by Sally Tran
In the beginning of my journey as an API Equality Intern, the first thing we were asked was to come up with future goals and projects we wanted to pursue. The first thing that popped into my head was hair. Crazy right? YES, hair! But why hair?
Song That Radio, Sundays at 7pm on 1500AM
by Tracy Nguyen
I ran into my aunt’s room and turned the old school boombox dial to 1500AM. I heard our voices reciting the Vietnamese script that we practiced for weeks and weeks. We did it! We’re on the radio!, I thought. Immediately, I turned the volume dial lower. My father was in another room on the other side of the house and my mother was on her way home from work. I was extremely conflicted: while I was excited to be on the radio with the API Equality interns, I felt sad that I couldn’t share this moment with my own parents. Instead, I texted all my friends and posted facebook statuses that pleaded my parents not to hear the radio segment. Continue reading
by Sarah Tran
Dancing. It takes a bit to overcome the embarrassment but with enthusiastic teachers, good music and some goofy moves, you’ll get smiles, active participants and a whole lotta positive visibility.
I have to admit, at first even I was reluctant to dance in the API Equality and NQAPIA board opening plenary flash mob. My floppy limbs and general ineptitude for choreography left me standing in the corner dancing by myself and sobbing tears of frustration over, “why on earth do I have to dance/but not really dance because I can’t dance…in front of 300 people”. This all changed once we arrived to the conference and started teaching the dance to our east coast dance partners.
Interns Sarah Tran and Hai Chi Vu Phonebank at the Office
by Phuong Tseng
Have you ever tried calling someone you don’t know or called your friends to donate or volunteer some of their time to a non-profit organization? If you did then congratulations, you have experienced phone banking. Before I start talking about my experiences with phone-banking, I want to let you know that this type of phone banking is very different from the usual phone banking that a typical company or financial institution offers to their customers for transaction services. The type of phone banking that I’m writing about revolves around community organizing and community building. Continue reading
by Hai Chi Vu
In Front of the White House
When I was asked to write a post about API Equality – Northern California’s experience at the National Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance (NQAPIA) Conference, I was perplexed on where to even start. Let me just start by saying that I am writing this post from a young person’s first-time experience at NQAPIA. The conference was my first time being part of a queer and Asian space; first time being connected to queer API organizers and issues from across the nation; and the first time realizing that I’m not alone in my struggles with being queer and Asian.
Just short of 100 Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) Asian Pacific Islanders (API) and their allies staged a flash mob in the heart of Chinatown.
Even with a competing marching band and no longer being able to hear the music for the last minute of the routine, these dance-activists were determined to stay on beat and share the message of love and acceptance.
Thank you to all the amazing and inspiring folks who had the courage to dance for what they believe in!
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LGBTQ Asian and Pacific Islanders Dance Their Way Home to Chinatown
San Francisco — Today, just short of 100 Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) Asian Pacific Islanders (API) and their allies staged a flash mob in the heart of Chinatown. A flash mob is a collective action undertaken by a group of people who assemble in public venues for a brief time and then disperse. Oftentimes, it starts with a few individuals and quickly, seemingly random, incorporates all participants, and then just as quickly wraps up. It can be anything from singing to dancing to simply standing still.
The motley-colored group, adorned in all colors of the rainbow, took over the grounds of Portsmouth Square, the local stomping grounds for San Francisco’s Chinatown residents, and regaled the locals in the square with a lively dance routine peppered with various signs and posters in Chinese, English, and other API languages. Their message was one of love and acceptance.
“Today was about coming home.” said Tawal Panyacosit Jr, Director of API Equality — Northern California. “Many of us grew up in this community. I remember spending my summers in the area with Cameron House. But, since growing up and coming out as Gay or Lesbian or Transgender, many of us don’t feel welcome anymore. The silence and invisibility around this issue is heartbreaking for many of us. Today, through the universal language of song and dance, we wanted to come home as both Gay and Asian.”
While there are over 66,000 APIs who identify as Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, or Transgender in the State of California, according to the Williams Institute, API Equality — Northern California’s polling still shows that the majority of the API community is unaware of this population with APIs demonstrating relatively the lowest levels of familiarity with LGBTQ people, particularly close relations like friends or family.
“Is being Asian about our shared values and culture or is about one’s sexual orientation? I am my mother’s daughter. I believe in respecting my elders, in prioritizing family, and in giving back to society? Just because I am Gay, does that mean I’m not Asian? Why can’t we be both?” expressed Vanessa Coe, Lead Organizer for API Equality — Northern California.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Speaker of the House Pelosi are committed to passing the DREAM Act before the end of the lame duck session. As many of you know, the DREAM Act provides an opportunity for undocumented youth to become eligible for legal status by pursuing higher education and/or military service. In order to pass the DREAM Act, we all need to get on the phones and urge our representatives and senators to support the DREAM Act!
