Irene Li (Boston, MA)
James Beard Award Winning Chef, Co-founder/Co-owner at Mei Mei Dumplings Restaurant Group, Tech Founder
Irene had a hard time identifying herself as Chinese or American, or Chinese American while growing up in Brookline, Massachusetts.
She shares her struggle learning Chinese in Sunday school and visiting China as a kid.
The untimely death of her father, Dr. Frederick Pei Li (a pioneer of population cancer genetics), when she was in college opened a floodgate of memory about the formative influences of her father.
As Irene reflects on her family history and cultural identity, she credits her mother, Dr. Elaine Shiang (Episode 1: Find Your Roots – Don’t Deny It!), for being the bedrock of her personal growth and development.
Find Your Roots is a history and culture project centering on Asian American voices, perspectives, and experiences. It is a one-on-one in-depth podcast interview show with Asian “Roots-Finders” seeking to remember the diverse and profound influences of their parents and grandparents. This educational podcast project is designed to promote and preserve the legacy of the countless contributions—as well as forgotten struggles and sacrifices—of our ancestors who paved the way for us today.
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“One in a Billion” connects Asians and Americans through storytelling, one person at a time.
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