What is your job like?
My job is multifaceted. I’m a global LGBTQ+ advocate, keynote speaker, thought leader, Athlete Ally, Stonewall and Vietnam Relief Services global ambassador, fitness author, athlete, entertainment executive, community and government relations advisor and founder of the Amazin LeThi foundation. I enjoy the variety of my career and the value it brings to the community by being able to champion LGBTQ+ equality and change hearts and minds through the lens of sports, being Asian and LGBTQ+ and my own personal journey of homelessness to becoming one of the most visible and influential LGBTQ+ activists in the world.
Are there many LGBTQ+ Asians in the industry?
The visibility of LGBTQ+ Asian people across the different sectors I work across varies. In the sports industry, particularly in professional sports, we lack representation from the LGBTQ+ Asian community and all my work in sports is centred around having conversations around diversity and inclusion and championing LGBTQ+ sports equality. I do this through the lens of being Asian and by making people aware of the challenges and barriers we face to get to Pro. level, so that allies, advocates, and the sports community can better support LGBTQ+ Asian athletes in sports. I was the first Asian Athlete Ally ambassador in 2014 and I became the first Asian Stonewall sports champion ambassador at the end of 2019. These global platforms give me the opportunity to champion LGBTQ+ Asian visibility. In the entertainment world we still have so few out LGBTQ+ Asian actors and characters on TV and film. There is still so much work to be done across the different sectors in order to create safe and nurturing environments for LGBTQ+ Asians to be able to bring their whole self to work and be their authentic self. I hope that by sharing my story and being openly out and unapologetically LGBTQ+ Asian, I can encourage other LGBTQ+ Asian people to be their authentic selves in life and work.
Did you feel discouraged to enter your industry because of your sexual orientation? Were you afraid to come out in this industry?
I was bullied as a child and suffered a terrible amount of racism and also gay slurs. I never saw an Asian person in the media or an LGBTQ+ person so I felt very isolated and alone in my feelings. I couldn’t put a name to how I felt inside with the confusion with my sexuality. I really felt like I was the only LGBTQ+ Asian person in the world and I never felt safe or celebrated to be my authentic self as an openly out Asian woman. As an athlete and competitive bodybuilder, I was told very quickly by the sports industry that I couldn’t be anything but straight. The bodybuilding community is very masculine and hetero-normative and made it very clear that LGBTQ+ people were not accepted in sports, so I felt completely discouraged to be an out athlete. I felt the same in the entertainment industry with the on-camera and production work I did because I never saw a mirror image of myself, so how could I know who I could be and if I would be loved and celebrated as an LGBTQ+ Asian person? It has taken me years to feel comfortable in my own skin and be openly out as an Asian woman and stand in my truth and be my authentic self. I spent so many years hiding this part of myself. It was exhausting as I lied to myself and to the world. In contrast, I’m far more successful now being openly out than I ever was when I hid a huge part of who I am. Being LGBTQ+ makes me whole and the person that I am today. That’s why I share my story as I think of myself as a child and as a teenager and think of all the LGBTQ+ Asian people that are still struggling with their sexuality and gender identity. I hope that in my story they may see themselves and find hope and a realization that they aren’t alone, that their feelings aren’t isolated, that we all share a collective story, and that we are part of a larger LGBTQ+ community that loves and celebrates us just as we are. We are enough and we have always been enough; we are worthy of love from ourselves and others.
Have you ever felt like you were treated differently because of your sexual orientation?
Yes, I’ve been treated differently because I’m Asian, because I’m a woman and because I’m LGBTQ+. As a child, part of being bullied was because I was LGBTQ+ and in competitive bodybuilding—especially since it’s seen as a very masculine sport, I was instantly seen as LGBTQ+. I’ve also been outed in the workplace and people saw me differently after that so I know what it’s like to feel unworthy and inferior because I’m LGBTQ+. People need to realize being LGBTQ+ doesn’t change who I am as a person, it’s part of my identity that makes me whole, but I’m the same person whether you know I’m from the LGBTQ+ community or not.
In what ways has your identity served as a strength?
Being LGBTQ+ is my superpower! Without a mirror image of myself in the media, I had to create my own narrative as a child and as an adult, and this helped me stand in my own truth to be brave and unapologetic as an openly out Asian woman. By sharing my story and living authentically and unapologetically, I have the freedom to realize that my emotions are real, that how I feel inside matters, and that I’m worthy of owning the space that I’m in. My identity has made me very resilient because I’ve been through so much because of it. It’s made me stronger and unafraid of living my best life as an openly out Asian woman.
What steps do you think your industry could take to be more inclusive? I work across various sectors so let me break those sectors down as to how we can be more inclusive.