We, at Asian Pacific Islander Equality – Northern California , understand how important it is to fight for the DREAM Act. Mario, an undocumented, Chinese Peruvian, and queer student from the University of California, Berkeley, has been an inspiring leader in the fight for the DREAM Act. A few months ago, Mario made a courageous decision. He chose to participate in a nationally televised story about undocumented college students, produced by ABC News Good Morning America. The risk of being identified and deported might have stopped other undocumented students from participating in the story, but Mario is no stranger to difficult choices. After coming from Peru when he was 12 years old, Mario lived apart from his mother and father while attending Oceana High School in Pacifica. He was confronted with many prejudices against homosexuals, especially in his church, but still found ways to embrace his Christian beliefs and homosexuality. Mario graduated as valedictorian of his high school class, and then decided to pursue the rigorous Civil Engineering program at UC Berkeley. He has since been a leader in the LGBTIQ community, participating in activities with the Bay Area Gay Straight Alliance, the American Civil Liberties Union, and Asians & Pacific Islanders, Queer & Questioning, 25 & Under, All Together (AQU25A). He continues to contribute so much to our community, yet has no pathway to citizenship and full equality.
Mario is just one of the 1.2 million immigrants who identify as LGBTIQ in the United States.
Undocumented students, particularly those who would qualify under the DREAM Act would be youth who came to the U.S. at the age of 15 or younger. They most likely came to the states with their families without any choice. Their identity as a non-citizen is not something they can “choose.”
Like folks in our community, undocumented students also live with the fear of being outed. They are fearful of being attacked by vigilantes, being deported, and being isolated from their families.
We face hate speech that dehumanizes our communities like, “that’s so gay” and “faggot,” as undocumented students are labeled, “illegal” and “alien.”
Unless we stand together, we will continue to live as second-class citizens, whether because we are denied the right to marry the person we love or the right to full legal and social equality as citizens and contributing members of society. Please join us in taking a stand.
If you cannot attend the phone bank today, Tuesday, please take the time to call your senators and representatives on your own or even host a phone bank at your school or office. If you make calls, please email vanessa coe (vcoe@caasf.org) for resources.
As you can see, we’re making some changes. It may look a bit vanilla right now, but we’ll be changing that soon. And adding more content, too! Over the next few weeks, we’ll be pretty things up a bit and also consolidating our content. We’ll have videos, Facebook updates and tweets. And we’ll be posting more regularly, too, so you can see what we’re up to. Please check back soon!
San Francisco – Today, federal district court judge Vaughn Walker ruled that California’s Proposition 8 violates the U.S. Constitution in denying gay and lesbian couples the right to marry. Civil rights and advocacy groups, including Asian and Pacific Islander (API) organizations and leaders, praised the judge’s decision. Today’s win is particularly gratifying for the API community who has been at the forefront of efforts to gain marriage equality both in California and nationally.
“API Equality–LA and our partner, API Equality–Northern California, applaud the judge’s meticulous and carefully reasoned decision that Proposition 8 violates the basic constitutional rights of lesbian and gay couples,” said Doreena Wong, Co-Chair of API Equality–LA. “The judge’s conclusions add to the growing consensus in courts and legislatures across the country that no good reasons exist for continuing to exclude same-sex couples from marriage. Instead, the evidence and legal arguments showed that Proposition 8 harms loving gay and lesbian couple and their families, while helping no one,” added Heidi Li, API Equality–Northern California Steering Committee Member.
Judge Walker’s decision is important to Asian and Pacific Islanders (APIs) in California, where the more than 66,000 APIs who identify as gay or lesbian comprise the largest community of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Queer, and Intersex (LGBTQI) APIs in the United States, according to the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law.
“Victories like today’s decision inspire important conversations about the harms of discrimination and the need for equality under law for all people,” said Tawal Panyacosit, Director of API Equality–Northern California. “But, we cannot rest on our laurels. These critical dialogues must continue, as we must also speak to the many other ways LGBTQI APIs are harmed by injustice, like Shirley Tan and Jay Mercado, a same-sex Filipina couple who face continued threat of separation due to an unfair immigration system. We know from our years of work educating the API community about these issues that it is these discussions within our own communities that changes hearts and minds.”
Added Rev. Dr. Jonipher Kwong, Director of API Equality–LA, “All across the nation, APIs have played an integral role in advancing the right of same-sex couples to marry–as plaintiffs, judges and witnesses in legal cases and as elected and community leaders in the court of public opinion. APIs personally know the history and impact of marriage discrimination and today, we cheer Judge Walker’s decision as being on the right side of history, where discrimination is overcome by justice and fairness.”
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Media Contacts:
Tawal Panyacosit, Director, API Equality–Northern California – (415) 516-3562
Jonipher Kwong, Director, API Equality–LA – (213) 249-1551
API Equality–Northern California is a coalition of Asian Pacific Islander (API) and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer/Questioning, and Intersex (LGBTQI) organizations and individuals serving Northern California. API Equality–Northern California is dedicated to empowering community members, advancing civil rights protections, and promoting respect and understanding for cultural and community diversity. API Equality–Northern California’s mission is twofold:
API Equality–LA is a coalition of organizations and individuals who are committed to working in the Asian and Pacific Islander (API) communities in Greater Los Angeles for equal marriage rights and fair treatment of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) families through community education and advocacy.
It’s almost that time. Tomorrow afternoon, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals will issue its decision on the validity of Proposition 8.
While we’re hopeful the decision will go in our favor, win or lose, our work is not done. This is only the first hurdle in a longer race towards full equality under the law and full social equality with our families and communities.
Come celebrate or commiserate with our community tomorrow at a March and Rally. People will gather at Harvey Milk Plaza (Castro St. & Market St.) at 5pm then march together to the Civic Center, stopping at LGBT Center along the way, at 6pm. The main rally begins at 6:45pm.
Fingers crossed,
Tawal Panyacosit
Director, API Equality – Northern California