Many readers of my first book, “BlAsian Exchanges, a novel,” have asked me what my next work will be about. Well, I can tell you for sure that it will continue the Black-Asian unity theme from my first book except in a nonfiction format. My next work will be titled “Black-Asian Connections: political, cultural, and social connections between Blacks and Asians worldwide throughout history” The title should be self-explanatory. Want to know more? Click to this blog every week for the next four weeks until I launch the book on January 31 and you will be informed more about this new groundbreaking work.
Sam
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Black Roots . . .
Please read my latest: "Discovering My African Roots" + comment in the comment box found by scrolling on the bottom of the following URL.
http://www.asianweek.com/2008/12/09/blasian-perspective-discovering-my-african-roots/
Take Care,
Sam
Blasian Perspective: Discovering My African RootsDecember 9, 2008
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Are Asians descended from the African continent? While many side with historians who believe that civilization started in Europe or China, I have believed the answer to the above question to be an emphatic yes since reading The Destruction of African Civilization by Chancellor Williams and The African Presence in Early Asia by Runoko Rashidie and Ivan Van Sertima.
But recently, thanks to another virtual breakthrough called DNA technology, my beliefs have been reinforced. And made quite personal.
Last month, my brother Max had his DNA analyzed via a Web site call Familytreedna.com, and results showed his DNA belongs to the chromosome group known as Halogroup 03 Y. To refresh your memory from biology class, DNA is an organic substance that encodes and carries genetic information and is the fundamental element of heredity; thus, the most accurate genetic indicator of whether we are related to someone else. The thousands of genes that make up each chromosome are composed of deoxyribonucleic acid.
The results also indicated that my family originated in Africa, then migrated to the Middle East, then China and consequently the Philippines. Because matching DNA results are posted in Familytreedna.com, my brother and sister-in-law have been able to learn the surnames and respective countries of people around the world who have the same DNA results - relatives we’ve never known. Could the day that many Asian families discover their African relatives and ancestors - and vice versa - soon come to pass?
At this point in time, Familytreedna.com’s database contains over 200,000 people. Eventually, when it quadruples in size and includes more testers who are of African descent, maybe I will verify that my African descendants are from Senegal, which is my conclusion based on some research. For now, I can try to discover this by communicating with the persons from Hawai‘i, China, Russia and other parts of the world who belong to the same chromosome group as the Cacas family.
Last month, the New York Post reported that “the latest social networking is not on Facebook or MySpace. It’s happening at DNA-testing parties across the city. Rather than getting trashed at bars, New Yorkers are swabbing their cheeks en masse at house parties and then sending saliva sample back to labs to help trace their ancestors.” With online DNA projects like Familytreedna.com, I can see how FaceBook, MySpace and all those discussion groups on Yahoo may have met their match.
Sam Cacas, author of BlAsian Exchanges, a novel blogs frequently at at blasianexchangesanvoel.blogspot.com and beyondborders.asianweek.com.
http://www.asianweek.com/2008/12/09/blasian-perspective-discovering-my-african-roots/
Take Care,
Sam
Blasian Perspective: Discovering My African RootsDecember 9, 2008
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Are Asians descended from the African continent? While many side with historians who believe that civilization started in Europe or China, I have believed the answer to the above question to be an emphatic yes since reading The Destruction of African Civilization by Chancellor Williams and The African Presence in Early Asia by Runoko Rashidie and Ivan Van Sertima.
But recently, thanks to another virtual breakthrough called DNA technology, my beliefs have been reinforced. And made quite personal.
Last month, my brother Max had his DNA analyzed via a Web site call Familytreedna.com, and results showed his DNA belongs to the chromosome group known as Halogroup 03 Y. To refresh your memory from biology class, DNA is an organic substance that encodes and carries genetic information and is the fundamental element of heredity; thus, the most accurate genetic indicator of whether we are related to someone else. The thousands of genes that make up each chromosome are composed of deoxyribonucleic acid.
The results also indicated that my family originated in Africa, then migrated to the Middle East, then China and consequently the Philippines. Because matching DNA results are posted in Familytreedna.com, my brother and sister-in-law have been able to learn the surnames and respective countries of people around the world who have the same DNA results - relatives we’ve never known. Could the day that many Asian families discover their African relatives and ancestors - and vice versa - soon come to pass?
At this point in time, Familytreedna.com’s database contains over 200,000 people. Eventually, when it quadruples in size and includes more testers who are of African descent, maybe I will verify that my African descendants are from Senegal, which is my conclusion based on some research. For now, I can try to discover this by communicating with the persons from Hawai‘i, China, Russia and other parts of the world who belong to the same chromosome group as the Cacas family.
Last month, the New York Post reported that “the latest social networking is not on Facebook or MySpace. It’s happening at DNA-testing parties across the city. Rather than getting trashed at bars, New Yorkers are swabbing their cheeks en masse at house parties and then sending saliva sample back to labs to help trace their ancestors.” With online DNA projects like Familytreedna.com, I can see how FaceBook, MySpace and all those discussion groups on Yahoo may have met their match.
Sam Cacas, author of BlAsian Exchanges, a novel blogs frequently at at blasianexchangesanvoel.blogspot.com and beyondborders.asianweek.com.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Read / comment on my latest column at ., . .
Please read and comment about my Nov. 17, 2008 Asianweek column at:
http://www.asianweek.com/2008/11/16/blasian-perspective-yes-we-did/
Best Regards,
Sam
http://www.asianweek.com/2008/11/16/blasian-perspective-yes-we-did/
Best Regards,
Sam
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Please read my latest column at . . .
Please read my latest column at
http://www.asianweek.com/2008/10/09/blasian-musician-explores-both-sides-of-his-roots/
and feel free to share with your friends / peers / acquaintances.
Thanks so much.
Take Care,
Sam Cacas
blogs at http://blasianexchangesanovel.blogspot.cm
http://blackwomanasianman.wordpress.com/
http://www.asianweek.com/2008/10/09/blasian-musician-explores-both-sides-of-his-roots/
and feel free to share with your friends / peers / acquaintances.
Thanks so much.
Take Care,
Sam Cacas
blogs at http://blasianexchangesanovel.blogspot.cm
http://blackwomanasianman.wordpress.com/
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Thank you all for your support!
Just wanted to thank all of you for supporting my work with
your kind posts, purchase of my book, and all-around good
KARMA!
Us self-published authors especially need such TLC.
So just want to send my thanks and love,
Sam Cacas
your kind posts, purchase of my book, and all-around good
KARMA!
Us self-published authors especially need such TLC.
So just want to send my thanks and love,
Sam Cacas
Monday, June 16, 2008
June column is now up: BlAsian Artists Thrive
Just wanted to let everyone know that my latest column went up on AsianWeek.com today.Please access it at the URL below (copy alsopasted below) and post your reaction inthe comment box below the article atthe URL below. Also, Please feel free toforward it to your friends and relatives.
Warmest Regards,
Sam
http://www.asianweek.com/2008/06/16/%ef%bb%bfblasian-perspective-black-asian-artists-thrive/
Asian Week: Voice of Asian America
Blasian Perspective: Black-Asian Artists ThriveBy: Sam Cacas, Jun 16, 2008 Print Email ShareTags: Beyond Borders, Opinion Akira's Hip-Hop Shop (popcultureshock.com/akira) is a movie about ablack woman who falls in love with a Japanese man. Released last yearas an indie short, this BlAsian production has been making the roundsnationwide, including the recent Hollywood Black Film Festival andthe San Diego Asian Film Festival. Producer Joseph Doughrity, who gothis first break as an assistant to Oscar-nominated director JohnSingleton (Boyz 2 Men), has drawn enough raves from industry insidersto obtain funding to make the film a feature-length production. Ifyou plan on being in Atlanta this summer, check out the film at theAtlanta Pan-African Film Festival from July 18 to 27. The filmfestival is part of the National Black Arts Festival (nbaf.org), acultural celebration of the dance, music, film, theater, visual artsand literary arts of the African diaspora. For ticket information,call (404) 733-5000 or go to woodruffcentertickets.org. For ladiesinterested in checking out James Kyson Lee, the Asian male actor inAkira's Hip-Hop Shop, go to tiny.cc/LjeZL.
