- A San Jose Vietnamese American legislator is being attacked by a group in her own community for daring to go against their wishes and name the Vietnamese ethnic business district "Saigon" instead of "Little Saigon." As the Merc article points out, it may seem like a petty squabble, but it covers a number of issues important to Vietnamese American communities.
The process reminded them of a communist tactic, said some in the community, which is highly sensitive about such matters. There was an illusion of choice but, in the end, the people had no true say.
Many Vietnamese refugees remain vigilant against communism, especially the older generations who vividly remember their homeland and the fierce war that swallowed it, killing millions. Most of the regular City Hall protesters are at least middle-age and carry tales of dead parents, communist jails and months spent languishing in refugee camps.
They have rebuffed the complaints that Little Saigon - used by communities from California to Australia - doesn't set San Jose apart. My Phuong Le, one of the protesters, notes that Chinatowns dot the globe without causing any apparent confusion.
Supporters may not have articulated their case well to outsiders - reason and emotion swirl into sometimes rambling, defensive speeches - but they expected Madison Nguyen to understand their concerns. After all, she shares their history.
This article helps to illustrate why immigration remains such a volatile topic: it's hard for outsiders to understand why or what will be important to an immigrant group, and insensitivity runs in all directions.
When it was time to venture into a new field, Holleran did her homework, conducting exhaustive demographic research and taking a class at Wharton to hone her business skills. She gathered a group of investors made up almost entirely of Philadelphia-area squash players.
Zug said Holleran's business style mirrors her approach to squash.
"She was a grinder, wearing you down," Zug said. "That's how she operates with this business."
Read the Phildelphia Inquirer profile on her. It's a great article!
Seabold's 7-month-old company, A Boutique for the Soul, arranges shopping boutiques in homes and women-owned businesses in the Denver-Colorado Springs area. Hundreds of women business owners have signed up to show off their wares.
Think a Tupperware party, but with lots of different vendors, plenty of one-of-a-kind items and creations you'll brag about for months.
Learning from alcoholics seems contrarian but it makes a lot of sense. The first step in the program is an ADMISSION. Alcoholics must admit their addiction before progressing to the next step....“My name is Joe/John/Julie/Jane – and I am responsible for the poor customer service in my store.”
Alphablogs is hosting a "Canada 9-5" business blogging carnival. A blog carnival is where a group of bloggers pledge to post on a certain topic, and the carnival host links to all of their posts.
Check it out.
-- Claire Light, Women's Initiative Blog Editor
1 comment:
Hey, thanks for mentioning our Canada 9-5 blog carnival. Which, btw, is put together by two women :)
Original Post: February 01, 2008 at 06:04 PM
Post a Comment