Celebrating Blasians During Black History Month and Lunar New Year

Mixed Asian Media - February 14, 2022

By Naturally MonaLisa

 

It’s February, and there are so many exciting things to celebrate. Two of the biggest events happening this month are Black History Month and Lunar New Year. Black History Month is an important annual celebration of African American excellence, achievements, and contributions to the United States. It is also a time to reflect on the continued struggle for racial justice and equity in this country. Lunar New Year is an annual festival that celebrates the beginning of a new year on the traditional lunisolar Chinese calendar. For 15 days, families gather for a reunion dinner, honor religious deities and ancestors, clean and decorate the house for incoming good fortune, and hand out red envelopes with money to bless others. Both events seem very different, yet they have a similar cultural significance — both events seek to celebrate the beauty and long-lasting legacy of their respective cultures.

I’m Blasian (a person of mixed Asian and Black/African descent), and I had the privilege of celebrating both events growing up. Even though Lunar New Year follows the lunisolar Chinese calendar, it often lands in late January or early February, which usually coincides with Black History Month. I feel extra proud about my mixed-race heritage when I celebrate both events, and of course, enjoy amazing food and festivities from both cultures. My parents taught me to be proud of my cultures and traditions, and to continue to celebrate them, even if I’m the last person on earth. However, simply being proud of myself didn’t solve all of my problems. Growing up, I often felt lonely and misunderstood by others. I didn’t have anybody with a similar Black-Asian background to make friends with, mentor me, or guide me through the various stages of life. I didn’t see enough Blasians on TV or in the spotlight, so I didn’t have any Blasian role models. But thankfully in 2022, interracial relationships between the Black and Asian communities have become more common and accepted. We now see many influential Blasians in entertainment, politics, business, and sports. With the rise of the internet and social media, I have found several Blasian online communities and they have connected me to other Blasians with similar experiences to mine. As a millennial adult, I can now say that I have supportive Blasian friends and mentors.

 

Family photo at my wedding from 2017. From left to right: my youngest brother Jean, my mother, me, my sister Christina, my brother Peter, and my father.

 

In honor of Black History Month and Lunar New Year, let’s take a moment to celebrate the successes and achievements of the following Blasians. Representation matters!

 
 

The Politicians

  • Kamala Harris:  the Vice President of the United States since January 20, 2021. She is the first ever female vice president of the United States. Prior to this role, Harris was the District Attorney of San Francisco, Attorney General of California, and a United States Senator. Harris is of Jamaican and Indian descent.

  • Marilyn Strickland: the United States Representative from Washington state’s 10th congressional district. She was one of the first three Korean American women elected to Congress on January 3, 2021. Previously, she served as the mayor of Tacoma, Washington from 2010 to 2018. She is of Korean and African American descent.

The Actors, Singers, and Rappers

  • H.E.R. – an R&B singer that won the Grammy Award for Song of the Year for “I Can’t Breathe” and the Academy Award for Best Original Song for “Fight for You.” H.E.R. is of Filipino and African American descent.

  • Tessanne Chin – a singer that won the singing competition show The Voice in 2013. Chin was born and raised in Jamaica and is of Chinese, English, and African descent.

  • Saweetie – an American rapper that was nominated for two Grammy Awards in 2021 for Best New Artist and Best Rap Song for “Best Friend.” She is of Filipino, Chinese, and African American descent.

  • Jhené Aiko – a singer that earned three Grammy Award nominations in 2020 for Album of the Year, Best Progressive R&D Album, and Best R&D Performance. Aiko is of Japanese, Dominican, Native American, African American, Spanish, and German-Jewish descent.

  • apl.de.ap – a rapper that is part of the hip hop group Black Eyed Peas, which has won six Grammy Awards and sold more than 80 million records. He was a coach on the singing competition show The Voice Teens in the Philippines. Apl.de.ap is of African American and Filipino descent.

  • Kelis – a singer and chef who has released six albums and several cookbooks. Kelis graduated from Le Cordon Bleu culinary school and has a sauce line called “Feast.” Kelis’ sixth album is titled “Food” which incorporates R&B and soul musical styles to demonstrate her passion for food. Kelis is of African American, Chinese, and Puerto Rican descent. 

  • Crystal Kay – a singer who has released 13 albums in Japan. She rose to fame in Japan when her third album “Almost Seventeen” debuted at number 2 on the Japanese Oricon charts and was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of Japan. Kay is of Japanese, Korean, and African American descent. 

  • Anderson .Paak – a rapper and drummer who has won four Grammy Awards. Anderson .Paak and Bruno Mars formed the duo Silk Sonic in 2021 and released their first song “Leave the Door Open,” which reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100. Anderson .Paak is of African American and Korean descent.

  • Karrueche Tran – an actress and model who starred in the web series “The Bay” and is currently in the comedy series Claws and drama series Games People Play. Tran is of Vietnamese and Ethiopian descent.

