The Power of Cross-Racial Solidarity in Advancing Racial Justice

How can marginalized communities overcome historical tensions and come together to advance racial justice? Over the past year, aggression and harassment toward the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community specifically, as a subgroup of Asian Americans, has escalated by 145 percent. This community cannot and should not have to combat this violence alone—and they haven’t been. The achievements of the Civil Rights era were supported by multiracial coalitions, including Black-Asian solidarity. However, the relationship between these two broadly defined and diverse communities has not been without tension or conflict. In the context of America’s racial reckoning sparked by the events of 2020 and pandemic-attributed increases in violence targeting the AAPI community, cross-racial coalitions are gaining visibility as a key structure and strategy for advancing issues of racial justice.

Speakers:
Don Chen, President, Surdna Foundation
Taryn Higashi, Executive Director, Unbound Philanthropy
Rinku Sen, Executive Director, Narrative Initiative
Bo Thao-Urabe, Executive and Network Director, Coalition of Asian American Leaders and Senior Program Strategist, AAPI Civic Engagement Fund

Moderator:
Dr. Mya Fisher, Founder & Chief Executive Transformation Officer, Global Equity Forward, with an introduction by Japan Society President Joshua W. Walker, Ph.D.