Race in America 🌎

On Thursday, Mayor Eric Adams of New York City revealed a new curriculum to teach students about AAPI history, culture and contributions. 

Starting next school year, every grade in the New York City public school system will learn about the Asian American and Pacific Islander community. Teachers will utilize a “guide that includes profiles of Asian American and Pacific Islanders in the U.S. to launch a pilot program in social studies and literacy units.”

From that effort, each school will gather feedback from instructors and aim to launch a fully developed curriculum by 2024. Many are excited for the community’s history to no longer remain invisible.

 

In Other Asian News 🗞

As the first Pakistani entry into the Cannes Film Festival, “Joyland,” a story tackling gender and sexuality with a transgender actor as its lead, welcomed a long, standing ovation this week. 

The film is up for two awards, including the “Un Certain Regard –  “a certain glance” – which celebrates emerging directors and films on marginal themes.” Those who worked on the film expressed great joy in seeing the success of this film with Sarwat Gilani, a well-known Pakistani actor who stars in the film, describing it as “magical.” While the film scene in Pakistan has long been affected by “political intervention, religious commandments, and bureaucratic apathy,” the film heavily represents sheer Pakistani joy. 

Earlier this week, the U.N. Security Council was set to vote on toughening North Korean sanctions after Pyongyang launched three missiles, but certain nations are disagreeing with the approach.

In general, tough sanctions on Pyongyang are backed by the U.S. and its allies. Over the past years, the sanctions have been getting tougher and tougher.

Recently, China and Russia, both of whom have veto power, have been pushing for an easing of sanctions based on humanitarian concerns. On May 11, the two nations expressed at a council meeting that they “wanted to see new talks and not more punishment.”

On Wednesday, China’s U.N. Mission stated that they do not think “a resolution as proposed by the U.S. can solve any problem.”

Entertainment 📺

Vietnamese designer Hung La provides another perspective on Asian masculinity through his new label, LỰU ĐẠN, inspired by 90s Asian gangster culture.

The label, which translates to “dangerous man,” is the latest venture of the London-based creative. Growing up in Maryland, La rejected his culture, but after witnessing the events in the U.S. over the last few years, he seriously reinvestigated his path and identity.

The brand anchors itself in spotlighting the shared experiences of Asian men. The line features pajamas with “snake-printed silk, 70s-inspired suits, and wide-collared dress shirts.” In addition, La also plans to introduce City Tours, a “new community-building initiative highlighting local talent in cities around the globe in the form of gritty images paired with earnest roundtable discussions that live on the brand’s site.”

What else is on our minds? 🧠

• Visitors to NYC’s Chinatown can now use a new app that shares the hidden stories of its community through music.

• Leading up to the release of “Proof,” the newest BTS album, the group plans on releasing an Apple Music podcast series of the band’s musical journey. 

• Geetanjali Shree is now the first Indian author to receive the International Booker Prize, an award totaling 62.8k USD.

• After the shooting at the hair salon in Dallas, the victims have spoken about their trauma and experience, detailing the event in their words. 

• Sailor Moon-inspired footwear is coming soon as a collaboration with the shoe company, Vans. It plans to sell nostalgic designs only in women’s sizes.