This week we’re back with Deanna Kwong to talk about her experience as a proud member of the AAPI community, her work on representation and advocacy, and how current events have brought light to issues that have always been present but were being ignored by the non-AAPI community.
Some highlights from our conversation:
🚩How the pandemic forced her identity as an asian woman to the forefront
🔺Finding and facilitating safe spaces to be open about talking about her identity and experience
📌How she’s identified new support networks
📍Seeing situations things through different lenses
🎈How our history, like the Page Act of 1875, continue to shape us
❤️ Her thoughts on the stop AAPI hate movement
🚨The importance of listening as a key component of allyship
🌈 The “Invisible Minority” and model minority problem
🔺Feeling like a perpetual foreigner
📌The importance of diversify your feed and seeking out stories that challenge your experience
🎈Why it’s a privilege to stay out of the conversation
🚩How to normalize discussions about discussions about race
❤️Why runners are an ideal community to embrace tackling uncomfortable topics
🚨Representation in sports
🌏How the world defines us versus how we define ourselves
🚩The emotional tax of being a minority
💥The power of finding points of commonality
You can find Deanna on Instagram @myfavoritemoment38 and follow her training onStrava
You can find us on Instagram and Twitter @runnersofthebay
Check out our website www.runnersofthebay.com and send us an e-mail at runnersofthebay@gmail.com
Amazing photography by Ian Tuttle: https://www.ituttle.com/ @iantuttle
Music is California by The Spectacular Fantastic.
Mixing and editing by Brian Walters at Singletrack Sound.
