18, 2023 0

Immigration News: Federal and State Updates

by Jeff Millman

As Congress works to avoid yet another government shutdown, immigration funding and legislation have been top of mind. Multiple states, including Massachusetts, have experienced the strain of a lack of funding and emergency shelter space for an unprecedented number of individuals and families traveling to the U.S. from Central and South America, India, China, and other countries. Last week, multiple immigration advocacy groups jointly released a memo demanding that Congress pass “common sense, bipartisan measures” to address the immigration system […]

November 18, 2023 0

Four Months After the Supreme Court Ruled Against the Use of Race in Admissions

by Zoe Liu

It all began with U.S. Supreme Court justices hearing two cases: Students for Fair Admissions v. President and Fellows of Harvard College and Students for Fair Admissions v. University of North Carolina. These lawsuits argued that affirmative action was actively discriminating against Asian American applicants and, in the case of UNC, white students as well. For decades, colleges and universities have debated the consideration of race or ethnicity in the admission process for higher education. In June of this year, […]

November 18, 2023 0

Sunshine Brings Science to the Screen

by Harmony Witte

The Coolidge Theater screened Sunshine (2007) on November 6th as part of their “Science on Screen” programming, including a talk by Harvard astrophysicist Dr. Katharine Reeves. The talk that accompanied the Sci-fi/horror film was on the topic “What It’s Like to Fly Through a Solar Eruption.” The audience laughed along with Dr. Reeves throughout the entire half-hour presentation as she gave a humorous and accessible lecture to a room full of moviegoers. It provided a nice introduction to the very […]

November 18, 2023 0

Killers of the Flower Moon Is a Painful Descent Into Historical Injustice

by Yizhen Zhang

In the vast expanses of the Oklahoma Hills, where the blooming flowers succumb to the shadows of taller plants in May, a grim chapter of American history unfolds in the 2023 epic Western crime drama, “Killers of the Flower Moon.” The film meticulously chronicles the chilling series of murders that plagued the Osage Tribe during the Osage “Reign of Terror” in May 1921. The narrative roots itself in the aftermath of the Osage Allotment Act of 1906 and the Burke […]

November 18, 2023 0

Hate Crimes Against Muslims and Jews

by Jeff Millman

A little over a month ago, on October 7th, a decade of tenuous normalization came to an end. The Sunni Islamist military organization Hamas invaded southern Israel and killed over a thousand people, taking over two hundred forty hostages. The Israeli government responded with an airstrike campaign and later a ground invasion of the Palestinian territory of Gaza. A new war has begun, and already over 11,000 Palestinians are thought to have been killed. In the United States, the Israel-Hamas […]

November 18, 2023 0

Diwali Festival of Lights Celebrated Worldwide

by Bipinchanra Modi

This week Hindus in India and its diaspora worldover celebrated the Festival of Diwali. India is a vast country having religious and cultural variations hence Sikhs, Budhists and Jains also celebrate their version of Diwali or Deepavali. The festival has its roots in Hindu mythology and epics. Diya (Lamp) and Deepmala (Row of light), both symbolize light and spiritually; it is victory of light over darkness, knowledge over ignorance and good over evil. People celebrate by lighting lamps, decorate homes, […]

November 18, 2023 0

Book Bans Are Rising in Public Libraries and Schools

by Yizhen Zhang

According to the American Library Association, there were more than 3300 individual book bans in US public school libraries and classrooms, removing access to more than 1550 unique book titles, during the last school year from July 2022 to June 2023. In Massachusetts, there were 45 attempts to censor books and other library resources in 2022, placing Massachusetts as the fourth state with the highest attempts to restrict access to books. In reality, according to Massachusetts Library Association’s survey, there […]

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