ICE arrests 36 Chinese, Taiwanese nationals in SoCal nightclub raid
Federal agents arrested dozens of Chinese and Taiwanese citizens suspected of being in the U.S. illegally in an underground nightclub raid in Southern California last week.
The Rebel Yellow - Issue #79
From Vietnamese American nail salon workers challenging unequal labor laws to a billion-dollar “AI” startup exposed as smoke and mirrors, this week’s stories uncover the systems, policies, and illusions shaping our everyday lives. We’re spotlighting lawsuits, raids, and political rejections — but also the quiet resilience behind them. Plus, Ocean Vuong returns with a new novel that dares to find beauty in fractured realities.
Vietnamese American nail salon workers sue California for discrimination
Vietnamese American nail salon workers and business owners filed a federal lawsuit against California on Saturday, claiming the state’s labor code unfairly targets their industry by mandating that manicurists work as employees instead of independent contractors.
Driving the news: The legal challenge targets Assembly Bill 5, which took effect in 2019 with phased implementation and created tougher standards for worker classification following a 2018 California Supreme Court ruling. Many professions secured exclusions from AB 5 — such as accountants, doctors, real estate agents and hairdressers — but nail technicians faced mandatory reclassification from contractors to employees starting this year. Data shows about 82% of California’s nail technicians are Vietnamese American, with 85% being women, according to Assemblymember Tri Ta.
What they are saying: The workers’ suit, filed in the U.S. District Court in Santa Ana on Saturday, alleges that California violated the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause. “Since January, Vietnamese American manicurists have faced blatant discrimination under California’s labor laws, stripped of the same rights and freedoms afforded to others in their industry,” attorney Scott Wellman said. Working mother Katie Le emphasized the importance of flexibility, telling KABC, “I love what I’m doing. I choose my hours because I have ... young kids and I could take them to school.”
The big picture: The industry’s Vietnamese dominance traces back to the large refugee influx that began in 1975 after Saigon fell during the Vietnam War. Yet wage issues remain a concern — UCLA Labor Center analysis revealed nail salon workers earned a median $10.94 per hour in 2021, falling short of the $13 minimum wage then required for small businesses.
Ta introduced Assembly Bill 504 in February to restore equal rights to manicurists.
Over half of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders experienced hate in 2024
More than half of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) adults in the U.S. faced hate incidents in 2024, according to a new report by Stop AAPI Hate. The survey, conducted in January 2025 with NORC at the University of Chicago, found that 53% of AAPI adults reported experiencing hate due to their race, ethnicity or nationality — a slight increase from 49% in 2023.
Young adults most affected: Young AAPI adults aged 18 to 29 reported the highest levels of hate, with 74% indicating they were targeted in 2024. Incidents included verbal harassment, bullying, and physical violence, as well as institutional discrimination. Many respondents shared experiences of being told to “go back to where you came from” or being treated as if they were not American.
Hate incidents often unreported: Despite the high prevalence, 77% of those who experienced hate did not report it to authorities. Most said they did not believe the incident was serious enough or felt reporting would not lead to meaningful change. Of those, 65% believed the incident was insignificant, yet over half of those may have involved unlawful behavior.
Mental health toll: The impact on mental health was significant, with 70% of those who experienced hate reported frequent stress and 59% said they experienced anxiety, 40% said the incidents harmed their overall health and more than a third said they felt less of a sense of belonging in the U.S.
Political rhetoric a factor: The report also highlighted the role of the political climate during the 2024 election season in fueling anti-AAPI sentiment. Respondents reported being harassed with political slogans and anti-immigrant rhetoric. One person recalled being told, “I can’t wait until Trump gets reelected so you all can go back to where you came from.”
Community efforts and resilience: Despite ongoing discrimination, 66% of AAPI adults said they took action to counter racism in 2024, including participating in advocacy, education and community engagement. Eighty-two percent expressed optimism that they could help end racism through collective efforts.
