Commencement program from University of Nevada, Las Vegas Commencement Programs and Graduation Lists (UA-00115).

Commencement program from University of Nevada, Las Vegas Commencement Programs and Graduation Lists (UA-00115).

Oral history interviews with June Monroe and Kazuko Atomura conducted by Cecilia Winchell and Stefani Evans on July 14 and July 19, 2022 for Reflections: the Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. In the first interview, Kazuko Atomura describes her childhood in Taiwan and Tokyo, Japan, and shares both happy and difficult mememories of that time. Atomura eventually moved to Los Angeles, California, where she reconnected with a man she previously met in Japan. She married him and together had their daughter, June Monroe, and another son while living in Corpus Christi, Texas. After difficult medical procedures involving Atomura's husband and Monroe's younger brother, Brian, the family relocated to Las Vegas, Nevada. Monroe recalls attending Las Vegas High School and Bonanza High School, and the struggle of making new friends as a young person. In the second interview, the mother and daughter discuss racism, discrimination, and identity. Kazuko Atomura recalls her many experiences with discrimination as a result of both her appearance and language barriers. June Monroe discusses how she came to be proud of her Japanese heritage, while Atomura discusses some of the community activities she has been involved in since living in Las Vegas including the Japanese Culture Club and odori dancing. Then, both Atomura and Monroe discuss Monroe's brother, Brian, who received two kidney transplants; one from Monroe's father and one from Monroe herself. Atomura talks about the shrines she has built for Brian, the experience of him being on dialysis, care taking, and his final days. Monroe shares about her activism with organ donation, being regularly involved with the Nevada Donor Network and helping to pass significant pieces of legislation within the area of organ donation.

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.

Commencement program from University of Nevada, Las Vegas Commencement Programs and Graduation Lists (UA-00115).

Commencement program from University of Nevada, Las Vegas Commencement Programs and Graduation Lists (UA-00115).

Commencement program from University of Nevada, Las Vegas Commencement Programs and Graduation Lists (UA-00115).