LOS ANGELES — The annual Asian Hall of Fame ceremony will be held Saturday, November 13 to induct 10 icons for their legacy, philanthropy and inter-racial equity.

The global organization aims to advance equality by elevating Asian contributions and combat Asian hate. When it needed a CEO, Maki Hsieh answered the call to elevate Asian excellence and advance racial equity, while focusing on philanthropy.

The position was a serious change of pace for Hsieh, who spent most of her career in corporate America, but everything came to a screeching halt when her only sister suddenly passed away.

"That made me realize that I wanted to do something for the community and leverage all of my talents and all of my friends to make the world a better place, since she was no longer here," Hsieh said through tears. "So that was really important.”

Every year, a ceremony is held to induct a new class that is carefully selected for their lasting legacy and major contributions to society.

This year, Dr. Linda Liau is one of the 10 inductees.

Dr. Liau is a deeply passionate University of California Los Angeles Health neurosurgeon who pioneered a brain cancer vaccine. She also holds the first Asian female chair of a major neurosurgery program.

"Every day is an opportunity for a new discovery, or a new sense of hope for our patients,” Dr. Liau said.

She is part of another minority as a physician scientist. That means Dr. Liau spends half of her time in the OR, removing brain tumors, and the other half is spent in a lab researching to find a cure for the cancer.

“Quite frankly I think we need more of that because we really need to get the science to the patients," she said. 

Dr. Liau is doing her part to encourage the next generation, training a class of residents she hopes will one day fill her shoes.

Hsieh said stories like hers are the crux of the Asian Hall of Fame because it is hard not to respect people like Dr. Liau when you hear how hard they are working to make a difference.

"Ultimately our goal is to overcome violence. Our goal is to overcome unconscious bias against Asians," she said. "We believe that with inter-racial respect and cross cultural narratives, we can create more understanding.”

As with music, humanity is a universal language if we just focus on what unites us rather than what divides us. To learn more about the Asian Hall of Fame, or to watch the ceremony, visit: https://www.asianhalloffame.org/.