'My mission is to help readers feel seen and heard'

Credit: Marian Chia-Ming Liu (above), projects editor, the Washington Post

"My Chinese name connects me to my family and the people I care about. It really is a sense of home in my name," says Marian Chia-Ming Liu, a journalist and the projects editor at the Washington Post.

Chinese people settling into Western cultures will often have an anglicised first name, either given to them by their parents to help them blend in or a nickname based on their own name. Marian's is a birth name based on her Chinese name.

In Chinese culture, people usually have three names: a last name, a generational name and their own name. In this case, Liu is the last name which means 'willow tree'. Chia is a generational name and is shared by everybody on her father's side. It means 'home'. Ming is her own name, which on both sides of the Chinese characters means 'moon' and 'sun', but together make 'bright'. When combined with her grandfather's name it means 'smart'.

Altogether, her name holds a special place and reflects a well-travelled, skilled journalist. For most of her career, however, she has just been credited as Marian Liu, to avoid awkward conversations about how to pronounce or spell her full Chinese name.

That was until the pandemic when she was witnessing and reporting on anti-Asian hate crimes. Whilst eating at a Vietnamese restaurant, she saw customers mocking the waiter's accent. Knowing how these incidents often escalate, she remained quiet. But later her husband encouraged her to be prouder of her heritage.

At that point, she said no more and started to use her full byline. In a piece for The Washington Post at the start of 2022, she wrote about the incident and explained why Chinese people assume names to fit in: it can be deeply exclusionary when people do not try to say their names correctly or ask them to take on a different one. It is as if you are asking them to be someone else.

Speaking on the Journalism.co.uk podcast, she talks about her decision to embrace her Chinese names: "I was being there for my community, but I wasn't representing who I was," she says.

That story quickly became a record call-out, with thousands of readers getting in touch with their own experiences. It became clear that this was not an issue just amongst Asian communities but for anyone with an immigrant background or atypical name. Importantly, it also motivated readers to take similar action and reclaim their identity.

Nearly a year later, Chia-Ming Liu followed up the story with a piece spotlighting readers' voice clips, explaining the proper pronunciation, pain points and personal importance - crucially, preserving their intonation and accents.

That story selection process saw her take a data-led approach, tagging different responses based on age, location, themes and the moments which shaped their thinking. Responses from Egypt to Ukraine to Mexico speak to the breadth of resonance her own experiences have had.

Her story shows what can happen when one journalist plucks up the courage to stand up and talk about identity, causing a ripple effect amongst readers.

The Post has continued to feature more guests every month until Independence Day in US (4 July), a date that forces many people with immigrant backgrounds to re-examine their identity.

US readers can share their voice notes with the team by calling 1-202-334-7060 and overseas respondents can email.

"My mission, I’ve always seen as a journalist, is to help other people feel seen, make sure they’re heard and to be a speaker for voices that don’t get the chance," concludes Chia-Ming Liu.

Free daily newsletter

If you like our news and feature articles, you can sign up to receive our free daily (Mon-Fri) email newsletter (mobile friendly).