Greater diversity in tech overall could solve some of the industry’s biggest problems, including fighting disinformation, hate speech, and harassment in online spaces, said the former Reddit CEO, Ellen Pao in a recent podcast interview.

While women have made achievements in tech, their numbers are still low. A survey from AnitaB.org, a global group for women engineers, predicts it could take 12 years for women to see equality in the industry.

In 2012, Pao sued her then employer Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers for gender discrimination in San Francisco. The jury sided with the VC firm, but Pao became the face of the issue.

Pao shares with Jennifer Palmieri in her podcast that facing the Silicon Valley guys’ club inspired her to lead Reddit in 2014. During her time as the CEO of one of the biggest discussion websites, she didn’t have imposter syndrome as she had always thought that she had seen so many “horrible” male CEOs and board members.

The Taiwanese-American felt confident in her qualifications despite the Silicon Valley narrative that favors Caucasian and male college dropouts. “Maybe I’m not going to be perfect, and maybe I’m going to make mistakes, but it’s not going to be like some of these other mistakes I’ve seen.”

One of Pao’s priorities, when she was at Reddit, was strengthening the anti-harassment policy and clearing the site of nude pictures and revenge porn. Critics of the plan, mostly men, argued such measures were a form of censorship.

Today, however, Pao thinks that current tech leaders are driven to not prohibit hate speech because it boosts social media engagement and profitability.

As the majority white, male, and affluent tech leaders don’t see and experience problems the same way marginalized communities do, Pao believes that they can’t solve these issues.

Pao credits her mother, who is an engineer, for instilling in her a strong sense of right and wrong, which led her to speak up when she witnessed overqualified women and colleagues of color not getting promoted at the same pace as White men.

Hana Center, a nonprofit organization for Asian American and immigrant rights, provides neighbors new opportunities to teach them traditional Korean folk drumming, which activists frequently use in their advocacy. 

Community engagement coordinator Won Joon Lee tells Block Club Chicago that the group teaches Pungmul, a Korean folk tradition with deep historical roots. It originated in Korea’s pre-industrial farming culture and used the hourglass-shaped janggu (a double-sided drum) to protest immigration and racism. 

Lee explained that during the Japanese occupation of Korea from 1910 to 1945, public gatherings were prohibited except for musical performances, making Pungmul a form of resistance. 

In 2017, two long-standing organizations,  the Korean American Community Services, and the Korean American Resource and Cultural Center were combined to become Hana Center, named from the Korean word for “one.”

The organization has a long history of youth Pungmul programming, but this summer marked the first time the non-profit offered classes for adults interested in advocacy work. 

The first-ever class will proceed after the initial session of eight weeks has passed. As the new program expands, the instructors intend to continue enrolling new students in it on an ongoing basis.

Hana Drum School instructor Inah Jeong said Pungmul drumming is loud as planned, and they are culturally and politically distinct. Korean immigrants may connect with Chicago immigrants and join the immigrant rights and citizenship march, she tells Block Club Chicago.

The ensemble delivered its first drumming class this summer, but new students are always welcome to join in. Residents and community organizations can benefit from such events, according to the center’s administrators.

Choi tells Block Club Chicago that the current situation is both exhausting and frightening, but she believes the strong and loving communities they form may provide joy even in difficult times.

Their communities enable them to change the world now and in the future. The goal according to Choi is to turn community building into advocacy that targets racial, gender, and economic concerns along with immigrant rights.

Hana Center is located at 4300 North California Avenue in Irving Park. It also offers services to address needs related to citizenship and immigration, housing, and other areas.

TomoCredit announced that it had raised $22 million in a Series B funding round, giving it a post-money valuation of $222 million. 

It has also secured $100 million in debt financing and has raised $39 million in equity since its launch.

The newly acquired funds will be put to use by the corporation in the form of product line expansion, which may include the provision of mortgages and automobile loans. 

Kristy Kim founded TomoCredit in 2019 to help international students get credit. Three and a half years later, the fintech no longer focuses just on immigrants but is now also eyeing domestic students and SMBs that want to “build credit fast”. They received 2.5 million applications over time.

TomoCredit provides users credit limits of up to $30,000. It earns revenue from merchant interchange fees, not consumers. It doesn’t require a credit check, a deposit, or an APR.

According to TechCrunch, the firm doesn’t use FICO scores to underwrite, unlike many other credit offerings. Tomo Score, a “proprietary” underwriting algorithm, identifies “high potential borrowers” without credit scores. 

“Our customers are not in financial trouble…Once you identify them and give them a card, they spend a lot and don’t default. Our performance has been great and that gave us and our investors the confidence to scale.” Kim told TechCrunch.

