Reader Mail: Asian American Activism

So I got a question from another blogger: "Are you an activist? Do you do stuff outside of the blog? I heard your Better Asian Man podcast. Good stuff."


My Answer: I am for "The Cause" (my friends and I use this code term for Asian American causes), but I am not an activist. I dislike the terms "activism" or "activists," because hard core activists make The Cause too personal. They become so shrill, that nobody listens to them anymore. I would rather put my faith in an Asian American who is for The Cause and has a background in marketing, business or psychology than an activist who has extreme dedication to The Cause but no persuasion skills.

People are moved by stories (particularly ones that offer hope at the end) and talent (see previous post), and they are not moved by theoretical lectures, no matter how rationally the points are laid out. A really good book to read on this topic is Influencer. In a sense, this blog that I run is meant to show the stories and the talents of Asian Americans and Asians all over the world.