This week at State Senator Ben Allen’s office we went to visit the Getty Museum and LA Strikes. I'll be honest, I’m not a creative person, the most I've done is drawing stick figures in middle school. Yet I think I have a deep appreciation for arts, even if I’m not actively pursuing it. Senator Ben Allen’s district is unique, it’s a more affluent area encompassing the beach cities, West Hollywood, Calabasas and Malibu, yet behind the guise of luxury, there are hard-working middle class people struggling to get by pursuing the arts. Together with Ben Allen and other interns we visited the Getty Museum experiencing a host of classic works drapered with natural lighting, participating in a tour of the museum as well as a tour of their restoration processes. Our tour guide told us about Van Gogh’s story and how he perpetually lived in destitution, battling through mental health and selling only 2 works, one including his brother Theo who helped finance much of his career. Without his Theo’s help and support, we’d have lost out on one of the most influential artists of the modern era. The following day, I was thinking about this when together with Senator Allen, we attended a writers’ and actors’ strike that dispelled the illusion that Hollywood is all glitz and glamor. When we went to a strike outside of Amazon Productions, we were greeted by an assortment of characters including Baby Yoda, the Mandalorian, cute dogs, and actors starring in the Marvel Universe. The striking actors and writers were a diverse crowd, supported by local businesses eager to lend help and support to their cause, a striking moment of solidarity. As we talked and listened to the strikers we learned more about their grievances with these studios, on how streaming had affected residuals, and how AI was beginning to threaten the writing rooms as well as potentially stealing actors’ likeness. On television and in the media, we often only see a glamorized, finished product, not a single pore or pimple is left alone. However, as we casually strolled past actors often only seen in theaters and on TV, they looked remarkably boring. They looked human, there was no mystique. They were simply just working class people fighting together for their rights to earn a fair living. I think often in the Asian American and immigrant community, is that we’re told that there are only 3 career paths that we can be proud of. Being a lawyer, doctor, or engineer. We’re pigeonholed into these categories, and perpetually tied to the stereotypes of STEM, even though we’re encouraged to pursue music and art as extracurriculars. There’s a lack of support for the arts from Asian Americans, and I want to fill that role and be a supporter of the arts.
For most people, there’s a lack of linkage between politics and art, between the social sciences and humanities. In reality, I think what makes our pursuits of STEM and productivity worthwhile is the expansion of the arts, the things that touch us deeply. The second president of the United States, John Adams, once said "I must study politics and war so that my sons may have liberty to study mathematics and philosophy. My sons ought to study mathematics and philosophy, geography, natural history, naval architecture, navigation, commerce and agriculture in order to give their children a right to study painting, poetry, music, architecture, statuary, tapestry, and porcelain." I have to agree with Adams, art and creativity is what touches our souls. That one romantic movie, or dramatic TV show, mellow poem, is what grabs and moves us. My role in the arts is to advocate, to legislate, and to push for change so that writers, actors, and creatives have the opportunity to pursue their passions in art. I want to study politics and work in the halls of legislation, so that my creative friends and those around me are not struggling to make rent payments. Too often artists are spurred, and struggle with living means. It’s my obligation to create a world that’s suitable for artistry that touches what it means to be human.
The views and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author and do not reflect the views or positions of CAUSE or the CAUSE network.
Written by William Chao, Leadership Academy 2023 Intern
The CAUSE Leadership Academy (CLA) for students is a nine-week, paid, internship program that prepares college undergraduates to lead and advocate for the Asian Pacific Islander community on their campuses and beyond.