Senator Mazie K. Hirono
Heart of Fire: An Immigrant Daughter's Story

APIAHF is pleased to present the first Asian American woman and the only immigrant serving in the U.S. Senate. Join Senator Mazie K. Hirono for a discussion about her remarkable memoir, HEART OF FIRE: An Immigrant Daughter’s Story at VOICES 2022. Senator Hirono has spent her life as a dedicated public servant, standing up for workers, women, students and teachers, and immigrants. Join us in a discussion with Senator Hirono as she shares the intimate moments of her life as she carved out her unconventional, groundbreaking path to holding one of the country’s highest offices.  

 

Born on her family’s rice farm in rural Japan, Senator Hirono came to America at the age of seven when her mother, Laura, fled an abusive home life and arrived in Hawaii with two of her children—Mazie and her older brother Roy. Her younger brother Wayne had to be left behind with her grandparents until Laura, through hard work and quiet determination, was able to bring them over. The stoicism, grace, and persistence Senator Hirono consistently saw in her mother would inform how she handle difficult situations in her own life, from being one of the few Asian American women in the room in her law school classes to facing male government colleagues who undermined and underestimated her. A deep homage to her mother, HEART OF FIRE illustrates the cultural and gendered lines the Senator walked daily. 

 

A copy of Heart of Fire: An Immigrant Daughter's Story will be provided to each attendee at VOICES 2022.