Race and Equity

"I was born in a small port town in Japan and moved to Eugene, Oregon, when I was 5 years old, where I lived until I graduated college. I’m half-Asian — my mom is Japanese, and my dad is white — but that was enough to be mostly treated as Asian growing up in a town that’s around 83% white and only around 4.5% Asian," writes The Seattle Times' Jade Yamazaki Stewart. Connie So, teaching professor of American ethnic studies at the UW, is referenced.

An executive producer of a Bainbridge-made documentary, Gina Corpuz, is also the daughter of an aboriginal woman who survived an Indian residential school in Canada. She made a documentary to reveal the untold stories of the Indipinos with help from the Bainbridge Island community. Rick Bonus, professor of American ethnic studies at the UW, is quoted.

Chanhee Choi, a doctoral student in digital arts and experimental media at the UW, started work on her video game "Pandemic" after being verbally attacked last year.

“I’ve spent my time preparing for a career in telling stories like mine that are still untold,” says Lindsey Muszkiewicz, Dean's Medalist in the Humanities

House Bill 1016 will make Juneteenth a legal Washington state holiday starting next year. This Saturday, June 19, will mark the first Juneteenth since Gov. Jay Inslee signed the bill into law. Work by Quintard Taylor, professor emeritus of history at the UW, is quoted.

This week, President Biden signed a law making Juneteenth a national holiday. But there are myths and omissions surrounding the telling of this day and that period in history, according to LaTaSha Levy, an assistant professor of American ethnic studies at the University of Washington, and it’s critical to understand the past and present need to fight for, and celebrate, Black freedom.

KUOW presents a special statewide broadcast on Asian and Pacific Islander identities and experiences in America today. Douglas Ishii, assistant professor of English at the UW, is interviewed.

Three youth leaders advocated for environmental protection, legislation to ban Native mascots and the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women crisis Friday afternoon, June 11, during the Seattle CityClub’s digital series “Civic Boot Camp.” The Zoom event was moderated by Owen Oliver, who graduated from the UW in 2021 with a degree in American Indian Studies and Political Science and is of Quinault and Isleta Pueblo heritage, and featured UW student and athletic advocate Rosalie Fish of the Cowlitz Indian Tribe. [This story appeared in multiple outlets]

Three youth leaders advocated for environmental protection, legislation to ban Native mascots and the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women crisis Friday afternoon, June 11, during the Seattle CityClub’s digital series “Civic Boot Camp.” The Zoom event was moderated by Owen Oliver, who graduated from the UW in 2021 with a degree in American Indian Studies and Political Science and is of Quinault and Isleta Pueblo heritage, and featured UW student and athletic advocate Rosalie Fish of the Cowlitz Indian Tribe. [This story appeared in multiple outlets]

Dr. Georgia McDade, the first African-American to earn a Ph.D. in English from the University of Washington, discusses her history as a writer.

Dr. Quintard Taylor, professor emeritus of history, explains the history of interracial marriage in Washington.

"No-No Boy," a Seattle-set novel addressing Japanese internment has been revived by the University of Washington press. Tamiko Nimura (PhD, English, 2004) is referenced.

David McGrath of the College of the DuPage writes about criticism of his earlier op-ed suggesting that the name of the Chicago Blackhawks be changed: "This story ... about the corpses of more than 200 children found at a Canadian Indigenous boarding school may open the eyes of those same fans to the fact that the name change is not about them or their sports pleasures and preferences, but about Native American youth, victims of ethnic cleansing and atrocities on this continent for centuries — people who continue to suffer today because of dehumanizing stereotypes such as the Blackhawks logo." Stephanie Fryberg, professor of American Indian studies at the UW, is referenced.

“BIPOC has become a trendy acronym among people interested in diversity issues, but this is not good. The ‘B’ stands for Black people, the ‘I’ is for Indigenous persons and the ‘POC’ stands for people of color. This effectively shunts Hispanics or Latinos aside,” writes Carlos Gil, professor emeritus of history at the UW.

Ralina Joseph, Center for Communication, Difference, and Equity Director and Presidential Term Professor in the UW Department of Communication, discusses the Center's upcoming conference.