"Friends of Japan: African American Women’s Visions of Afro-Asian Solidarity" at Pitt, October 8.

via the Chicago Defender, 1953.

The University of Pittsburgh's Humanities Center will present the Department of History's Keisha Blain and her talk "Friends of Japan: African American Women’s Visions of Afro-Asian Solidarity" online on October 8.

This presentation examines how African American women engaged Japan during the early twentieth century. It foregrounds the ideas of a cohort of women who envisioned political collaborations with Japanese people as a strategy to combat racism and global white supremacy.

It will be presented on Zoom from 12:30 pm on the 8th.

Fantuan / Just Order Enterprises Corp. (饭团) hiring Mandarin-speaking Business Developer.

Fantuan, a delivery service catering to Asian restaurants and groceries that recently expanded to Pittsburgh, is hiring a Mandarin-speaking Marketing Developer.

Full Job Description

Fantuan was founded in Vancouver, Canada in 2014. With a mission of “life made easier,” the company is a one-stop platform providing food delivery (Fantuan Delivery), reviews (Fantuan Reviews), an errand service (Fantuan Rush), e-commerce and marketing services. Fantuan is one of the top Asian life-services platforms in North America, currently operating across Vancouver, Toronto, Edmonton, Calgary, Montreal, Seattle, Los Angeles, New York and other metropolitan areas in Canada and the US.

Responsibilities

• Actively develop business partners and maintain relationships with existing businesses
• Correctly instruct customers to register, install and use merchant app
• Responsible for the offline promotions
• Complete specified monthly tasks on time

"Becoming Taiwanese: Religion, Colonialism, and Ethnogenesis in 20th Century Taiwan" online at Pitt, October 2.

The University of Pittsburgh will host Dr. Evan Dawley and his talk "Becoming Taiwanese: Religion, Colonialism, and Ethnogenesis in 20th Century Taiwan" on October 2. A description of the book from whence the talk's name is drawn:

What does it mean to be Taiwanese? This question sits at the heart of Taiwan’s modern history and its place in the world. In contrast to the prevailing scholarly focus on Taiwan after 1987, Becoming Taiwanese examines the important first era in the history of Taiwanese identity construction during the early twentieth century, in the place that served as the crucible for the formation of new identities: the northern port city of Jilong (Keelung).

Part colonial urban social history, part exploration of the relationship between modern ethnicity and nationalism, Becoming Taiwanese offers new insights into ethnic identity formation. Evan Dawley examines how people from China’s southeastern coast became rooted in Taiwan; how the transfer to Japanese colonial rule established new contexts and relationships that promoted the formation of distinct urban, ethnic, and national identities; and how the so-called retrocession to China replicated earlier patterns and reinforced those same identities. Based on original research in Taiwan and Japan, and focused on the settings and practices of social organizations, religion, and social welfare, as well as the local elites who served as community gatekeepers, Becoming Taiwanese fundamentally challenges our understanding of what it means to be Taiwanese.

The 3:00 pm lecture is free and open to the public via Zoom, though registration is required.

4K remaster of Japanese movie Akira (アキラ) continues in Pittsburgh through (at least) October 8.

The 4K remaster of Japanese movie Akira (アキラ), which opened in Pittsburgh on September 24, will continue here through at least October 8. From the distributor:

Akira, the crown jewel of anime and science fiction, returns to theaters with remastered 4K visuals and remixed audio. In the future, Shotaro Kaneda and his motorcycle gang tear through Neo Tokyo, a city divided by growing tensions. But when caught in an accident, Kaneda’s friend Tetsuo Shima discovers a secret government project and receives psychic abilities beyond his control.

It plays at the Cinemark theaters in McCandless and Robinson and at the Hollywood Theater in Dormont through the 8th.

"Community Organizing and the Reform of Japan’s Sex Crime Law in 2017," (online) October 5.

University of Pittsburgh Sociology PhD student Kanoko Kamata will present "Community Organizing and the Reform of Japan’s Sex Crime Law in 2017" on October 5 as part of a "Civil Society and Policy Advocacy in Contemporary East Asia" panel through the Program on U.S.-Japan Relations, Weatherhead Center for International Affairs (WCFIA) at Harvard University. The event is free and open to the public, though registration is required.

Throwback Thursday: Chan-ho Park sets record for most wins in Major League Baseball by an Asian pitcher while member of the Pirates.

via Yonhap News.

