Human Regards with Shanta Loecker and Carolyn Sideco

This week’s episode is such a fun one! Human Regards co-host Carolyn and her twin sister Ros were recently featured in the new hit Netflix series, You Are What You Eat. Join us, as we break down their experience both in the research study and in front of the camera for the documentary. More behind-the-scenes coming your way all week on our social channels — listen to the episode out today, and then be sure to tune in for all the piping hot tea and more exclusive BTS from these hilarious and insightful twin sisters.

Guest Bios:

Carolyn Sideco is a Sports Relationship Coach and founder of Coaching Kapwa Sports Consultants. She makes a daily ritual of crafting and emerging her Filipinx American identities through relationship-building with people and energies of this world. She's a professionally trained kinesiologist, physical educator, and athletic administrator. Always confident in her Filipina American identity, Carolyn enjoys amplifying the experiences of Filipinx/a/o-identified people, and is proud to shine light on their constant contributions to our societies. She understands the special value identical twins have to scientific research, and leverages this privilege to encourage folks of color to participate in and be critical of research and data in their own lives. Participating in the Stanford Study helps make Carolyn an interesting person to chat with at parties, as she brings no karaoke-singing or other performative value to the scene. The Food 2.0 series also gave Carolyn a reason to beg her friends and family to help in grocery shopping and cooking, as she doesn't do either of those things regularly or with much skill. She hopes that folks who watch the series feel empowered to join in on the Food 2.0 conversation.

Rosalyn Sideco Moorhouse was born one minute after her twin in Tarlac, Philippines to Linda and Tony Sideco. She was raised in San Francisco following the family’s immigration to the United States. Rosalyn has three siblings and enjoys her brood of nephews and nieces. She earned a Masters Degree in Pastoral Ministry with an emphasis in Catechetics (Religious Education). Having worked with adolescents in various ministry settings since college, Rosalyn has been on faculty in the Religious Studies department at a Catholic high school for over 20 years. She takes her commitment to students seriously and considers the vocation of teaching an extension of her faith. Rosalyn and her monozygotic twin have been “Citizen Scientists” for over 30 years with Stanford’s National Twin Registry. They have proudly taken part in a range of studies to advance health and medicine. The plant-based vs. omnivore study was the most involved to date. Rosalyn found the fitness and biometric components most interesting and loved interacting with everyone involved in the project. Friends describe Rosalyn as fiercely loyal and adept at anticipating what they enjoy. Rosalyn lives with her husband, enjoying an empty nest while their son is in college.

Hello friends! We’re so excited to bring you our very first guest of season 2 today – Dr. Kevin Nadal. He’s a Professor of Psychology and his research over the last 30 plus years focuses on the intersections of race, ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation, as well as microagressions as they relate to all of these communities and identities. He specializes in Filipino American identity and experience. He is the author of 10 books including, "That's So Gay! Microaggressions and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Community”. Kevin is experienced in multicultural consulting, primarily leading trainings in corporate and non-profit organizations. And fun fact – in 2006, he was named one of People Magazine's hottest bachelors and in 2018, he was named one of NBC’s Pride 30. Please remember to click that listener supporter link in the show notes after you listen – we are entirely community driven and appreciate your support.

For more details about the extent of Kevin’s work, or for contact information and inquiries, please head to https://www.kevinnadal.com/.

We have a special treat for you this week! You may remember Mila’s guest episode from season 1! Carolyn and I had her on Human Regards to discuss her upcoming book, Everything You Think You Know About Adoption is A Lie. Well, lucky for us, she decided to release the book in audio form, and we have the introductory episode cued up for you here! Please enjoy this intro, The Call, and then head to the link below for all five episodes available now from this incredible writer, poet, and artist.

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Everything You Think You Know About Adoption is A Lie, Podcast Description:

As Adoption Survivors, our Voices are too often suppressed, ignored, and erased. This podcast is a declaration that we deserve to be seen, heard, and believed. Through a collection of insights, truths, personal anecdotes, poetry, and reflections, this podcast seeks to deconstruct common myths used in popular society to uphold and perpetuate the larger Adoption Myth. I hope by sharing what I have learned, we can continue to build abolitionist communities as we envision and create a future that allows us all to know love, belonging, and liberation.

The Call, Episode Description:

Welcome to Everything You Think You Know About Adoption is a Lie: Affirming and Centering Lived Experiences in the Deconstruction of the Adoption Myth.

In this introduction episode titled "The Call," I share about the the moment I received a phone call that my Korean parents had been located, and what unfolded in the aftermath. I also explore the reasons and purpose for creating this space. Every You Think You Know About Adoption is a Lie is a collection of insights, truths, personal anecdotes, poetry, reflections, and thoughts intended to provide a more complex counter narrative to the dominant and overly sanitized and romanticized adoption narrative. The content is a step toward deconstructing common myths used in popular society to uphold and perpetuate the larger Adoption Myth. It is also a call to know the truth about the systems underlying not only the circumstances of my adoption but the historical and geopolitical circumstances of oppression of which adoption is an extension. I hope by sharing what I have learned that together we can continue to tear down the curtain of lies, so that the truth may thrive and grow within our hearts and our communities as we envision and create a future that allows us all to know love, safety, and liberation.