ICE officers ordered to increase warrantless arrests: report
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) leadership has reportedly ordered field personnel to escalate arrest operations and detain individuals without warrants.
Enforcement push
Marcos Charles, who leads ICE’s enforcement division, instructed personnel to detain “collaterals” — people found during warrant operations beyond the intended targets — in internal emails distributed last Saturday, according to The Guardian. Charles reportedly encouraged agents to “turn up the creative knob up to 11 and push the envelope,” writing that after years of limitations, “now the time has come for us to step up!” Francisco Madrigal, another senior official, reportedly emphasized weekend arrest priorities in his own message, noting, “If it involves handcuffs on wrists, it’s probably worth pursuing.”
The weekend instructions correspond with White House pressure on ICE to triple their daily arrests, including reported threats from Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller to dismiss officials who fail to meet quotas.
Record arrests, new methods
Tuesday saw ICE achieve its highest single-day detention ever, processing over 2,200 individuals. Hundreds detained were enrolled in the agency’s supervised release program, which uses electronic monitoring and scheduled visits instead of jail custody.
Some participants allegedly received messages asking them to report ahead of schedule, then were arrested when they appeared. ICE also updated courthouse arrest protocols, eliminating previous requirements for agents to consider state and local regulations before enforcement near courts.
The big picture
This is not the first time federal agents would arrest people without a warrant. In April, Homeland Security officials confirmed detaining Columbia University activist Mahmoud Khalil without first securing a warrant, asserting urgent conditions that his lawyers challenge.
Current enforcement tactics differ significantly from Obama and Biden policies, which focused resources on individuals with criminal backgrounds. Legal advocates fear the expanded approach may lead to constitutional violations and mistaken arrests of American citizens.
Capacity constraints also complicate operations, with detention centers holding nearly 49,000 people while receiving funding for approximately 47,000 spaces. Policymakers plan to allocate $147 billion toward immigration enforcement over the next decade to support the expanded activities.
ICE arrests 36 Chinese, Taiwanese nationals in SoCal nightclub raid
Federal agents arrested dozens of Chinese and Taiwanese citizens suspected of being in the U.S. illegally in an underground nightclub raid in Southern California last week.
What happened
The raid, which took place in an undisclosed nightclub, was jointly conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, Los Angeles Homeland Security Investigations officers and members of the El Camino Real Financial Crimes Task Force early Friday.
Video footage shows scenes of individuals gathered on the sidewalk outside a building before being handcuffed and loaded into white vans. A total of 36 Chinese and Taiwanese nationals were arrested at the scene.
The big picture
The raid comes amid leadership shakeup at ICE and it implements President Donald Trump’s directive to accelerate arrests and deportations nationwide. The agency reportedly achieved its highest number of arrests in a single day — more than 2,200 — on Tuesday.
It also follows a pattern of recent immigration enforcement actions in the region, including the previous arrest of 12 Mexican citizens in Long Beach and earlier operations targeting day laborers in Pomona and Kern County.
Chinese researchers charged with smuggling “potential agroterrorism” fungus into U.S.
Experts, however, disagree Fusarium graminearum can be used as a weapon
Yunqing Jian, a University of Michigan researcher, and her boyfriend, Zunyong Liu, a visiting academic from China, have been charged with conspiring to smuggle Fusarium graminearum — a crop-infecting fungus — into the U.S., federal prosecutors announced Monday. The pathogen causes head blight in staple grains and is cited in scientific literature as a potential agroterrorism agent due to its economic and toxicological impact.
Fungus discovery
In July 2024, Liu was stopped by U.S. Customs and Border Protection at Detroit Metropolitan Airport. According to the criminal complaint, officials found vials containing Fusarium graminearum concealed in his belongings. Liu initially denied carrying biological materials but later admitted to bringing the fungus to conduct research at the University of Michigan, where Jian was employed. The university did not have the required federal permit to handle the fungus.
