Existing As I Am is Self-liberation & self-hlub

My name is Linda Nkauj Xwb Hawj. I am on a journey to better understand and provide for myself so I can effectively make the best of my existence through negotiating without compromising and setting limits to my emotional, spiritual, intellectual and physical being; responsibly. I challenge myself in facing and overcoming the "scary" unknown; the designed, popular norms and beliefs. I have passions, purposes and values in the work that I do as an Artist, Activist and Organizer. I speak to share about my intersected identities, struggles, achievements and experiences as a Womyn who is Queer-Lesbian, Hmong and American. Through this, I hope to build connections that ignites ripple effects of positive-radical, political, social, and cultural change and equity. In finding clarity and peace along with love and care within myself, others and my environment, I embrace the arts of: Writing, Poetry, Spoken Word, Hip Hop Emcee and Film making. These are my life's guiding tools that enables me to creatively express my stories to receive and give back to life, my family, friends, and community. "Stories Through the Arts, Inspiration for Change Starts from Here" Copyright © 2010 - 2014 Linda Her var _gaq = _gaq || []; _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-21052271-1']); _gaq.push(['_trackPageview']); (function() { var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; ga.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https://ssl' : 'http://www') + '.google-analytics.com/ga.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s); })();

[anakbayanlb]

Happy International Workers’ Day! Download Anakbayan Long Beach’s first-ever MAY DAY MIXTAPE, dedicated to all the workers in history who fought for the rights that we have today and to all of today’s workers who continue to fight for the genuine liberation of all working people.

download

[mwsmovement]

Happy Asian & Pacific Islander Heritage Month!

Happy Asian & Pacific Islander Heritage Month!

We Will Not Be Silent – #Asians4BlackLives MWSM marching in MN Rise Up & #ShutItDown with Baltimore

In celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Month this May 2015, we present the sequel of our narrative series called Critical Reflections of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the Midwest. Since our Raising UP the Hmong LGBTQQI Narrativeslaunched in 2013, we’ve gotten over…

View On WordPress

[mwsmovement]

AAPI Heritage Month: Dare to Be Different. Explore. Live a Little.

AAPI Heritage Month: Dare to Be Different. Explore. Live a Little.

Rainbow Interstate, Minneapolis – Vineeth Mekkat Source – http://www.flickriver.com/photos/vineethtm/8742638807/

I am the eldest daughter and grew up in a large family. I always felt overwhelmed with all the duties that were given to me. The housework, the child care tasks, the cooking responsibilities and so forth. All the nitty gritty dirty work was my responsibility. I was always expected to…

View On WordPress

[lindahawj]

Happening right now! "Who's streets?! Our streets!!" Power of the people united in Minnesota for Worker dignity, migrant rights and #BlackLivesMatters #MayDay

[sizvideos]

Somebody get that man some ice for that burn

Video

[18mr]

TW: Depression/suicide/self harm. When Depression And Cultural Expectations Collide

“My time is coming. It’s already time for me to die. I can’t wait. … So yeah I plan to kill myself during spring break, which by the way, starts in two days.” — Wynne Lee wrote in a March 29, 2012 journal post.

Wynne Lee’s mind was at war with itself – one voice telling her to kill herself and another telling her to live. She had just turned 14.

Wynne Lee didn’t know where her despair was coming from. The words “depression” and “suicide” were not in her vocabulary. She knew, however, that she was failing — she was defying expectations of who she was supposed to be.

Growing up in the suburbs of the San Gabriel Valley, a well-known destination for Asian immigrant families with high educational and economic aspirations, she believed she was supposed work hard, get good grades and make her Taiwanese immigrant parents proud. She wasn’t doing any of that, and she didn’t know how to ask for help.

When it comes to mental health treatment, Asian Americans often get short shrift. Researchers say they are both less well-studied and less likely to seek treatment. While rates of suicide tend to be lower than national rates overall, Asian Americans are far from homogeneous and the limited research suggests depression and suicidal impulses vary significantly depending on age, gender and national origin.

For instance: Asian American college students are more likely to seriously consider suicide than white peers. According to 2007 data from the National Center for Health statistics, Asian-American females ages 15 to 24 were second only to Native Americans for suicide deaths.  In addition, researchers have found that Asian women born in the U.S. are at significantly higher risk of suicidal thoughts and attempts than others, including women immigrants and U.S.-born men.

