Writer, Educator, and Adoptee
As a Chinese Adoptee, I've often been told that I wasn't "Asian enough" to join conversations in Asian spaces. Hearing about the tragic shooting in Atlanta just weeks ago along with the slurry of anti-Asian hate crimes that have abounded since COVID-19 has reminded many people, including adoptees, of the racism that Asian Americans experience… Continue reading An Asian Adoptee addressing #StopAsianHate
Earlier this year, I wrote this caption on my Instagram page @anadopteewriter on using the term "displaced" instead of saying that I was adopted. Overall, I had positive responses to this verbiage; however, there are still aspects of displacement that I have yet to explore. I wrote about how adoption has always had a positive… Continue reading Using the Term “Displaced” Instead of Adopted
For this year's National Adoption Awareness Month (NAAM), I am dedicating posts to covering recent adoption topics and more. National Adoption Awareness Month first started as an initiative to spread awareness of the need for permanent families for youth in the U.S. foster system. Although it was originally intended to focus on spreading awareness of… Continue reading National Adoption Awareness Month 2020
Note: There has been a lot that's been going on in the adoptee community lately and I plan on covering more of those topics in the near future. At the moment, I don't have a lot of emotional space right now to cover some of them, but those posts will be coming soon. Many times… Continue reading A Deeply Personal Journey of Learning Mandarin (Part I)
My homemade pork and vegetable dumplings with wrappers made from scratch. Photo Credit: Alyse MeiLan Last weekend I set off on an endeavor to make Chinese dumplings from scratch. As a Chinese adoptee who grew up in the United States I haven't made food from China that often, but I was inspired to make them… Continue reading Making Dumplings for the First Time as a Chinese Adoptee
Cover image credit: https://caboodle.nationalbooktokens.com/ Content shared to @anadopteewriter on Instagram. Created by: Alyse MeiLan Adoptees and Media Representation 🎬 // Recently, a middle grade book titled “The Unadoptables” was released by a major publishing house. Unfortunately, it was another instance of adoption being portrayed in an insensitive way. Not only does the title bring up… Continue reading Adoption and Media Representation
Cover Image: Marco Verch, modified In February of 2019, I opened my 23andMe account for the first time. Little did I know that when I opened the account and scrolled over to the "Family and Friends" tab on the site, I'd found the surprise of a lifetime. As an adoptee, there have been many instances… Continue reading Finding my First Cousin through 23andMe
When I started this blog, I wanted to showcase my writing both professionally and personally. Part of the decision was re-establishing the brand identity and name. Throughout my professional career, I've always been hesitant to include my middle name, because I felt like it was difficult for people to find and pronounce. However, when I… Continue reading Behind the Name of alysemeilan
Alyse MeiLan 