Solidarity: Resistance to State and Hate Violence

Join Impact Silver Spring, Montgomery County Progressive Asian American Network (MoCoPAAN), and the Asian American Progressive Student Union (AAPSU) in honor of Asian Pacific Islander American (APIA) Heritage month as we view and discuss a selection of clips and feature pieces documenting the rich history of struggle, perseverance, and activism throughout Asian American communities. Given the racial reckonings of the past year, this event will focus on Solidarity: Resistance to State and Hate Violence from both a historical and current day perspective. We would like to acknowledge that although this event will focus on Asian Americans, the experiences of Pacific Islanders are just as unique, historic, and important to discuss. As such, the organizers of the event will briefly discuss the relationships and differences between Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, as well as distribute resources for participants to learn more about and support Pacific Islander communities.

In this discussion-based event, we will explore such histories as the era of Asian exclusion, Japanese American internment, and Islamophobia/hate crimes against South Asian Americans following the events of 9/11. Throughout all discussions, we will focus on how state-backed violence against Asian Americans has subsequently encouraged hate violence and crimes targeting these same communities. In building a better understanding of Asian American experiences and history, we hope to build on conversations of multi-racial coalitions and solidarity as resistance to the violence of white supremacy.