Second Thought Project
反思計畫
©Wen-Li Chen 陳雯俐
About
⇌漢
The Second Thought Project (https://secondthoughtproject.com) is an ongoing learning journey focused on social justice. It offers notes, thoughts, reflections, conversations, and toolkits to support this journey.
The project is driven by the perspectives of being an educator, BIPOC, and a parent who believes in humanity. I aim to plant seeds of hope, change, dignity, and integrity, fostering a world of understanding and practicing social justice to create a peaceful life.
1
Introduction
2
Personal Equity Reflection
3
WHAT IS SOCIAL JUSTICE AND WHY DO I HAVE TO LEARN ABOUT IT?
4
Five Tools / Strategies / Techniques
5
Five Resources
6
Preface7
During Work
8
In My Head
9
What is Microaggression?
10
How to Have COURAGEOUS CONVERSATIONS With Students and Community as Educators?
11
How to Have COURAGEOUS CONVERSATIONS With Yourself?
12
Practice using a compass as a navigator to start a conversation and reflection
13
Self-Reflection
14
Amy Chua
15
Amy Tan
16
Writings between 2022 and 2024
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III
Conversations
— Conversation During Work —
When I was a PT In-House Designer:
Me: “Why do you hire me?”
Boss: “Because BIPOC is trending now.”
Boss: “Why do you type so many texts on IG? Nobody will read it.”
Me: “I don’t agree with you. I think people who care enough will still read it if they want to know about a particular artist’s work, their practice, their concept, intention, and idea.”
Boss: “I only care about how the public responds to IG. Prioritizing your job duties is important.”
(V.O.S. “I thought my priority of job duties is to utilize design and marketing to promote art institutions and artists’ work that can speak of the voices and the community of BIPOC.”)
Boss: “You have a typo on IG. Please fix it now.”
Me: “I will. I’m in the ER room with my kid. I’ll find some time in between to fix it. Once I fix it, I’ll text you ASAP.”
Boss: “I have to fire you because you have some errors and typos, and you don’t earn my trust.”
Me: I fixed it, and the fact is that I helped your institution gain over 200 new followers on IG in one month. I did what you taught me and delivered everything on time. I don’t understand why I got fired.”
Boss: “Oral and written communication is over 50% of this job position. I don’t think you are fit for this.”
Note: I was fired on the phone during the day that my car got a flat tire. I couldn’t attend the meeting, so I asked if I could join them via video call during the post-pandemic era. I didn’t get an answer for that. A couple of minutes later, the executive director called me to tell me that I got fired because she thought I would end her career due to my typo issue on IG or other communication issues. I couldn’t hear her well on the phone with speaker mode. I asked why I didn’t get formal communication about this earlier and whether I could do this job without any evaluations or explanations. I didn’t get any answer. “You know how it is”. That is the summary of the call. I don’t know what that means.
When I was a PT Art Instructor:
Me: “Sorry that I’m late because my child was crying and wouldn’t let me leave for work.”
Boss: “Everyone is dealing with that problem. You can send her to the child daycare center.”
(V.O.S. “I don’t have enough money to send her to the daycare center. That’s why I took a PT art instructor job while I can’t find a full-time job to keep a flexible schedule and try to keep things going.”)
When I was a PT Adjunct:
Student: “I can’t understand what you said in the classroom because of your thick accent, that’s why I didn’t do the work.”
Me: “I’m not only communicating with you all verbally, but also writing down in the syllabus, in the print-out document, in the email, and in the D2L or Canvas. If you have a question and don’t understand, you can ask your peers or me right away. I’m here to support you.“
— Conversation In My Head —
After Thought
I wish I had a sense of humor to ignore all insults, inequality, misunderstanding, and mistreatment.
I wish I had the grace not to worry about my existence, my future, my career, and being a woman of color.
I wish I were good enough not to have to prove to anyone that I am good at something I love and enjoy, and that I am who I want to be or what I can do.
I wish I had such confidence that I didn’t worry about anything,
I wish I had a dream job that would support my family and help me achieve financial independence.
I wish you could see me and ask me questions about my life and my experiences as an immigrant.
How are you today?
I’m fine, except I worry that I’ll be deported even though I’m a naturalized citizen, having started as a new resident, with the hope of finding change, possibility, happiness, and freedom.
Having over 100k in debt
How do I get here?
Can’t find the job I used to have as a professional visual communication designer in the creative industry after becoming a green card holder, a woman of color, a multiracial immigrant whose native language isn’t English, and a mother.
Being a green card holder who can’t get access to work, benefits, and travel.