Charges tied to biological threat
Jian, 33, and Liu, 34, were charged with conspiracy, smuggling goods into the U.S., making false statements and visa fraud. The Justice Department said the fungus infects wheat, barley, maize and rice, producing toxins that can harm both humans and livestock. Although the pathogen exists in the U.S., unauthorized importation of unregulated strains poses additional risks.
“These two aliens have been charged with smuggling a fungus that has been described as a ‘potential agroterrorism weapon’ into the heartland of America, where they apparently intended to use a University of Michigan laboratory to further their scheme,” said U.S. Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon Jr. in the department’s June 3 statement.
Biological weapon claim
FBI Director Kash Patel told Fox News Digital: “This case is a sobering reminder that the Chinese Communist Party continues to deploy operatives and researchers to infiltrate our institutions and target our food supply, an act that could cripple our economy and endanger American lives.”
However, plant pathology experts like Clair Keene, an agronomist at North Dakota State University, express skepticism over the characterization of Fusarium graminearum as a biological weapon. “It's a common pathogen. We have it here. The claim that Fusarium graminearum can be used as a biological weapon doesn't strike me as accurate,” she told Reuters.
Experts also note that it is not uncommon for scientists to import foreign plants, animals or microorganisms to study traits such as pesticide resistance or environmental tolerance. U.S. regulations require federal permits for such transfers to prevent the spread of potentially harmful organisms. Why Jian and Liu attempted to bring Fusarium graminearum into the country without proper authorization remains unclear.
Denial of funding from China
In response to the case, the University of Michigan said it is cooperating with federal law enforcement in its ongoing investigation and prosecution. “It is important to note that the university has received no funding from the Chinese government in relation to research conducted by the accused individuals,” it added.
The case comes as the University of Michigan is among several institutions facing pressure from the Trump administration over their research ties to China and broader national security concerns. Jian remains in custody pending a bond hearing. Liu was denied entry to the U.S. and returned to China. The U.S. does not have an extradition treaty with China.
Santa Ono rejected for U. of Florida presidency in surprise reversal
Ono faced fierce conservative opposition due to his ex-support for DEI
The Florida Board of Governors voted 10-6 Tuesday to reject Dr. Santa J. Ono’s appointment as University of Florida (UF) president, unexpectedly overturning the unanimous approval by the university’s Board of Trustees amid conservative opposition to his past support for diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs.
Catch up: Ono, who previously served as president of the University of Michigan, was unanimously selected by UF trustees on May 27 to become the university’s 14th president. The appointment followed a search to replace Ben Sasse, who resigned in July 2024. However, prominent conservatives including Donald Trump Jr., Rep. Byron Donalds and activist Christopher Rufo launched opposition campaigns questioning Ono’s past DEI advocacy, as well as statements on COVID-19, climate change, transgender rights and handling of pro-Palestinian protests.
The decision: Tuesday’s nearly four-hour hearing saw Ono repeatedly state that he had evolved on DEI issues and pledge such programs would not exist at UF. Former state House Speakers Paul Renner and Jose Oliva led the aggressive questioning, with Oliva asking how Ono could abandon what he called “an entire ideological architecture.” Meanwhile, board member Charles Lydecker criticized the interrogation approach, stating the process seemed unfair.
The big picture: Ono’s rejection marks an unprecedented reversal of a university trustees’ unanimous presidential selection and exposes tensions within Florida’s Republican establishment. Gov. Ron DeSantis found himself caught between longtime billionaire supporter Mori Hosseini — who championed Ono — and national conservatives demanding rejection, with his chief of staff reportedly making supportive calls. The decision prompted widespread ridicule from University of Michigan faculty and alumni, with one regent posting that Ono “doesn’t believe in anything — just auditions for approval in whatever room he’s in.”
The search for UF’s next president will now start over.
$1.5 billion “AI” startup’s reality: 700 Indian engineers pretended to be a chatbot
Builder.ai, a London-based startup once valued at $1.5 billion and backed by Microsoft, has filed for bankruptcy after it was revealed that its supposed AI platform was powered by 700 engineers in India.
