ECAASU 2009: Distinct Worlds, One Vision | Hosted by Rutgers University

SECRET IDENTITIES: THE ASIAN AMERICAN SUPERHERO ANTHOLOGY
JEFF YANG, founder of the pioneering Asian American periodical "aMagazine" and author of the biweekly column "Asian Pop" for the San Francisco Chronicle, lives in Brooklyn, New York. PARRY SHEN, best known for his lead role in the movie "Better Luck Tomorrow," lives in Southern California. KEITH CHOW, freelance writer and comics-in-education specialist, lives in Maryland. JERRY MA, the founder of the indie comics studio Epic Proportions, lives in New York City. They are the editors of A GROUNDBREAKING GRAPHIC COLLECTION THAT EXPLORES ASIAN AMERICAN CULTURE, IDENTITY, AND HISTORY THROUGH ALL-NEW SUPERHERO COMICS, also known as Secret Identities: The Asian American Superhero Anthology.

There's this guy we know—quiet, unassuming, with black hair and thick glasses. He's doing his best to fit in, in a world far away from the land of his birth. He knows he's different, and that his differences make him alien, an outsider—but they also make him special. Yet he finds himself unable to reveal his true self, his hidden self, to the world... For many Asian Americans, this chronicle is a familiar one, because many of us have lived it. But it also happens to be the tale of a mild-mannered reporter named Clark Kent, better known to the world as Superman. And the parallels between those stories help explain why Asian Americans have become such a driving force in the contemporary comics renaissance, as artists, writers—and fans.

Entertaining, enlightening and more than a little provocative, Secret Identities blends whiz-bang action, wry satire and thoughtful commentary into a groundbreaking anthology about a community too often overlooked by the cultural mainstream. It is hitting bookshelves this Spring!

Visit www.secretidentities.org for more details!
Book Tour 2009: http://secretidentities.org/Site/The_Tour.html
The SI Blog: http://secretidentitiesbook.blogspot.com
Preview/Preface: http://secretidentities.org/preview.pdf

PHIL YU
Phil Yu is the founder and editor of AngryAsianMan.com, a popular Asian American news/culture/opinion blog. Building a steady, loyal readership since 2001, the website has been called by the Washington Post "a daily must-read for the media-savvy, socially conscious, pop-cultured Asian American." Mixing humor with criticism, Phil's commentary has been featured and quoted in stories for the Post, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, MSNBC, CBS News, SF Gate and Newsday.

He worked previously at the Center for Asian American Media in San Francisco, and currently serves on the Programming Committee for the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. Phil graduated with a B.S. in Radio/TV/Film from Northwestern University, and earned his M.A. in Critical Studies as a Provost Fellow from the University of Southern California's School of Cinema-Television.

JOHN LIU
John Liu is the first Taiwanese-American and first Asian-American to be elected to the City Council. Liu works for increased access to government for Asian-Americans. He is known for his many press releases and media advisories, sometimes sending out 2-3 press releases a day. The Daily Politics, a well-known NYC political blog, noted that Liu sent out more press releases per month than US Senator, and Democratic presidential candidate, Hillary Rodham Clinton, besting her by 5 releases per month.

He also speaks out against racial stereotyping and discrimination, particularly regarding Asian minorities.

Liu is Chair of the Council's Transportation Committee and also serves on committees on Education, Consumer Affairs, Contracts, Oversight & Investigations, and Lower Manhattan Redevelopment, despite not being a resident of any city council district near Lower Manhattan.

Liu has enacted legislation improving safety for pedestrians and has initiated public works projects to improve vehicular traffic flow and ease congestion. He has also developed programs bringing licensed taxicabs to areas outside of Manhattan.

As a member of the Council's Committee on Education, Liu has worked with dozens of other local politicians on raising standards in public schools, increasing reliance and trust in teachers, and investing city resources in education, in areas such as high-tech upgrades to local schools.

CATHY BAO BEAN
Cathy Bao Bean, author of The Chopsticks-Fork Principle, A Memoir and Manual and co-author of The Chopsticks-Fork Principle x 2, A Bilingual Reader for ESL and CFL learners, is/was a daughter, mother, wife, friend, sister, aerobics instructor, business manager and board member of the Claremont Graduate University School of the Arts and Humanities, the NJ Council for the Humanities, and Society for Values in Higher Education.

In a previous incarnation, she was a philosophy teacher, cook, student, carpool driver, as well as founding member of the Ridge and Valley Conservancy.

In the process, she has been learning how to make the "foreign" more familiar and the ordinary and extraordinary into each other... and telling everybody within earshot as co-host of "The Balancing Act 4 Women" on www.blogtalkradio.com.

Cathy has spoken as a keynote speaker at the following:
U.S. Air Force Academy (Colorado Springs, CO)
U.S. Military Academy (West Point, NY)
World Tang Soo Do Association (Philadelphia)
Penn TESOL East (Philadelphia)
Mary Edwards Lecture (SUNY - Purchase, NY)
University of Evansville (Fall Faculty Conference - IN)
Workforce Diversity Network (Biennial Conference - Rochester, NY)
Diversity Leadership Forum (Annual Conference - Miami, FL)
Hampton University (Honors College Banquet - Hampton, VA)
NEA (National Education Association)
NAAPAE (National Association for Asian Pacific American Education)
NAFEA (National Association for Education and Advancement of Cambodian, Laotian, Vietnamese Americans)
George Mason University (Vision Awards Banquet - Fairfax, VA)
Ramapo College (Asian Pacific American celebration - Mahwah, NJ)
St. Lawrence University (Visiting Writers Series - Canton, NY)

Find out more about Cathy Bao Bean at www.cathybaobean.com!

POOJA MAKHIJANI

Pooja Makhijani is the editor of UNDER HER SKIN: How Girls Experience Race in America (Seal Press, 2004) and the author of MAMA'S SARIS (Little Brown, 2007; Random House India, 2009), a picture book.

Full time, she works at Sesame Workshop, the non-profit organization behind the production of several educational children's programs. At the Workshop, Pooja oversees educational content across media in India, Tanzania, and other international projects in development.

For more information, visit Pooja's online home at www.poojamakhijani.com.

PHILIP POCZIK
Philip Poczik began working as a professional diversity trainer and storyteller in 2001. Since that time, he has performed stories and conducted diversity awareness and appreciation workshops for thousands of people, including audiences of Pre-K, elementary, middle school, high school, and university students, as well as for professional organizations, non-profits, and national conferences. He lives by the creed: "Teaching people why we should value each other's lives," and has been recognized for his efforts by receiving awards such as The Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. "Living the Dream" Award - granted by the NAACP Drexel University Chapter, and being honored by "The Vagina Monologues" in 2006 as a "Vagina Warrior" for his activism in raising awareness about violence amongst women in Philadelphia.

Philip Poczik is currently the Director of The Academic Opportunity Program / Higher Education Opportunity Program at Union College in Schenectady, NY.