Earnest, Engaging, Sad
Growing up Biracial - Asian, African, American - in Fort Riley, Kansas
I listened to the audio piece without realizing that it was over 10 years old. Created in 1994, it sounds quite current, and is as affecting as ever.
The program describes the difficult but vibrant life of a biracial asian/african american woman, and the challenges her family and her Japanese mother faced living near Ft. Riley Kansas.
While its certainly quite interesting and engaging, it is rather downbeat, and I hate to say it, but it does seem to have that whole "Amy Tan Asian Women have troubled lives" aura, which I know is a gross oversimplification, but is also the only shorthand way to summarize it.
I would very much like to find out more about the subject of the piece - Velina Hasu Houston - and hope that she'll be the subject of another public radio piece.
Matt Kaufman
Palatine, IL
August 9, 2004
Amerasian Playwright Velina Hasu Houston learned early on to have pride in her identity through her African American father and Japanese mother.
Eric Nuzum