What happened: The company marketed its virtual assistant “Natasha” as an automated solution for building software, claiming it used artificial intelligence to develop applications. Internal audits and whistleblower accounts showed the work was largely done manually by engineers, with AI playing little to no role.
Driving the news: Builder.ai reported $220 million in revenue for 2024, but an audit found actual revenue was closer to $50 million. Lender Viola Credit seized $37 million in company assets after discovering the discrepancy. Employees said they were instructed to present their manual coding as AI-generated. Investigators also uncovered suspected “round-tripping” deals with Indian tech firm VerSe Innovation to inflate reported sales.
The big picture: The case has become a high-profile example of “AI washing” — the growing trend of tech companies exaggerating or faking their use of artificial intelligence to attract investors. It raises concerns about accountability in a sector racing to commercialize AI. Madiha Zuberi, an enforcement attorney in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, recently noted, “We're looking at whether there's transparency around the technology, whether it's described accurately, whether there's responsible communications to customers.”
What’s next: Builder.ai is under federal investigation in the United States over its financial reporting. The company owes significant debts, including $85 million to Amazon and $30 million to Microsoft for cloud services. Approximately 1,000 employees have already been laid off as part of the collapse.
Interview: Ocean Vuong’s “The Emperor of Gladness” finds beauty in broken realities
Three years after his poetry collection “Time Is a Mother” moved readers, Ocean Vuong has returned with “The Emperor of Gladness,” a story that explores the transformative power of unexpected human connection. In the crumbling post-industrial landscape of East Gladness, Connecticut, 19-year-old Hai stands at the edge of his own ending when Grazina — an elderly widow whose dementia has untethered her from linear time — intervenes with the kind of accidental grace that changes everything.
Speaking with The Rebel Yellow, Vuong, 36, discusses the intricate craft behind his latest work, reflecting on how he navigates the delicate portrayal of mental illness, economic hardship and human connection.
Rebel Yellow: Your novel centers on the unlikely friendship between Hai, a suicidal 19-year-old, and Grazina, an elderly widow with dementia. How did you approach portraying their complex emotions and societal struggles in a way that feels both intimate and universal?
Vuong: I follow the feelings enacted by the sentence. The language sets the tone and I try my best to follow it. I don’t enforce any hard, clear feeling onto the work. I think the work of literature is to complicate, disturb, trouble and expand preconceived ideas, so all feelings should be welcomed without being reified and prioritized over others.
Rebel Yellow: Grazina’s dementia appears to be a powerful metaphor for collective forgetting and the fragility of memory. What inspired you to use this motif, and how does it shape the novel’s exploration of identity and human worth?
Vuong: I’m interested in dementia (and hallucinations, at large) as a function of forgetting without agency. Whose reality is true and whose is false? Who are we to say? It throws into pathological clarity the truly subjective condition of human experience and becomes a metaphor for fictive tendencies in our species. Hai “follows” Grazina’s delusions in order to not shame her into being “wrong,” and from that collaboration they both fashion an imaginative world to embody — they become authors, if you will, in their shared alternative realities.
Rebel Yellow: Readers feel “The Emperor of Gladness” employs lyrical, restrained prose and a non-linear narrative structure. How did you balance these formal elements to create the emotional resonance that readers experience throughout the novel?
Vuong: To me, writing is inherently a musical practice, words have sounds, even when read silently. They leave timbres in the mind. And I’m interested in both lyrical and more laconic, clear modes of sentence structure to get the work done. I think sentences should gallop, which require both long and short strides, smooth and choppy. As for the form, I wanted to borrow the form of the sonnet. The sonnet is perhaps one of the more innovative forms in anglophonic poetry because of its restrictions, because of what it does not allow. In a way, it’s a cage — which is what a fast-food joint is, what mental illness is, perhaps even what our very bodies are. The question, then, is how do we innovate inwards, like the sonnet? How do we tell the story that refuses to ameliorate itself with plots of escape, but rather, questions how people survive without breaking out of systems?”