Rapper Taiyo Na, a Renaissance man of words, prides himself on beinginfluenced by Curtis Mayfield, Nas and Chris Ijiima. In his latestalbum, Love is Growth, the New York City resident makes his owncontribution to the growing Asian American soul genre. Featuringcollaborations with singers Vudoo Soul, Conchita Campos and Emily C.Chang, rapper/producer Koba, jazz violinist Jason Kao Hwang,guitarists Minimum Tek of Outernational and Mark Concerto of P.I.C.,and more, the album is composed, arranged and produced entirely byTaiyo. Socially conscious, often funky and always personal, the albumshowcases the artist's urgency, scope and depth through songs such asthe champion's anthem title track, the pulsating introduction "OneMore Time" and the ethereal rock-soul ballad "Take My Breath Away."
Like the Latin American soul music of Palmieri and La Lupegenerations before, Taiyo's Love is Growth marks the emergence ofAsian American soul music through songs such as "Lovely to Me(Immigrant Mother)" and "Kasama." It is a distinct American music —African and European in its roots — and now Asian in its perspective.
In an American pop culture that often doesn't see Asian people asperforming artists, time will only tell if the mainstream is readyfor more diversity. Two things, however, are certain: Taiyorepresents an entire movement of young Asian American musicianscreating a voice all their own, and Love is Growth is the latestcharge forward. See taiyona.com for information about his upcomingshows.
Sam Cacas is the author of BlAsian Exchanges, A Novel. View his blogsat blasianexchangesanovel.blogspot.com andbeyondborders.asianweek.com.
Warmest Regards,
Sam
http://www.asianweek.com/2008/06/16/%ef%bb%bfblasian-perspective-black-asian-artists-thrive/
Asian Week: Voice of Asian America
Blasian Perspective: Black-Asian Artists ThriveBy: Sam Cacas, Jun 16, 2008 Print Email ShareTags: Beyond Borders, Opinion Akira's Hip-Hop Shop (popcultureshock.com/akira) is a movie about ablack woman who falls in love with a Japanese man. Released last yearas an indie short, this BlAsian production has been making the roundsnationwide, including the recent Hollywood Black Film Festival andthe San Diego Asian Film Festival. Producer Joseph Doughrity, who gothis first break as an assistant to Oscar-nominated director JohnSingleton (Boyz 2 Men), has drawn enough raves from industry insidersto obtain funding to make the film a feature-length production. Ifyou plan on being in Atlanta this summer, check out the film at theAtlanta Pan-African Film Festival from July 18 to 27. The filmfestival is part of the National Black Arts Festival (nbaf.org), acultural celebration of the dance, music, film, theater, visual artsand literary arts of the African diaspora. For ticket information,call (404) 733-5000 or go to woodruffcentertickets.org. For ladiesinterested in checking out James Kyson Lee, the Asian male actor inAkira's Hip-Hop Shop, go to tiny.cc/LjeZL.
Rapper Taiyo Na, a Renaissance man of words, prides himself on beinginfluenced by Curtis Mayfield, Nas and Chris Ijiima. In his latestalbum, Love is Growth, the New York City resident makes his owncontribution to the growing Asian American soul genre. Featuringcollaborations with singers Vudoo Soul, Conchita Campos and Emily C.Chang, rapper/producer Koba, jazz violinist Jason Kao Hwang,guitarists Minimum Tek of Outernational and Mark Concerto of P.I.C.,and more, the album is composed, arranged and produced entirely byTaiyo. Socially conscious, often funky and always personal, the albumshowcases the artist's urgency, scope and depth through songs such asthe champion's anthem title track, the pulsating introduction "OneMore Time" and the ethereal rock-soul ballad "Take My Breath Away."
Like the Latin American soul music of Palmieri and La Lupegenerations before, Taiyo's Love is Growth marks the emergence ofAsian American soul music through songs such as "Lovely to Me(Immigrant Mother)" and "Kasama." It is a distinct American music —African and European in its roots — and now Asian in its perspective.
In an American pop culture that often doesn't see Asian people asperforming artists, time will only tell if the mainstream is readyfor more diversity. Two things, however, are certain: Taiyorepresents an entire movement of young Asian American musicianscreating a voice all their own, and Love is Growth is the latestcharge forward. See taiyona.com for information about his upcomingshows.
Sam Cacas is the author of BlAsian Exchanges, A Novel. View his blogsat blasianexchangesanovel.blogspot.com andbeyondborders.asianweek.com.
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Please check out my May column in Asian Week
Please check out my May column in Asian Week
http://www.asianweek.com/2008/05/12/black-asian-coalition-fights-poverty/
It is about a San Francisco-based group called Asian Neighborhood Design which
provides job training to underprivileged youth who make up 50% of its clientele.
Please support the future stability of my column by writing a comment in the
comment box at the bottom of the URL above and make sure it is sent.
Take Care,
Sam
http://www.asianweek.com/2008/05/12/black-asian-coalition-fights-poverty/
It is about a San Francisco-based group called Asian Neighborhood Design which
provides job training to underprivileged youth who make up 50% of its clientele.
Please support the future stability of my column by writing a comment in the
comment box at the bottom of the URL above and make sure it is sent.
Take Care,
Sam
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Please check out my April column in Asian Week+other recent URLs . . . what do you think?
Asian American Journalists Association interview of Sam Cacas & wife
http://www.k9sound.com/aaja/080314sc/blasian1.html
BlAsian Love on the web, April 13, 2008
http://www.asianweek.com/2008/04/13/black-asian-interracial-relationships-blasian-love-on-the-web/
Black-Asian Unity: An Asian American Celebration of Black History Month, February 29, 2008
http://www.asianweek.com/2008/02/29/black-asian-unity/
http://www.k9sound.com/aaja/080314sc/blasian1.html
BlAsian Love on the web, April 13, 2008
http://www.asianweek.com/2008/04/13/black-asian-interracial-relationships-blasian-love-on-the-web/
Black-Asian Unity: An Asian American Celebration of Black History Month, February 29, 2008
http://www.asianweek.com/2008/02/29/black-asian-unity/
Friday, April 18, 2008
Please see my latest video at . . .
http://www.k9sound.com/aaja/080314sc/blasian1.html
Many thanks to the Asian American Journalists Association for
producing this video, particularly Eddie Foronda and Annabelle Udo.
I owe you immeasurably.
Viewers, please let me know what you think,
Sam
Many thanks to the Asian American Journalists Association for
producing this video, particularly Eddie Foronda and Annabelle Udo.
I owe you immeasurably.
