All Events
Asian American Activism: Drawing on History, Inspiring the Future
Panelists include Manjusha Kulkarni, Melissa Borja, Diane Fujino, and Artnelson Concordia, and moderated by Naomi Joseph.
MCC Theater
Asian/Pacific Islander American communities have a long history of activism in the United States, particularly in response to anti-Asian racism and exclusion. In their struggle for equality and liberation from oppression, AAPI activists have developed social and political movements for immigrant rights, labor rights, educational equity, affordable housing, religious freedom, environmental justice, and more. This panel features several AAPI activists who will discuss how they became activists, their work on the leading edges of activism, and how more people can get involved.
Speaker Bios:
Manjusha Kulkarni, Co-Founder, Stop AAPI Hate; Executive Director, AAPI Equity Alliance
Manjusha P. Kulkarni, Esq., is Executive Director of AAPI Equity Alliance and Co-Founder of Stop AAPI Hate. Her work has been featured in the New York Times, on NPR and CNN, and was recognized with the co-founders of Stop AAPI Hate, Cynthia Choi and Russell Jeung, by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential individuals in the world in 2021.
Diane Fujino, Professor, Department of Asian American Studies, UC Santa Barbara
Diane C. Fujino is Professor of Asian American Studies at UCSB and co-Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Asian American Studies. She has written or co-edited several books on Asian American and Black Power activism. She works in communities with Ethnic Studies Now! Santa Barbara and is designing curriculum for an Asian American Studies high school textbook.
Melissa Borja, Assistant Professor, Department of American Culture and Program in Asian/Pacific Islander American Studies, University of Michigan
Melissa Borja is Assistant Professor of American Culture at the University of Michigan, where she is core faculty in Asian/Pacific Islander American Studies. She is a historian of migration, religion, race, and politics. She advises Princeton's Religion and Forced Migration Initiative and serves as the lead investigator of the Virulent Hate Project.
Artnelson Concordia, Instructional Support Specialist for Ethnic Studies, Santa Barbara Unified School District; Co-Founder, Liberated Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum; Co-Founder, Coalition for Liberated Ethnic Studies
Artnelson Concordia is an Instructional Support Specialist coordinating Ethnic Studies implementation in Santa Barbara Unified School District. He is a leading practitioner in the movement to institutionalize critical and authentic Ethnic Studies in California public schools. This is his 23rd year in education.
Naomi Joseph, PhD Candidate, Department of Sociology, UC Santa Barbara
Naomi Joseph is a PhD Candidate in the Department of Sociology at UC Santa Barbara. She studies South Asian American social movements, activism, and culture. She is a co-convener of the UCSB Asian/American Studies Collective and past President of the UCSB Asian Pacific Islander Graduate Student Alliance.
Co-sponsors: Walter H. Capps Center for the Study of Ethics, Religion, and Public LifeAsian American Studies Department, Religious Studies Department, East Asian Languages & Cultural Studies Department, East Asia Center, Center for Taiwan Studies, Center for Sikh and Punjab Studies, Center for Middle East Studies
Wade Clark Roof Lecture on Human Rights: Challenging Hate: How to Stop Anti-AAPI Violence and Bias
Manjusha Kulkarni, Co-Founder, Stop AAPI Hate and Executive Director of AAPI Equity Alliance
MCC Theater
Sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic, Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities across the country have been subjected to increased hate incidents, including verbal harassment, civil rights violations, and physical assaults. Since its founding in March 2020, thousands of incidents have been reported to the Stop AAPI Hate coalition. Manjusha Kulkarni will discuss how Stop AAPI Hate is addressing anti-Asian hate through civil rights enforcement, education equity, community-based safety, and building a movement against systemic racism.
Speaker Bio: Manjusha P. Kulkarni, Esq., is Executive Director of AAPI Equity Alliance and Co-Founder of Stop AAPI Hate. Her work has been featured in the New York Times, on NPR and CNN, and was recognized with the co-founders of Stop AAPI Hate, Cynthia Choi and Russell Jeung, by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential individuals in the world in 2021.
Co-sponsors: Walter H. Capps Center for the Study of Ethics, Religion, and Public LifeAsian American Studies Department, Religious Studies Department, East Asian Languages & Cultural Studies Department, East Asia Center, Center for Taiwan Studies, Center for Sikh and Punjab Studies, Center for Middle East Studies
A DEI Arts and Craft Printing Workshop
Jesse Avila
MCC Lounge
Arts and crafts are tools for self-expression and a means to understand the world around us, and this fun and interactive workshop will teach children about Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, along with the meanings behind symbols. The children will also create their own hand-made prints by using a printing press and will take home the DEI art they create. Five years and older are recommended, but all are welcome to participate.
Speaker Bio: Jesse Avila received his BA in Art from the University of California Santa Barbara and is currently pursuing his Master’s in Organization and Leadership in Higher Education at the University of San Francisco. He is also the Interim Program Director and Office Manager for the UCSB MultiCultural Center where he bridges his passions for social justice programming with the arts.
Art Exhibition
Day 1 - PYNK POSSIBILITIES: BLACK GENDER CREATIVE + ART FOR SURVIVAL
Matt Richardson (Feminist Studies) and Omise’eke Tinsley (Black Studies)
MCC Lounge
Day 1 of 2-day event -
Art Exhibit: Shades of Black & Pynk: A Celebration of Black Trans+Queer Art, Love, and Writing
The two-day event opens on Sunday, April 30 with art exhibit and panel “PYNK Possibilities: Black Gender Creative + Art for Survival.” This exhibit is a multimedia installation that celebrates the boundless imagination of Black Queer, Trans, and Gender Creative artists. Curated in honor of the release of The Color Pynk: Black Femme Art for Survival by Professor Omise'eke Tinsley (Black Studies), the exhibit features original short film The Siren by Dominican-American filmmaker Helen Peña, collage by scholarartist Mariah Webber (Feminist Studies), and more. This exhibition seeks to spotlight the world-making power of rebellious Black LGBT artists and awaken love, collectivity and solidarity. The exhibit opening is also a party, nail salon, mini runway class, audience-inclusive fashion show, and interactive conversation with the artists as well as Color Pynk authors Omise’eke Tinsley and Candice Lyons.
