We Sing from the Heart

How the Slants® Took Their Fight for Free Speech to the Supreme Court

A TRUE TALE WITH

A CHERRY ON TOP

Red Comet Press

pub. 10.15.2024

48 pages

Ages 8 - 12

Author: Mia Wenjen

   Illustrator: Victor Bizar Gómez

Character: Simon Tam and The Slants®

Overview:

"Music is a way to transcend cultures and divides. Simon Tam used his band's name, The Slants®, to make a powerful statement that racist insults could no longer be hurtful to Asian Americans.

But then the U.S. Trade and Patent Office tries to stop him. In his eight-year battle to win trademark protection, Simon would go all the way to the Supreme Court in a landmark case to rout out structural racism in our government systems.

Mia Wenjen takes us back to Simon's early days and the formation of the band, to the long battle to claim the name they chose to use. We learn of his motivations and the years-long struggle that leads ultimately to the Supreme Court of the United States."

Tantalizing taste:

"Simon realized that if he could show that the judicial system was racist, he could right a history of wrongs. He decided to fight for his rights - in court.

Fired up, Simon talked to Asian American leaders in his community and online. Everyone wanted him to keep fighting, so he went to court to make his case ...

Two thousand pages of support came pouring in but was not enough. Simon lost his case, but he refused to give up, and The Slants continued to perform."

And something more: In the back matter, author Mia Wenjen explains "I was one of the hundreds of Asian Americans who Simon Tam asked to write a letter of support for his case. I was struck by Simon's eloquence and determination to fight against an invisible form of racism - structural racism is our court systerm... I was struck by the fact that there have only been a handful of Asian American cases heard by the Supreme Court."

"In 2019, The Slants® officially retired from touring to focus on their nonprofit organization, The Slants Foundation. The band continues to compose music but no longer performs. The Slants Foundation provides mentorship and scholarships for Asian American artists who want to incorporate activism into their work: TheSlants.org."

As a prior intellectual property attorney, I admire the dedication, activism and persistence of Simon Tan, Mia Wenjen and many others who prevailed in righting this wrong.