Go Where You’re Loved: On Simone Biles and Black/Asian Feminist Solidarity

This week, Amanda had the chance to sit down with two of her undergraduate mentees, Allayne Thomas and Katherine Gan. In their conversation, they talk about the controversy around Simone Biles refusing to compete in some Olympic gymnastics events, their research projects, and the possibility of solidarity and mutual understanding between Black and Asian women. Allayne is a recent graduate from Duke University where she studied International Comparative Studies, Korean, and Human rights. She is a gifted poet and avid reader. She currently works as a paralegal and is interested in attending law school. She enjoys binging Netflix, talking with friends, and obsessing over crumble cookies in her free time. Katherine Gan is a senior at Duke University, majoring in Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies. Her current project uses Asian/American women's poetry to excavate the afterlives of empire. She loves to read, be outside, and go biking. If you have a topic you’d like us to cover or a question you’d like us to answer, you can DM us on social media, leave us a comment, or email us at [email protected]. You can follow us on Instagram and TikTok at @defineandempower.co. Thank you to Mia Miranda for editing the audio for this episode. Books Katherine mentioned: Ghost Of by Diana Nguyen A Cruelty Special to Our Species by Emily Jungmin Yoon If They Come For Us by Fatimah Asghar Poets Allayne mentioned: Pavana Reddy Nayyirah Waheed Yrsa Daley-Ward Warsan Shire