today we have a special round table discussion in celebration of asian-pacific islander heritage month. chris describes here with local trailblazers for an in-depth conversation about opportunities and challenges in the asian-american community. >> kristen: thanks cheryl. thank you for joining us. asian-pacific islanders are fastest growing group in the u.s. they make up 16% of california's population and 36% of san francisco. that is according to the latest census. we have three amazing guests facing the community. welcome, we have a corey lee. chef owner of one of premiere stluants and former pay pal

executive and reverend nor man fong of community development center. thank you for joining us. absolutely you are all role models. let's get into some of the issues we are talking about with the real role models, someone from presidential, home-grown asian-american and really taken the world by storm. we're talking about jeremy lin, lin sanity. >> what was that like for you? >> my son really got in to it. a he was the first doing it. >> there was first american born. how is that significant? >> it's a big deal, like norman that applied for the warriors was too short. this is the stereotype we have

to overcome. he was too short to be a cop. for me i was excited for my son because it was like when bruce lee came into the movies. it was like that. >> kristen: part of it here is the fact he was such a good role model he went it to the n.b.a. with good grades. presidential high school, harvard. a lot of things that parents really emphasize, as well. anna, in the presidential area that reverberated, as well. >> both my kids go to high school in presidential and the entire community was inspired about this. >> kristen: you know there is an issue of fighting prejudice. one common tweet, it's amazing how well he plays, with his eyes

like with slanted eyes. what does that suggest? >> that is very interesting comment because it can be positive or negative. there is part of me that feels like, i'm brown for example. it's okay to be called brown. you are what you are and they will accept it. but it's the negative information and can cause ill feelings. sometimes you too politically correct in avoiding things that may be normal and natural, as well. but of course the negative parted is you want to make sure doesn't happen. >> i'm sure you have than countered that in respective careers. corey can you talk about being an asian-american? >> he was there, right. >> the coolest thing about that, seeing the chemistry and kids from all places connected with

it. it's the success when you you you break through the boundaries of ethnicity. like spike lee. >> but confronting those stereo typical images that actually push you to work harder to drive you to succeed? >> absolutely. it depends upon the personality, as well. you can get very motivated. there is a lot of pride behind that. some of this that is very good but you have to internalize it in a certain way. >> i think it takes a strong person, some of the pride comes from the parenting. grownups around you. leads me to another point that i thought was interesting. another concept that has been floating out there. the tiger mom, referring to the strict parenting style, you make your kids work hard.

what do you think about jeremy's story did support or negate tiger parenting? >> that is a tough one. there is definitely a lot of focus on pride, ecation in asian communities. jeremy broke that mold by becoming a star in sports. it's great to see that you can be an over achiever or strong candidate on the education front and be a great sports person at the same time. tiger mom is a loaded term. i don't know if i can completely buy in to that. but i think the well-rounded education, well-rounded student is really the way to go. >> i rebelled as a kid. they do well in school. we are too busy feeling like men or make something of ourselves.

one of the things i remember, i was happy kid even though i was poor. i remember crossing over to north beach and learning about prejudice. they call me chinaman and that impacted my life, how we have to work crossether to cross these w bridges and trailblazers. i'm proud with corey, you are a trailblazer too. >> kristen: i don't know if i am deserving of that. but the tiger mom concept you tell your kids that you believe in them and you express them to go for excellence because you believe they can succeed if they try. it's interesting to see how the lin success. we have to take a short break right now. we are definitely going to continue our discussion.