Viewers, please let me know what you think,
Sam
Thursday, March 27, 2008
More information on 4.19.08 Filipino American Library event
Everyone, please invite your family and friends to this very interesting event. Book Launches is one of FAL’s regular programs, along with Bus Tours of Historic Filipinotown and our Children’s Reading Program. This particular book is very relevant to today’s world and I hope you all have a chance to read it. – Jonathan Lorenzo ----- FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEMarch 24, 2008 CONTACT:Jonathan LorenzoAdministratorFilipino American Library (FAL)Tel: 213-382-0488Email: filamlibrary@sbcglobal.net NEW BOOK EXPLORES THE DYNAMICS OF INTERRACIAL RELATIONSHIPS LOS ANGELES (March 2008) – Interracial unions are increasingly commonplace and this relationship genre is the focus of Sam Cacas’s new book BlAsian Exchanges, a novel. It will be featured in a Filipino American Library (FAL) Book Launch on Saturday, April 19 at 2:00pm at FAL (135 N. Park View St., Los Angeles). To RSVP for this free event, please contact filamlibrary@sbcglobal.net or 213-382-0488. In FAL Book Launches, authors introduce their Filipino works of literature with residents of Greater Los Angeles. Admission is free and donations are accepted. Snacks and drinks will be provided. This event is co-sponsored by Filipino American Service Group, Inc. (FASGI), Multiracial Americans of Southern California (MASC), and Burger King Corporation. BlAsian Exchanges, a novel is about Earvin Ilokano, a Filipino American journalist in San Francisco, who decides to become a novelist in the midst of career and work frustrations. The tale he writes is a recollection of his attraction for Black women and Black culture in relation to his racial (Asian American) and ethnic (Filipino American) heritage. To stoke his poison pen, journalist Ilokano - who is married to a Black woman - recruits Black women on the Internet to serve as his muses and consequently makes the story more "interactive" and the writing experience a little spicier for the reader not to mention the writer. For more information on this book, please visit www.blasianexchangesanovel.blogspot.com Sam Cacas writes a column on Black-Asian unity for AsianWeek.com and also co- moderates a Yahoo! discussion group – PowerCouples AMBW – focusing on Black women and Asian men. His nonfict writing has been published in San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco Bay Guardian, Bay Area Reporter, San Jose Mercury News, Advocate, Human Rights (ABA), and California CEO. BlAsian Exchanges, a novel is his first book. Founded on October 13, 1985 by “Auntie Helen” Agcaoili Summers Brown, FAL is the first and largest Filipino library in the country with a collection of more than 6,000 titles. Its mission is to actively promote the history, culture, and professional achievements of Filipinos and Filipino Americans through the book collection, leadership development, and cultural programming, thereby contributing to the achievement of a culturally dynamic, multiethnic America. Given that FAL primarily survives on individual donations and one major annual fundraiser, we hope we can rely on your financial support so we can continue our programs and services throughout the year. Please feel free to donate online at www.filipinoamericanlibrary.org. If you would like to send a check, please make it payable to “Filipino American Library” and mail it to 135 N. Park View St., Los Angeles, CA 90026. All donations are 100% tax-deductible. FAL is a division of the Filipino American Heritage Institute (Nonprofit Tax ID Number 95-4282571). It is open Mondays-Fridays 1:00-5:00pm and by appointment. For more information, please contact Jonathan Lorenzo, the FAL Administrator, at 213-382-0488 or filamlibrary@sbcglobal.net. (If you would like pictures to include for publication, please contact Jonathan Lorenzo.)
JONATHAN LORENZOAdministratorFilipino American Library (FAL) 135 N. Park View St. Historic Filipinotown Los Angeles, CA 90026-5215Tel: 213-382-0488Fax: 213-382-0478Email: filamlibrary@sbcglobal.netDonate Online: www.filipinoamericanlibrary.org- Visit us MON-FRI 1-5pm & by appt. -
JONATHAN LORENZOAdministratorFilipino American Library (FAL) 135 N. Park View St. Historic Filipinotown Los Angeles, CA 90026-5215Tel: 213-382-0488Fax: 213-382-0478Email: filamlibrary@sbcglobal.netDonate Online: www.filipinoamericanlibrary.org- Visit us MON-FRI 1-5pm & by appt. -
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Upcoming readings for BlAsian Exchanges, a novel
Hope all of you are having a happy March. Just wantedto let everyone know that I have confirmed the followingdates of my next readings:
1. Filipino American Library, Historic Filipinotown, Los AngelesApril 19, 2-4 p.m., 135 N. Park View Street [ PLEASE RSVP FORTHIS FREE EVENT BY CONTACTING filamlibrary@sbcglobal.net or213-382-0488 ]
2. City College of San Fancisco, Ocean Campus 12-2 p.m.,May 6, free event
3. City College of San Francisco, Southeast Campus, May 14, time to be announced, free event
I will also be confirming a reading during the Unity Journalists of Color Conference in mid-July in Chicago, Ill.
And if any of you are interested in purchasing my bookonline, it is now availabel on Amazon.com - just look for the edition that was released on December 30, 2007.For volume orders, you can order from Baker & TaylorBooks (btol.com) which is my national distributor.
Take Care,
Sam Cacas
1. Filipino American Library, Historic Filipinotown, Los AngelesApril 19, 2-4 p.m., 135 N. Park View Street [ PLEASE RSVP FORTHIS FREE EVENT BY CONTACTING filamlibrary@sbcglobal.net or213-382-0488 ]
2. City College of San Fancisco, Ocean Campus 12-2 p.m.,May 6, free event
3. City College of San Francisco, Southeast Campus, May 14, time to be announced, free event
I will also be confirming a reading during the Unity Journalists of Color Conference in mid-July in Chicago, Ill.
And if any of you are interested in purchasing my bookonline, it is now availabel on Amazon.com - just look for the edition that was released on December 30, 2007.For volume orders, you can order from Baker & TaylorBooks (btol.com) which is my national distributor.
Take Care,
Sam Cacas
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Part I: Discussion Study Guide Questions for BlAsian Exchanges, a novel
1. What is the mindset of the protagonist Earvin Ilokano as far how he perceives Black women? Black men?
2. Does the overall plot of BlAsian Exchanges, a novel support the notion of being true to one's marriage or other relationship? In what chapter is the major denouement - i.e., the conflict of Ilokano flirting with the muses while trying to stay true to his marriage - resolved?
3. What is your opinion of how the author recollects his attraction for Black women and Black culture?
2. Does the overall plot of BlAsian Exchanges, a novel support the notion of being true to one's marriage or other relationship? In what chapter is the major denouement - i.e., the conflict of Ilokano flirting with the muses while trying to stay true to his marriage - resolved?
3. What is your opinion of how the author recollects his attraction for Black women and Black culture?
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Chapter One of BlAsian Exchanges, a novel"
BlAsian Exchanges, a novel (Copyright 2007, All Rights Reserved)
Chapter One
"They are all of one mind, their hearts are set upon song and their spirit is free from care. He is happy whom the Muses love. For though a man has sorrow and grief in his soul, yet when the servant of the Muses sings, at once he forgets his dark thoughts and remembers not his troubles. Such is the holy gift of the Muses to men." - Hesiod
It was a mere five 'til five once my fingers had danced on the keyboards for a few minutes and my eyes saw these two ads I'd typed:Black sisters: please be my muse? - m4w – 34I am a MARRIED Asian male writer seeking a platonic friendship with any Black women out there who might be interested in serving as my muse. I am in the process of writing my first novel about my attraction for and romances with Black women throughout my life and would like to hear a sister's reaction to my story. What I had in mind was maybe we could do coffee or have a phone conversation while I read parts of my novel to you. Other subsequent interactions, e.g., an IM chat or e-mail exchanges, are possible. Romantic experience with Asian men not required but openness to seeing Asian men as a romantic option and interest in what I'm writing about is. Look forward to hearing from you and hooking up. Again, I am repeating what I noted at the outset: I am MARRIED so if anyone has any problems with that please disregard this post. Absent some minimal / innocent flirting that comes with any platonic friendship with those of the opposite sex, I intend to keep it real and stay true to my wife.Attractive, Urban-bred 27yo SAM iso SBF for LTR!!!!!!
Yo Ladies!
I'm a fun-loving 33 year old single Asian man seeking an erudite, eclectic, and sensual Black woman (30+) to spend my time with. I'm looking for a sistah of creative mind and body; a woman of pleasure and romance; a woman that loves to explore and discover new places with the right man.
