Alysa Liu: Meet the Asian American skater who just made Olympic history in Milan
Rising skating star Alysa Liu captured two Olympic gold medals in Milan, first helping the U.S. win the team event and then claiming the women’s singles title on Feb. 19.
The Rebel Yellow - Issue #184
The Trump administration began collecting a new 10% global import tariff Tuesday after the Supreme Court struck down its earlier emergency tariffs, with President Donald Trump signaling plans to raise the rate to 15% under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974. In Milan, 20-year-old Alysa Liu won Olympic gold in women’s figure skating, becoming the first U.S. woman to claim the title since 2002. In Texas, right-wing media figure Alex Stein appeared at a Plano City Council meeting dressed in caricatured Indian attire and mocked Hindu religious practices, prompting Indian American attendees to walk out. A new Gallup and Brookings survey found most Americans say race does not shape their daily decisions, even as a majority view the country as racially divided. Meanwhile, Michelle Yeoh received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, reflecting on a career that spans Hong Kong cinema to her historic Academy Award win.
Trump admin begins collecting 10% global tariff amid promise of higher rate
Following the Supreme Court’s ruling last week, the Trump administration has begun collecting a 10% global import tariff Tuesday, with plans to raise it to 15%.
Latest developments: After the Supreme Court struck down his emergency tariffs 6-3 on Feb. 20, Trump invoked Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 to impose a 10% tariff lasting 150 days. By Saturday, the president announced plans to raise the rate to 15%, the maximum allowed under Section 122. However, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) guidance sent to shippers Monday night confirmed only 10% would apply starting Tuesday. The White House told Reuters that Trump has “no change of heart” about seeking 15%, though no formal order was signed.
Legal concerns: Legal experts question whether the new tariffs comply with the law. The administration argues a “large and serious United States balance-of-payments deficit” exists, which Section 122 requires. But economists dispute this, noting the U.S. faces no such crisis. Additionally, trade deficits and balance-of-payments deficits are separate concepts Cong ress deliberately distinguished. And perhaps most problematic, the administration has taken the opposite position in the past, with the Justice Department arguing in earlier court filings that Section 122 has “no application” when concerns arise from trade deficits, which differ fundamentally from balance-of-payments deficits.
What this means for Asian Americans: The new 10% tariff offers Asian American communities little relief despite being lower than invalidated rates. Under the struck-down system, South Korean imports faced 15% duties while Indian goods carried 50%, hitting grocers hard given reliance on specialty products with no domestic alternatives and thin margins. That damage is done. Businesses that closed are unlikely to reopen, with owners citing the tariffs, rising rent and customers scared away by ICE operations.
Consumers should not expect lower prices. Mary Lovely, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, told NPR that “price stickiness,” where prices lag behind cost changes, means retailers will not quickly lower what they charge. More critically for Asian American importers, the uncertainty itself creates ongoing harm. Business owners cannot plan inventory or pricing when tariffs could reset every 150 days. Asian governments that negotiated reduced rates with Washington now question whether those agreements remain valid.
Endless tariffs: The instability shows no signs of ending for Asian American business owners. While Section 122 limits tariffs to 150 days, Trump could simply reset. Meanwhile, other administration tariffs remain untouched, including Section 232 duties on steel, aluminum and automobiles, plus Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods. The administration plans to use these for “accelerated” investigations into additional sectors.
Plaintiffs in the Supreme Court case filed motions Tuesday seeking refunds of more than $175 billion in revenue collected under the invalidated tariffs.
Alysa Liu: Meet the Asian American skater who just made Olympic history in Milan
Rising skating star Alysa Liu captured two Olympic gold medals in Milan, first helping the U.S. win the team event and then claiming the women’s singles title on Feb. 19. The 20-year-old Oakland, California, native delivered a decisive free skate to secure her individual victory with 226.79 points. In doing so, she became the first woman since Sarah Hughes at the 2002 Salt Lake City Games to win Olympic singles gold, ending a 24-year drought for U.S. women in the event.
“I think that everything, even [the first part of] my skating career and the time I spent away from the sport and coming back, everything has led to this; has led to that performance,” Liu told Olympics.com.
From teen phenom to champion
Born in Clovis and raised in Oakland, Liu is the daughter of Chinese immigrants. Her father, Arthur Liu, emigrated from Sichuan province and raised five children in the Bay Area. She began skating at age 5 and quickly emerged as one of the sport’s most technically ambitious young athletes, landing multiple triple axels as a teenager.
In 2019, Liu became the youngest U.S. women’s national champion in history at age 13. She later won bronze at the 2022 World Figure Skating Championships and finished sixth at the Beijing Winter Olympics. Shortly after Beijing, she announced her retirement from elite competition, saying she felt satisfied with her career at the time.
She resumed full-time training in 2024 after nearly two years away from competition. In January 2025, she earned silver at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships. Two months later, she captured gold at the World Figure Skating Championships, becoming the first American woman to win a world title since 2006.
Immigrant champion
Liu has added her voice to fellow U.S. athletes who have spoken out about immigration enforcement during the 2026 Winter Games, as the Trump administration intensified deportation efforts and expanded federal immigration raids. The crackdown has prompted protests in several cities, including in California, where Liu was raised.
“I definitely do really care about what our country is doing, and I think it is really important also to, you know, notice, like, the faults in our own government. Yeah, very similar to my dad,” she said. “Yeah, things are a little rough, a little rough in our country, but I think every government has its issues.”
She also acknowledged participating in demonstrations. “There’s so many protests that are going on and I’ve attended,” Liu said. “Coming from a family of immigrants, I think immigrants deserve rights.”
Milan’s defining performance
Liu entered the Olympic individual competition in Milan as the reigning world champion but trailed after the short program. Skating to “Promise” by Chinese Icelandic singer Laufey, she scored 76.59 points, highlighted by a triple Lutz-triple loop combination placed in the second half for a 10% bonus despite an under-rotation call. Her free skate to Donna Summer’s “MacArthur Park Suite” delivered the highest segment score of the night at 150.20. Liu completed seven triples and four doubles and received no negative grades of execution.
“I mean, it was just bliss,” she said after her winning performance. “I was so happy to be there. I felt like I was floating; and I felt the crowd carried me. I did everything I wanted to do.” She has framed her return to competition as a personal decision rooted in renewed perspective rather than pressure. “The most important part of my story is human connection,” she said. “That’s all I want in my life, human connection.”
Liu’s Olympic success has also prompted renewed comparisons to Eileen Gu, another athlete of Chinese heritage born and raised in the Bay Area, who won gold in women’s freestyle skiing halfpipe and silver medals in both slopestyle and big air at the 2026 Winter Olympics.
Right-wing troll appears as caricatured Indian persona at Plano City Council meeting
Indian American residents walked out of a Plano City Council meeting on Feb. 10 after right-wing media figure Alex Stein mocked Hindu religious practices during public comments.