The Influencers

  • Ayesha Curry – YouTube personality, the host of the cooking show “Ayesha’s Home Kitchen,” author of several cookbooks, and entrepreneur. Curry is of African American, Polish, Chinese, and Jamaican descent.

  • Asia Jackson – a YouTube personality, actress, and activist. Jackson created the viral movement #MagandangMorenx in 2016 to challenge colorism and celebrate the diversity of beauty in Filipino communities. Jackson is of African American and Indigenous Filipino (Igorot) descent.

  • Angela Yee – a radio personality that hosts the popular radio show “The Breakfast Club '' with DJ Envy and Charlamagne tha God. The radio show has more than 8 million monthly listeners and was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2022. Yee is of Chinese and Montserratian descent.

  • Ariana Mamiko Miyamoto – a fashion model and pageant queen who was the first mixed-race woman to be crowned Miss Universe Japan in 2015. Miyamoto is of African American and Japanese descent.

  • Aisha Harumi Tochigi – a pageant queen who was crowned Miss Universe Japan in 2020. Tochigi is the second mixed-race woman to win the title. Tochigi is of Ghanaian and Japanese descent. 

The Fashion Models

  • Naomi Campbell – a fashion model who was one of the five original supermodels during the 1990s and was the first black model to grace the cover of TIME magazine, British Vogue, French Vogue, and Russian Vogue. Campbell also has a successful perfume business. Campbell is of Jamaican and Chinese descent.

  • Kimora Lee Simons – a fashion, model and businesswoman, who was the founder and CEO of the clothing line Baby Phat. She also had two reality shows called Kimora: Life in the Fab Lane and Kimora: House of Fab. Simmons is of Korean and African American descent.

  • Tyson Beckford – a fashion model that is considered to be one of the most successful Black models of all time. He is of Jamaican, Panamanian, and Chinese descent.

  •  Chanel Iman – a fashion model who was a Victoria’s Secret Angel and a guest judge on America’s Next Top Model. Iman is of Korean and African American descent.

     

The Athletes

  • Naomi Osaka – a professional tennis player who won her first Grand Slam title in 2018 when she beat Serena Williams to win the US Open. Osaka is the first Asian to be the world’s number one tennis player on WTA’s Women’s Singles Ranking. Osaka is of Haitian and Japanese descent.

  • Tiger Woods- a professional golfer who has won 82 PGA TOUR wins and is regarded as one of the greatest golfers of all time. Woods will be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in March of 2022. Woods is of African American, Thai, Native American, and Dutch descent.

  • Hines Ward – a former American football player who was a wide receiver for the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1998 to 2011. Ward was a four-time Pro Bowler and Super Bowl XL MVP. Ward is currently a football coach at Florida Atlantic University. Ward is of African American and Korean descent.

  • Bryan Clay – a decathlete who was the decathlon world champion in 2005 and the summer Olympic champion in decathlon in 2008. Clay is of Japanese and African American descents.

  • Patrick Chung – a former American football player who played for 11 seasons, 10 of them with the New England Patriots and one with the Philadelphia Eagles. Chung is of Jamaican and Chinese descent.

 
 

To my fellow Blasian brothers and sisters: you are not alone in your struggles being a mixed-race Black-Asian person. I strongly encourage you to join a community created just for mixed-race or Blasian individuals. You can join a local or national association, a Facebook group, a Meetup group, a conference or workshop, or a college student organization. These opportunities allow you to connect with other individuals with a similar experience or background as you. I also encourage you to follow the famous Blasians listed above on social media and read their stories to learn how they overcame various obstacles in order to achieve success and recognition in their industry. If they can do it, you can do it, too! 


Call to action: February is the perfect time to advocate for Black-Asian solidarity. Both the Black community and Asian community have experienced (and overcome) racial discrimination and oppression throughout American history. February is a great time to have conversations with both communities about their shared struggles and how they can work together to address racial injustice and white supremacy. I understand that this is easier said than done. Anti-black racism exists in the Asian community, and anti-Asian racism exists in the Black community. However, the struggle to end racism and white supremacy is a shared goal for many communities. When one community wins, other communities win too. We must realize who the real enemy is and unite to fight against it.

 

Naturally MonaLisa wears many hats and has many passions. She is an experienced corporate trainer and a certified HR professional. She has a small YouTube Channel where she shares her personal experience with eczema and other conditions, and she promotes vegan and nontoxic products that are safe for everyone to use. She also volunteers at an advocacy group called “BLM Cantonese,” in which she translates BLM-related terms from English to Cantonese to help Cantonese speakers have difficult yet important conversations about Black Lives Matter with their family and friends. You can follow her YouTube Channel called “Naturally MonaLisa” and follow her on Instagram @NaturallyMonaLisa.