I'm from a Black city so I know what time it is. And I've been intimate with sistas most of my life so this is no jungle fever booty call. My talk is as cool as my walk. And I also like to dance. I am truly a man of passion, a hopeful romantic in passion as well as practice! How about we have coffee some time after a few virtual exchanges and phone calls then – if the sparks are right – spend our evenings dining and dancing, singing and laughing. And at some point: A nice quixotic evening together by candle light, soft sexy music, a nice bottle of wine and our passion to fill the night right.
I'm seeking a lady that can share herself and grow with me, a woman that doesn't play games, a woman that wants to find the pleasures in life with a man that is ready to sweep her away! If you can feel my flow and want to see me walk 'n talk, then send me a communiqué tellin' me about yourself at your earliest convenience. Lookin' forward to our rendezvous.
E-mail me back and tell me about yourself. Tell me your passions in life, your career goals, your favorite novelist and most important: tell me what makes you unique. Please send me a picture and I will get back to you soon. Hopefully we'll be able to show each other that love is always alive!
A lot to be writing in the wee hours of a Thursday morn in July. But some writing comes easy. Especially when I listen to the little voice inside me. A voice that once again opened up as I woke up. A voice that kept repeating to me:
Write about stuff close to the heart. Just do the WRITE thing. Don't stand for ceremony. Write what you know . . .
Yes the word becomes flesh. After that thought, I hit the submit button on the web site I'd gotten to know well: BlAsianRomance.luv
Both ads posted almost immediately. But the voice inside me commanded: 'remove the second one. That's not you.' And I did. Thank goodness 'cause it's time to go to work. I turned my computer off as I heard the cable car from two blocks back goin' up Washington from Hyde. It is another windy, chilly San Francisco morning in late spring. But what is firing my heart is that I've written about what is really close to my heart: BlAsian romance. Romance among Asian men and Black women.
* * *
I guess you could say I'm a trained journalist who is still searching for his real voice as a writer. Kinda like a lover trying to find their true heart but not quite there yet. You see, there's a voice inside me that incessantly keeps whispering – sometimes screaming in a high-pitch tone: "That's not you!" whenever I attempt to write the stories I get paid to write at this magazine I write for called Asian American Contemporary.
I've started to listen and act on this voice. Started to write a novel about BlAsian romance – romance between Black women and Asian men. But the journalist voice inside me keeps telling me:
"You've gotta keep making a living. Writing nonfiction pays your bills. And who cares about novelists anyway?"
The novelist's voice retorts:
"Fiction reveals truth that reality obscures and journalism ignores. You will pay the bills if you pursue storytelling. Reporters are wimps and losers who only try to sell newspapers anyway. And besides you were not destined to be a hack."
I do keep dreaming the journalist voice's influence eventually whithers away until it's completely gone swallowed by the novelist's voice. For now, both voices debate each other from time to time. Only time will tell, I guess.
Flashback to high school sophomore year: I'm in the middle of Greek Mythology class and have just written down the quote of the ancient Greek poet Hesiod uttered by that tall Jesuit priest who keeps referring to me as a "pinhead". I ignore his labeling and instead I'm focused on the concept of the Muses that are now being discussed. "The writings of earlier writers have told us that the Muses were the inspiring goddesses of songs, and they eventually were portrayed as divinities presiding over different kinds of poetry and over the arts and sciences," said Father Desiderata. "As patrons of the fine arts, the Muses promoted the more civilized aspects of human existence. The fortunate person inspired by them was held in the highest esteem and considered sacred far beyond any priest." Since that class, I've not too infrequently seen the moon in the morning sunlight of my Sensa pen.
Chapter One
"They are all of one mind, their hearts are set upon song and their spirit is free from care. He is happy whom the Muses love. For though a man has sorrow and grief in his soul, yet when the servant of the Muses sings, at once he forgets his dark thoughts and remembers not his troubles. Such is the holy gift of the Muses to men." - Hesiod
It was a mere five 'til five once my fingers had danced on the keyboards for a few minutes and my eyes saw these two ads I'd typed:Black sisters: please be my muse? - m4w – 34I am a MARRIED Asian male writer seeking a platonic friendship with any Black women out there who might be interested in serving as my muse. I am in the process of writing my first novel about my attraction for and romances with Black women throughout my life and would like to hear a sister's reaction to my story. What I had in mind was maybe we could do coffee or have a phone conversation while I read parts of my novel to you. Other subsequent interactions, e.g., an IM chat or e-mail exchanges, are possible. Romantic experience with Asian men not required but openness to seeing Asian men as a romantic option and interest in what I'm writing about is. Look forward to hearing from you and hooking up. Again, I am repeating what I noted at the outset: I am MARRIED so if anyone has any problems with that please disregard this post. Absent some minimal / innocent flirting that comes with any platonic friendship with those of the opposite sex, I intend to keep it real and stay true to my wife.Attractive, Urban-bred 27yo SAM iso SBF for LTR!!!!!!
Yo Ladies!
I'm a fun-loving 33 year old single Asian man seeking an erudite, eclectic, and sensual Black woman (30+) to spend my time with. I'm looking for a sistah of creative mind and body; a woman of pleasure and romance; a woman that loves to explore and discover new places with the right man.
I'm from a Black city so I know what time it is. And I've been intimate with sistas most of my life so this is no jungle fever booty call. My talk is as cool as my walk. And I also like to dance. I am truly a man of passion, a hopeful romantic in passion as well as practice! How about we have coffee some time after a few virtual exchanges and phone calls then – if the sparks are right – spend our evenings dining and dancing, singing and laughing. And at some point: A nice quixotic evening together by candle light, soft sexy music, a nice bottle of wine and our passion to fill the night right.
I'm seeking a lady that can share herself and grow with me, a woman that doesn't play games, a woman that wants to find the pleasures in life with a man that is ready to sweep her away! If you can feel my flow and want to see me walk 'n talk, then send me a communiqué tellin' me about yourself at your earliest convenience. Lookin' forward to our rendezvous.
E-mail me back and tell me about yourself. Tell me your passions in life, your career goals, your favorite novelist and most important: tell me what makes you unique. Please send me a picture and I will get back to you soon. Hopefully we'll be able to show each other that love is always alive!
A lot to be writing in the wee hours of a Thursday morn in July. But some writing comes easy. Especially when I listen to the little voice inside me. A voice that once again opened up as I woke up. A voice that kept repeating to me:
Write about stuff close to the heart. Just do the WRITE thing. Don't stand for ceremony. Write what you know . . .
Yes the word becomes flesh. After that thought, I hit the submit button on the web site I'd gotten to know well: BlAsianRomance.luv
Both ads posted almost immediately. But the voice inside me commanded: 'remove the second one. That's not you.' And I did. Thank goodness 'cause it's time to go to work. I turned my computer off as I heard the cable car from two blocks back goin' up Washington from Hyde. It is another windy, chilly San Francisco morning in late spring. But what is firing my heart is that I've written about what is really close to my heart: BlAsian romance. Romance among Asian men and Black women.
* * *
I guess you could say I'm a trained journalist who is still searching for his real voice as a writer. Kinda like a lover trying to find their true heart but not quite there yet. You see, there's a voice inside me that incessantly keeps whispering – sometimes screaming in a high-pitch tone: "That's not you!" whenever I attempt to write the stories I get paid to write at this magazine I write for called Asian American Contemporary.
I've started to listen and act on this voice. Started to write a novel about BlAsian romance – romance between Black women and Asian men. But the journalist voice inside me keeps telling me:
"You've gotta keep making a living. Writing nonfiction pays your bills. And who cares about novelists anyway?"
The novelist's voice retorts:
"Fiction reveals truth that reality obscures and journalism ignores. You will pay the bills if you pursue storytelling. Reporters are wimps and losers who only try to sell newspapers anyway. And besides you were not destined to be a hack."
