Growing up Asian and queer in Australia: A conversation with Jay Ooi

Mark, our media officer, sits down with Jay Ooi to discuss his experience growing up Asian in Australia and the importance of intersectionality in storytelling. Jay is the host of Shoes Off, an award-winning podcast exploring Asian Australian culture and what it means to be Asian in Australia. 

It’s no secret that the media landscape in Australia is not very diverse. From newsrooms to executive boardrooms, the lack of diversity in Australia’s media organisations has been well documented. Despite the rich diversity within the Asian community, there has been a severe lack of Asian representation in mainstream media and Jay did not see any of his experiences being told in the television productions he worked on. This prompted him to start the Shoes Off podcast as a place to explore the complex Asian Australian identity and tell stories which have largely been excluded from mainstream media. 

In this conversation, Jay also talks about his experience growing up queer in Australia and his identity as a queer Asian man. He elaborates on the way sexuality is understood and discussed within the Asian community and how race plays into the dating experience within the queer community. The intersection between race and sexuality is complicated and Jay offers tips on how to meaningfully discuss the topic. 

Listen and subscribe to the Shoes Off podcast on your favourite podcast platform for more stories about Asian Australian culture.