Sports - With so few Asian—and specifically LGBTQ+ Asian—in professional sports, we have to go right down to the school level as this is where the journey starts for an Asian athlete. Here, we need to address the unconscious bias towards Asian kids playing sports and the stereotype associated with us—particularly around our physical appearance and ability. We need to have more training for coaches, sports organizations and school administrations around unconscious bias and discrimination against being LGBTQ+ and/or Asian in sports. Sports need to be made accessible to everyone and we need to do more than just create safe and nurturing environments so Asian and LGBTQ+ Asian youth feel comfortable to participate in sports, we must also be able to see ourselves by making sure we have diversity in sports teams and coaches. We also need to address the role of the media and hold them accountable for racist language around Asian athletes and ensure that Asian athletes have a platform to share their stories in the press so Asian youth can see a mirror image of their athletic stories.
Entertainment industry - We need to look at recruitment to make sure that we have more decision makers from the Asian community across the industry and that in the writing room there are Asian writers, as we need to share and tell our own stories. Studios need to look at their recruitment process as well as what kind of programs they have to foster new talent in front and behind the camera. When decisions are being made about storylines, characters and actors, we need to make sure we have a diverse group of people at the table making those decisions.
The pandemic has given us a chance to stop and reset and consider what kind of brave new world we want to live in coming out of the shutdown. We need to check in with ourselves regularly around our own unconscious biases towards others. If we want the industries we work in to be more welcoming and inclusive this starts with ourselves because we can’t expect diversity, inclusion and equality, if we aren’t also championing it within our industry. We also have to acknowledge that some of us hold privilege and we need to discover how we can leverage that to hold industries accountable when it comes to being inclusive. It’s important that business executives see ethnicity because when you see it you’ll see where it is absent in your company—from the boardroom down to philanthropy, seeing where your company is giving within the community. We must all be colour brave and not colour blind. Business leaders and industries can’t just come out and make statements or use a hashtag to support the Asian and LGBTQ+ community. They need to be held accountable to the long-term change they are willing to make.
What is the one specific moment (or moments) in your career as an advocate where you felt you had made the most impact?
I’ve had many great moments where I know I’ve made an impact. I was the first to give out educational scholarships to transgender youth in my country Vietnam, I also piloted the first leadership sports and business program to fast track LGBTQ youth experiencing homelessness back into the work place in Asia in Vietnam and I had support from companies such as Nike, KPMG and Baker McKenzie and the popstar Usher’s organization - Ushers New Look. I was part of the first Asian Pride event in Washington DC last year that was supported by Capital Pride and the Mayor's office for Asian Pacific Islanders. I also launched the first Asian LGBTQ southern voices event in Georgia in Atlanta and launched the UN LGBTQ business standards with the UN last year both at the National Centre for Civil and Human Rights with the LGBTQ Institute. I helped organize the first 'Spirit Day' collaboration with GLAAD and White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and that year they had the highest number of Asian people supporting the campaign and I shared my story as part of the first White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders Asian anti-bullying campaign 'Act to Change' . I was also part of the first Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Asian Pacific Islander Coming Out Guide. In 2014 I became the first Asian Athlete Ally and at the end of 2019 I became the first Asian Stonewall sports champion ambassador. GLAAD and NQAPIA have recognized my LGBTQ equality work, I’ve also been featured in the Australian Pride Power List, Out 100 List, Human Rights Campaign Asian Heritage Month Honours List, We Make Change - 2020 Global Changemaker and Go Magazine 100 Women We Love List. Ontop of all that I was the first Asian LGBTQ to be honoured at the 2020 Brooklyn Nets Pride Night with the Game Ball Delivery. This month during Pride I partnered with The Advocate magazine and hosted the first Asian LGBTQ voices series on their Instagram with live discussions with high profile Asian LGBTQ Hollywood actors. I spoke with B.D Wong, Leonardo Nam, Jake Choi, Leo Sheng and Rain Valdez.
These are just a few of my achievements where I know I have made an impact in terms of amplifying Asian LGBTQ stories and sharing my story as an openly out and visible Asian woman.
Finally, what advice do you have for LGBTQ+ Asian youth who are looking to enter your industry? What advice do you have in general, for their journey as an LGBTQ+ person?
Make sure you have a support network, and Google is your friend! There is so much information now online and different groups and communities you can be a part of. In the sports industry, there are many LGBTQ+ friendly sports groups you can join and organizations that you can reach out to. In the entertainment industry, there are many LGBTQ+ and Asian acting groups and organizations that cultivate Asian talent behind the camera. Read as much as you can. Listen to podcasts that inspire you in the industry that you want to be in; the power of the internet means that we can all stay connected. Self care is so important for LGBTQ+ people, be kind to yourself and the journey that you are on. Pride isn’t just a festival, it’s also a feeling—a sense of joy about what being LGBTQ+ is. Don’t be hard on yourself. It’s okay if you have down days and at times feel uncertain. Just remember that you aren’t alone and that you are part of a larger LGBTQ+ community that loves and celebrates you just as you are. You are worthy of the love of yourself and others; you are enough and you’ve always been enough. How you feel inside matters. You are always worthy of owning the space that you stand in. I want my story to be a positive message to any LGBTQ+ Asian person reading this that it does get better and you can live your best life as your authentic self standing in your truth—even if that truth is just loving and accepting yourself where you are right now in your journey.
You can find out more about me via: http://www.amazinlethi.com and you can follow me on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