I do keep dreaming the journalist voice's influence eventually whithers away until it's completely gone swallowed by the novelist's voice. For now, both voices debate each other from time to time. Only time will tell, I guess.
Flashback to high school sophomore year: I'm in the middle of Greek Mythology class and have just written down the quote of the ancient Greek poet Hesiod uttered by that tall Jesuit priest who keeps referring to me as a "pinhead". I ignore his labeling and instead I'm focused on the concept of the Muses that are now being discussed. "The writings of earlier writers have told us that the Muses were the inspiring goddesses of songs, and they eventually were portrayed as divinities presiding over different kinds of poetry and over the arts and sciences," said Father Desiderata. "As patrons of the fine arts, the Muses promoted the more civilized aspects of human existence. The fortunate person inspired by them was held in the highest esteem and considered sacred far beyond any priest." Since that class, I've not too infrequently seen the moon in the morning sunlight of my Sensa pen.
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Question: have any of you in BlAsian relationships met your partner online?
I have been tapped by Asian Week to write a monthlycolumn focusing on Black-Asian unity. So for my firstcolumn, I am writing about the burgeoning web siteswhose focus is Black-Asian relationships.
The question is: have any of you members who are ina BlAsian relationship met your partner online througha BlAsian web site? If the answer is yes and you don'tmind being interviewed, please e-mail ASAP with youre-mail address and tell me how you met: the url of theweb site, the exact month/day/year, etc.
Looking forward to hearing from you and
Warm Regards,
sAm
The question is: have any of you members who are ina BlAsian relationship met your partner online througha BlAsian web site? If the answer is yes and you don'tmind being interviewed, please e-mail ASAP with youre-mail address and tell me how you met: the url of theweb site, the exact month/day/year, etc.
Looking forward to hearing from you and
Warm Regards,
sAm
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Please read my new article Black-Asian unity at
http://www.asianweek.com/?s=Black-Asian+unity
and please post a comment. And do let me know
what you think.
Take Care,
Sam Cacas
and please post a comment. And do let me know
what you think.
Take Care,
Sam Cacas
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Invitations to speak about BlAsian Exchanges
A few recent invitations is how I'd capsulize my recent marketing efforts for my newbook BlAsian Exchanges, a novel . . .
First the good news: (1) Suzanne Lo, campus librarian at City Collegeof San Francisco, has invited me to do a bookreading and speak on May 6 at the Ocean campus from 11:30 to 2;(2) Jonathan Lorenzo of the Filipino AmericanLibrary in Los Angeles has invited me to do a book reading and speak on April 19
I am still awaiting word from S.F. State University,my undergrad alma mater University of Md. - College Park,Columbia, MIT, NY, GW, Univ. of SF, and Sonoma State.
Please contact me at nobhillwriter@gmail.comif any of you know of organizations and / or academic institutions that would be interested in having me speak about my book and / or aboutinterracial relationships, Black-Asian unity,and Asian American empowerment.
Thanks,
Sam Cacas
First the good news: (1) Suzanne Lo, campus librarian at City Collegeof San Francisco, has invited me to do a bookreading and speak on May 6 at the Ocean campus from 11:30 to 2;(2) Jonathan Lorenzo of the Filipino AmericanLibrary in Los Angeles has invited me to do a book reading and speak on April 19
I am still awaiting word from S.F. State University,my undergrad alma mater University of Md. - College Park,Columbia, MIT, NY, GW, Univ. of SF, and Sonoma State.
Please contact me at nobhillwriter@gmail.comif any of you know of organizations and / or academic institutions that would be interested in having me speak about my book and / or aboutinterracial relationships, Black-Asian unity,and Asian American empowerment.
Thanks,
Sam Cacas
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Author Q&A on BlAsian Exchanges . . .
(1) Why did you decide to write about this subject matter? Did you have an epiphany?
I did have an epiphany that made me decide to write the book. It happened every time I was rejected by magazines to write a story about BlAsian relationships. A voice kept telling me I need to be my own editor since the world was not yet ready to hear the story I wanted to tell. But my own voice kept telling me at night that I was ready to tell the story and I needed to tell it now. So I listened to that voice and I feel I have at least started to tell the story. The book's publication has told me that the storytelling on this issue has only just begun.
I had been wanting to write about this subject of interracial attraction / dating /marriage for about ten years because I have felt that the Asian man's perspective on attraction for Black women has not been covered either by the mainstream media or the Black media. I guess I got sick and tired of reading the same stuff over and over again about white guys & black women. Given my intimiate involvement with Black women for the last 33 years of my life (I am now 52 and have been married to a Black woman for 7 years and another Black woman for 9 years) I felt I had a perspective that the public needed to hear. However, I was repeatedly rejected whenever I proposed to write the article. Essence magazine has rejected me twice (once with a form letter and once with a non-reply after an editor said in an e-mail I would be hearing from her which never happened) and several magazines did not even respond to my query letters. And two articles I did get published in Interrace magazine and Today's Black woman did not satisfy my needs to tell my story more. So I felt I had to just write my own story and publish it in book-length format. I turned negativity into a good thing, made something outta nothing as the protagonist in BlAsian Exchanges would say.
I also decided to write about BlAsian relationships to counter the contemporary wisdom that its not okay to embrace topics related to Black women's and Asian men's sexuality and also to counter the notion that things racial don't deserve to be discussed at this level ( i.e., a novel). I wanted to tell myself and the world that I do more than beg to differ with respect to both notions, I demand to be different.
2) Has the word "BlAsian" been around for awhile? It seems to be the preferred portmanteau over something like say, Afro-Asian. You use it in the context of Asian men and Black women—but can it not refer to someone who is just bi-racial (Asian/Black)?
I believe it has been. It has manifested itself in various parts of Asia including mainland China, the Philippines, Japan, etc. as well as Africa and the Caribbean - and of course, the U.S. There has not been anyone or any organization that gives it a name and thus it is not out there to the extent we see Black women-Asian men. But with PowerCouples_AMBW and books like mine out there, the politicization of BlAsian is getting out there and that's good to see for me because at some point the media will have to take heed and give us the same coverage like what MSNBC Nightly News gave white men with Black women this week, the last week in November 2007.
I did coin BlAsian term to mean Black women and Asian men after seeing the term referred to for kids who are of mixed Black and Asian heritage. I don't know what word would be right for Black men and Asian women but I just know that that that is a completely different IR genre that I don't deal with in any of my writings.
(3) What makes BlAsian relationships so unique? what makes it different than any other interracial relationship?
They are so unique because Black women and Asian men have a lot of similarities/differences in varying degrees that make them complement each other: both are people of color who are highly stereotyped when it comes to their sexuality, both tend to be well-educated, want to better themselves, both have been bashed by members of the opposite sex of their race not to mention have had challenging experiences with members of their race and want to move beyond that, are stereotyped oppositely in terms of sexuality ( e.g., Asian men are emasculate while Black women are promsicuous), and their respective races have a lot of historical commonalities including the fact that Asians did originate in the continent of Africa. BlAsian relationships are different from white male-Black female relationships in that BlAsian relationships involve two people of color together which is significant to me because being intimate & social with my partner means a lot of I do not have to explain to them the political meaning of what it means to be discriminated against regularly because of the color of my skin and standing up to it when I want to. I have noted a lot of denial by many white men intimate with Black women when it comes to the importance of speaking up about racist incidents that interracial couples often encounter; such a conflict can be detrimental to Black women psychologically and for the long-term health of the relationship. In my experience, that has been an issue if I was intimate with white women or any other person who is not Black.
(4) Why do you think the issue of BlAsian relationships is so important to get out there?
