Escape From Plan A

You Peng joins Diana and Teen to discuss how to stay sane during the COVID pandemic. What does "psychological wellness" even mean as a racialized person in a country whose national healthcare policy is to just let us die? The mental health discourse pushes for internal resolutions to torturous external pressures. Who is this really benefiting? Or rather, whose resistance is this trying to suppress? TWITTER: Diana (@discoveryduck) Teen (@Mont_Jiang) SUBMISSIONS & COMMENTS: editor.planamag@gmail.com EFPA Opening Theme: "Fuck Out My Face" by Ayekay (open.spotify.com/artist/16zQKaDN5XgHAhfOJHTigJ)

Phan Le, Thuc Nguyen, and Michelle Pham join Diana to critique Spike Lee's Vietnam War movie "Da 5 Bloods," and they pull no punches in dissecting the problems with the film. Why does a script originally written by two white guys about white vets and produced by three white people and Lee get to represent the Black American experience or speak for Vietnamese people? TWITTER: Phan (@phannyfishcakes) Thuc (@BiatchPack) Michelle (@fodgycakes) Diana (@discoveryduck) REFERENCED RESOURCES: - "Watching Da 5 Bloods in Saigon" https://www.vulture.com/2020/07/watching-da-5-bloods-in-saigon.html - "We Fight Together: 17 Black Anti-Imperialists To Radicalize You" https://wearyourvoicemag.com/we-fight-together-17-black-anti-imperialists-to-radicalize-you/ - "The Racist Origins of U.S. Policing: Demilitarization Will Require Decolonization" https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/united-states/2020-07-16/racist-origins-us-policing SUBMISSIONS & COMMENTS: editor.planamag@gmail.com EFPA Opening Theme: "Fuck Out My Face" by Ayekay (open.spotify.com/artist/16zQKaDN5XgHAhfOJHTigJ)

Diana, Jess and Filip get together to talk about recent announcements from tech giants like Facebook and Shopify to have their work forces go remote-first. While this trend seems to offer freedom and choice for workers, how is it actually going to play out, and does it benefit the worker or the employer? The trio takes a closer look at a policy change that affects Asian Americans and H-1B visa holders more than you'd think. TWITTER: Diana (@discoveryduck) Jess (@cogitatotomato) Filip (@filipgwriting) SUBMISSIONS & COMMENTS: editor.planamag@gmail.com EFPA Opening Theme: "Fuck Out My Face" by Ayekay (open.spotify.com/artist/16zQKaDN5XgHAhfOJHTigJ)

Activist and organizer Tee Fansofa joins Diana to report on what's been going on in Sacramento: the police murders and protests, the rise and co-optation of BLM, the long-term work of organizing and the people doing it, and how, one night in late may, Tee got shot eight times in the face and chest by the police. TWITTER: Tee (@t_uxo) Diana (@discoveryduck) Sacramento SOUP (@Sacramento_Soup) AYA (@AyaBlackCollab) ORGANIZATIONS TO SUPPORT: - APTP Sac: https://www.antipoliceterrorproject.org/aptp-sacramento - Sac SOUP: https://www.facebook.com/SacSOUP/ - AYA Radical Black Healing Collaborative: https://www.facebook.com/ayablackcollab/ - Still Here Trans Alliance: https://www.facebook.com/StillHere4TransRights/ REFERENCED RESOURCES: - ABC10 News Report (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMwoJ85ZQI0) - Tee GoFundMe Youtube Page (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCipbzitPJbLUiLCDMoDZWog) - Emergency Fund for Tee (https://www.gofundme.com/f/emergency-fund-for-tee) SUBMISSIONS & COMMENTS: editor.planamag@gmail.com EFPA Opening Theme: "Fuck Out My Face" by Ayekay (open.spotify.com/artist/16zQKaDN5XgHAhfOJHTigJ)

Teen and Adam shoot the shit about why America loves their heroes to come from basically nowhere, orphans or nearly so. From Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer all the way to Spiderman, why the particular obsession with it in America versus other cultures? This is the episode we made reference to in the last free episode, Ep. 190: Why do American Heroes Never Have Parents? (ft. Mtume) (https://soundcloud.com/plan-a-magazine/ep-190-why-do-american-heroes-never-have-parents-ft-mtume). TWITTER: Teen (@mont_jiang) Adam (@snbatman) REFERENCED RESOURCES: - FILIPINOS ON THE FRONTLINES: OUR BODIES ARE NOT DISPOSABLE (https://planamag.com/filipinos-on-the-frontlines-our-bodies-are-not-disposable/) - THIS YEAR'S CENSUS REALLY NEEDS A RECKONING (https://planamag.com/this-years-census-really-needs-a-reckoning/) SUBMISSIONS & COMMENTS: editor.planamag@gmail.com EFPA Opening Theme: "Fuck Out My Face" by Ayekay (open.spotify.com/artist/16zQKaDN5XgHAhfOJHTigJ)

