As you are reading this right now, you are probably thinking, "What in the heck is this Hyphen Magazine?" To be honest, that was the first thing that came into mind when as my Professor spoke so highly of it in my Asian American Culture class. Last week she even had the chief editor and two other volunteers come in to our class to speak about the magazine, and at the end we each purchased two magazines as two of our four required texts for the class. I thought she was crazy and I really thought that this "Hyphen Magazine" was just a joke of a publication that would not address issues Asian Americans face in today's society but I was easily proven wrong.
Tonight, I began flipping through the pages of this completely unfamiliar magazine and began my eye opening experience.
Now on to educate you guys about the magazine...
Hyphen Magazine (shown above in the picture, picture was taken by www.hyphenmagazine.com) is one of the few media outlets for Asian Americans within this country. It first began in San Francisco in 2003 by San Francisco journalists and community leaders who wanted to see something come out that represented Asian Americans in a positive light. This magazine showcases Asian American people who are slowly making a change to help America see and understand the Asian American community and what it truly means to be Asian American in today's society. Art, music, culture, politics are just some of the many topics that are addressed in this magazine through the perspective of Asian Americans. The writers and people who have worked on Hyphen magazine hope that the magazine "showcases people outside the boundaries of stereotypes" and that it "acts as a cultural catalyst, inspiring its readership to branch out — to do, think and create."
After reading one of the articles in Issue 15 (The Road Trip Issue) titled "The Power of the Journey," I began thinking about my culture and how involved I am with it. And boy, did I start thinking about it.
The article was about a Cambodian American filmmaker by the name of Sochea Poeuv who made a documentary called New Year Baby, a film showing her family's struggle in Cambodia during the rule of Pol Pot. Pol Pot, a communist leader of Cambodia, attempted to form a Communist peasant farming society during the 1970s but failed miserably killing 25% of Cambodia's population by starvation, overwork, and execution. The article explains that Poeuv's family emigrated to America in 1982 after her parents survived the genocide and that she never knew much of her history until Christmas Day 2002. She explains that her mother brought the whole family together and explained the story of their journey from Cambodia to America. Pouev then decided to take a trip to Cambodia in 2003 with her family to experience her family's past and how it connects to her today. She expected only to use her video footage for her own documentation but later felt that it was important for others to see and understand the struggles that her family faced. Her documentary won numerous awards and was very highly regarded.
Now what comes into my mind is this question: What do I actually know about my culture? Sure, I enjoy watching the Filipino Channel and mainstream Filipino shows such as Wowowee and Filipino movies such as A Very Special Love but what exactly do I know about my past? Absolutely NOTHING. I don't know who Jose Rizal is, what he did, and how important he is to Filipino people. I don't know too much about how Filipino people were taken over by the Spanish and the United States. Honestly, I know nothing and that is a very sad thing.
I think that Hyphen Magazine has opened my eyes to see that as a Filipino American, I have to dive in to my Filipino heritage, as well as learn about the history of this nation which I live in. In America, learning the past and history of this nation is stressed through all the history courses we have to take in elementary school, middle school, high school, and even at college. But how often is learning the history of another culture ever asked of from students? Hardly ever. I know that my family's history in the Philippines shaped who I was in the past, who I am now in the present, and hopefully who I am in the future so I know that I need to take advantage of the resources in front of me who can teach me about my culture. My parents, my grandparents, my aunts, my uncles, and so many others can instill knowledge and wisdom about the Filipino culture. I'm hoping that like Poeuv, I can also take a step in the right direction to learn about my culture.
It's only the right thing to do.
Thanks Hyphen Magazine. Much props to you guys for opening minds. You guys definitely opened mine.
- Jordan
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