Because it is THE happening trend in Black women who have decided to date "outside the box" (i.e, outside of their race). Pursuing their attraction for an Asian guy is essentially a Black woman's compromise between still not wanting to be intimate with white guys and still wanting to go "outside the box." Many Black women who are going BlAsian or thinking about it are finding out that Asian guys are actually cool guys who really try to gel with their female mate and who are comfortable at adjusting to different situations that come up for interracial couples, including situations where a couple runs into haters and other forms of discrimination. Society still is ambivalent in accepting the Asian guy who is politically conscious, affectionate and polyculturally bold enough to pursue their attraction for Black women like I have - NOT the stereotypical Asian male nerd who is not romantic and not masculine enough to even have any sexual or romantic feelings about women. While media such as Essence magazine and MSNBC nightly news ( e.g., during the last week of November 2007) regularly cover Black women dating interracially as if only white men were the only non-Black men on the planet that existed for Black women, the rest of the world know that the Black woman-white man trend is not newsworthy in terms of what is currently happening in Black women dating interracially. The latter has been happening and covered superfluously by the media since the 1970s. BlAsian relationships have only started happening in the late 90s up to today and are regularly verified on the Internet in Yahoo! discussion groups like PowerCouples_AMBW with 300-plus members - mostly Black women - which I co-moderate and YouTube videos like the one showing the BlAsian couple in an IKEA commercial. Movies such as Akira's Hip Hop Soup and Fakin' Da Funk have also highlighted BlAsian couples in socially responsible ways that those movies with Jet Li fail miserably at being socially responsible. But BlAsian relationships - although newsorthy by any journalism standards - has yet to be covered like the above-referenced media have covered Black women-white men. Also, I guess what I am getting at is the image of Black women and Asian men needs to be broadened beyond their archtypal racial uniforms of accepting notions of white beauty when it comes to whom each group finds attractive enough to be an option for exploring romance. Stuff like the BlAsian couple in Romeo must die who don't do more than embrace are so fake and seem a lot like those Kung-Fu movies where the Asian guy plays the heroe but never gets the girl of his dreams in the end but sees her getting stolen away by the white guy.
(5) What have been the responses from the Black community? from the Asian community?
I think the response has been ambivalent at best. However, I would say that most people are sitting on the fence when it comes to how they perceive BlAsian relationships. Primarily, Black women have been very interested in my book. They have been the primary purchasers along with my Mom who bought several dozen and has been selling them to friends and relatives. Academic professors, primarily in ethnic studies courses, have also shown interest in having me speak to their classes or to seminars on interracial relationships.
(6) What do you hope your readers get out of reading "BlAsian Exchanges"?
I hope they get an enhanced understanding of what kind of life I've lived as a person who has chosen to pursue my attraction for Black women throughout my life as well as some of the joys and tribulations I have experienced as a writer living in California after migrating from the East Coast. I also hope they have a more enhanced perspective on the many different Black women and Asian men that exist in our society who do not wear the racial uniforms that each group is conditioned to wearing.
(7) What was the journey/process like for you to write this book? Did you gain any new perspectives of yourself by writing this book?
The journey was evocatively empowering and liberating for me as a male of color to tell my story after having been conveyed many negative things by folks when they learned that I have embraced Black culture and been intimate with Black women to the extent I have been. I have been told to watch out for promiscuous women who are golddiggers, that I am selling out on the culture I was born into, and that I am frontin' ( i.e., pretending to be Black) among other things. In my view, I have merely lived my life for myself and not the way other folks and society have tried to tell me. Black women and their culture are beautiful in their minds and bodies and I have become a better person for pursuing a BlAsian life. My writing about has brought me to another level of being a better person. A perspective I have gained is that while many, many people still do not accept BlAsian relationships those that do or are sitting on the fence as far as considering it valid are starting to open their minds to seeing Black women-Asian men as a positive things socially and politically. I see evidence of this weekly as co-moderator of PowerCouples_AMBW and I see it every time I have held an author event for my book or on the issue of interracial dating / attraction. Experiencing all this has taken me to a higher level of self-confidence in how I look at this issue and life in general.
8) How did you start getting involved in the BlAsian-sphere? Did you have to establish something or were you finding there were lots of groups addressing the issue of Black women/Asian men relationships?
On an individual level, I was BlAsian since I was 19 (I am now 52 believe it or not going on 25) when I lost my virginity to a Black lady who read me a poem about myself before telling me she wanted me to make love to her. With the exception of a one night stand with a Pinay lady, a date with a Chinese lady, and a date with a Jewish lady, everyone else I have been attracted to, dated, been intimate with, and married to since has been Black. I took my BlAsian life to another level in '99 and 2000 when I published an article titled "Black Like Me: an Asian man comes to terms with his 'Black' identity" in Interrace Magazine (Issue No. 44 which came out in March - 1999, this publication did not put dates on their issues) and in January 2000 when Today's Black Woman published an article in their "ManTalk" column I submitted titled "Asian-African American Relationships". These two articles politicized my BlAsian life which had been mostly individual. My joining PowerCouples_AMBW, the Yahoo! discussion group in 2002 further politicized my BlAsian life which moved a step further when I became co-moderator of PowerCouples in 2003. My BlAsian political life took a further deeper in 2006 when I published pre-launch editions of my book and started speaking at author events. The number of such events has furthered this year and I feel the panel on "Love Without Boundary: Black women dating outside the box" in New York City took me to another level on this issue. I am planning many, many more speaking events in the future including addresses on the BlAsian issue and African-Asian unity at SF State, University of Maryland-College Park, and the Asian Cultural Center in Oakland in the near future. Professors at MIT, NYU, Univ. of Hawaii-Manoa, and UCLA have also been contacting me of their interest in hearing me speak. I am also planning to continue writing on this issue: I have another novel in progress, a nonfiction book, and a nonfiction articl and a few short stories.
9) What is the BlAsian-sphere like?
It is existent mostly within the expressed interests of Black women on the Internet whom I have corresponded with in many e-mails and posts on discussion boards like PowerCouples_AMBW. I think mostly the Asian guys are sitting on the fence on this for whatever reason or don't want to be public /political with their BlAsian choice which I sympathize with because I went through a long, twisted journey before I came out publicly about my BlAsian life. However, I notice that guys in general are lurking and very quiet on boards. Make no mistake about it, though. Asian guys with Black women are out there. One of my strategies to hearing from guys who are BlAsian is getting out and speaking in public more at ethnic studies and other academic and organizationals settings. Once they see someone out there political and public with their BlAsian IR choice, they may feel more empowered and liberated about expressing their BlAsian IR choice then the media and the rest of society will recognize them more.
10) Are there any links that you recommend for people who want to know more about this subject matter? Are there clubs that cater specifically to BlAsians? If so, which ones?
http://blasianexchangesanovel.blogspot.com
http://groups.yahoo.com/BlAsianExchanges
http://groups.yahoo.com/PowerCouples_AMBW
http://www.interracialchats.com
http://www.asian-nation.org/interracial.shtml
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIbxxH3ZcCg
11) You mentioned in your commentary on the BlAsian Exchanges groups on Yahoo! About your attraction to Black women most of your life but also your problem with the exoticization of Asian women and how that relates to their outmarriage to White men. . "— is there an "exoticization" of Black women among Asian men who prefer to be only with Black women?
I think such exoticization exists if one only goes for Black women because they are black period. However, I do not think it is exoticization if a guy also becomes attracted to a Black woman because she holds a conversation well with him, is compatible with him politically and personality-wise, has a certain gene se qua that he looks for in his kinda woman and she looks for in her kinda man.
