“I’m learning so much about myself and I think that really helped me kind of feel more comfortable and realize that part of the reason why I was shy was because I didn’t really know myself, right? I didn’t feel comfortable putting myself out there because I didn’t know myself.”
“And so, understanding that, this office is a result of the Open Letter wanting to be a thing, it just felt nice to be like, Oh cool, I can see through some of the things that I know, were being asked for back when I was a student, and help create a space, an environment that I know that I would have wanted, when I was a student, because that was a big thing of what I tried to do, right.”
Brian Crie (he/they) is the Programs and Operations Coordinator for the APIMEDA Programs and Services Office at UC San Diego. Brian is originally from San Diego and is also an alumnus from UC San Diego graduating in 2014 with a degree in Chemical Engineering . Brian identifies as mixed-race, specifically being half white, half Chinese, Vietnamese as well as being a first-generation college graduate and post-secondary graduate.
This interview covers topics such as mixed identity, what it means to be a mixed person in the Asian Pacific Islander Student Alliance, and to be in coalition with other monoracial, or monoethnic/monocultural folks. This interview focuses on how Brian grew in his role on the APSA Board, and helped facilitate the growth and expansion of the Coalition for Critical Asian American Studies (CCAAS). Moreover, even without a direct role within CCAAS, Brian still played a key role in building and sustaining the coalition during the drafting of the Open Letter in 2014.
Mira Gupta met Brian Crie while working at the Cross-Cultural Center back in 2022 and developed a relationship with Brian as her mentor and later boss as they both work for the APIMEDA Programs and Services Office. This interview was conducted via Zoom by Mira Gupta (she/they) who is a 4th year Muir College student studying Global Health at UC San Diego. Mira identifies as a multi-ethnic, Queer, Pan-Asian American femme. Mira also identifies as a second-generation college student. Mira currently works as a Community Assistant at the Asian Pacific Islander Middle Eastern Desi American (APIMEDA) Programs and Services Office.
Leave a Reply