Rebel Yellow: The story’s setting — East Gladness, Connecticut — vividly captures a town marked by economic decline and resilience. How did you use this specific environment to deepen the themes of community, memory and survival in the novel?
Vuong: One cannot write about place without writing about history. What interests me in auto-fiction is that the historical, and thereby political, stakes experienced by the protagonist are also shared with the author. And since a person is always contingent to their time and place, the novel becomes a powerful medium to explore how historical aftermaths play out for a community at a specific time and place.
Rebel Yellow: The novel is said to highlight the theme of “chosen family” and the resilience found within marginalized communities. What message do you hope readers take away about belonging and redemption in contemporary America?
Vuong: I think whatever a reader feels about my work is valid. I don’t have specific things I want to impart on anyone. I wanted to write a book about working poor people without turning it into poverty porn, like so much of what I’ve seen in contemporary literary culture. I also did not want to use a plot system that somehow miraculously/fantastically solved their ‘problems,’ which prioritizes a disingenuous sense of ‘relief’ in a reader.
Rebel Yellow: As a Vietnamese American refugee who immigrated to the U.S. as a child and whose family history spans war, displacement and resilience, how have your personal experiences shaped your storytelling, especially in “The Emperor of Gladness”?
Vuong: Asian American literary lineages are still sparse and full of holes, full of ghosts. I’m proud to be able to be in this lineage in any way I can. But I’m also cautious and wary of the project of “representation.” No one person should be tasked or expected to represent a community. I’m more interested, instead, in presence — which allows us all to be visible, on our own terms, and not be asked to speak for anyone else. I reject the idea that my work gives voice to any community — but if it inspires Asian Americans to speak for themselves and make art on their own terms as individuals, that is an immense joy.
Japan’s ex-Princess Mako, who gave up title to marry commoner, welcomes first child
Mako Komuro, formerly Princess Mako of Japan, has given birth to her first child after renouncing her royal title in 2021 to marry Kei Komuro, a commoner and her former college classmate.
Japan’s Imperial Household Agency confirmed the birth on May 30 but did not disclose the baby’s gender or exact date of birth. The newborn is the first grandchild of Crown Prince Akishino and Crown Princess Kiko and the first great-grandchild of former Emperor Akihito.
The couple currently resides in New York City, where Kei works as a lawyer. Their marriage, delayed for years amid public controversy over a financial dispute involving Kei’s mother, marked a significant break from imperial tradition. Mako declined the customary $1.3 million dowry offered to women leaving the royal family and described her husband as “irreplaceable,” calling their marriage a necessary step.
Jackie Chan says he didn’t understand the words coming out of Chris Tucker’s mouth in “Rush Hour”
Martial arts legend Jackie Chan recently revealed that he didn’t understand one of the most iconic jokes from the 1998 action-comedy “Rush Hour” — or much of what his co-star said at all.
Speaking with People, the 71-year-old star recalled being confused by the audience’s laughter at the line “Never touch a Black man’s radio,” delivered by Chris Tucker. “After the movie finished, I still don’t like it. Because I just don’t understand a lot of things. The culture is totally different,” he said. “The people laughing, ‘Never touch a Black man’s radio.’ I just… ‘Why? Why so funny?’ I just don’t understand! [It’s a] totally different culture. I was very disappointed.”
The line is a comedic exaggeration of how personal music is — particularly in Black American culture — and reflects the film’s humor around cultural clashes and boundaries.
In a separate appearance on “The Kelly Clarkson Show,” Chan added, “The whole movie, I don’t know what Chris Tucker’s saying. Every scene, every shot, different dialogue.” He said he often relied on a dialogue coach during filming.
Despite the cultural and language barriers, “Rush Hour” was a box-office success and sparked a long-running franchise. Chan has expressed interest in making a fourth installment, urging studios to act quickly. “Hurry up! Otherwise, Chris Tucker and me [will be] 100 years old,” he joked during a recent interview.