On Feb. 7, seven Macalester Asian Student Alliance (ASA) members drove to the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign for the annual Midwestern Asian American Student Union (MAASU) conference.

MAASU is a non-profit organization that strives to address and advocate for Asian Pacific American (APA) issues, foster leadership, and strengthen and empower the APA community.

For Jennifer Lui ’05, the Asian Families: Generation Gap was her favorite workshop. Participants discussed how cultural differences between two or more generations can create communication difficulties and lead to discord among family members. “I grew up with Caucasian friends who could never quite relate when I’d try to explain to them some of the more traditional ways of Asian parenting. Being at this workshop, it really helped me see that I was not alone.”

Theresa Song ’03, Community Liaison Officer for ASA, had similar discussions about the experiences of being Asian American in the Who am I? workshop. “I’ve asked this question a lot in my life so the title of the workshop immediately got my attention. I was a little nervous about going because it’s an emotional topic, but the facilitator established an open space to discuss our experiences from the beginning. She asked a lot of thought-provoking questions that have helped me figure things out about my identity.”

In Career Development for the APA Student, Cynthia Hoda ’05 learned how to find internships and jobs, utilize networking, climb the corporate ladder and how racial or ethnic discrimination can hinder job opportunities, especially for women of color. “[I liked this workshop the most] because I learned a lot about finding a job, which is necessary for me to know since I’ll be looking for one sooner or later. [But] it was surprising and in a way disappointing to know that Asian females have a hard time getting a job or high positions in a company simply because of their race and gender.”

The discussions within the small groups, which were composed of ten to fifteen students from different schools, revolved around the issue of racism and intolerance toward Asian Americans. Sam Lawrence ’05 said, “Growing up in Taiwan, I was not exposed to issues pertinent to Asians in the states, and I never really experienced what it was like to grow up here. It was a major shock at how different difficulties faced by Asian Americans are compared to what I imagined them to be.”

Along with the Asian American experiences, cultures and thoughts, the conference reminded the participants of their infinite possibility and potential to succeed in life. “It was very empowering, and motivating,” said Shiori Konda ’02. “It is good to see a lot of people concerned with a lot of Asian American issues because we don’t see people outside ASA get involved in those problems at Macalester. But at the same time, it made me realize how small our Asian population is and how weak our tie is at Macalester, compared with other schools from the Twin Cities.”