Hi, JereMaya. It's Daddy. Today is Sunday, February 13th, 2022. And for this sixth episode, I'd like to reflect on our identity as Chinese Americans. This is not an easy topic to discuss. And I think people listening will react very differently.

Because how people think and respond to others largely depends on where they grew up and how they were taught to treat people who are very different from them. The main reason why I think this is worth sharing today is because the world by large watching the winter Olympics. And what has peaked my interest these days are three American born Chinese athletes who are being scrutinized like no other.

That's Eileen Gu who won the gold medal in the women's big air freestyle skiing. Nathan Chen who won the gold medal in men's single skating. And Zhu Yi who ended up in last place in women's figure skating. One major controversy is that Nathan Chen is the only one out of these three who chose to represent America while both Eileen Gu and Zhu Yi chose to represent China. When I heard this news, I was confused. I had always assumed that Olympics was a traditional event to celebrate national pride as the best athletes in the world, compete against one another. I assumed that if you were born in a country raised in that country, benefited from the training and resources from that country, Olympians would represent that country.

So for Eileen and Zhu to represent China over America, that was a surprise to me.

But I realized now that the Olympics and the purpose of the Olympics doesn't mean the same thing to everyone. And the cases for Eileen and Zhu, at least from what they say in the media, it's not as much about national pride but celebrating their cultural heritage. And I think this is worth exploring because unlike you, Jeremy and Maya or me, there are a lot of Asians in America who are reconciling both their Chinese and American identities. Most people are not like us. I'm fourth generation Chinese American and you twins are fifth generation Chinese American. Your parents, my parents, and even my grandparents when they were still living had American accents.

We didn't speak a word of Chinese growing up. Also your great grandma, Poh Poh, when she was a child was raised and adopted by a white Quaker family, which has been a big influence on how Americanized we all turned out to be. Meanwhile, many of our peers, including your classmates have grown up with parents who have not fully assimilated to American life. They have very strong roots from where they grew up. And to be clear to assimilate or not to assimilate, I'm not saying there's a right or wrong way. It's just the reality that people and their identities are heavily defined by where they grew up and where they found a sense of belonging.

So when it comes to Eileen Gu who speaks very good Chinese and identifies very much with Chinese culture, she may be motivated for reasons I can't relate to as much, which is cultural heritage from a different country.

I also researched that numerous Olympians have done this in the past. Giovanni Lanaro, a pole vaulter who is born, raised, educated and trained in Southern California, joined Mexico for the 2004 and 2008 summer Olympics. And while this is a cultural heritage reason, it's also a win-win for both Mexico and Lanaro. For Mexico as a smaller country with less resources and building elite athletes, it's a no brainer they would embrace Lenaro and use his talent.

And from Lanaro's perspective, there is no shortage of American elite athletes who can do what he can do. But in Mexico Lanaro can make a much more meaningful contribution for that country and their citizens. So it makes sense that China would embrace Eileen Gu as their champion for an Olympic extreme sports event that is far more popular and practiced in the U.S. With that said, I have no doubt that people would be more upset about this than me. After all it totally conflicts with my sense of what national pride is all about. Giving back and serving your country is patriotism. And when you decline that opportunity and compete for another country by definition,

That's not patriotism. Something else is motivating Eileen and Zhu to switch to China. Best case scenario, it's about cultural heritage. And this thinking further validates that the Olympics does not mean the same thing to everyone. If it was purely about patriotism. I doubt Eileen or Zhu would have switched over.

No, there's something more to it. Something I don't think they'll talk much about, but their actions will explain. And I don't think we can ignore it. It's about money.

At least for Eileen Gu because of her gold medal status. She will most likely receive endorsement deals and sponsorships from China and the U S. She already has affiliations with luxury brands, such as Tiffany and Co. So her fame in China will definitely pay off. And why not? Her story, her charm, her accomplishments - it will encourage young girls in sports, especially extreme sports to break new boundaries. It's a good message I fully believe businesses will profit from, and the best part is that this powerful message isn't restricted to one country. It's universal. And I think it's brilliant.