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>> kristen: welcome back to special edition of "beyond the headlines." asian-american round table discussion, i'm kristen sze. we're here for core relee and reverend norman fong and anna sidana. you were born in india. can you talk about your path to silicon valley? >> i was born in india in new delhi and left right after high school. i ended up in england and went through night school. i came to the u.s. about 25 years ago. i have been here since then. more recently about three years ago i founded a nonprofit called one million lights which is a big passion of mine. >> kristen: i wanted to hear more about one million lights and the latest one million

students. what is the mission? >> one million lights is a global nonprofit organization that focuses on the issues and our goal is to deliver solar alternative to lighting for families that live without electricity. there are 1.3 billion people that live without elect today. it really critical to have good lighting to be able to study, to be able to increase income level and have a comfortable life. so we forge ahead to provide that lighting to families who live without electricity around the world. >> kristen: do you get donations? >> we get donations and corporate sponsorship. we have great sponsorship with energizer and recently partnered with sun power solar and our

goal is to learn from our distribution and learn from the communities that we go in to with the solaring and create education materials for k-12 classes here. create than plans that can be incorporated into math and science so we can inspire our own youth and children to think global and think about the critical issues of energy and get creative in the way they absorb these things. >> kristen: you were born in chinatown? >> i am from chinatown. i stayed in the community because of what my parent went through and the community has gone through. mother's day was recent, i thought of my mom. i remember the first time she asked me for help. she says what is this -- and

there was an eviction notice. we had one month to move. we were on the verge of homesness. and i'm a minister because my church fought for housing in chinatown, redevelopment housing to combine the two together. so i get to build housing, low affordable income units and work with the families. we have extreme poverty right here in san francisco. i love the people who help us and i love india and i love global issues and i love people who can cook. [ laughter ] >> heat is on corey. >> you were born in south korea the son of an engineer. so talk about how you w rom

that to leading some of the world's best kitchens? >> i started working right after high school. i worked in a restaurant. when i started to learn about the kitchen and kitchen kitchen, it was a place where work ethic was rewarding, it was a fair environment. there is deference for experience and authority but a combination of physical dexterity and artistry. so it's a combination of all those things that drew me in. i think being someone who came to the u.s. at an age i was a little bit different than i was with is why i chose cooking. i learned at very early age that food is more than what it is, it's a way to connect where you are from. >> kristen: you bring a lot of

science into your food. we're going to take a short break. but we'll be can back to continue our discussion with our [ male announcer ] ever wonder what's behind two little fleas? the next generation and then countless more. how do you kill them? frontline plus. it uses two ingredients. one to kill adult fleas and ticks. plus another to eliminate flea eggs and larvae, anhilating the next generation of fleas. and, frontline plus works non-stop for thirty days. no wonder it's the number one choice of vets for their pets and yours. ask your vet about frontline plus. accept nothing less.

>> kristen: welcome back to special round table edition. we're here with three asian-american trail placers. reverend norman fong, anna sidana and corey lee. we were goingtinue continue the

conversation conversation how you bring science into your cooking. you know you are studying things relating to food. >> we have opportunities as a chef now, chef from previous generation didn't have. really work to fine-tune things. i think so much cooking is folklore re and traditions passed on. we're at a time we can break those things in cooking. it's great to be a food scientist and even a physicist to improve what we do. >> kristen: talking about youjd. an important concept for a lot of immigrants. do you feel like, unlike all the reality tv shows, that you can hold on traditional values, be a good person, so to speak, and still accomplish what you need to do to achieve success?

>> i think it involves a lot of skills. what i do and environmentally where i work, there really is more. >> it boils down to education. it's close to the hearts of all three of you. let's talk a little bit about this beginning with you. anna, you think our education system could use strengthening in this country? >> i think we have a great education system in the u.s., however, i do feel at times it falls into a rut. and i think where education could really benefit is to open up the creativity of the student and let the students take more of an active role in what they are doing and what they are studying. >> kristen: does that mean through a test? >> not necessarily through a test but letting them design their curriculum for example or

living parameters but letting them take more 6 an active role, more of a creative role. creative doesn't necessarily mean the arts. it doesn't have to be music, painting and arts. it can be creative in science and all those other subjects. getting the kids to be more pro-act and interactive. >> kristen: are you seeing the opportunities in chinatown for the urban kids? >> yes, but a totally different way. i started a club, alleyway, kids that grew up in neighborhoods, what do you want to change in chinatown? they say we hate our alleys. so they came up with a program to improve the alleyways and asked me, work with the kids drew up a master plan for chinatown and presented it to the san francisco planning department of them adopted a neighborhood plan.

