‘Girls to the Front’ highlights trailblazing Asian American women

by Erin Chew

Reading, hearing and seeing the inspiring life stories and journeys of Asian American women, really puts into perspective how many of these stories remain invisible and untold in the American mainstream media. Their stories provide hope and show a younger generation that anything is possible and that their dreams and goals are attainable.

Award-winning author-illustrator Niña Mata, who is a proud Filipino American woman, has just released her authorial debut Girls to the Front during Women’s History Month. Girls to the Front is a forthcoming nonfiction middle grade anthology which celebrates Asian American women.

Mata, who recently celebrated her fifteenth anniversary as an illustrator, has moved on to the next chapter of her career as an author and Girls to the Front is the product of this. However, this decision to change her career trajectory (from an illustrator to author) came at a difficult time for her and the world – yes it was in 2021 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

For Mata, the decision to author Girls to the Front was the way she felt that she could contribute to changing the narratives of anti-Asian and anti-Black hate that plagued America. She was inspired by the Stop AAPI Hate and Black Lives Matter movements to conjure on with the book.

“I was feeling down seeing videos of the police brutality of George Floyd, and all my fellow Asian Americans being racially attacked back in 2021, that I thought to myself that there needed to be something positive to empower our communities. I wanted to show my authentic self and writing this book – showcasing the achievements of Asian American women was what I knew I could contribute,” Mata expressed in a recent interview with AsAmNews.

To keep the momentum, Mata realized that there were so many awe-inspiring Asian American women to highlight, and the obstacle she encountered was working out how to reduce the number of Asian American women she would highlight for the book.

The challenge for Mata was to ensure she highlighted a diverse variety of Asian American women, who have contributed in making America a better place.

“In 2021, feeling down about the pandemic and all the racism that was running amok in America, I asked myself the question whether there were many Asian American women who was inspirational. I challenged myself for thirty days to find one insisting Asian American woman on each of these days, and after my research I ended up with so many that I needed to reduce the number so that “Girls to the Front” would be diverse and well-rounded,” Mata stated.

“You know some of the Asian American women highlighted in the book do not necessarily take center stage, but their contributions are great and they really do and have changed our society and communities for the better.”

Being an Asian American author is no easy feat. To have a story that centers around Asian American women in mainstream America is perceived as something more niche rather than something that would appeal to all. This is the sad reality of being a non-white author. However, with books like Girls to the Front being published by a huge publisher like Harper Collins, this narrative and stereotype of appealing to a niche audience is changing.

Discussing this point, one of Mata’s goals is to instill a sense of empowerment in the next generation of Asian American women, who read Girls to the Front and decide for themselves that they too want to be an author.

“I feel I am still seeking advice myself, as I don’t consider myself accomplished as yet. However, I do want to tell young Asian American women that it is important to always keep reading and surround yourself with words, books and write constantly. Being an author is not always about being published, it is all about writing, learning and hearing yourself with ideas, plot lines and reflections. Just keep writing, that is all I can say.”

Girls to the Front highlights and spotlights Asian American women such as Olympic medal winning gymnast Sunisa Lee, trailblazing actress Anna May Wong, and Democratic elected Representative Tammy Duckworth among others.

The book is also available to purchase from Amazon Books, Good Reads and other book selling sites and retailers.