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Welcome back to Human Regards, where we invite you to reinvent space, diffuse power, and reclaim your peace.

Today we get back to our roots! The two of us sit down and chat about what’s on our minds as we kick off season 2 – everything from the transcendence of jazz in New Orleans to National Adoptee Awareness Month, and finding ways to light up our personal and spiritual power in the face of global violence.

We also get into so-called online activism, shadow bans on the gram, and the collective influence of speaking out against oppression.

While you’re here, please consider leaving a quick review or signing up as a listener supporter, for as little as $1 a month. Hope you like the episode!

Welcome back to Human Regards!

Together, we invite you to reinvent space, diffuse power, and reclaim your peace. Like many of you, we have spent decades surviving systems, structures, and institutions that weren’t designed for us -- this show is about changing that.

Join us, as we expand and rewrite the so-called American narrative in a space designed for ALL of us to thrive.

What starts with some slightly embarrassing fan-girling (don’t judge...) turns into one of the most honest, vulnerable, and insightful conversations we’ve had this season on Human Regards.

Suchin Pak joins us for a deep dive into what it means to have choices beyond survival, the wisdom of our so-called “sandwich years,” and saying no to free labor, particularly during the verrry Asian month of May.

Suchin is a trailblazer in broadcast media, an introspective, thoughtful parent, and a brilliant human immersed in the intergenerational dynamics of the immigrant experience. We get to unpack all of those hats, big and teeny tiny, throughout this cathartic, candid, fresh episode. Put three deep thinkers in a room, and this is what you get – a whole lot of big ideas laced with laughter, affirmation, and genuine care. We cannot wait for part 2!

This week, we welcome JaeRan Kim to the show, and her research and writing has transformed the way we interact with the experiences of transracial, transnational adoptees for well over a decade. JaeRan shares a wealth of knowledge with us, some vital historical anecdotes like the painful US legacy of organized 'Orphan Trains', and her love for embracing process over product in this episode. She also reminds us all to pushback on monolithic thinking. There is more than one way; there is more than one narrative. Everything JaeRan does highlights the diversity of experiences in the often oversimplified and silenced communities most impacted by adoption – the adoptees, the displaced, the former foster youth. This episode will pull you in – in a personal way, in an intellectual way, in a social way – there are no limits to the depth of JaeRan’s community advocacy, research, storytelling, teaching, and impact in a society that might otherwise erase us, as transracial, transnational adoptees.

Guest Bio: JaeRan Kim, Ph.D., MSW, (she/hers) is an Associate Professor in the School of Social Work and Criminal Justice at the University of Washington at Tacoma. JaeRan’s research is focused on the wellbeing of adoptees, exploring disability, race, and transnational experiences for adoptees. JaeRan is passionate about engaging in community-based projects and has been blogging at Harlow’s Monkey, which focuses on the transracial/transnational adoptee experience, since 2006.

Follow and support JaeRan’s important work and writing at:

Today we have dj diA on the show. diA is Queer, vegan, an activist, and a self-proclaimed Buddhist in progress – as diA says, none of it is about being perfect. So often, the most exciting aspects of our lives are about process, exploration, and quite often – tossing out binary labels. For diA, music has been a life-long grounding force – from the woodwind section of their high school marching band to the curation of two original radio shows. Beneath the electric vegan punk vibe and a visible passion for justice – diA reminds us to find comfort in the things we CAN change – to love on our platonic soulmates – and when in doubt, just ask – what would Alice Bag do? Bottom line, when it comes to diA, it all comes back to music (and Sanrio).

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Guest Bio:

Today, we welcome Paloma Concordia to the show. A true innovator, she has reinvented the public relations space with PapaLoDown, where her client list includes scholars, arts activists, entrepreneurs, and more. Using a “less is more” approach, Paloma defies capitalist-driven “grind” culture, and puts relationships and humanity at the center of everything she does, completely redefining success in the process.

Tune in, as we cover her role in Lumpia the movie, the big cross country move to New York City, necessary education via Bay Area hip hop, and the broader historical foundations that the field of public relations offers historically erased and oppressed peoples. This episode is a real treat, from start to finish.

Guest Bio: Paloma B. Concordia (she/her) was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, and gives credit to New York City for developing her business savvy state of mind. Her education and career began in the fashion and retail industry, and transitioned into the music business at the height of the digital media boom. Inspired by progressive artists in the Bay Area, Paloma began to explore youth empowerment programs and social justice initiatives, and found her passion in supporting the progressive arts community through public relations.

