{"href":"http://player.captivate.fm/services/oembed?url=http%3A%2F%2Fplayer.captivate.fm%2Fepisode%2F9c24088a-8d8c-441b-890f-baf08224fad4","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Captivate.FM","provider_url":"https://www.captivate.fm","width":600,"height":200,"type":"rich","html":"","title":"Feeding Freedom, Not Fear","description":"A world-renowned expert on Burmese cuisine and author of the best-selling book Mandalay: Recipes and Tales from a Burmese Kitchen, Mi Mi Aye never imagined that one day she might become an activist. But as she has become increasingly invested in Myanmar\u2019s current crisis, that is the role she has begun to take on.\n\nHaving deep connections to the full range of Burma\u2019s cuisine\u2014 running the gamut from humble street stalls to five-star dining\u2014 Mi Mi Aye was concerned when the pandemic broke a year ago, noting that the restaurant industry especially has been suffering. And although she feared that a sudden military takeover would only place a greater strain on this already reeling industry, Burmese cooks have not been idle. Many of them, along with food delivery workers, have been at the forefront of cooking and delivering food in mass quantities to the large numbers protesters taking to the streets each day, as well as to \u201cCivil Disobedience Movement\u201d employees who are refusing to return to their jobs as civil servants.\n\nMi Mi Aye also reflects on the fear many Burmese\u2014especially the older generation\u2014have harbored because of Burma\u2019s history of coups and political repression. She says, \u201cSomething I don\u2019t really talk about is to be Burmese, especially if you\u2019re of a certain age, is to be afraid, from bitter experience. It\u2019s a low-level, visceral feeling most of the time, but sometimes, like now, it can be overwhelming. Because all the worst things you can imagine that could happen to you or your loved ones can happen and has happened, to you or to people you know, because of the Burmese military. Right now, I don\u2019t even want to eat, let alone cook anything. There\u2019s a reason Aung San Suu Kyi\u2019s most famous book is called Freedom From Fear.\u201d\n\nShe notes how many younger Burmese followers have thanked her for these words, noting that their parents had always told them something similar, but growing up with greater personal freedoms, they never had quite understood their parents\u2019 fears.\n\nA note about our mission here at Insight Myanmar Podcast. While it usually takes us several weeks at minimum to produce an episode, we feel that the current moment demands a faster turn-around, and we managed to release this episode after just 36 hours. However, this can be challenging for a primarily volunteer organization, especially one with limited funds. We hope to continue bringing interviews on this topic with Buddhist practitioners, teachers, and scholars, but we need your support to do so. If you would like to support our mission, we welcome your contribution. You may give by searching \u201cInsight Myanmar\u201d on PayPal, Venmo, CashApp, Go Fund Me, and Patreon, as well as via Credit Card at www.insightmyanmar.org/donation.","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300,"thumbnail_url":"https://artwork.captivate.fm/85c76e62-225b-47f6-a9a4-946280b20205/0vUAHBhXlN6g_hFPmAhOALZ3.jpg"}