Back in 2017, OPB spoke with the activist and creator Luann Tan about the complexities and challenges of being a Filipino-American woman in the very white state of Oregon.
“I’ve been asked if I’m Thai or Latina or another Southeast Asian ethnicity. Hawaiian, I’ve also been asked,” she told OPB more than two years ago. “That’s not something I’ve ever really experienced, not back in California.”
Now she’s leaving.
Tan came to Portland to finish her undergraduate degree at Portland State University in 2009. She stayed and earned her master’s degree while working for some of the city’s social justice grassroots organizations.
But her experience feeling disconnected – like an outsider – continued.
Today, she’s moving back to Orange County, California. But she is paying tribute to her time in the city with the comedy web series "Gabby Antonio Smashes the Imperialist, White Supremacist, Capitalist Patriarchy"; it’s about a young woman of color’s journey in Portland. Tan stars in the series and says the comedy was inspired by conversations with friends and colleagues about their experiences in Portland as people of color, such as the controversies over ethnic restaurants owned by white people.
“Shep in the series is an [white] entrepreneur and is very passionate about boba [tea)], and those situations mirror situations that happened here in Portland,” Tan said.
The boba cart was inspired by Kooks Burritos, a food cart that shuttered in 2017 after their owners were accused of stealing recipes from Mexican women.
Tan said this is not an isolated incident. She said she recently visited a coffee shop that donates proceeds to the Philippines. She approached the barista and asked if the shop was Filipino-owned. She said the worker told her: “Oh we’re not Filipino but we love the Philippines. Sorry we don’t have any Spam for you.”
“Those kinds of businesses exist here and can thrive,” Tan said.
The series pilot was screened at The Portland Film Festival this year. Tan plans to travel between the two states to continue production.
OPB reporter Erica Morrison sat down with Tan for another conversation about the web series, her time in Portland and her decision to leave. Here are the highlights:
Erica Morrison: What do you hope people get from watching “Gabby Smashes”?
Morrison: Let's back up a little bit. Tell me how you got to Portland.
Morrison: And you moved up here from where?
Morrison: Little did you know when you picked that random spot on the map …
Morrison: Tell me about the moment that you remember feeling unwelcome in Portland.
Morrison: Why are you leaving?
Morrison: I think it's hard for people to understand what exhaustion is. You know, the phrase is that young people come to Portland to retire and that this is an easy way of life. Tell me more about those frustrations.
Morrison: There are people who will say, ‘How can you want something to change if you leave? What role are you playing if you’re abandoning a city that you say you love, you love-hate, but you're not willing to be here and do the work?'
Watch Tan’s web series, “Gabby Antonio Smashes the Imperialist, White Supremacist, Capitalist Patriarchy,” here. Use the audio player at the top of this story to hear more of this conversation.
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