In college, I was the intern on Margaret Cho's All American girl.  Each week, I'd go to the set and soak it all in.  Mostly, this meant stuffing free craft service into my backpack and trying to get in the incredibly secretive writer's room, but I saw some stuff.  Stuff that shaped my career over the past 20 years in entertainment.  I saw how hard the road could be.  That I would almost always be seen as "other" before being seen as an American.  I saw how Margaret, with a specific and hilarious point of view, wasn't allowed to be herself on TV.   I have exactly 1/45th of her chutzpah, I was raised on Facts of Life and Silver Spoons.  No one on those shows looked like me.  If she wasn't accepted, what chance did I have?

Fast forward 20 years.

When ABC's Fresh Off the Boat debuted, I couldn't resist the opportunity to be with my peers and fellow Asian American media influencers to talk about what's different, to gauge reactions and to celebrate seeing ourselves in a major network sitcom.   The room was electric.  It was such a thrill to feel the shared anxiety that we all want this show to succeed, and then to breathe a sigh of relief that it is good.  It may not fulfill all our hopes and dreams, and no one show should have too, but hallelujah!  It's good.  It has a voice.  We have a voice.

Getting the scoop from soul-sides.com blogger, Oliver Wang.