Center to hold talk on stereotypes

Interviewers for a leadership scholarship were impressed with Theresa Chen's qualifications and communication skills. But Chen, now a graduate assistant at the Asian Cultural Center, said they were perhaps a little too impressed.\n"It's been my experience that small Asian girls don't talk," the interviewer said to Chen.\nChen's experience mirrors the Asian Culture Center's series, "Who are Asian Pacific Americans?" a forum in which students, faculty and staff have the opportunity to discuss perceptions and misperceptions of Asian Americans.\n"Images of Asian American Women," the last informal discussion session of the series, will be held at noon today at the ACC, 807 E. 10th St. The event will examine how stereotypes and culture values affect Asian women.\nAsian women have experienced tremendous difficulty advancing in the workforce, according to a study done by Catalyst, a research and advisory organization for the advancement of women in the workplace.\n"Among women of color, Asian women are the most likely to have a graduate education, yet the least likely to have line or supervisory responsibilities or hold a position within three levels of the CEO," the study said.\nThe Culture Center's discussion will include the 12-minute 1992 documentary "Picturing Oriental Girls: A [Re]Educational Videotape" by Valerie Soe. The video addresses common images in popular film and television of Asian women as subservient, unadulterated by feminism and willing to accept physical abuse.\nMelanie Castillo-Cullather, director of the ACC, said the series, which began in the fall of 2003, was created to let people know and understand the diversity of people of Asian heritage.\n"It provides an honest to goodness sharing of people's stereotypes and how to attempt to dispel them," Castillo-Cullather said.\nThis year, discussion topics have included media images of Asian men, interracial relationships, model minority stereotypes and gay/lesbian issues in Asian-American communities.\nChen said the diversity of participants have contributed to some lively discussions. Participants have included a Brazilian, a Ukranian student interested in race issues in America and a Caucasian woman who adopted a Chinese child.\nParticipants of Asian descent have also come from a variety of backgrounds. Some have been Asian immigrants, some grew up in diverse American communities, while others hail from predominately white areas.\n"A number are from Indiana," Chen said. "They've grown up in towns where they've been the only Asian person. This gives them a chance to discuss what it was like."\nSenior Leslie Wiley, who has been a regular participant at the series, said it's easy to let one Asian person speak for everybody, but the diversity of voices at the sessions prevents it from happening.\n"Every Asian there that participates in the conversation has a different point of view," she said.\n-- Contact staff writer Steven Chung at stchung@indiana.edu.