Jim Snyder

I am a journalist based in Washington, D.C.

Radio Free Asia •

Chinese students in US on a ‘political coming out’ still must manage risks

Inspired by the white paper protests back home, they are learning how to organize. But Beijing may be watching.

Alex Chan, center, and Nima Lama, left, a Tibetan activist, stand in silence to mark the third anniversary of Dr. Li’s death. (RFA Photo/Gemunu Amarasinghe)

Activists of Chinese origin try to hide their identity by covering their faces during a gathering in honor of Li Wenliang, a Chinese doctor who sounded the alarm in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic before dying of the dise
Radio Free Asia •

Have you heard the one about stand-up in China?

On International Joke Day, recent moves are raising questions about the Communist Party's tolerance for comedy.

Le Le Farley’s videos on YouTube often feature Chinese-related content and are viewed by hundreds of thousands of people, mostly overseas.

In 2018, Le Le Farley took his first steps to a stand-up career with two nervous, and he says, poorly received, performances in China. Back then, Farley was among a vanguard of young entertainers experimenting with what was a relatively new form o

Escaping the chaos of home, Myanmar migrants face exploitation abroad

Forced to flee her Magway village in southeast Myanmar during a junta attack, Theingi Soe spent a “terrible” month living in makeshift shelters in the jungle during the rainy season. In her misery, she began to plot another escape – to a life in a country beyond the conflict. An acquaintance put her in touch with a hiring agent in Yangon who promised work in Dubai. She paid 1 million kyats (U.S. $476) upfront to be connected to a family in need of domestic help, bought her own plane ticket, and