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Robert Kim oral history interview: transcript

Date

2021-03-05

Archival Collection

Description

Oral history interview with Robert Kim conducted by Kristel Peralta, Cecilia Winchell, Ayrton Yamaguchi, and Vanessa Concepcion on March 05, 2021 for the Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. In this interview, Kim describes his career in law. He talks about his Korean roots, the model minority myth, and experiencing racial discrimination. Lastly, Kim discusses the Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community, his involvement with the Asian Bar Association of Las Vegas, and the importance of electing Asian Americans into political positions.

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Ashok Mirchandani oral history interview: transcript

Date

2021-03-11

Description

Oral history interview with Ashok Mirchandani conducted by Kristel Peralta, Cecilia Winchell, and Stefani Evans on March 11, 2021 for the Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. In this interview, Mirchandani discusses his early life in Kolkata, West Bengal, India and arriving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 2002. He talks about Indian traditions he celebrates and Indian festivals in the United States. Mirchandani recalls his employment with the State of Nevada, becoming the Director of the Department of Business and Industry, and advocating for small businesses. Later, Mirchandani describes the importance of minorities in politics, engaging in policy making, and the need for Asian Americans in public services. Lastly, Mirchandani discusses the model minority myth, developing the Nevada Home Retention Program, and emphasizes children's mental health.

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Wayne Tanaka oral history interview: transcript

Date

2021-03-12

Description

Oral history interview with Wayne Tanaka conducted by Ayrton Yamaguchi, Vanessa Concepcion, Kristel Peralta, Cecilia Winchell, and Stefani Evans on March 12, 2021 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. Wayne shares his family's heritage and history as Japanese Hawaiians and discusses his father's internment during World War II. He shares his background growing up in Lahaina, Maui, Hawai'i and how he came to live in Las Vegas. Wayne discusses his career as an educator for the Clark County School District and talks about his life in Las Vegas with his wife and daughters. Subjects discussed include: Las Vegas Buddhist Sangha; Executive Order 9066; Sunset High School; Boulder Dam Area Council.

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Emmy Kasten oral history interview: transcript

Date

2021-03-17

Description

Oral history interview with Emmy Kasten conducted by Kristel Peralta, Ayrton Yamaguchi, and Stefani Evans on March 17, 2021 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. Emmy Kasten discusses her Filipino heritage, her family, and her previous employment working in various industries including acting and broadcasting, marketing, philanthropy, writing, and event production. Emmy shares how she and her husband and children moved to Las Vegas in 2016 after her parents moved to the city a decade earlier, and she discusses her current professional pursuits as a board member of the Miss Asian North America Organization (MANAO) and the Las Vegas Fashion Council. Subjects discussed include: University of California, Irvine (UCI); KTLA Morning News; Red Bull Music Academy; Rock Star Gaming; Filipino foods; Vegas Magazine; and anti-Asian discrimination.

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Cynthia Mun oral history interview: transcript

Date

2021-03-31

Description

Oral history interview with Cynthia Mun conducted by Vanessa Concepcion and Stefani Evans on March 31, 2021 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. Cynthia Mun discusses her upbringing near Seoul, South Korea and her family's immigration to Los Angeles in 1974. She talks about her parents' employment as a seamstress and a janitor, as well as the educational mentors she encountered who helped her to succeed at Westridge School for Girls in Pasadena and later at Yale University. Mun shares her corporate employment history, including helping to launch the Pandora streaming service and creating an accessible platform for E-book use before the creation of Amazon Kindle. Mun talks about her career working at MGM International and how this opened the door for her mother to become an MGM employee and access better working conditions with union employment.

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Brendan Ly oral history interview: transcript

Date

2021-03-27

Archival Collection

Description

Oral history interview with Brendan Ly conducted by Cecilia Winchell and Stefani Evans on March 27, 2021 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. Brendan discusses his background growing up in communist Vietnam in the early 1970s and fleeing with his family as refugees; they immigrated to Hong Kong, China before moving to the United States to live briefly in North Carolina before settling in California. Brendan talks about working at a young age picking fruit, working in catering, and having positions in retail before pursuing higher education and studying pharmaceuticals. He shares stories of his work experience with Walgreens and how this led to him opening a pharmacy with his brother, which they've managed together for the past 18 years.

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Gene Noboru Nakanishi oral history interview: transcript

Date

2021-04-02

Description

Oral history interview with Gene Noboru Nakanishi conducted by Ayrton Yamaguchi, Cecilia Winchell, and Stefani Evans on April 2, 2021 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. Gene Nakanishi shares his detailed family history from both his father's and his mother's families. He discusses his paternal grandfather's work on the Union Pacific Railroad, the family's internment in Wyoming during World War II, and his father's release from the camp by joining the United States Army Signal Corps. Nakanishi also talks of his maternal grandfather who was of the Bushido ("warrior") class in Osaka, Japan, and his grandfather's work with Christian missionaries. He shares details of his mother's restaurant employment in Los Angeles and her opening of Osaka Japanese Bistro in Las Vegas in 1969. Nakanishi also talks about being born and raised in Las Vegas, his musical schooling at Berklee College of Music in Boston, and his graduate education at Harvard University. He discusses his work as a band teacher for the Clark County School District, his involvement in the Idyllwild Arts Summer Program band camp, and his interests in jazz music.

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Sanje Sedera oral history interview: transcript

Date

2021-04-16

Description

Oral history interview with Sanje Sedera conducted by Kristel Peralta, Cecilia Winchell, Ayrton Yamaguchi, and Stefani Evans on April 16, 2021 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. Sanje Sedera discusses growing up in Sri Lanka, formerly Ceylon, with his family. He shares his educational history, moving from Sri Lanka to Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia as a high schooler to learn English before immigrating to the United States to attend Idaho State University. Sedera discusses the political unrest and civil war that took place in Sri Lanka between the Tamil and Sinhalese people, and how he grew to appreciate political activism instilled in him by his paternal grandparents. Sedera shares his employment history working as a manager for K-Mart, an opportunity that brought him to Las Vegas, as well as his entrepreneurial pursuits of owning a mortgage business and becoming a realtor. He talks about the financial crisis of 2008 that led to losing his business, his attempts to run for public office, and how he helped to form Nevada's Asian American Democratic Caucus. Sedera concludes with a discussion of his Buddhist practice and how these philosophies have shaped his life.

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Elaine Newton oral history interview: transcript

Date

2021-05-19

Description

Oral history interview with Elaine Newton conducted by Cecilia Winchell, Kristel Peralta, and Vanessa Concepcion on May 19, 2021 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. Elaine Newton shares her family's history living in Hawaii and Japan, and memories from her childhood growing up with her six siblings in Honolulu. She talks about becoming a flight attendant for Pan American World Airways and how she met her former husband, Wayne Newton, after a stop in Vietnam. Elaine recalls their courtship and marriage as well as what Las Vegas life, fashion, and entertainment were like during the 1980s. She also speaks about racial discrimination and anti-asian violence in the past and present.

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Jimmy Lee oral history interview: transcript

Date

2021-05-25

Archival Collection

Description

Oral history interview with Jimmy Lee conducted by Vanessa Concepcion, Kristel Peralta, and Stefani Evans on May 25, 2021 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. Jimmy shares his family's history as entertainers and producers in Korea and their migration to the United States when Jimmy was six years old. He talks about their move to Durham, North Carolina and their relocation to Las Vegas, his education, and his current business, mentorship, and philanthropic pursuits. Subjects discussed include: Arirang Sisters; Jo Mackey Sixth Grade Center; Nevada's tax structure; Commercial Center.

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