Helen Zia

Helen Zia

Helen Zia (; pinyin: Xiè Hànlán) (born 1952) is an American journalist and scholar who has covered Asian American communities and social and political movements for decades.

She was born in New Jersey to first generation immigrants from Shanghai. She entered Princeton University in the early 1970s and was a member of its first graduating class of women. As a student, Zia was among the founders of the Asian American Students Association. She was also a vocal anti-war activist, voicing her Opposition to U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War, and a firm believer in feminism.

She entered medical school in 1974, but quit in 1976. She moved to Detroit, Michigan. She went to work as a construction laborer, an autoworker and a community organizer, after which she discovered her life’s work as a journalist and writer.

She is the author of "Asian American Dreams: The Emergence of an American People", a finalist for the prestigious Kiriyama Pacific Rim Book Prize. President of the United States Bill Clinton quoted from "Asian American Dreams" at two separate speeches in the White House Rose Garden.

She is also co-author, with Wen Ho Lee, of "My Country Versus Me", which reveals what happened to the Los Alamos scientist who was falsely accused of being a spy for the People's Republic of China in the “worst case since the Rosenbergs.”

Zia is former Executive Editor of "Ms. Magazine". Her articles, essays and reviews have appeared in numerous publications, books and anthologies. She was named one of the most influential Asian Americans of the decade by "A. Magazine".

Zia has received numerous journalism awards for her ground-breaking stories; her investigation of date rape at the University of Michigan led to campus demonstrations and an overhaul of its policies, while her research on women who join neo-Nazi and white supremacist organizations provoked new thinking on the relationship between race and gender violence in hate crimes.

Zia has been outspoken on issues ranging from civil rights and peace to women's rights and countering hate violence and homophobia. In 1997, she testified before the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights on the racial impact of the news media. She traveled to Beijing in 1995 to the United Nations Fourth World Congress on Women as part of a journalists of color delegation. She has appeared in numerous news programs and films; her work on the 1980s Asian American landmark civil rights case of anti-Asian violence is documented in the Academy Award nominated film, “"Who Killed Vincent Chin?"” and she was profiled in Bill Moyers' PBS documentary, “"Becoming American: The Chinese Experience."”

Zia received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from the Law School of the City University of New York for bringing important matters of law and civil rights into public view.

Zia remained closeted during much of her early career. She came out nationally on a live C-SPAN broadcast in the early 90s. [ [http://www.mlksymposium.umich.edu/ The University of Michigan's Annual Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. Symposium] , University of Michigan website. Retrieved on September 7, 2007.] She currently resides in the Bay Area with her partner, Lia Shigemura. The pair were married in San Francisco in 2004. [Malinda Lo. [http://www.afterellen.com/blog/malinda/top-5-queer-asian-american-women Top 5 queer Asian-American women in entertainment and media] , AfterEllen.com (May 23, 2007). Retrieved on September 7, 2007.] , and again in 2008 [Jesse McKinley. [http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/18/us/17cnd-marriage.html Hundreds of Same-Sex Couples Wed in California] , New York Times (June 17, 2008). Retrieved on June 17, 2008.]

References

External links

* [http://www.kepplerspeakers.com/speakers/speakers.asp?1+EV+1333 Helen Zia] at [http://www.speakoutnow.org/index.html SpeakOutNow.org]


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Vincent Chin — Infobox Person name = Vincent Chin caption = birth date = 1955 birth place = Guangdong death date = June 23 1982 death place = Detroit, Michigan other names = 陳果仁 known for = The civil rights movement inspired by his murder occupation =… …   Wikipedia

  • Death of Vincent Chin — Vincent Chin redirects here. For other uses, see Vincent Chin (disambiguation). Vincent Jen Chin[1] (simplified Chinese: 陈果仁 Chén Guǒrén; traditional Chinese: 陳果 …   Wikipedia

  • Xie — 謝 (traditional) / 谢 (simplified) is a Chinese family name; it is estimated that there are about 2 million people with this surname, with most of them living in southern China. The spelling of the same Chinese character using Wade Giles… …   Wikipedia

  • List of Chinese Americans — This is a list of notable Chinese Americans, who are famous, have made significant contributions to the American culture or society politically, artistically or scientifically, or have appeared in the news numerous times. ListArt and design* Alan …   Wikipedia

  • Mills College — Motto Una destinatio, viae diversae Motto in English One destination, many paths Established 1885 Type liberal arts …   Wikipedia

  • Wen Ho Lee — (zh cp|c=李文和|p=Lǐ Wénhé; born December 21, 1939) is a Taiwanese born American scientist who worked for the University of California at the Los Alamos National Laboratory; a federal grand jury accused him of stealing secrets about the U.S. s… …   Wikipedia

  • List of people from Detroit — The following is a list of notable people from Detroit, Michigan. This list includes people who were born, have lived, or worked in and around Metro Detroit. Contents 1 Architects[1] 2 Artists and artisans[2] 2.1 Ceramists …   Wikipedia

  • List of Asian American writers — In the fields of Ethnic Studies and Literary Scholarship, the term Asian American is a bit vague. In practice, it usually includes writers from East Asia and South Asia, but not from West Asia (Middle Easterners). At the same time, it often… …   Wikipedia

  • Organization of Chinese Americans — Abbreviation OCA Motto Embracing the hopes and aspirations of Asian Pacific Americans Formation 1973 Type Non profit, Non partisan …   Wikipedia

  • List of people from Oakland, California — This is a listing of famous and notable people who were either born in, or have lived in, Oakland, California.Entertainment*Mahershalalhashbaz Ali ndash; actor *Eddie Anderson ndash; actor *Max Baer, Jr. ndash; actor, film director *Pamela Blake… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”