The Tiger in the Room

With the World Cup around the corner, we sit down with Josh Lee, Communications Director of the ⁨@LAFC⁩ Tigers Supporters Group to talk about Son Heung-min, Asian stereotypes in global soccer, and the growing wave of Korean-American fandom for the Korean men’s national team.

In this exclusive interview, we sit down with Jon SooHoo, the longtime  @Dodgers  photographer who has captured some of the MLB's most unforgettable moments. As the first Asian-American photographer in the league, Jon shares his perspective breaking barriers, documenting legendary players, and his journey in a sport where there are still relatively few Asian-Americans. He also talks about the impa...

In this episode, Hannah chats with Andrew Fung of the Fung Bros , the popular Youtuber-comedian-rapper duo. Known for pioneering Asian and food content on YouTube, the Fung Bros are now diving into more nuanced discussions on topics like Asian masculinity, boba liberalism, and anti-Asian hate. Andrew shares insights on the role of Asian content creators, gender dynamics, and the future of the Fung...

We close out Season 1 with a call-to-action for our listeners to continue questioning and challenging the realities of the Asian-American experience, including racism and discrimination. Thank you for tuning in, and we'll see you next time!

In the final episode of Season 1, Hannah sits down with Kimberly Byrne, founder of Stronger Together , a clothing brand dedicated to raising awareness about anti-Asian hate. Kim’s designs, which went viral during a protest, creatively spelled out Asian ethnicities to form the word "American." In this conversation, Kim shares the inspiration behind starting her brand, her journey as a Korean-Americ...

In Episode 9, Hannah sits down with Sam Cheng, a well-known food influencer (@nycfoodblog) based in New York City. Sam is also one of the first photographers to document the early Stop Asian Hate protests in 2020. His images played a crucial role in raising awareness about anti-Asian hate crimes during a time when mainstream media coverage was lacking. In this conversation, Sam also shares his tho...

In Episode 8, Hannah sits down with Doug Kim, a prolific political commentator on Asian-American issues and the host of the "Yellow Knight Podcast." Doug is highly active on social media, such as X, where he is known for posting unapologetic perspectives on the topic of anti-Asian hate. During their discussion, Doug discusses other topics such as WMAF relationships (White Man Asian Femal...

In Episode 7, Hannah has a conversation with Eric Toda, the Global Head of Social Marketing at Meta and the Executive General Manager of Meta Prosper, a program dedicated to supporting AAPI small businesses and nonprofits. During their discussion, Eric shares his personal journey of navigating his Asian-American identity as a fifth-generation Japanese-American. He also talks about a significant mo...

In Episode 6, Hannah speaks with Jonathan Chang, a designer based in Los Angeles known for his viral illustrations of victims of anti-Asian hate crimes. His series of portraits gained widespread attention starting with his initial image in 2021 featuring Grandpa Vicha Ratanapakdee. Jonathan's art have become a symbol of the #StopAsianHate movement and is often acknowledged for raising awarenes...

In Episode 5, Hannah speaks with Monthanus Ratanapakdee and her husband Eric Lawson, the daughter and son-in law of the late Vicha Ratanapakdee, and the founders of a nonprofit organization Justice for Vicha. On January 28, 2021, Vicha Ratanapakde, an 84-year-old Thai-American grandfather, was killed in broad daylight outside of his home in San Francisco. His death sparked national outrage and is...

In Episode 4, Hannah speaks with Justin Zhu, a Bay Area native and former Silicon Valley CEO who is also the co-founder and executive director of a nonprofit organization called Stand with Asian Americans (SWAA). SWAA seeks to unite Asian and Asian-American business leaders to speak out against Asian hate and support AAPI employee resource groups seeking to help Asian employees who experience disc...

In episode 3, Hannah speaks with Perry Yung, actor and musician who works in contemporary performance art, television and film. He is perhaps best known for playing the fearsome leader of the Hop Wei Tong Father Jun in the hit HBO Max (and soon-to-be Netflix) series, "Warrior," and is also a traditionally trained Japanese shakuhachi flute craftsman and musician. We talk to Perry about wh...

In episode 2, Hannah speaks with Congresswoman Grace Meng, representative for New York's Sixth Congressional District, and a prominent national figure speaking out against anti-Asian hate. She has served in Congress since 2013 and is the first and only Asian-American member from New York State. Grace has led important initiatives such as removing the term "Oriental" from federal law...

In our first episode, Hannah speaks with New York City native/rapper and activist China Mac (also known as Raymond Yu) who is the co-founder of the "They Can't Burn Us All" movement - one of the first anti-Asian hate movements in recent history. The name of the movement was inspired by the assault on a 89-year-old Chinese grandmother in Brooklyn. Mac later launched a nonprofit with t...

Welcome to the Tiger in the Room. Today we launch our podcast on this date, January 28th, in honor of a pivotal moment in Asian-American history - the tragic death of Vicha Ratanapakdee, a beloved Thai-American father and grandfather who was murdered three years ago in broad daylight in San Francisco, a victim of a racially motivated attack. His story served as a catalyst for the Stop Asian Hate m...