The only challenge that may come up is whether or not Eileen gave up her us citizenship. By default, China doesn't allow dual citizenship. So when Eileen publicly announced she has represented China. The natural logical conclusion is that she also renounced her U.S. citizenship. I haven't found anything in the news to confirm this, but it definitely makes you think and wonder how Americans may perceive Eileen going forward and what she represents.

And that applies to Nathan Chen as well. While Americans are praising him for winning the gold and represent the U.S., Chinese nationals are not as enthusiastic. After all, nathan has been vocal and critical of China's human rights violations. I also learned that a song, he performed to in 2018. It was a song from the movie "Mao's Last Dancer", which is based on a true story about a Chinese dancers defection to the United States during the 1980s.

While I don't think Chinese nationals' perception of Nathan will deeply affect him, it's fascinating to see how the world reacts to who you represent, how you perform to earn your success, and how you use our influence.

And that brings us back to the most unfortunate individual of the three American born Chinese who are participating in the winter Olympics, Zhu Yi. She had already given up her citizenship back in 2018. And then sadly, she fell twice in her figure skating performance last week, where she scored last place. And consequently China ended up in fifth place.

Now you see Chinese nationals calling her a traitor and flaming her on the internet. Honestly, I think that's a double standard and I think it's very wrong. While I don't agree with Zhu joining China, I don't think anyone deserves that kind of condemnation.

We don't know her story. But I'm guessing she was very proud to represent China, to do the best of her abilities. And for those who criticize her from the American side, again, we don't know her story. Even if she was raised in America, it doesn't automatically mean she had a great connection to American culture.

I often think about my first generation Chinese American friends who were the only Asian family in their neighborhood. And they were treated very differently because they aren't white. Racism and bullying are more common in less diverse neighborhoods. And if I had consistently experienced these things growing up, I think it's very natural to not want to represent a community, much less a country that inflicts these kinds of wounds on me.

And I don't know if that applies to Zhu. I'm just saying people usually have a story and I'm still waiting to learn more about this person before criticizing her. But my heart does go out to her because this Olympian is now shamed by the very people she chose to represent.

And with all these reflections on Eileen Gu, Nathan Chen, and Zhu Yi, I'm once again, thinking about what it means to be a Chinese American. And I know my answer is going to be different from other Chinese Americans because of the way I was raised, the community I lived in, and my personal experiences to American life.

As a fourth generation, Chinese American, I didn't really have a choice much like everyone else on what language to speak at home and selecting which cultural heritage to adopt. My parents don't speak Chinese and their parents were intentional about that. So they can assimilate to American life as fast as possible. My grandparents made the most of the opportunities they had, and we're very proud of their contributions as Americans. Just a few months ago, grandma and grandpa with 600 other Chinese Americans were part of a celebration in Washington DC, commemorating Chinese American veterans who served in World War II. Your great grandfather - my mom's dad, was one of 20,000 Chinese Americans who served.

He was posthumously awarded the congressional gold medal, the nation's highest civilian award from Congress. As you can see Jeremy, and Maya. Our family is very proud to be American. And we have very strong roots in our country's history. The good and the bad. And to share a little about the bad. Did you know that Chinese Americans were not allowed in the USO during world war two? The USO, by the way, it stands for a United services organization. It's a nonprofit dedicated to entertaining us troops with programs and celebrity speakers like Bob hope back in the day.

Uh, Robin Williams in my lifetime and Gary Sinise. Great actors, great celebrities, just there to help our troops. But going back to when your great-grandpa served, people of color were segregated and belittled, both by law and by social norms.

Even when Chinese Americans and immigrants have been fighting in every major us conflict since the civil war, many white folks back then, didn't consider Chinese as fellow Americans. That is something that we, Chinese Americans can never forget. Americans in general may not be aware of our history.

But it's important that Chinese Americans educate and make our stories more known. If America is a land of opportunity, that means there's an opportunity to learn from past mistakes.

And fortunately through the civil rights movement And the countless folks who believe in the American dream for all Americans. There is this belief that there is equality of opportunity available to all Americans allowing the highest aspirations and goals to be achieved.

Our society has progressed considerably from these tough times. As we see many more Asian Americans and other people of color, having the opportunities to succeed lead. Take office. And serve across industries and roles.