Teen and Adam are joined by friend and all around creative badass Mtume to discuss a common trope seen in much of American media that goes conspicuously unremarked upon, and that is the Orphan Hero. It's not unique to the United States, but most, if not all of the protagonists in the top entertainment franchises have an orphan hero main character. Star Wars with Luke Skywalker (and Rey Palpatine), DC Comics with Batman, and perhaps most well known recently Harry Potter with Harry Potter. What is it about America that makes us especially obsessed with the "blank slate" that a parent-less hero provides? We also discuss how and why this trope isn't nearly as common in Black American fiction. Support us on Patreon! www.patreon.com/planamag TWITTER: Mtume (@SirCoreGant) Teen (@Mont_Jiang) Adam (@snbatman) SUBMISSIONS & COMMENTS: editor.planamag@gmail.com EFPA Opening Theme: "Fuck Out My Face" by Ayekay (open.spotify.com/artist/16zQKaDN5XgHAhfOJHTigJ) Image Source: Dorkly

The Philippines is under attack as an unprecedented crackdown on freedom of speech and freedom of the press is underway through the imminent passage of the so-called Anti-Terror Bill set to become law on July 9, 2020. Special guests Robert Cheng (Katilunggan), Malaya Arevalo and Julie Jamora (Malaya Movement) join us to discuss the bill in more depth and it’s impact on the Philippines and abroad in the era of Donald Trump’s America. Hosted by Jess. Support us on Patreon! www.patreon.com/planamag TWITTER: Jess (@cogitatotomato) Robert (@smoothposer) Altermidya (@altermidya) REFERENCED RESOURCES: Malaya Movement ● Website: ​www.malayamovement.com ● Facebook and Instagram: @malayamovement ● Email: ​malayamovement@gmail.com ● Petition for Duterte to Veto the Anti-Terrorism Bill: ​tinyurl.com/vetotheterrorbill Ibon Foundation: www.ibon.org Altermidya: https://www.altermidya.net Bulatlat: https://www.bulatlat.com The International Coalition For Human Rights in the Philippines (ICHRP): https://ichrp.net/ SUBMISSIONS & COMMENTS: editor.planamag@gmail.com EFPA Opening Theme: "Fuck Out My Face" by Ayekay (open.spotify.com/artist/16zQKaDN5XgHAhfOJHTigJ)

Mike Nguyen, who wrote “PAST THE TIME FOR ALLYSHIP: WE NEED POLITICAL EDUCATION, ORGANIZATION AND SOLIDARITY” joins Q and Diana to discuss the political ideologies that are near and dear to our hearts. How did three Asian Americans from apolitical families and right wing communities find our way to anti-imperialism, leftism, and coalitional, organized resistance? There is so much we can learn from history, so much we can do today, and so much we hope to change for tomorrow. Support us on Patreon! www.patreon.com/planamag TWITTER: Diana(@discoveryduck) Q (@allyouneedis_q) Mike (@euthanasiaclown) REFERENCED RESOURCES: Essay by Ho Chi Minh: https://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/ho-chi-minh/works/1960/04/x01.htm Terror in Little Saigon, ProPublica: https://www.propublica.org/article/terror-in-little-saigon-vietnam-american-journalists-murdered Mike's article: https://planamag.com/past-the-time-for-allyship-need-for-political-education-organization-and-solidarity/ Yellow Power: The Formation of Asian American Nationalism in the Age of Black Power: http://www.columbia.edu/cu/ccbh/souls/vol3no3/vol3num3art3.pdf SUBMISSIONS & COMMENTS: editor.planamag@gmail.com EFPA Opening Theme: "Fuck Out My Face" by Ayekay (open.spotify.com/artist/16zQKaDN5XgHAhfOJHTigJ) Show Image Source: Roz Payne archives, www.newsreel.us

The rapper and general friend of the pod Ayekay aka Austin Koh -- who by the way created this podcast's intro and outro beat -- joins Teen to talk about the anti-racist protests and why it's a great time for us Asian American people to get lit up about the injustice that defines America. Support us on Patreon! www.patreon.com/planamag TWITTER: Austin (@ayekay) Teen (@mont_jiang) LINKS: Austin's Linktree: https://linktr.ee/ayekay SUBMISSIONS & COMMENTS: editor.planamag@gmail.com EFPA Opening Theme: "Fuck Out My Face" by Ayekay (open.spotify.com/artist/16zQKaDN5XgHAhfOJHTigJ)

NY activists Kevin Wei and Kate Zen join Diana and Chris to discuss the upcoming primary election for State Assembly in District 40. Incumbent assemblyman Ron Kim is being challenged by Steve Lee, a police officer backed by luxury real estate. Kevin and Kate uncover various allegations against Lee and the ways in which policing, gentrification, and media can be manipulated by special interests to disenfranchise vulnerable communities. Red Canary Song: https://www.redcanarysong.net/ Support us on Patreon! www.patreon.com/planamag TWITTER: Kate (@katezenlove) Kevin (@kevinlwei) Diana (@discoveryduck) Chris (@JesuInToast) REFERENCED RESOURCES: Assemblymember Ron Kim's website: https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Ron-Kim 'You can't have cops watching cops' — NYPD officer, ex-cop lawyer sue NYC: https://queenseagle.com/all/cops-corruption-harassment-nypd-lawsuit-lee-murray SUBMISSIONS & COMMENTS: editor.planamag@gmail.com EFPA Opening Theme: "Fuck Out My Face" by Ayekay (open.spotify.com/artist/16zQKaDN5XgHAhfOJHTigJ)