Monday Meetings with Esther Htusan

Gina Rodriguez from Jane the Virgin started Movement Mondays on her Instagram to garner support for working Latino actors. She points out that studios feel more confident in hiring Latino actors for high-profile roles if the numbers back it up. TV shows and movies with Latino actors need to pull in higher ratings and more revenue.

This approach is the same for all minorities and extends beyond the acting community—into all aspects of creative professions. Inspired by Gina, I am starting the series Monday Meetings to highlight Asian movers, shakers, and makers. We should be seeing them and hearing from them more often—not just sporadically.

♦ ♦ ♦

Meet Ester Htusan, the first journalist from Myanmar to win the Pulitzer Prize. Htusan and three of her colleagues from the Associated Press rescued more than 2,000 slaves from the Southeast Asian fishing industry. When they weren’t working unpaid 22-hour shifts, slaves were confined to to jail-like cells. Listen to their incredible story here.

From left: Martha Mendoza, Robin McDowell, Esther Htusan and Margie Mason. Photo by Richard Drew for the Associated Press.