AGENDA
Day 1: Movement in Action ​
1:30 pm ET / 12:30 pm CT / 10:30 am PT / 7:30 am HT
Get warmed up for the Building CAPACD Convention by joining us in the networking lounge, hosted by former National CAPACD staff member Jane Duong. Come say 'hi' to Jane, arrange to meet friends you already know, and get connected to new colleagues who share the same passion for serving the AAPI community as you do!
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2:00 pm ET / 1:00 pm CT / 11:00 am PT / 8:00 am HT
Bao Phi
Spoken word artist, poet, and author Bao Phi will give an inspiring performance to kick off the 2020 Building CAPACD Convention. Bao is a Vietnamese American refugee, spoken word artist, published poet, arts administrator, children's book author, and single co-parent father. For over two decades, his creative work has been rooted in Asian American community and where they intersect and collide with social justice issues. He will be reading poems, political and personal, hoping to add to a much needed conversation about our people here in America and in the world during the pandemic.
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Forward Stance: A Practice for Movement Together While We Are Physically Apart
Norma Wong with Claudia Lopez
The year 2020 represents a pivotal moment in our collective fight for social justice. The structural inequalities that have oppressed communities of color and low-income communities for centuries have never been so evident. Asian American and Pacific Islander communities are mobilizing in response on multiple fronts –ensuring our communities are counted in the Census, caring for the most vulnerable during the pandemic and its economic fallout, getting out the vote, and conducting political education that addresses anti-Blackness within our neighborhoods and families. But 2020 isn’t over yet and we are in this fight for the long haul. How can we sustain this momentum for the hard work that is still to come?
Norma Wong is a kua'aina - a simple person from the back country - who has worked and lived long enough to begin the kuleana of elder. She will be joined by Claudia Lopez, a graphic storyteller. Together, they invite our pause and reset, our renewal of energy and spirit, breathing from the core strength of community.
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What Movement in Action Looks Like
Seema Agnani
Executive Director Seema Agnani will share brief remarks on the collective power and impact of our national coalition. Join us as she highlights the incredible and inspiring work being done in AAPI communities across the nation to create healthy, thriving neighborhoods – and then come back after a brief break to gain deeper insights into local work through the Virtual Community Tours.
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3:00 pm ET / 2:00 pm CT / 12:00 pm PT / 9:00 am HT
Break
Check out our sponsors and exhibitors at their virtual booth! And don’t forget to also drop by our Networking Lounge, where you can meet the many recipients of our AAPI Community Resilience Fund in the networking lounge. Come learn about their incredible work to support their communities during the pandemic!
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3:30 pm ET / 2:30 pm CT / 12:30 pm PT / 9:30 am HT
For the last six months, our communities have sheltered in place to stay safe through a global pandemic. This means that we are not able to physically visit new cities and places, but the challenges of our time have only deepened the character, resilience, and spirit of our neighborhoods. Thus, we invite you to learn more about these community anchors during our virtual tours of AAPI neighborhoods across the country at our Building CAPACD Convention. Join us as we visit Oakland with AYPAL, Jackson Heights with Chhaya CDC, Chicago with Coalition for a Better Chinese American Community, and MakuÊ»u Farmers Market and Kohala Center on the Island of Hawai’i, organized by Hawaii Alliance for Community-Based Economic Development.
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5:00 pm ET / 4:00 pm CT / 2:00 pm PT / 11:00 am HT
Community in the Capital (CITC) Social Hour
Are you someone who cares about the next generation of AAPI community leadership? An alumni of the CITC fellowship program, or curious to learn more about it? Unwind and connect with others at this social hour with live music and freestyles from rapper Jason Chu and his band! Co-hosted by Denver community organizer Joie Ha, this chill hour includes time to stretch & breathe, hear from the 2020 CITC Fellows, and engage with other Convention attendees in conversations about community and resilience.
Tuesday, September 15th
Day 2: Reflecting and Celebrating 20 Years of Building CAPACD
1:30 pm ET / 12:30 pm CT / 10:30 am PT / 7:30 am HT
Join this networking session to meet and reconnect with past and current Board members of National CAPACD.
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2:00 pm ET / 1:00 pm CT / 11:00 am PT / 8:00 am HT
The youth from AYPAL get us started with a participatory opening performance for Day 2 of Building CAPACD! Austin Le, youth volunteer dance instructor, will lead us all in learning a Vietnamese Fusion dance. No experience required - just a sense of fun and some props you already have at home!
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The Resilience of AAPI Communities and Neighborhoods: A Multi-generational Perspective
Phyllis Campbell; Lisa Hasegawa; Sue Taoka; Quynh Pham; Odessa Wheeler
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Two decades ago, National CAPACD was founded in Seattle, Washington by AAPI leaders from 16 different community development organizations around the country. Their intent was three-fold: to create a voice at the national level for AAPI community development issues, to ensure equitable investment in our communities, and to create a space for connecting and sharing amongst our communities.
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In this conversation, original founders of the organization will come together with up-and-coming AAPI leaders to discuss their perspectives on what has worked, our ongoing challenges and how we can and should pivot into the future.
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3:00 pm ET / 2:00 pm CT / 12:00 pm PT / 9:00 am HT
Break:
Check out our sponsors and exhibitors at their virtual booth! Or join us for some yoga in the Networking Lounge, where former National CAPACD staff member Lauri Ng will lead us through some simple yet effective strategies for self-care.