In August 4, 2010 the last-place Pittsburgh Pirates claimed 37-year-old pitcher Chan-ho Park (박찬호) off waivers, making him the first Korean player in Pittsburgh Pirates history. The Pirates have had Korean players in their system dating back to the late-1990s, and had relief pitcher Byung-hyun Kim in spring training in 2008, but did not have a Korean player on the Major League roster until Park (and would not have another one until, or after, Jung-ho Kang). Park would appear in 26 games for Pittsburgh that year and, on October 1, set the record for most Major League Baseball wins by an Asian pitcher. He would pitch one year in Japan and another year in Korea after leaving Pittsburgh.

Authors Caroline Kim & Alexander Chee (online) with Pittsburgh Arts & Lectures, October 7.

Pittsburgh Arts & Lectures will host authors Caroline Kim & Alexander Chee for a virtual discussion on October 7.

2020 Drue Heinz Literature Prize winner Caroline Kim in conversation with author and guest judge Alexander Chee

Exploring what it means to be human through the Korean diaspora, Caroline Kim’s The Prince of Mournful Thoughts and Other Stories feature many voices. From a teenage girl in 1980’s America, to a boy growing up in the middle of the Korean War, to an immigrant father struggling to be closer to his adult daughter, or to a suburban housewife whose equilibrium depends upon a therapy robot, each character must face their less-than-ideal circumstances and find a way to overcome them without losing themselves. Language often acts as a barrier as characters try, fail, and momentarily succeed in connecting with each other. With humor, insight, and curiosity, Kim’s wide-ranging stories explore themes of culture, communication, travel, and family. Ultimately, what unites these characters across time and distance is their longing for human connection and a search for the place—or people—that will feel like home.

Of the collection, Wendy Hinman for Foreword Reviews writes, “Worth savoring, the stories of The Prince of Mournful Thoughts are intimate, often wistful portraits set amid the stifling and conflicting expectations of families and cultures.”

The free event starts at 6:00 pm and tickets are now available.

Duolingo hiring Senior Curriculum Designer; proficiency in Japanese or Chinese (among others) required.

Pittsburgh-based Duolingo is hiring a Senior Curriculum Designer; the candidate will have at least intermediate proficiency in Japanese, Chinese, or a few other languages.

Help improve the learning effectiveness of Duolingo.

We are looking for a world-class expert in language teaching and curriculum design who has strong organizational skills and experience leading the creation of educational content for digital products. You will lead a group of curriculum designers, and together you will help transform Duolingo course creation into an efficient, large-scale process. If you have strong expertise in curriculum design for digital products, love good organization and efficient processes, and have experience managing people, this job is for you! You will be part of our efforts to advance Duolingo's mission through evidence-based teaching. Join Duolingo to feel empowered as an educator, affecting how millions of people learn.

Responsibilities:

• Lead a team of 4-5 curriculum designers (and likely more in the future)
• Oversee the creation of language curricula and assessments for multiple Duolingo courses
• Develop standards and guidelines for course content across a variety of features (core lessons, explicit explanations, mini auditory practice, etc.)
• Propose and implement efficient processes for large-scale course content creation
• Help hire and train additional curriculum experts
• Collaborate across teams and stakeholders to deliver high-quality course content

The full ad is available on the Duolingo site.

New Chinese movie Leap (夺冠) stays in Pittsburgh through October 7.

The 2020 Chinese movie Leap (夺冠), which opened in Pittsburgh on September 25, will stay here through October 7. A summary of the film, starring Gong Li and Huang Bo, from MyDramaList:

The film tells the journey of several generations of Chinese National Women's Volleyball Team and their touching stories of tenacious struggle and glory for the country for the past 40 years.

It plays locally at the AMC Loews Waterfront and tickets are available online. The theater is located at 300 West Waterfront Dr. in the Waterfront shopping complex in Homestead (map), across the Monongahela River from Greenfield, Squirrel Hill, and the rest of Pittsburgh.

BTS concert film Break the Silence (브레이크 더 사일런스: 더 무비) continues in Pittsburgh through (at least) October 7.

The BTS concert film Break the Silence (브레이크 더 사일런스: 더 무비), which opened in Pittsburgh on September 24, will stay here through at least October 7.

BTS WORLD TOUR 'LOVE YOURSELF: SPEAK YOURSELF' is now over. The worldwide stadium tour topped the Billboard Boxscore, and marked BTS as the first Korean group to perform at Wembley Stadium. The tour took place across Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, São Paulo, London, Paris, Osaka, Shizuoka, Riyadh, and Seoul.

With unprecedented access, BREAK THE SILENCE: THE MOVIE travels with BTS throughout the tour, exploring each band member behind the curtain. Off stage, we see another side of BTS. The seven members begin to candidly tell personal stories they have never voiced before.

Facing my other self ‘PERSONA’

It willcontinue to play locally at the AMC Loews Waterfront and the Cinemark theaters in Monroeville and Robinson. Tickets are available online.