Morgan Stanley’s Next Level Fund and Mastercard participated in the equity portion of the deal including GoldHouse, Asian Hustle Network, and Hyphen Capital, while Silicon Valley Bank provided the debt.

Alice Vilma co-manages Morgan Stanley’s Next Level Fund, which invests in early-stage innovation and tech-enabled enterprises with women or diverse founding teams, said that she was amazed by Kim’s ability to recognize a need as a young female immigrant and create a financial product.

“As a first-generation South Korean immigrant, I wanted to help immigrant communities to reach their American Dream faster with TomoCredit,” Kim told TechCrunch. “It has been wonderful to partner with minority-focused funds who truly understand Tomo’s mission.”

You might have heard a tale similar to this one here and there, but for every family who is now going through this — it feels like the beginning of the end. 

What more if your father left your family when you were young and just beginning a new life in a foreign place?

Nevertheless, it is utterly devastating that some even end up questioning themselves, “what have I done wrong or what should I have done right?” But eventually, you’ll come to the conclusion that you should just accept it, keep a positive attitude and figure out how to go on living your life without a father figure.

But what if one day your father knocks on your door and asks if he could come back to your family’s life?

Here’s Ai Nguyen, A Life and Business Breakthrough Coach, who shares a powerful story through her voice and experience of her 80-year-old dad.

The Crucial Memory

Last week, I celebrated my dad’s 80th birthday.  It was a deeply healing experience for me. Many of you don’t know this, but my dad left our family for another woman when I was around 6 years old, about a year after we had immigrated from Vietnam over to America. Here we are in a strange new country, and then he left us.

One of the last memories I had at that time was that he took me to the bus stop in the morning for school and told me that he was leaving the family and wasn’t coming back. That was it. I came home from school and he was gone.

For decades, I had blocked out this CRUCIAL memory of the bus stop day. It was brought out again during a healing hypnosis session I had last year. While growing up, he would come and visit our family from Guam every few years to attend any huge celebrations such as family weddings. 

The Comeback

But then, about 18 years ago, he asked us if he could come back because he was struggling with his business. He was basically going to be homeless if we didn’t take him in.

This was such a stressful time in my life because we had to learn to build a life without him fully being there and then we had to also learn to accept him as he came back. Long story short, when he came back, even though he stayed, he had lost his power in the family.

We weren’t interested in what he had to say. I wasn’t interested in his opinions. Because, honestly, he lost our respect when he left the family. So, we had never celebrated his birthday.   

My dad had to learn how to make peace with himself. He practiced Buddhism, spirituality, and yoga to calm his internal state.

The Celebration of Birthday and Healing

Fast forward to last week, his birthday party, my husband Dave and I flew back to St. Louis, Missouri to celebrate this with my family. My dad has been asking the family for the past year to do a party for him. He had an inkling that he would die soon and it was important for him to experience this. And so we made tons of food and brought the whole family together.

And there was a moment where I caught him feeling super happy, in front of the colorful walls, getting photos taken by me. Like a child’s smile when they are being acknowledged and celebrated. I caught it in the moment and in the photos.  

And all of a sudden..

A deep level of compassion and forgiveness fell into my body.

(As I am writing this, I am CRYING. Nose dripping, wiping my shirt all over my face type of crying)

I suddenly realized that this man is 80 years old. And now he’s finally being celebrated. My heart felt the pain of living in a body for 80 years and not experiencing the greatest, most loving moments in life.  

I felt compassion for the pain of him having to forgive himself for his mistakes. I felt compassion for him, probably realizing he could have done more in his lifetime, but he didn’t get to do so. I felt compassion for him for having to release guilt, shame, and resentment over the years. Because death is near, and he simply wants to be acknowledged.

At that moment, I saw the inner child in him; the child who just wants more praise, love, and attention on this special day. And I wish if I had been quicker in my realization, that I had taken more pictures, to make him laugh, and make it even more of a special day for him. 

(A moment of regret showed up for me)

This was the level of compassion that I had prayed for, and I wasn’t ready to fully receive it for many years until I participated in this birthday party.

I got balloons with his favorite celebration colors: red and gold. (Coincidentally, his outfit matched my balloon colors).  Intuitively, I knew what he wanted. If my sister had not asked me to be in charge of the balloons and decorations at the last minute, I would have missed out on seeing the joy and happiness in my dad.  

It was as though SPIRIT planned all of this to happen FOR ME.

I share this story with you because I want you to know that we all have the opportunity to experience forgiveness and healing. Be present, be open, and compassionate and spirit will give you powerful insights. Life flies by fast. Always celebrate yourself. Find gratitude and greatness in your reality and everything will shift for you!

Lastly, you have the power to turn your pain into your purpose.

Ai Nguyen

Your Life and Business Breakthrough Coach