Joanne L. Molinaro (이선영)

#lawtok #lawyersoftiktok #ice

How to say Goodbye. #advicefromkoreanaunty

If you have my cookbook, you already know this story, but forgive me for sharing it again. It’s just that every time I celebrate New Year’s (today is Lunar New Year’s or Seollal (Omma calls it the former)), I can think of little else. And every time I turn this story over in my head, it’s like discovering a new crevice in a stone I carry around in my pocket, a new crater I missed the year before. For years, I thought the lesson was: “love isn’t enough.” And you’ve probably heard me say that many times. Because that was what I yelled at my parents that day, over and over: “love is all that matters.” But, love is NOT all that matters. Respect. Trust. Safety. You can love someone who is unable to provide those things to you and if you do, love will not save you. But this year, instead of focusing on the parts of this story I was there for, I imagined those parts I didn’t get to see. The many conversations my parents must have had that ultimately led them to write me. My mother at the shop, picking out the perfect card for this particular New Year’s and then sitting at her desk to write the message inside. How often her pen paused, partly because she couldn’t think of the right English word to express her fears, and partly because the fears, themselves, were too heavy to shake off. I thought about my father. The way he’d nod his head in agreement but also acquiescence because truth be told, he didn’t want to upset his daughter, he didn’t want to jeopardize the fragile cord that still tied them together, just months before she’d belong to some other man. I thought about my mother spending hours preparing this tteokguk for me and then I thought about the soreness I left behind when I stormed out of their home, that warm bowl of soup getting cold. I love my parents. Sometimes, it’s impossible to love them more than when I think about all the things they did for me when I wasn’t looking. #tteokguk #lunarnewyear #koreanfood

Actually I’m technically a food content creator who lawyers on the side… getting back to my OG style of content. #dubaichocolate #vegandessert

#lawtok #lawyersoftiktok #lawyertiktok

When you love someone, you often see the best in them. But sometimes, when you love someone, you fail to see the worst in them. When those “worst things” start to trick you into believing you’re not a good person? That’s when you know you’re on a sinking ship and it’s time to get out. Now, getting out is a lot easier said than done. Trust me. Find someone who makes you feel safe—a relative, a close friend, even a colleague. Share the truth of your situation with them as regularly as you can, even if it’s hard. Even if it feels like a betrayal. Because in the end, these are the people who will remind you that you are NOT bad person. These are the people who may save your life. I had a similar conversation with my parents over tteokguk one day many, many years ago. And I wished I’d listened to them. #tteokguk #koreanfood #koreanauntygivesadvice

No sale to meta. Yet.

#stitch with @LULAC how to tell the difference between a judicial warrant and an “ICE warrant.” #lawyersoftiktok #lawyertok #icecream

NGL, I was very emotional last night! My TikTok went off the grid while reading all your comments on my last post and I started sobbing. A couple hours later @CNN asked me to chat with Ben Hunte about it and here’s what I had to say when he asked me “what about all the ppl who are happy that TikTok is canceled?” #savetiktok

Replying to @America1st #lawtok #lawyersoftiktok #ice

What is the first amendment? #lawyersoftiktok #lawtok

I hate nachos.

#fyp #skincareroutine

#stitch with @cali watson what is a straw man argument? #lawtok #lawyersoftiktok #republicanmakeup

Tune in at 8 pm ET to hear me advocate for TikTok with @Chris Cuomo !