A few days ago, my best friend and I reunited at my alma mater, the University of Southern California, to hear Lisa Ling speak at a
Women's Student Assembly event. To meet her was a huge deal for the both of us, considering that during our two years of living together, we'd skipped out on a handful of Friday-nights-on-the-town to instead cozy up to one of Ling's captivating
National Geographic documentaries. (my favorite was "China's Lost Girls")
[Me, Lisa Ling, my friend]For those who don't know Lisa Ling, she may simply be "that Asian girl on TV". You might have seen her on The View or on National Geographic, or as a correspondent on The Oprah Winfrey Show. Most recently, her sister was detained in North Korea but was released after a string of diplomatic and humanitarian efforts that happened mainly as a result of Lisa's public outcries and celebrity weight.
For those who do know Lisa Ling, she is an Asian American broadcast journalist, and a hero to many who share her heritage. When I joined MySpace seven years ago as a sophomore in high school, for example, and was asked who my heroes were, I automatically wrote Lisa Ling. She, Connie Chung, Lucy Liu, and frankly, Mulan, were the only female Asian faces I saw in mainstream media, and for that, I was proud of her. I identified with her and aspired to be the eloquent, brave, intelligent person she seemed to be.
[Stunning! Lisa had an unconventional, chic, beautiful wedding in March 2010 at LA's Union Station.]Born-and-raised in Sacramento, CA, Lisa is 1,000% American, but has faced many issues that I, as a minority, have faced both at home and abroad. We've faced ignorant comments and jabs that puncture the soul, such as when Ling made a controversial comment on a 9/11 special on The View and subsequently received hate letters that reprimanded, "What do you know? Go back to China". But despite the misunderstanding and hate that comes with the territory of being a minority, widely-known, investigative journalist, Lisa has continued to cover stories.
And this is why.
While Lisa has a huge fan-base of Asian Americans like myself, she quite apparently doesn't rest her identity on that blaring racial factor that sets her apart. She does what she does not to represent Asians in the media, but because she simply LOVES journalism. And I'm not talking about cuddly, puppy love; I'm talking
passionate, put-me-on-the-front-lines (even if that means putting my life in danger), expose-the-truth love. (Watch some of her documentaries and you'll see what I'm talking about. From Colombia, to America's most dangerous prison, to China and beyond, Ling has "roughed it", and that's an understatement.) I cannot stress enough how I hung on her every word during that hour-long talk -- not because she is a graceful, intelligent speaker; not because she speaks in what seems like poetic prose, but because she spoke every single word with purpose, and instills exactly that into her followers -- purpose.
So, rather than applaud Lisa as one of the Asian American community's finest, I want to instead thank her for showing us that if you believe in something, or want something so badly, your dream can come true. In her case, unveiling stories about the world was her dream. It's so obvious that honest, true, raw journalism was something she wanted so badly for not just herself, but for others, and to this day, will fight for.
Lesson learned. If there are ambitions or dreams or goals that you really want, like really, REALLY want, you can will them to existence. As Lisa said and did, "You can just will them to existence".
[What is YOUR purpose?]
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-Lisa and her crew have been safe, despite being in very dangerous situations, because she respects her interviewees. They are all people and all came from a mother. She gives respect to get it.
-As a mere sophomore at USC, she had to miss a Russian-based final because she...had to GO to Russia to report for Channel 1. Before she dropped out of school, she had already reported in Afghanistan.
-Sexual trafficking is a topic that is of dire importance to her, especially that which is occurring in the USA at this very minute. She seeks to unveil the misconceptions we have, and the truth that many politicians try to hide: that "prostitution" in the USA is actually the trafficking of women. Americans have distaste for prostitutes because we often think they are criminals without acknowledging that many of these girls run away from bad home lives, only to be preyed on by bad men, or pimps, a culture we revere, especially in hip hop. If girls are trafficked in from other countries, we help them. But if they are American girls, they're left to fend for themselves, and they're seen as dirty prostitutes.
-She recommends spending a day in juvenile court. Witness the frailty of seemingly tough girls who have been arrested for prostitution; realize that they are just little girls.
-Child marriage happens in 40 countries around the world. In Ethiopia, girls as young as 6-7 years old are married off to older men and are expected to conceive a male.
-She's struggled with faith after witnessing so many brutalities and injustices. But her husband sent her an email, with the subject asking God, "Why? Why would this be?" to which He retorted, "Now that you know, you can't pretend that you don't. Why would this be? I made you".
-Spend a year abroad. It makes you smarter, well-versed, marketable in the job force, and educated.
Lisa Ling is currently shooting for Oprah's OWN 2011 documentary series, set to launch in January 2011.
She is a spokesperson for iVolunteer.org and is active on social media (@lisaling).
