Profile image of Angela Chen
Angela
Project management specialist

Gender — Race & Ethnicity

Taking action in the face of anti-Asian racism and risk

“Lessons learned at Boeing helped her to stand up against racism her community experienced during the global pandemic”

Angela Chen is a project management specialist in Ridley Park, Pennsylvania. She has worked at Boeing for 12 years

“I’m first generation American. My parents didn’t speak English. I started translating English and Cantonese for them when I was six. I wrote the checks for bills, and I would take my mom to the unemployment office when she wasn’t working and say what we needed in kid language.

My mom sewed for a living, my dad was a Chinese chef. They had a combined salary of no more than $15,000 a year. We lived in Philadelphia. I didn’t feel a lot of racism in my own neighborhood, but I did at school. If you weren’t black or white, you weren’t considered American. If you weren’t born in China, you weren’t considered fully Chinese either. Sometimes, I felt discriminated against because I wasn’t a true American to Americans or a true Chinese to Chinese.”

Angela Chen profile image
Angela Chen in New York City’s Chinatown before she moved to Philadelphia for first grade.
Photo courtesy Angela Chen

“I had my head on straight, and helping my parents with the bills helped me identify goals. Working for Boeing is my proudest accomplishment. It was my first job after college. When I started, I thought, I’m not joining a business resource group to go hang out with just Asians. I didn’t understand the purpose. It wasn’t until five years ago that I joined the Boeing Asian Professional Association board, and I saw how being part of this BRG benefits Boeing and my community. That’s why I feel so passionate about diversity and inclusion, because being first generation, I can see different ends of the spectrum. I want to help bridge the gap where we look at each other as one race and that we’re all human.

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, some of my friends experienced racism, and I’ve encountered it too. One of my friends who works at Boeing almost got run over in Chinatown. I voiced my concerns to leadership to see how we could address unconscious bias. It was amazing when they listened and responded. It’s important for mangers, leadership or even colleagues to be sensitive and aware of the Asian community’s experiences.

I’m scared of the acts of racism associated with COVID-19, but I’m more scared of losing people I love. I’m pushing myself extra hard to flatten the pandemic curve. We’re making masks to donate. My mom sews, my husband does the cutting. He created a pattern to fit the Asian face shape, but it still fits well for non-Asian folks too. I do the supply chain and logistics, because I used to do that at Boeing. We’ve made close to 90 masks to donate and still counting.”

Angela Chen pairs her Boeing safety glasses with one of the masks she and her family created.
Angela Chen photo

“My mom thinks I’m crazy, that I speak up too much and advocate for things that will eventually get me in trouble. I told her I might run for city council one day and advocate for change, to which she said, “You better not!” because she doesn’t understand. I told her I work for Boeing; if something is flawed, you don’t wait, you speak up and do something about it!”