Asian Americans in an Anti-Black World Standing at the juncture of white supremacy and anti-Blackness, Asian Americans have been imagined as not-white but above all not-Black –as undesirable but the lesser of two evils–for almost two centuries. In her explosive new book, Asian Americans in an Anti-Black World, Claire Jean Kim, Ph.D., argues that Asian Americans have benefited from anti-Blackness at the same time that they have been burdened by white supremacy. Throughout history, they have been weaponized against (and have sometimes weaponized themselves against) the Black freedom struggle and used as an alibi for a racial capitalist U.S. state whose legitimacy is often in question. For whites, the principle is: Whiteness is best, but the most important thing is not-Blackness. Or, better Asians than Blacks. This is key to understanding how Asian Americans have been positioned and how they have negotiated their social and economic mobility in an anti-Black society. This event, hosted on June 13, 2023, featured Dr. Claire Jean Kim in conversation with Dr. Charlene Sinclair, Colorlines’ Editor, to discuss how these theories might guide Black and Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities into solidarity with one another. This event was co-organized by the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund and Colorlines, and co-sponsored by the National AAPI Power Fund, California Black Freedom Fund, Four Freedoms Fund, Groundswell Fund, Groundswell Action Fund, and the RISE Together Fund.
Behind Closed Doors | Part 4 This four-part webinar series took place from December 2022 to March 2023. It was hosted by the USC Price School and its Center for Inclusive Democracy, the California Black Freedom Fund, the Latino Community Foundation, and the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund. The fourth and last part of these moderated sessions explored the entrenchment of racism in U.S. politics, and its impact on political power and representation in communities. Titled “Behind Closed Doors,” these sessions served as a public space for open and challenging conversations examining the nation’s entrenched relationship between racism and politics, a situation recently brought further into the spotlight by the secret recording of a meeting of Los Angeles City Council members making racist remarks. Watch the full video below, or click here to watch the webinar highlights. Moderator: Mindy Romero, Founder and Director, Center for Inclusive Democracy, USC Price School Panelists: Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez, Los Angeles City Councilmember – District 1 Lian Cheun, Executive Director, Khmer Girls in Action Peggy Moore, Principal & Co-Owner at Hope Action Change Consulting
Behind Closed Doors | Part 3 This four-part webinar series took place from December 2022 to March 2023. It was hosted by the USC Price School and its Center for Inclusive Democracy, the California Black Freedom Fund, the Latino Community Foundation, and the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund. Part three of these moderated sessions explored the entrenchment of racism in U.S. politics, and its impact on political power and representation in communities. Titled “Behind Closed Doors,” these sessions served as a public space for open and challenging conversations examining the nation’s entrenched relationship between racism and politics, a situation recently brought further into the spotlight by the secret recording of a meeting of Los Angeles City Council members making racist remarks. Watch the full video below, or click here to watch the webinar highlights. Moderator: Amy Dominguez-Arms Philanthropic/Nonprofit Consultant Panelists: Pablo Rodriguez Executive Director, Communities for a New California Hector Sanchez Deputy Political Director, Community Coalition Cha Vang Deputy Director, AAPIs for Civic Empowerment James Woodson Executive Director, California Black Power Network
UTOPIA WA | Indigenous Food Sovereignty On October 16, 2023, UTOPIA Washington hosted a Talanoa webinar connecting Pacific Islander culture, international food sovereignty, climate change, and trade agreements. This work is integral to UTOPIA’s mission of weaving ecosystems of care, including running a community food pantry and cultivating farmland to grow organic, culturally appropriate produce.
CAA | Documentary on Advancing Education Equity in San Francisco’s Chinatown Chinese for Affirmative Action (CAA) has a long and storied history of advancing education equity for low-income, working class, and immigrant students. CAA is now announcing their new short documentary Block by Block: The Struggle to Bring Community College to San Francisco Chinatown. This documentary constitutes the first activity of the CAA Oral History Project in collaboration with UC Berkeley Asian American Research Center and Ethnic Studies Library. Read more about it here. In-person public and private showings of Block by Block are currently being scheduled and if you’d like updates as they are available, or to consider hosting a screening, please fill out this form. Watch the trailer below.
