In this episode, we’re joined by Tu Le, community worker, advocate, and organiser, currently working in the community legal sector assisting victim-survivors of domestic and family violence and coordinating capacity-building and community legal education programs.
Tu has previously served as the General Secretary of the Vietnamese Community in New South Wales. She also co-founded Y-Collab, a youth advocacy organisation, providing opportunities for young people in South-West Sydney to create a positive social impact in their local communities through grass-roots youth-led initiatives.
Through her work, Tu is committed to fighting for greater diversity and justice in Australian society, and more recently in politics. Tu shares her experience of running for the Labor Party, the importance of representation for younger generations and how she deals with criticism in the public eye.
0:00 - Intro
01:43 - The Shock of Tu Putting Herself Forward for Labor
03:56 - How Tu’s Parents Came to Australia
07:36 - Struggling to Learn Vietnamese As a Kid
11:06 - Tu’s Positive Experience in Highschool
12:26 - The Cultural Shock of University
15:25 - Why Tu Chose to Study Law
18:12 - The Mentality Gap Between Our Parents’ Generation vs. Our Generation
21:42 - Navigating the Third Culture Identity
25:05 - The Importance of Representation for Younger Generations
26:45 - When Did Tu Actually Get Into Politics?
29:12 - Experiences of Being an Asian Female in Australian Politics
33:10 - Asian Hate During the Pandemic
36:19 - Tu’s Take on ‘The Parachuting’ Situation
38:29 - Dealing with Criticism in the Public Eye
42:17 - Is Tu Still Running as an Independent for Labor?
44:43 - Representation in Parliament for Marginalised Communities
48:15 - Representing Disadvantaged Communities
51:04 - Tu’s Advice on How to Get Into Politics
58:44 - How We Can Create a Voice for Ourselves
01:01:38 - Why Tu Focuses On Community Law
01:06:37 - Tu’s Day-to-Day in the Electorate Office
01:11:36 - Outro
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