The great chefs of the world are artists; they tell intricate, personal stories with their food, and Chef Cristina Quackenbush is no exception. Today we learn about her journey from the Philippines, to the rural midwestern farmland of Indiana, and finally, to the thriving cultural center of New Orleans, Louisiana, which she now calls home. With Milkfish and the Good Trouble Network, Cristina has continued to weave a beautiful, intergenerational tapestry of family, activism, culture and irresistible food throughout her life. You’re gonna eat up this episode faster than a plate of Chef's pork adobo; trust us, Cristina is a one of a kind talent, creative, and human being. Grab a snack, take a break from the hustle of the work week, and enjoy.

Things have been pretty heavy in the world lately, so we took this opportunity to bring some levity to the mix…and, oh my, did we laugh a lot in this one. Today we discuss the intersectional madness of March, in particular all of the socialized nuance of the NCAA women's basketball tournament, the exclusivity of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour (and the glaring whiteness of the Glendale stop), plus the audacity of #GirlDads. As always, we wrap up with the ways we’ve reclaimed our own personal peace these last couple weeks, including combatting the pesky sense of urgency attached to white supremacy culture, and just skipping the bracket nonsense this year. Most importantly, we laugh a LOT. Enjoy the episode, and please remember to chip in as a Human Regards supporter if you can at the link below! We appreciate you. Virtual hugs.

Note: While we focus much of our energy on dreaming up personal versions of healing and peace today, we also discuss racial trauma and family separation in this episode. Please take care of yourself as you listen.

This week’s episode is all about Mila Konomos’ upcoming book, entitled, Everything You Know About Adoption Is A Lie. Join us as we dive into the complex layers of the transracial, transnational adoption industry, unlock our collective truth, and work to diffuse power by not-so-simply, letting go. We spend this hour actively unlearning the dominant narrative surrounding transracial adoption in the U.S., redefining community care as adopted people, and as always – finding levity and humor in some of our most challenging moments. We promise you will learn something new if you invest your time and energy in this space with us today. Put on your thinking caps, friends. This episode is truly what Human Regards is all about.

Guest Bio: Mila C.C. Konomos, aka The Empress Han, is a survivor of the Global Adoption Trafficking Trade. She is a performance poet, artist, and writer. Her work frames Transracial, Transnational Adoption within its broader geopolitical context as an extension of oppressive, colonialist systems. Mila has been featured in various media outlets and podcasts, including CNN, Korean American Story, the L.A. Times, National Geographic, the Atlanta-Journal Constitution, Reckon, and the Adapted Podcast. Her work has also been featured in the ABCs of AAPIs Coloring Book sponsored by the Asian American Advocacy Fund and in several anthologies, including Flip the Script: Adult Adoptee Anthology, Lost Daughters: Writing From a Place of Empowerment and Peace, Adoption Reunion in the Social Media Age, and Adoption Therapy: Perspectives from Clients and Clinicians on Processing and Healing Post-Adoption Issues. She has facilitated poetry workshops for Asian Americans Advancing Justice, Atlanta Radical Art, and City of Decatur Schools. Mila has also published two musical poetry albums. Her latest project, a booklet + workbook titled, “Everything You Think You Know About Adoption is a Lie: An Introduction to Affirming and Centering Lived Experiences in the Deconstruction of the Adoption Myth,” will be released in 2023.

Note there are mentions of depression, loss, and suicidal ideation in this episode. Please take care of yourself as you listen.

Get ready to laugh, cry, and well, steer clear of the eggplant emoji…LOL. Today we welcome the incomparable Tonilyn A. Sideco to the show, and in their words – Queerness abounds! We explore what they call the “evidence of existence” – from a taboo emoji or two *faceslap*, to the angelic troublemakers among us. We discuss the necessity of joy and grief, levity and darkness…and how those aren’t actually dichotomies at all. More than a podcast, this episode is a feeling, a remembrance, a knowing, and a reconciliation. There is value in the ways we connect as people. Tonilyn will tell you – “I’m not half *ssing sh*t anymore.” And, yes, we went all in on this one. Come through.

Today’s episode is a long, deep drink of ice cold, blue water (although, full disclosure, we're both drinking hot water at the jump lol). Take a break, grab a glass, and sit with us, as we unpack how we have reinvented spaces this week, including our ever evolving relationships with nature. We’ll reflect on how healing justice and our recent conversations with that famous green comet intersect. And never fear – as always, we’ll pause to examine how we dreamt up some semblance of peace this week. In the wise words of Carolyn -- "Woo! Let's go!".

It's not every day you meet another self-proclaimed sub-5-foot "Brown Asian" who grew up playing basketball, let me tell you. Our pilot episode is an invitation to laugh, ponder, and sure, sometimes put on your serious face. We start out season 1 with our collective take on what it looks like to restore healthy space, share power, and reclaim peace as two women of the Global Majority who each spent over a decade in an industry built for, well, cis white dudes... *shrugs 'cause it's true*. Join us as we discuss the Human Regards “origin story”, and examine our collective experiences as self-identified women of the Global Majority at the intersection of anti-oppression work and, yup, youth basketball lol.