Featured Stories

Remembering the 228 Massacre: Readings & Resources on Taiwan’s White Terror Era

Feature image: Memorial Foundation of 228  How should a nation reckon with its sins? On the 75th anniversary of the 228 Massacre in Taiwan, and in the midst of ever-greater geopolitical distress, we invite our community to reflect with us on life under and after authoritarian violence. History is rife with the patterns of misinformation masquerading as prophecy; ego presented as hope; fear as our moral compass. In Green Island Secrets, Professor Chung-chih Li writes, "how one feels about…

Now accepting submissions: 2022 Betty L. Yu and Jin C. Yu Creative Writing Prizes celebrate Taiwanese American student writers

TaiwaneseAmerican.org is pleased to announce the 2022 Betty L. Yu and Jin C. Yu Creative Writing Prizes. Created in 2021 in collaboration with Taiwanese American author Charles Yu, the Prizes are intended to encourage and recognize creative literary work by Taiwanese American students, and to foster discussion and community around such work. This year, in addition to high school and college categories, applicants currently in 6th-8th grade may apply for the middle school category. Submissions…

All Hail the ‘BNS’: Meet Wil Chung of Impromptu Spices

In the spring of 2020, a small group of Taiwanese Americans started the Taiwanese Home Cooking Facebook group in order to have a place for the Taiwanese diaspora and others to share and learn about Taiwanese food that was more focused than other groups we had been a part of.  It was through this group that I first met Wil Chung, the creator of Impromptu Spices and its signature Beef Noodle Soup spice mix. How did you come up with the name Impromptu Spices? Trader Joe's "Everything but…

Nnadi Samuel: “Subject Lessons” (Poems)

We are so honored to share "Subject Lessons," a collection of poetry by Nnadi Samuel. Samuel is a recipient of the prestigious Falun Gong Poetry Prize, which got him a two-year scholarship in National Dong Hwa College in Hualien to study Chinese Language & Literature. Nnadi Samuel (he/him/his) holds a B.A in English & literature from the University of Benin. His works have been previously published in Suburban Review, Seventh Wave Magazine, North Dakota Quarterly, Quarterly…

2021 Taiwanese American Gift Guide: Shop small businesses, and shop them early!

If you're a champion of MIT "Made in Taiwan" shopping principles (looking at you, first-gen aunties!), may we suggest a peek into MBTA "Made by Taiwanese Americans." We're so proud to bring back this annual gift guide for the second time, highlighting Taiwanese American small businesses, brands, and creators. We know there's more out there - reach out if that's you at leona@taiwaneseamerican.org. We're rooting for each of you! See last year's gift guide here. TAIWANESEAMERICAN.ORG DISCOUNT…

“Elegy for a Century Egg” and Other Poems by Katy Hargett-Hsu

  Kathryn Hargett-Hsu 徐凯蒂 is an incoming MFA candidate in poetry at Washington University in St. Louis. A 2018 Best New Poet, she is the recipient of fellowships from Kundiman, the Bucknell Seminar for Undergraduate Poets, Belgrade Art Studio, and UAB. Most recently, she received the Barksdale-Maynard Prize in Poetry and was selected as a National YoungArts Foundation Finalist in Writing. Find her in Field Notes on Survival (2020), Best New Poets (2018), Anomaly, The…

interWellness: The women-led startup representing Taiwan at the Hult Prize global accelerator

Just last week, the Hult Prize—a global startup challenge that has been dubbed the “Nobel Prize for students” and awards US$1 million to the winning team—wrapped up its accelerator and penultimate round of business pitches in London. Among the competitors was Joyce Chen, a Bay Area native, recent graduate of the National Taiwan University, and second-generation Taiwanese American.  [caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="1102"] interWellness co-founders with Minister of Health and Welfare,…

Pew Research reissues report on Asian Americans after misrepresenting Taiwanese Americans

  KEY LINKS: Corrected "Key facts about Asian origin groups in the U.S." (Pew Research Center) - September 8, 2021 How many Taiwanese live in the U.S.? It’s not an easy question to answer (Decoded: PRC Medium) - September 8, 2021 To the Taiwanese American community: Ever since the 1990 United States Census, the Taiwanese American Citizens League (TACL) has led civic engagement efforts to remind our community to complete the U.S. Census by not only checking the "Other Asian"…

Huiru May Huang: On Encountering a Stranger  

My students were putting on Little Red Riding Hood today and I was the Big Bad Wolf, so I showed up to Sister Marianne’s door in my wolf costume. Sister Marianne is my ninety year-old neighbor. She works at the church next to my school, so we’d walk to work together every day, rain or shine. We wouldn’t say much to each other, but her petite presence always puts my mind at ease. Prolonged silences like these used to drive me out of my skin, but I’ve grown to understand the solitude that…

Now at the Honolulu Rainbow Film Festival: “Taiwan Equals Love”

FEATURE PHOTOS FROM THE HONOLULU RAINBOW FILM FESTIVAL PRESS KIT Taiwan Equals Love will be streaming free from now until August 14th on GagaOOLala, Asia’s largest on-demand platform for LGBTQ content. English subtitles are available.  It’s not June, but that doesn’t mean that we’re done celebrating Pride. This summer, the Honolulu Rainbow Film Festival is holding its 32nd annual film screening from July 30th to August 15th, celebrating and raising awareness for the LGBTQ community.…