Behind Closed Doors | Part 2 This four-part webinar series took place from December 2022 to March 2023. It was hosted by the USC Price School and its Center for Inclusive Democracy, the California Black Freedom Fund, the Latino Community Foundation, and the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund. Part two of these moderated sessions explored the entrenchment of racism in U.S. politics, and its impact on political power and representation in communities. Titled “Behind Closed Doors,” these sessions served as a public space for open and challenging conversations examining the nation’s entrenched relationship between racism and politics, a situation recently brought further into the spotlight by the secret recording of a meeting of Los Angeles City Council members making racist remarks. Watch the full video below, or click here to watch the webinar highlights. Moderator: Mindy Romero, Founder and Director, Center for Inclusive Democracy, USC Price Panelists: Claire Jean Kim, Professor, Political Science School of Social Sciences, UCI Gloria Medina, Executive Director, Strategic Concepts in Organizing and Policy Education (SCOPE) Tracie Stafford, Vice-Chair, Northern California, California Democratic Party Black Caucus Executive Board; Founder and CEO, Stafford Consulting Group, LLC
Behind Closed Doors | Part 1 This four-part webinar series took place from December 2022 to March 2023. It was hosted by the USC Price School and its Center for Inclusive Democracy, the California Black Freedom Fund, the Latino Community Foundation, and the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund. The first part of these moderated sessions explored the entrenchment of racism in U.S. politics, and its impact on political power and representation in communities. Titled “Behind Closed Doors,” these sessions served as a public space for open and challenging conversations examining the nation’s entrenched relationship between racism and politics, a situation recently brought further into the spotlight by the secret recording of a meeting of Los Angeles City Council members making racist remarks. “The leaked recording in Los Angeles was just the tip of an ever-present iceberg, providing a very public example of just how deeply rooted racism is in our electoral system and overall power structures,” said CID Director Mindy Romero. “It’s time to have more candid, elevated and open discussions about these realities and what can be done to meaningly address them moving forward.” Watch the full video below, or click here to watch the webinar highlights. Moderator: Mindy Romero, Founder and Director, Center for Inclusive Democracy, USC Price Panelists: Manuel Pastor, Distinguished Professor of Sociology and American Studies & Ethnicity and Turpanjian Chair in Civil Society and Social Change, USC Dornsife Odilia Romero, Executive Director, Comunidades Indigenas en Liderazgo (CIELO) Erika D. Smith, Columnist, Los Angeles Times
NYT Op-Docs | MINK! — My Mom Fought For Title IX, but It Almost Didn’t Happen Fifty years ago, on June 23, President Richard Nixon signed Title IX, the 37-word snippet within the Educational Amendments of 1972 that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex “under any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.” As the first woman of color elected to Congress, Ms. Mink — and her path to office — was influenced by the discrimination she experienced in her personal and professional lives. Many doors were closed to her as a Japanese American woman, and she became an activist and later a politician to change the status quo. In “MINK!,” Wendy Mink narrates her mother’s groundbreaking rise to power and the startling collision between the personal and political that momentarily derailed the cause of gender equity in America. After Ms. Mink’s death in 2002, Title IX was officially renamed the Patsy Takemoto Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act.
Reviving Sisterhood | Shifting From Hate to Health: Benefits of Leading From within Community Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, and white nationalism are weapons of racism promoting fear and isolation and putting individuals and entire communities at risk for stress, trauma, isolation, and poor health. Listen to the full session here! The current social and political context fosters hate speech and acts of hate against Muslims and Jews. Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, and white nationalism are weapons of racism promoting fear and isolation and putting individuals and entire communities at risk for stress, trauma, isolation, and poor health. By investing in organizations led by communities under attack—and through robust, genuine, and reciprocal relationships—grantee partners are shifting the focus from hate to health. In this Quick Take, hear from Jewish and Muslim leaders, and learn successful strategies to creating safer and more welcoming communities and drafting actionable steps for your organization.
FAJ | CA Reopening: COVID-19 Vaccine Education Filipino Advocates for Justice is partnering with UC Berkeley Pilipino Association for Health Careers (PAHC) and FACE (Filipino American Care Experience) which are faculty and doctors from Kaiser Permanente, to present an educational session all about COVID-19 Vaccine Resources, California Re-entry, and protecting your own health especially with new variants floating around. The highlight of the evening will be a live Doctors Q&A session featuring Dr. Camantigue and Dr. Ramirez from Kaiser Permanente Union City Medical Center. There will also be testimonials from our own community members about getting the vaccine, so please email any questions you have in advance to Aurora Sanchez, Community Outreach Worker at FAJ at [email protected]. This presentation will be bilingual in both Tagalog and English. Watch the presentation below or at this link.