13) What challenges did you face in your own BlAsian relationships? Subtle rejections from friends and family. I heard things like "there's this Filipino girl who's daughter of [family friend's name] why don't you date her" whenever I would utter the name of the latest Black lady I was dating. My reactions or non-reactions were usually followed by some oppressive actions against me like non-communication, a verbal slight and if I retorted I was usually repressed. In the workplace, I can remember co-workers and bosses acting different to me once I placed the picture of my wife up on my desk; yes, I have been denied promotions, refused for later going out to lunch requests, and other hostile behavior when people learned who I was intimate with. Rejection from the family of the Black woman I was intimate with has also been common. Probably my biggest challenge was getting over my divorce from my first marriage to a Black woman. When we broke up, her friends told her and she would tell me that I would probably wind up dating then marrying some sorry white or Asian girl and I would feel sorry for it. Well, today I am happily married to a very intelligent and beautiful Black woman and I feel happy and successful in all other aspects of my life, including my writing. I would venture to say that it takes a person of emotional and personal strength to make an IR choice and especially for an Asian guy who makes the BlAsian IR choice it takes a lot of personal and emotional strength.
14) You chose Greek mythology to complement your interest in Black women—what is the equation with that?
Greek mythology taught me alot about developing the so-called third eye - the sense of intuition that builds one's own common knowledge based on the wisdom that others have imparted to him or her such as wise sayings, mythological stories such as those from ancient Greek literature, etc. For me it has also included proverbs and family stories from my parents' Ilokano background.
15) Would you say you have embraced your "Asian-ness" more that you have found a common ground with Black culture?
Yes. I have embraced my Asianness more because of my Black culture background. Because of the advanced political maturity of Black culture in the 1970s which I could not find in Asian or Asian American culture during that period, I aggressively exposed myself to Black culture.
16) What is the international BlAsian scene like?
According to what I have heard, it is considered quite normal to be BlAsian in many countries in the Caribbean. The rest of the world, I do not know enough about to say.
17) Did you say that the e-mails featured in your book are all real? And if so, assuming that you edited them or did you keep them as is? They are all based on a seed of reality but what is in the book is slightly fictionalized - to what extent I will not say since that is for the reader to figure out.
I did have an epiphany that made me decide to write the book. It happened every time I was rejected by magazines to write a story about BlAsian relationships. A voice kept telling me I need to be my own editor since the world was not yet ready to hear the story I wanted to tell. But my own voice kept telling me at night that I was ready to tell the story and I needed to tell it now. So I listened to that voice and I feel I have at least started to tell the story. The book's publication has told me that the storytelling on this issue has only just begun.
I had been wanting to write about this subject of interracial attraction / dating /marriage for about ten years because I have felt that the Asian man's perspective on attraction for Black women has not been covered either by the mainstream media or the Black media. I guess I got sick and tired of reading the same stuff over and over again about white guys & black women. Given my intimiate involvement with Black women for the last 33 years of my life (I am now 52 and have been married to a Black woman for 7 years and another Black woman for 9 years) I felt I had a perspective that the public needed to hear. However, I was repeatedly rejected whenever I proposed to write the article. Essence magazine has rejected me twice (once with a form letter and once with a non-reply after an editor said in an e-mail I would be hearing from her which never happened) and several magazines did not even respond to my query letters. And two articles I did get published in Interrace magazine and Today's Black woman did not satisfy my needs to tell my story more. So I felt I had to just write my own story and publish it in book-length format. I turned negativity into a good thing, made something outta nothing as the protagonist in BlAsian Exchanges would say.
I also decided to write about BlAsian relationships to counter the contemporary wisdom that its not okay to embrace topics related to Black women's and Asian men's sexuality and also to counter the notion that things racial don't deserve to be discussed at this level ( i.e., a novel). I wanted to tell myself and the world that I do more than beg to differ with respect to both notions, I demand to be different.
2) Has the word "BlAsian" been around for awhile? It seems to be the preferred portmanteau over something like say, Afro-Asian. You use it in the context of Asian men and Black women—but can it not refer to someone who is just bi-racial (Asian/Black)?
I believe it has been. It has manifested itself in various parts of Asia including mainland China, the Philippines, Japan, etc. as well as Africa and the Caribbean - and of course, the U.S. There has not been anyone or any organization that gives it a name and thus it is not out there to the extent we see Black women-Asian men. But with PowerCouples_AMBW and books like mine out there, the politicization of BlAsian is getting out there and that's good to see for me because at some point the media will have to take heed and give us the same coverage like what MSNBC Nightly News gave white men with Black women this week, the last week in November 2007.
I did coin BlAsian term to mean Black women and Asian men after seeing the term referred to for kids who are of mixed Black and Asian heritage. I don't know what word would be right for Black men and Asian women but I just know that that that is a completely different IR genre that I don't deal with in any of my writings.
(3) What makes BlAsian relationships so unique? what makes it different than any other interracial relationship?
They are so unique because Black women and Asian men have a lot of similarities/differences in varying degrees that make them complement each other: both are people of color who are highly stereotyped when it comes to their sexuality, both tend to be well-educated, want to better themselves, both have been bashed by members of the opposite sex of their race not to mention have had challenging experiences with members of their race and want to move beyond that, are stereotyped oppositely in terms of sexuality ( e.g., Asian men are emasculate while Black women are promsicuous), and their respective races have a lot of historical commonalities including the fact that Asians did originate in the continent of Africa. BlAsian relationships are different from white male-Black female relationships in that BlAsian relationships involve two people of color together which is significant to me because being intimate & social with my partner means a lot of I do not have to explain to them the political meaning of what it means to be discriminated against regularly because of the color of my skin and standing up to it when I want to. I have noted a lot of denial by many white men intimate with Black women when it comes to the importance of speaking up about racist incidents that interracial couples often encounter; such a conflict can be detrimental to Black women psychologically and for the long-term health of the relationship. In my experience, that has been an issue if I was intimate with white women or any other person who is not Black.
(4) Why do you think the issue of BlAsian relationships is so important to get out there?
Because it is THE happening trend in Black women who have decided to date "outside the box" (i.e, outside of their race). Pursuing their attraction for an Asian guy is essentially a Black woman's compromise between still not wanting to be intimate with white guys and still wanting to go "outside the box." Many Black women who are going BlAsian or thinking about it are finding out that Asian guys are actually cool guys who really try to gel with their female mate and who are comfortable at adjusting to different situations that come up for interracial couples, including situations where a couple runs into haters and other forms of discrimination. Society still is ambivalent in accepting the Asian guy who is politically conscious, affectionate and polyculturally bold enough to pursue their attraction for Black women like I have - NOT the stereotypical Asian male nerd who is not romantic and not masculine enough to even have any sexual or romantic feelings about women. While media such as Essence magazine and MSNBC nightly news ( e.g., during the last week of November 2007) regularly cover Black women dating interracially as if only white men were the only non-Black men on the planet that existed for Black women, the rest of the world know that the Black woman-white man trend is not newsworthy in terms of what is currently happening in Black women dating interracially. The latter has been happening and covered superfluously by the media since the 1970s. BlAsian relationships have only started happening in the late 90s up to today and are regularly verified on the Internet in Yahoo! discussion groups like PowerCouples_AMBW with 300-plus members - mostly Black women - which I co-moderate and YouTube videos like the one showing the BlAsian couple in an IKEA commercial. Movies such as Akira's Hip Hop Soup and Fakin' Da Funk have also highlighted BlAsian couples in socially responsible ways that those movies with Jet Li fail miserably at being socially responsible. But BlAsian relationships - although newsorthy by any journalism standards - has yet to be covered like the above-referenced media have covered Black women-white men. Also, I guess what I am getting at is the image of Black women and Asian men needs to be broadened beyond their archtypal racial uniforms of accepting notions of white beauty when it comes to whom each group finds attractive enough to be an option for exploring romance. Stuff like the BlAsian couple in Romeo must die who don't do more than embrace are so fake and seem a lot like those Kung-Fu movies where the Asian guy plays the heroe but never gets the girl of his dreams in the end but sees her getting stolen away by the white guy.