Trying to find ways to adapt to a new life and raise a child simultaneously.
Threw out over 200 job applications without hearing back from the employers as a designer.
Dreaming about a change with a plan, so that I can move forward.
Spent over 6k on hiring immigrant lawyers to pay all application fees along with all process fees, over 90k to pursue two master’s degrees, hope to get better job opportunities, and payment to pay back the debt based on tuition fees and living costs.
Don’t have enough income to afford childcare.
Having a baby late in almost 40’s.
Having a career 10 years later than my peers.
But am I happy now?
Yes, because I get to see things differently than a life’s value based on financial numbers. I have the freedom to do the work I enjoy. I have time to be with my close family and friends. I have an intellectual, growth-oriented mindset that keeps me moving forward in my belief in humanity.
What is Microaggression?
“A microaggression is a subtle, often unintentional comment or action that expresses a prejudiced attitude toward a member of a marginalized group. These everyday exchanges can convey negative messages based on aspects like race, gender, or sexual orientation, and they can be particularly harmful to those on the receiving end. The term was coined by Harvard University psychiatrist Chester M. Pierce in 1970 to describe insults and dismissals that he regularly witnessed non-black Americans inflicting on African Americans. By the early 21st century, the term was applied to the casual disparagement of any socially marginalized group, including LGBT, poor, and disabled people. Psychologist Derald Wing Sue defines microaggressions as “brief, everyday exchanges that send denigrating messages to certain individuals because of their group membership”. In contrast to aggression, in which there is usually an intent to cause harm, persons making microaggressive comments may be otherwise well-intentioned and unaware of the potential impact of their words.”
Reference and extended reading:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microaggression#Intersectionality
For examples:
“Oh...babies with Asian blood will be cute...“
or “your father is lazy and likes to drink alcohol because he is an Indigenous Person. “
or “Are you an Indigenous People?“
“Yes. How do you know?“
“Because your skin color is dark. So, did you ride on a wild hog to get to the school there?“
or “If you are an Indigenous person, you must be good at sports and singing. “
or “As an Indigenous People, you must gain lots of advantages from the government then.“
or A: “I can’t find the food I like to eat here, so I have to figure out how to make it my own. “ B: “immigrant struggle, huh.“
How to Have COURAGEOUS CONVERSATIONS With Students and Community as Educators?
Designate a “safe” space to have a conversation.
What is said is to stay where it was.
Use a compass as a navigator to start a conversation and reflection.
Use an “I” statement instead of generalizing as a collective entity.
Be true, honest, kind, and open.
Active listening with calm, easy breathing
Speak truth.
Practice exchanging thoughts and words in the face of discomfort.
Embrace uncomfortableness and uncertainty.
Exchange information from different channels to identify and to analyze with facts and checks.
Know how to ask questions without ego but with dignity and integrity.
Be humble and understand what the privilege is and what the oppression is.
Be grateful that someone wants to discuss this further with you, rather than ignoring you.
Know when to set up a boundary and pause.
Reflect, un-learn, re-learn, with reading and writing.
Develop self-awareness from multiple perspectives.
How to Have COURAGEOUS CONVERSATIONS With Yourself?
You are loved.
You are enough.
You are strong.
You are smart.
You can do it.
You can make it.
You be you.
You are you.
Practice using a compass as a navigator to start a conversation and reflection
Adopted from Maria Reyes’ model from the program during the study.
Courageous Conversations About Race (CCAR)
It is a foundational protocol for our discussions about race. This protocol enhances our ability to engage, sustain, and deepen interracial dialogue effectively.
Please see the three elements of the CCAR protocol: the compass, the agreements, and the conditions.
Please look them over and have them available during the conversation.
THE COMPASS
THE AGREEMENTS
Stay engaged
Speak your truth
Experience discomfort
Expect and accept non-closure
THE CONDITIONS
Focus on what is personal, local, and immediate
Isolate race
Normalize social construction and multiple perspectives
Monitor agreements and conditions. Establish parameters
Use “working definition “ for race
Examine the presence and role of “Whiteness. “
Reference:
https://www.ppl-inc.org/sites/default/files/Courageous Conversations About Race (CCAR) protocol.pdf
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Self-Rereflection (stay true and open):
What comes up for you?
What did you think about the text/words, wonderings, or questions?
What does the text/words make you want to do or have done because of reading/seeing it?
How did you feel when you were reading/seeing/hearing?
What do you believe about what the text/words are sharing, what is in your heart?
© 2026 Wen-Li Chen 陳雯俐All Rights Reserved Website Manager: Wen-Li Chen
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