Because they may not see depression as a brain disease or fear stigma, many Asian immigrant families don’t reach out for help until there is a crisis, experts say. “A lot of Asians avoid seeking treatment until the disease is advanced,” said MaJose Carrasco, director of the multicultural action center for the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

And even when they do reach out, they often find both medication and psychotherapy a poor fit. Patients who seek care “are telling us is that they don’t think that psychotherapy, which is designed for white Americans, really works for them,” said Hyeouk “Chris” Hahm of Boston University, who received federal funding to test a program addressing  culture and family issues among Asian American women.

There are relatively few psychologists and other mental health professionals of Asian heritage. Other therapists may use culturally biased screening tests, or fail to recognize that symptoms of depression may be different for Asian Americans. For example, these patients are more likely to report physical symptoms such as headaches than feelings of sadness, said Nolan Zane, director of the Asian American Center on Disparities Research at University of California, Davis.

Zane added that patients from immigrant families are frequently reluctant to take medications with which they are unfamiliar. They may prefer Eastern medicines or fear side effects, including fatigue, that make it harder to keep up with work or school.

Parents sometimes stand in the way of treatment, intentionally or not, because of the high standards they set. Kids can be burdened by the sacrifices their parents have made for their benefit.

“It takes a few generations before they can finally be free,” said Ranna Parekh, director of the division of diversity and health equity for the American Psychiatric Association.

Read more about Wynne’s story and journey of recovery here.

[lindahawj]

On April 15, 2015 in Minneapolis - 1,500 people showed: Lizzo/GRRRL PRTY droppin knowledge and people power music for $15 wage raise and union rights!! #FightFor15

[flanneryogonner]

Found from various places online:

The Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Paulo Freire

Angela Y. Davis - Are Prisons Obsolete?

Angela Y. Davis - Race, Women, and Class

The Communist Manifesto - Marx and Engels

Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches by Audre Lorde (link updated 1/14)

[scspeak]

I truly do hate white jesus and the whole white christianity savior complex, especially consider how that shit has infiltrated my family. 

Fuck those missionaries and converters.

[creativedenouement]

I did some research and couldn’t find this here, if someone else already posted it, please send me a link.

Last thursday (18/12/14), here in Brazil, approximately two thousand people reunited in an act called “Ferguson É Aqui” (Ferguson Is Here), mobilized by the US acts.

In Brazil, black people are three times more victimized by cops (Departamento de Sociologia da Universidade Federal de São Carlos - UFSCar). From 2009 to 2011, 823 people were killed by policemen, and 61% of them were black.  79% of the times, killed by white cops.

[[source: Queremos respirar. by mídia NINJA]]

[kingrudegyalchina]

Dear white people Fuck you and who ever else is posting this fake picture.

Stop exploiting us !

[workinonthephones-deactivated20]

This is so fucked up. They are actually trying to kill us all.

[wethoneydew]

what the fuck is wrong with white people

[femininefreak]

[ygsolis]

oh hey look something the media doesn’t want you to believe exists 

[officialcryptkeeper-blog]

when jay z asks “whats 50 grand to a motherfucker like me can you please remind me?” i think to myself “…no more student debt… moved out… dream car…” jay z if 50 grand is nothing to a motherfucker like you feel free to send it to a motherfucker like me

[andystepanian]

#FergusonSpeaks http://www.upworthy.com/one-of-the-biggest-racial-injustices-of-our-time-as-told-by-those-living-it?c=fea

[heir-n-reign]

That last comment!

[nydailynews]

The “Hands Up, Don’t Shoot” gesture has reached the House floor. 

[thewaxingcrescent]

This conversation started:  David: Hey Beautiful.  Me: Hi, sorry I’m a lesbian.  I was about to block him until he said this next thing.  This is REAL fucken sad, that someone like this would show me NUDE photos of his ex-girlfriend. As a Feminist, what a FUCKEN violation of a woman’s body. I don’t even care that I put him on public view, his ex-girlfriend needs to know that he is willing to give her naked photos to a lesbian just to turn her on. What the fuck!

[thatdiva]

Please feel free to link anyone who says: “Tamir shouldn’t have had a toy gun.”

Seems to me White kids (and adults, for that matter) can have REAL guns or toy guns with no problem.