(5) What have been the responses from the Black community? from the Asian community?
I think the response has been ambivalent at best. However, I would say that most people are sitting on the fence when it comes to how they perceive BlAsian relationships. Primarily, Black women have been very interested in my book. They have been the primary purchasers along with my Mom who bought several dozen and has been selling them to friends and relatives. Academic professors, primarily in ethnic studies courses, have also shown interest in having me speak to their classes or to seminars on interracial relationships.
(6) What do you hope your readers get out of reading "BlAsian Exchanges"?
I hope they get an enhanced understanding of what kind of life I've lived as a person who has chosen to pursue my attraction for Black women throughout my life as well as some of the joys and tribulations I have experienced as a writer living in California after migrating from the East Coast. I also hope they have a more enhanced perspective on the many different Black women and Asian men that exist in our society who do not wear the racial uniforms that each group is conditioned to wearing.
(7) What was the journey/process like for you to write this book? Did you gain any new perspectives of yourself by writing this book?
The journey was evocatively empowering and liberating for me as a male of color to tell my story after having been conveyed many negative things by folks when they learned that I have embraced Black culture and been intimate with Black women to the extent I have been. I have been told to watch out for promiscuous women who are golddiggers, that I am selling out on the culture I was born into, and that I am frontin' ( i.e., pretending to be Black) among other things. In my view, I have merely lived my life for myself and not the way other folks and society have tried to tell me. Black women and their culture are beautiful in their minds and bodies and I have become a better person for pursuing a BlAsian life. My writing about has brought me to another level of being a better person. A perspective I have gained is that while many, many people still do not accept BlAsian relationships those that do or are sitting on the fence as far as considering it valid are starting to open their minds to seeing Black women-Asian men as a positive things socially and politically. I see evidence of this weekly as co-moderator of PowerCouples_AMBW and I see it every time I have held an author event for my book or on the issue of interracial dating / attraction. Experiencing all this has taken me to a higher level of self-confidence in how I look at this issue and life in general.
8) How did you start getting involved in the BlAsian-sphere? Did you have to establish something or were you finding there were lots of groups addressing the issue of Black women/Asian men relationships?
On an individual level, I was BlAsian since I was 19 (I am now 52 believe it or not going on 25) when I lost my virginity to a Black lady who read me a poem about myself before telling me she wanted me to make love to her. With the exception of a one night stand with a Pinay lady, a date with a Chinese lady, and a date with a Jewish lady, everyone else I have been attracted to, dated, been intimate with, and married to since has been Black. I took my BlAsian life to another level in '99 and 2000 when I published an article titled "Black Like Me: an Asian man comes to terms with his 'Black' identity" in Interrace Magazine (Issue No. 44 which came out in March - 1999, this publication did not put dates on their issues) and in January 2000 when Today's Black Woman published an article in their "ManTalk" column I submitted titled "Asian-African American Relationships". These two articles politicized my BlAsian life which had been mostly individual. My joining PowerCouples_AMBW, the Yahoo! discussion group in 2002 further politicized my BlAsian life which moved a step further when I became co-moderator of PowerCouples in 2003. My BlAsian political life took a further deeper in 2006 when I published pre-launch editions of my book and started speaking at author events. The number of such events has furthered this year and I feel the panel on "Love Without Boundary: Black women dating outside the box" in New York City took me to another level on this issue. I am planning many, many more speaking events in the future including addresses on the BlAsian issue and African-Asian unity at SF State, University of Maryland-College Park, and the Asian Cultural Center in Oakland in the near future. Professors at MIT, NYU, Univ. of Hawaii-Manoa, and UCLA have also been contacting me of their interest in hearing me speak. I am also planning to continue writing on this issue: I have another novel in progress, a nonfiction book, and a nonfiction articl and a few short stories.
9) What is the BlAsian-sphere like?
It is existent mostly within the expressed interests of Black women on the Internet whom I have corresponded with in many e-mails and posts on discussion boards like PowerCouples_AMBW. I think mostly the Asian guys are sitting on the fence on this for whatever reason or don't want to be public /political with their BlAsian choice which I sympathize with because I went through a long, twisted journey before I came out publicly about my BlAsian life. However, I notice that guys in general are lurking and very quiet on boards. Make no mistake about it, though. Asian guys with Black women are out there. One of my strategies to hearing from guys who are BlAsian is getting out and speaking in public more at ethnic studies and other academic and organizationals settings. Once they see someone out there political and public with their BlAsian IR choice, they may feel more empowered and liberated about expressing their BlAsian IR choice then the media and the rest of society will recognize them more.
10) Are there any links that you recommend for people who want to know more about this subject matter? Are there clubs that cater specifically to BlAsians? If so, which ones?
http://blasianexchangesanovel.blogspot.com
http://groups.yahoo.com/BlAsianExchanges
http://groups.yahoo.com/PowerCouples_AMBW
http://www.interracialchats.com
http://www.asian-nation.org/interracial.shtml
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIbxxH3ZcCg
11) You mentioned in your commentary on the BlAsian Exchanges groups on Yahoo! About your attraction to Black women most of your life but also your problem with the exoticization of Asian women and how that relates to their outmarriage to White men. . "— is there an "exoticization" of Black women among Asian men who prefer to be only with Black women?
I think such exoticization exists if one only goes for Black women because they are black period. However, I do not think it is exoticization if a guy also becomes attracted to a Black woman because she holds a conversation well with him, is compatible with him politically and personality-wise, has a certain gene se qua that he looks for in his kinda woman and she looks for in her kinda man.
13) What challenges did you face in your own BlAsian relationships? Subtle rejections from friends and family. I heard things like "there's this Filipino girl who's daughter of [family friend's name] why don't you date her" whenever I would utter the name of the latest Black lady I was dating. My reactions or non-reactions were usually followed by some oppressive actions against me like non-communication, a verbal slight and if I retorted I was usually repressed. In the workplace, I can remember co-workers and bosses acting different to me once I placed the picture of my wife up on my desk; yes, I have been denied promotions, refused for later going out to lunch requests, and other hostile behavior when people learned who I was intimate with. Rejection from the family of the Black woman I was intimate with has also been common. Probably my biggest challenge was getting over my divorce from my first marriage to a Black woman. When we broke up, her friends told her and she would tell me that I would probably wind up dating then marrying some sorry white or Asian girl and I would feel sorry for it. Well, today I am happily married to a very intelligent and beautiful Black woman and I feel happy and successful in all other aspects of my life, including my writing. I would venture to say that it takes a person of emotional and personal strength to make an IR choice and especially for an Asian guy who makes the BlAsian IR choice it takes a lot of personal and emotional strength.
14) You chose Greek mythology to complement your interest in Black women—what is the equation with that?
Greek mythology taught me alot about developing the so-called third eye - the sense of intuition that builds one's own common knowledge based on the wisdom that others have imparted to him or her such as wise sayings, mythological stories such as those from ancient Greek literature, etc. For me it has also included proverbs and family stories from my parents' Ilokano background.
15) Would you say you have embraced your "Asian-ness" more that you have found a common ground with Black culture?
Yes. I have embraced my Asianness more because of my Black culture background. Because of the advanced political maturity of Black culture in the 1970s which I could not find in Asian or Asian American culture during that period, I aggressively exposed myself to Black culture.
16) What is the international BlAsian scene like?
According to what I have heard, it is considered quite normal to be BlAsian in many countries in the Caribbean. The rest of the world, I do not know enough about to say.
17) Did you say that the e-mails featured in your book are all real? And if so, assuming that you edited them or did you keep them as is? They are all based on a seed of reality but what is in the book is slightly fictionalized - to what extent I will not say since that is for the reader to figure out.
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