Miss & Mister Asian Teen PhillyMiss & Mister Asian Teen Philly was created and coordinated by Teens Organizing Proactivity (TOP). Cambodian Association of Greater Philadelphia believes it is important to promote our cultural heritage and ethnic diversity. The youth really wished to promote our Asian-American identity to the larger public and with that thought, the pageant was born. The pageant was a way Asian-American youth could celebrate their identity as well as seek those in the community who have progressed in school, contributed their services to society, and positively represent their Asian-American heritage. Contestants are not members of TOP. [Visit the Pageant's Official Website]
The formula for the event is simple. TOP would coordinate a city-wide search where Junior and Senior high school youth of Asian heritage whom attend Philadelphia area high schools would apply to compete in the pageant. At the event, it would highlight the contestants ethnic backgrounds, school, and talents. This event is more than just a pageant, it is a way for us to promote our city of Philadelphia and showcase the amazing Asian-American communities that call it home. It is very important that we highlight the various Asian Ethnicities in the Asian population because we are all unique.
Importance of Disaggregating DataGeneralized data collection on race is misleading and pushes stereotypes that do not directly translate with the entire Asian population in the United States. NOT all Asians are graduating from high schools or attending four year universities. Many Southeast Asians in the educational system have high truancy and drop-out rates. Many do not have the resources to attend or finish a four year college. The reason why is the educational support is not available to Southeast Asians as they are for other populations. Instead of simply listing "ASIAN" as an option, we advocate for new data collection where Race/Ethnicity is disaggregated. Options based on a person's specific ethnicity (such as Cambodian, Lao, Japanese, Mexican, Haitian, etc) will highlight and show various issues in the communities so that better research and support systems can be fully utilized and addressed.
The Southeast Asian population (Cambodian, Hmong, Lao, and Vietnamese) came as refugees of war and genocide. Disparities within these ethnic groups were never fully addressed because of the lack of language access and interpretation for parents and elders. Many youth grow up not having the support needed in school or in the home. By disaggregating the data, the larger public will see that not ALL Asians are doing well educationally and economically. With proper support, our ENTIRE Asian-American community here in the United States can raise our standard of living and lead more prosperous lives together as a whole. |
The 2012 ContestantsQUICK FACTS
1. NOT a Beauty Contest. 2. NOT seeking someone with straight A's. 3. NOT looking for Miss & Mister Perfect. QUICK FACTS 1. Looking for someone who Progressed in school (done poorly but worked hard to raise their grades). 2. Looking for someone who has committed their time and skills to various communities. 3. Looking for someone who represents their Asian-American Identity in a Positive Light. |