00:00 Growing up as a Vietnamese Australian,
00:02 I have heard the term ethnic being thrown around.
00:06 And to me, being labelled that term
00:10 always came with this stigma
00:13 of feeling like you don't belong somewhere.
00:15 I find great joy in being empowered
00:23 to take up the role of a storyteller.
00:27 (drumming)
00:29 I would say that it's not a memoir in a way
00:36 where all of the things that happened in the book
00:40 happened in my personal life,
00:42 but I can say that all of the feelings in that book
00:47 I have experienced in my personal life.
00:49 Growing up, I thought the world was Bankstown and Yagoona.
00:54 Someone on Reddit said that Yagoona is a certified shithole
00:59 and I think people who say that are certified shitheads.
01:04 When I was around five or six years old
01:09 and my parents were watching the news
01:13 and I remember feeling that there was
01:16 such a tension in the room.
01:18 There was a lady with red hair on the screen
01:22 talking about how,
01:24 I believe we are in danger of being swamped by Asians.
01:27 And there was just a feeling of confusion
01:30 about whether that could influence government policy
01:34 and did that mean that my family could be sent back
01:39 to where they came from.
01:40 Growing up as a Vietnamese Australian from Yagoona,
01:46 it has showed me that to reclaim narratives
01:50 about your community and to hold that pen to write
01:53 is a privilege that I believe
01:55 I've had to fight for in a way.
01:58 I remember taking a class in my writing degree
02:09 called travel writing.
02:11 And I wrote this story about going to Vietnam
02:16 and there was a mature age student sitting opposite me
02:20 who was like an older white guy.
02:22 And he said, "Oh, you look happy with your mark.
02:26 "What did you write about?"
02:28 And I said, "I wrote about visiting my family in Vietnam
02:33 "and in particular, my experiences bonding with a relative
02:38 "who had a mental illness."
02:42 And he said, "Your story really did pull
02:46 "at the heartstrings of the marker."
02:48 And it was at that point where I realised,
02:52 oh, this guy is wearing Crocs and board shorts
02:56 but he's actually right.
02:57 So sure, I got a shiny mark,
03:01 but I definitely felt gross.
03:05 I felt gross after that.
03:06 So the book traces Sylvia Nguyen's life
03:11 from the point where she's about to sit this intense exam
03:16 called the Selective Schools Test
03:19 to the point where she's struggling in university
03:24 and not really sure where her education is taking her.
03:30 And she's not really sure who she is
03:35 as a second generation Vietnamese Australian.
03:39 (upbeat music)
03:42 - I am so nervous that Funny Ethnics is out in the world
03:49 but I'm also excited and I'm also curious
03:54 to see how readers respond to the work.
03:59 - I'm anxious about spelling people's names incorrectly.
04:05 However, a line that I have gone to,
04:08 if the other person is a person of colour,
04:10 is I've written from one Funny Ethnic to another
04:14 and then I've signed it.
04:15 - I think writing can be a really isolating process
04:21 but because I have such a strong community
04:25 and communities around me, I feel supported.
04:29 I'm nervous, I don't like to disappoint anyone
04:31 but at the same time, it feels really special
04:35 to have something that you've created
04:38 come out into the world.
04:39 - I don't know anyone who's writing like her at the moment
04:42 and there's something about Shirley's ability
04:45 to capture a very sharp, pointed,
04:50 very arch interior world compared to what's actually going
04:54 on in the outside which is so potent.
04:57 I don't know, a whole generation's gonna hold onto
05:00 really close to their hearts.
05:01 This book is one of a kind and there's gonna be a bit
05:03 of a before and after Funny Ethnics, I think.
05:06 - At the end of the day, I'm speaking from
05:11 a Vietnamese Australian community
05:13 but I don't speak for everyone.
05:16 And I think writers of colour can feel something called
05:19 the burden of representation when we approach our work.
05:23 We feel like we have to absolutely capture
05:27 everyone's experiences in our work
05:30 but I believe that once I broke through that barrier,
05:33 I've been able to feel more empowered
05:36 about speaking from that community rather than for it.
05:39 (upbeat music)
05:42 (upbeat music)
