Grace Ly | |
---|---|
Born | 1979 |
Occupation(s) | writer, podcaster, activist |
Website | La Petite Banane |
Grace Ly (born in 1979) is a French writer, podcaster and anti-racist and feminist activist. [1]
Ly's parents are Cambodian Chinese. They fled the Khmer Rouge regime and arrived to France in the 1970s. [2] In Grenoble, her father initially ran an Asian food restaurant. Ly and her family were the only Asians in their neighborhood. When Ly was 6 years old, her family moved to Paris. [3] Ly studied law and subsequently worked for eight years for an entertainment company, in France and in London. She however did not find the corporate job fulfilling. [3]
In 2011, Ly launched the blog Petite Banane (Little Banana) dedicated to food. [4] [3] The blog evolved from food to also discuss racial stereotypes that are associated with Asian food and Asian communities more broadly. This led Ly to launch the web-series Ça reste entre nous (It Stays Between Us). [2] In her work, Ly denounces the model minority myth and the corrosive effect of positive stereotypes often associated with the Asian community in France. [4] Imitating accents is one form of casual racism that Ly considers as offensive. [5] Ly's first novel Une jeune fille modèle (A model young girl) was published in 2018. [3] The book is a work of fiction inspired by her personal story. [2]
In 2018 Ly launched the podcast Kiffe Ta Race (Love Your Race) together with the French journalist Rokhaya Diallo. [4] [6] Ly cites among her influences author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. [2]