I thank God, every day for the elementary school, you go to, your classmates, your teacher, and our local neighborhood. We live in a very diverse place that's cultured, inclusive and unified. No one is calling you terrible names and you haven't experienced hate based on the color of your skin.

We are very fortunate here in the bay area.

And for most of my life, I've thrived under this American dream. My parents provided me a very privileged life in Southern California that introduced me to many cultures and experiences that make me love America very much. As a Chinese-American, I know I'll never be Chinese enough to those who identify more with Chinese culture.

But if anyone tells me I'm not American enough, well, I've got a few things to say about that. Ultimately, I feel obligated and inspired to give back to the country that really contributed to who I am and the people I get to share life with. And if that doesn't make me American, I don't know what else will.

But while we're proud to be American, it doesn't mean we turn a blind eye to America's dark history or current problems. Because there are a lot. Some people think that Americans who criticize America are disloyal. But I don't agree. As long as the intent is to help America so that all Americans can experience the American dream, constructive criticism is often what moves the needle. I think about Martin Luther king and other great leaders who moved the needle, especially with people who are in denial or simply ignorant of the problems out there.

This may seem random, but I'm going to quote Game of Thrones since I just started the second season. It's from a character named Ser Davos who stands up to his friend and his leader, Stannis, who Ser Davos thinks is making a serious mistake. Stannis says, "I never thought I'd have reason to doubt your loyalty. Was I wrong?"

And Ser Davos replied with something I found very profound. "Loyal service means telling hard truths." And I couldn't agree more, Ser Davos. With America, there is an endless list of problems to solve. One problem. I see today are the ongoing crimes that we see towards Asian Americans.

There was the murder of Michelle go, who was pushed on the subway tracks in New York city last month. And I just heard from a coworker that today a 35 year old Asian woman was stabbed to death in Chinatown, New York city.

This is one of the horrifying, ugly truths about America. Not everyone experiences the American dream. Because there is real hate out there. Hate that changes the lives of others and the generations beyond. And out of consequence, there's also massive suffering and poverty. And apathy. There are Americans who have nothing and feel like they have nothing to lose and they lash out.

The man who killed this 35 year old Asian woman is a mentally ill homeless career criminal with three open cases and a record of several escapes from police custody. The man that killed Michelle Go? Another mentally ill and homeless person.

So as loyal Americans, we need to talk about these hard truths. Why are mentally ill people who are clearly dangerous, still out on the streets and not secure someplace where they could get help or at least be detained? Why is there a surge of mentally ill criminals? And what can we do about it? I don't have the answers, but I know I can start taking action to start a dialogue within my company, as a leader and see what my peers are thinking to gain advice, insights, resources, which I could then pass on to friends and family. We need to be vocal so these terrible things don't happen again.

I know this is heavy stuff. Jeremy and Maya.

But there are three key takeaways I'd love for you two, to think about. First. You are American. And unless China or some other country is offering you something amazing, you will always be American. Think about what it means to be American. America was built on the idea that all men and now women are created equal and that there should be Liberty and justice for all.

However today our country is divided from our politics, religious beliefs to lifestyles. Americans should be United on solving the problems that need solving.

Second key takeaway. Know your family's history. There is a reason we raise you up and introduce you to principles and values that you embody today. A lot of it comes from what my parents taught me and what their parents taught them. Same goes with your mom who is also 4th Generation Chinese American, which is one of the many reasons why I connect with her so much from our very first date to raising two wonderful children together. There are stories worth remembering because they explain why you believe and think the way you do. And the third key takeaway. As an American or anyone who identifies with their nationality.

There is a sense of patriotic duty. How will you serve your country and community? What problems need to be solved? And if you intend to be loyal, you must be able to tell hard truths. Alrighty, Jeremy and Maya. Thanks for listening. I am so proud to be your daddy, because I know you are always thinking of ways to care for others - whether it's your grandparents, your parents, your friends, your cousins. Momo our cat - you exude generosity and you speak up when you see something amiss. While there's much to be done to make this world a better place. I am with the utmost confidence and hope that you two will do amazing things for your country and friends around the world. Love you.