once you get the confidence and pride in the community where you live, grades get better and all that. i'm proud of chinatown, it's linked to their personal lives in a real way. >> it's amazing how much you can achieve that opportunity. >> the future looks good to me. >> kristen: what is the educational opportunities that you make? >> i think for opportunities, children should feel like they should have the opportunity for education. it seems obvious, especially in the u.s., but i don't think it is all the time. i think especially kids, they thinking about what they want to achieve and having specific goals. especially now it extends through theevel. the extension of k-12 whether

they are very interested in it to achieve a certain goal. >> but not mowing where their passion lives. i need to do this here. >> exactly. i find so many amazing student volunteers who have really gone great projects for us. it's only because they have this platform and they were empowered to do it. it goes a long way. >> how do we encourage to kids to think different? does it come from the family? does it come from the community? does it comes from the schools? where do you think it comes from? >> forget the tiger moms for me. we have kids that can't study at home because of their home environment is too small. they can't wait to get out. i think churches, community

based organizations, a lot of after school stuff is where a lot can happen more. i really think the government has messed up by cutting off afterschool programs. i think we can do a lot. everybody watching can do a lot. >> kristen: is what interesting is what you are talking about what the kids need. it's the core of each of you, housing, nutrition, lights, all that is critical for a child's ability to succeed in school.

>> kristen: welcome back. we've been talking with three leading asian-americans in the short time we have left. could you give us advice to kids that are watching with big dreams, how to start a company or help a charity. what do they need to do? >> i think as asians americans it's important to have other asian-american mentors. i think it's important to remind ourselves we live in the u.s. we have to be able to work closely with other ethnicities and coming from other nations. that is part of being successful. >> you should go out and seek

that mentor. >> absolutely. i think the relationship is very important. if you have someone that can mentor you. it can change your life. >> can you be my mentor? [ laughter ] >> i really think that in san francisco it's a very diverse city. behind the scenes. there is a lot of stuff going on. i mentioned when i was a kid i got, i get to do with it high school. we put together, it was north beach restaurants and chinese restaurants and we cook, spaghetti versus chow mein but the kids volunteered. but it was more important that we talk about how we're going to work together in a diverse city. that is really important.

>> kristen: that iswesome. anna, what advice do you have, especially for girls. >> i would say really believe in yourself. it's so important to believe in yourself. there will be athere wil of nays around. especially older generations. we get jaded. sometimes when i had to make hard decisions, i told myself, i'm 21 again and how would i make this decision if i were 21 again. hands down, it's a different decision. i really feel that young people have the energy and they need to believe in themselves and forge ahead. >> kristen: all right. >> you are great role model. somebody that light up the whole world. in san francisco we have the first chinese-american mayor in industry. it's a new day. come on folks. >> take after jeremy lin.

it's incredible from here to asia around the world. people love that guy. >> i'm working and living my dream. >> absolutely. >> thank you so much. i appreciate you coming. really fascinating discussion. we want to thank our audience for joining us in this special discussion. again, thank you so much corey and anna and norman for joining us and really inspiring our community. you have done a great job. >> thank you. >> thank ys. having us. >> absolutely. >> on. >> let us know how we can help with one million students and one million lights because kids need to learn about solar

energy. >> they do. they needs more hands on activities. they need a better global focus. >> thank you so much. if you want to learn more about the programs, go to our website at abc7news.com. cheryl back to you. >> cheryl: thank you for our guests for this special edition. information about everything we discussed is available at our website and also on facebook at abc-7 at community affairs. also follow me on twitter. i'm cheryl jennings. thanks so much for joining us. have a great week. have a great week. -e( music playing )time. - we know technology can make you more connected.

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