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3:30 pm ET / 2:30 pm CT / 12:30 pm PT / 9:30 am HT
Reflecting, Reclaiming
Join us for one of the following discussion groups to delve deeper into strategies for building the resilience of AAPI communities and neighborhoods, focused on the issues most pressing in our neighborhoods today.
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What’s Next for AAPI Business Districts?
We all want to know – what is to become of my local AAPI business district during and after this pandemic? What strategies can be and should we employ to prevent the closure and displacement of our beloved mom-and-pop shops – with the whole community in mind? How do we work toward rebuilding an equitable economy that fosters sustainable forms of entrepreneurship and community ownership? The experts in this session are you – our National CAPACD members on the ground who are doing this work daily. This is a discussion forum – so come prepared to share your ideas, insights, and help us shape our policy priorities for an economic recovery that is inclusive of AAPI entrepreneurs.
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Housing & AAPIs: Strategies for an Equitable Recovery for Low-Income Homeowners and Renters:
The pandemic has exacerbated housing insecurity facing many low-income AAPIs and communities of color as potential homebuyers see rising home prices and stringent credit requirements and renters face threats of eviction and community displacement. In this session, housing experts will reflect on the pandemic’s impact on AAPIs and communities of color and draw parallels to the foreclosure crisis that birthed the formation of National CAPACD’s Housing Counseling Network one decade ago. Join us for a moderated discussion on strategies to support AAPI and POC homebuyers and renters and how our communities can equitably recover from the fallout of the pandemic.
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The Art of Resilience: AAPI Creative Placemaking in 2020:
Artists and cultural bearers have been at the forefront of leading community engagement and healing in 2020. Examples abound of AAPI artists, cultural practitioners, and institutions addressing issues of xenophobia and racism, interpreting complicated public health information, increasing visibility of AAPI businesses, and keeping people connected despite physical distancing. Join this discussion about what AAPI creative placemaking looks like in 2020, and the importance of sustaining this work during recovery and post-pandemic. Come prepared to share what is happening in your own community!
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AAPI Renter Nation: Organizing Strategies to Resist Displacement
Nearly three-quarters of low-income AAPIs live in the highest housing cost markets in the country. As a result, many in our communities were struggling to get by even before the pandemic. Housing advocates estimate 30- 40 million people could be evicted in the coming months as a result of COVID 19, unless Congress takes immediate action. Join community organizers and advocates for a discussion on eviction prevention strategies, as we build a long-term movement to fight back against displacement and gentrification!
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Beyond Slogans and Hashtags: Solidarity In Practice
As we confront dual pandemics, COVID-19 and ongoing anti-Black racism, it is important to build up our frameworks, analyses, and practices to engage in meaningful and transformative solidarity. In this session, we discuss ways in which Asian American communities have been building and practicing solidarity in various contexts. We will share principles for solidarity practice, identify best practices, and explore how to deal with conflicts and challenges that often emerge. This session will provide emerging and seasoned practitioners with shared language, tools, and ideas to engage in solidarity at their own organizations and in their communities.
5:00 pm ET / 4:00 pm CT / 2:00 pm PT / 11:00 am HT
Join us for this festive celebration of 20 years of National CAPACD! Former National CAPACD staff member, Melvin Tabilas, will be our emcee for the evening. DJ Rekha, named "Ambassador of Bhangra" by the New York Times and well-loved for their work to cultivate relationships and create roots through music and dance, will be spinning your favorite tracks. Bring your favorite drinks and snacks, and wear your brightest and best dance outfits. You won't want to miss this party!
Wednesday, September 16th
Day 3: Reclaiming #OurNeighborhoods and Building Power
1:30 pm ET / 12:30 pm CT / 10:30 am PT / 7:30 am HT
Is your organization focused on getting out the vote for the upcoming elections? Come to the Networking Lounge to meet others who are similarly focused on increasing voter turnout in our AAPI communities!
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2:00 pm ET / 1:00 pm CT / 11:00 am PT / 8:00 am HT
Sokeo Ros
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Join us for a live performance of Cambodian Lullaby. Sokeo is a creator, performer, and founder of hip-hop based company, Case Closed! He was born in a Cambodian refugee camp in Thailand, arriving in the United States at the age of three. He began performing in high school and has since continued to tour the country. He is currently working with students in middle schools to help them cope and understand their trauma in collaboration with the Cognitive Behavioral Intervention for Trauma in Schools (CBITS). He also worked, for the past six years, with incarcerated youth in Massachusetts in collaboration with the Department of Youth Services.
Mobilizing For Our Future
Laura Choi; Jessie Lee; Tavae Samuelu; Nikitra Bailey; Chris Schlidt
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With the 2020 election quickly approaching, we have much work to do to ensure that those elected are prepared to advance our progressive agenda, one that prevents displacement of communities of color and builds a more equitable and just economy. Join us for this discussion with national and local leaders that are working to advocate for more equitable policies that impact our neighborhoods and communities. This session will be formatted as a series of rapid-fire interviews with National CAPACD members and allies on our coalition’s key policy priorities, which we will raise up in the year to come with the next administration and newly elected members of congress.
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3:15 pm ET / 2:15 pm CT / 12:15 pm PT / 9:15 am HT
Representative Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez; Gordon Chin; Seema Agnani
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National CAPACD founding member Gordon Chin joins us to share some thoughts of inspiration for the future, as we move forward together. We will close out this convening by practicing the mindfulness that we will need in order to sustain our work into the future.