Culture, Power, and the Pen
Culture, Power, and the Pen is a podcast dedicated to amplifying the voices of Asian minority communities through conversations with writers, activists, and storytellers. Hosted by Andy Liu, each episode explores how language and literature become tools for reclaiming identity, challenging dominant narratives, and illuminating cultures that are often overlooked. If you’re passionate about literature, social justice, or simply curious about the stories that shape our world, you’re in the right place!
Episodes
In this episode of Culture, Power, and the Pen, host Andy Liu speaks with award-winning Hmong poet Mai Der Vang about how history, language, and community shape her work. Vang reflects on discovering creative writing in elementary school while she was still learning English and how growing up in Fresno rooted her in a strong Hmong community. She discusses the influence of oral traditions like the art of song poetry and how sound gu...
In the fourth episode of Culture, Power, and the Pen, host Andy Liu speaks with Hmong American playwright and performer Katie Ka Vang about the role of theater in shaping identity, memory, and community. From childhood afternoons spent absorbing her parents’ stories to navigating questions of belonging in Colorado classrooms, Vang recalls how storytelling became both a source of wonder and resilience. She reflects on the influence ...
In the third episode of Culture, Power, and the Pen, host Andy Liu speaks with Uyghur poet, linguist, and human rights advocate Abduweli Ayup about the power of language to preserve culture in the face of erasure. From springtime poetry rituals in Kashgar to underground meshrep gatherings to tape-recorded Russian classics, Ayup recalls a childhood steeped in oral tradition and community storytelling. He reflects on the trauma of im...
In the second episode of Culture, Power, and the Pen, host Andy Liu speaks with Tibetan poet, writer, and activist Tenzin Tsundue about what it means to grow up in exile, caught between a lost homeland and a future that remains uncertain. From childhood tales of snowy mountains and yaks to the monsoon-soaked streets of Dharamshala, Tsundue shares how poetry became both his refuge and his form of resistance. Together, they discuss t...
In this debut episode of Culture, Power, and the Pen, host Andy Liu sits down with award-winning Hmong-American author Kao Kalia Yang to explore the role of storytelling in reclaiming identity, preserving culture, and healing from generational trauma. From her childhood in a Thai refugee camp to her life as a celebrated writer in Minnesota, Yang shares how memory, language, and literature have shaped her identity. They talk about e...
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