An Interview With Dr. Dagny Zhu
We’re thrilled to have Dr. Dagny Zhu on The Mag. Dagny is a board-certified ophthalmologist, Medical Director, and Partner at Hyperspeed LASIK | NVISION Eye Centers in Rowland Heights, CA. She is an Asian American LA business owner, activist and mother.
Please introduce yourself, your family and your practice.
I am a Chinese-American, Harvard-trained, board-certified ophthalmologist who specializes in laser vision correction and cataract surgery. I am the Medical Director and owner of Hyperspeed LASIK/NVISION Eye Centers in Rowland Heights, CA. My husband is a Vietnamese-American orthodontist and owner of The Hills Smile Lab in Anaheim Hills. Both of us are first-generation immigrants who grew up watching our parents slave away doing back-breaking work to give us a better future. We are parents to 11-month old Atlas Luong.
How do you feel about your kids growing up in the current climate of the U.S.?
I want my son to know that it’s not normal to hear, “Ching chong ling long.” It’s not normal to see others pull up the corner of their eyes. It’s not normal to tell people who have lived here their entire lives to “Go back to your country.” The COVID-19 pandemic showed us that some bullies never change--they only grow more violent. We need more Asian Americans in positions of leadership in order to stop this. We need our future generation to step up. Hate won’t disappear overnight, but I think we are taking steps in the right direction. I hope with movements like AAPI heritage month, and President Biden signing the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act, our kids can grow up in a better America.
How do you guide your kids through racism and becoming activists?
My husband and I are currently teaching our son, Atlas, to not be ashamed of his culture. If we want others to accept him, we as parents must teach him to first love and accept himself. We want to shed light on what we’ve experienced, so that he knows how to respond to micro-aggressions and bullying when they see them. We want to ensure that he can enjoy a childhood that is free of shame, insensitivity or exclusion. A lot of these feelings are a part of growing up, of course, but we as parents know that we can always do our part to help our kids treat other children better and foster an atmosphere of cultural acceptance and mutual respect.
Can you share (3) resources that support anti-racism?
Three resources I recommend are:
The Instagram account, @dearasainyouth is a great resource for youth to learn about modern issues facing Asians and Asian Americans https://www.instagram.com/dearasianyouth/
The Instagram account @theconsciouskid is another great resource for parenting and education through a critical care lens focusing on children’s books. https://www.instagram.com/theconsciouskid/
Lastly is of course the original Instagram movement for stopping AAPI hate, @stopappihate. https://www.instagram.com/stopaapihate/
We are incredibly proud to see so many different communities come together to stop AAPI hate. The activism and passion of our youth, especially, give me hope for a brighter future.
And finally, where can we find you?
website: https://dzeyemd.com/
instagram: @dzeyemd
