JOSHUAKISSIAPRIL 6, 2020 |^ ADWEEK
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Jezz Chung
diversity and engagement lead
ANOMALY
C
hung joined marketing and advertising firm Anomaly as a
copy writer in 2018 and took over as diversity and engagement lead
a year later in a role she pitched to the leadership team herself andthat she describes as her dream job.
In her first year, the agency created a book for the 2019 class of
Adcolor’s Futures program. Chung, a program alum from 2013, says
the book, For Future Reference, includes excerpts from people of
color across a range of experiences at Anomaly, a financial literary
cheat sheet, thoughts on what it means to come out in the workplace
from queer-identifying people, a budget-friendly insiders city guide
for New York and Los Angeles and words of affirmation.
Earlier this year, Anomaly partnered with stock imagery company
Tonl on a campaign to highlight people of color in advertising.
“Historically, people of color have not had visibility in this industry—
they didn’t exist or even now, when we do exist, we don’t have a lot of
visibility. And visibility helps build equity,” says Chung.
Chung met her mentees, Kiana Fernandez and Mingyo Lee, in the
fall of 2019 while doing portfolio reviews at the University of Texas,
where both are students. “What struck me was ... they’re so incredibly
talented in creativity, and what I noticed was they didn’t understand
how talented they were and how powerful their creativity was. And it
reminded me of myself,” Chung says.
That’s when Chung took them under her wing to ensure these
soon-to-be college graduates were entering the job market in as
strong a position as possible, which she says she didn’t have when
she started out.
Both Fernandez and Lee say they followed Chung on Instagram
prior to meeting her and that she is now a constant presence in their
lives via email and video chat as they navigate the transition from
school to career. “I’ve never really had anyone to personally relate to
in the type of cultural landscape that I found myself in, but Jezz has
really supported me and encouraged me to build an identity that I
feel secure in,” says Lee.
Lee says Chung has also taught him about self-care. “Coming from
a childhood and culture where this really wasn’t emphasized much,”
he explains, “I think that advice has really been a huge help to the start
of my career because not only does it make me a creative with a better
understanding of myself, it also helps me realize what I’m looking for
in an employer and the type of work I want to make.” —L.L.Kiana Fernandez
student,
University of Texas
Mingyo Lee
student,
University of Texas
When Chung met Fernandez
and Lee, she noted “their
inability to see their own
creative potential and
their own power.” And that
“reminded me of what I went
through and what people did
for me—especially growing
up in Asian culture, which
tells us to be silent and
don’t stand out and don’t
make a lot of noise, don’t
challenge authority and
be grateful. It’s so much
about shrinking and, in our
conversations, I saw that.”‘Historically, people of
color have not had visibility
in this industry. And visibility
helps build equity.’
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