Director Jonathan Yi is at it again for Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. For the past few years, he’s brought special interviews from an Asian American perspective to HBO. His East of Main Street series has featured the likes of Kelly Zen-Yie Tsai, chef Anita Lo, apl.de.ap of the Black Eyed Peas, and skateboarder Willy Santos. For 2012, he interviews a much younger generation in “East of Main Street: Small Talk”. Find out what it’s like to be Asian American from the perspective of children in this fresh and funny special. 37 kids of all different ages talk about race, what it’s like to be an Asian American, and what that means to their lives.
This little girl, Mya, is just learning to read. Her parents decided to let her know that she’s going to be a big sister in an interesting way. They give her a T-shirt that says “I’m the Big Sister”. Watch this little girl’s expression once she figures out she’ll be a big sister.
Little girl finds out she’s going to be a big sister
In a world where service men and women can get dates with celebrities like Mila Kunis and Justin Timberlake to the Marine Corps Ball, why can’t high school students get a celebrity sports star to speak at their graduation. That’s exactly what the students of New York’s Stuyvesant High School is trying to do. They put together a video along with the teaching and school staff to get New York Knicks Jeremy Lin to give their graduation speech. Here’s their message to Jeremy Lin:
PLEASE come to Stuyvesant’s Graduation on June 25th at the Palace Theatre in NYC. It took a lot of effort to complete the video and we would absolutely love it if you could show up! As you saw throughout the video, you’ve been an inspirational figure, not to just basketball fanatics, but students and teachers from all over the spectrum. Putting this video together took an enormous amount of effort so if this video made you smile in any way, shape, or form, come through!! Of course, if you’re busy, we’ll be extremely disappointed but we understand that you lead a very busy life at the moment.
HOWEVER, if you do wish to speak at our graduation (please do!) then you can contact me (Eric Han) at erichan8631@msn.com, or speak directly to our school administration at 212-312-4810. Please take this into consideration! We would only ask you to be there for no more than 2 hours in the morning and you can leave before we finish so that you aren’t stampeded by a huge mob of students. You’ve got a huge fan base at Stuyvesant High School and it would really make our graduation day all the more amazing.
Sorry that some parts are unclear. We had to film during our free periods and lunch periods as well as after school when students were all over the hallways.
Will Jeremy Lin accept their request?
Update Jeremy Lins responds to Stuyvesant High School via twitter:
Stuyvesant High! Awesome video…so honored to have been invited. I cant make it BUT im making a response video and will visit if possible!
New York’s Stuyvesant High School tries to get Jeremy Lin to speak at graduation
Jeremy Lin Speaks to Stuyvesant Class of 2012
Lyrics to New York’s Stuyvesant High School rap
Jeremy Lin, could you please come to Stuyvesant?
Speak for our graduation, that’ll make us win,
You’re an inspiration for these generations of Asians,
But not just us, for every underdog in this nation,
But let’s start with something small like our school,
We voted for you, and we want you ’cause you’re true,
I think you could really reach us on a personal level,
As we go through the next step of our life, you’re our hero,
Lin-sanity’s affected us with serious gravity,
We’ll feel depravity and agony so please come and be our remedy,
We appreciate everything you’ve done in the past,
And you continue to rock on, so please speak for the 2012 class
With the success of her first bestselling children’s book “Dream Big Little Pig,” she’s written a follow up book “It’s a Big World, Little Pig!”. Here’s more about the book:
Poppy, the adorable, persistent, dreaming-big pig, has a new adventure in store for her: the World Games ice-skating championship in Paris! Poppy is nervous about meeting so many new people, in a new place. But, ever courageous and supported by her family (Emma, too!), Poppy embarks upon this exciting adventure head-on! Poppy begins to realize that although these animals look different, act different, and are from different places, they are all the same at heart. We all smile in the same language!
Kristi is taking her passion for reading on a book tour for her new book. You can get her book here.
It’s a Big World, Little Pig! by Kristi Yamaguchi
More about Kristi Yamaguchi
Kristi Yamaguchi is a household name: New York Times bestseller, Gold Medalist, correspondent for the Today Show during the 2010 Olympics, 2008 Dancing with the Stars winner, etc. Dream Big, Little Pig has garnered rave reviews, tremendous media attention, sold more than 15,000 copies through bookscan and debuted at #2 on the New York Times bestsellers list Kristi’s modern content coupled with positive message makes this more than just another celebrity picture book.
Mother/author/athlete Kristi Yamaguchi is part of a reading PSA from Scholastic. Her motto is “Always Dream,” and Kristi’s accomplishments prove that dreams can come true with hard work and dedication. Her achievements — on the ice, in her personal life, and in the realm of community service — are many, all of which prove her consistent commitment to excellence. In 2011 Kristi released “Dream Big Little Pig,” her first children’s picture book. The inspirational book about a persevering pig who finds her passion debuted at #2 on the New York Times bestseller list prompting the announcement of a second Poppy Pig book due out in 2012.
She hopes to encourage more kids to read with her PSA. Kristi Yamaguchi talks about her five most influential books:
1. A Wrinkle in Time
“I enjoyed the amazing adventure that the main character went on with her brother. It is such an imaginative story filled with excitement.”
2. Anne of Green Gables
“I remember wishing I could be “Anne” even though life sometimes seemed a bit hard for her. She had a spunky personality and was a good person at heart.”
3. Green Eggs and Ham, by Dr. Seuss
“I loved the rhyming, the illustrations, and the message in the book. Be open to try new things — you might just like it!”
4. Interview with a Vampire by Anne Rice
“I read this for English class in high school and was intrigued. I loved dissecting the characters and plot in class and really got a better understanding of the book itself and for interpreting a book in general. The internal struggle of Louis throughout the book pulled me in even though it got graphic and scary at times.”
5. The Art of Happiness
“So much insight on your own “happiness.” It lent me much perspective during a time that was not so easy. Sometimes just a little encouragement and reality check can put you on a good path again. Best message taken away — we can choose whether to be happy or not.”
Malaysian oil and gas company Petronas put out a touching commercial for Chinese New Year last year. It’s an emotional reminder to connect with our parents. Although things seem bad at times, a call or a visit can put a smile on a parent’s face. Watching this gave us flashbacks to the Home:Word music video with overtures of Google Chrome Commercial: Dear Sophie and Graduation – Google Search Stories.
