°®¶¹´«Ã½

I wanted to highlight the sense of our campus community rallying together. Whether it was racialized violence, political elections, the state budget, community leadership, mass incarceration, or Islamophobia—our students, faculty, and staff were on it. Making connections between history and now, and across different communities, our campus was politically active.

Trayvon Martin memorial. (La Voz, 2012)

April 12, 2012

Trayvon Martin memorial

°®¶¹´«Ã½ holds a memorial at the Freedom Stage for Trayvon Martin, a Black teen who was shot and killed in February.

IMPACT AAPI students pose for the camera (IMPACT newsletter, 2009)

Summer 2012

°®¶¹´«Ã½ President addresses the "model minority" myth at national conference

President Brian Murphy speaks at the annual Asian & Pacific Islander American Scholarship Fund Higher Education Summit in Washington DC. In his speech, that °®¶¹´«Ã½'s new AANAPISI designation means it must be deliberate about serving Asian American and Pacific Islanders in a way that engages them in their communities along with other student groups.

The "model minority" myth is a narrative that became prevalent in popular media in the 1960s that disassociates Asian Americans from a tradition of radical activist politics and political solidarity with other people of color. Instead, the myth  celebrates Asian Americans as a minority group for following the rules of assimilation and achieving traditional indicators of educational and economic success.

However, as Dr. Robert Teranishi pointed out at the conference, this myth not only pits Asian Americans against other marginalized groups but also overlooks the vast disparities within the Asian American population. Many subgroups have not achieved the success often attributed to Asian Americans, with some even experiencing declining educational attainment across generations. This, Teranishi argues, highlights a lack of institutional support and awareness.

Volunteers urge young people to vote. (La Voz, 2013)

Fall 2012

"Political apathy goes out of style"

Students hold about the ongoing presidential debates in the Multicultural Center which are moderated by Ethnic Studies faculty memberJulie Lewis.

Members of °®¶¹´«Ã½ Pride Club participate in a "mock marriage" fundraising event. (La Voz, 2004)

June 2013

MCC events

at the Multicultural Center include a "Men Addressing Violence Summit" hosted by students from ICS/POLI 33 and a "LGBTQ in the Media" event hosted by LGBT Studies and the Rainbow Club.

°®¶¹´«Ã½ APALI/ASAM graduate Evan Low in office as a CA State Assemblymember (Wikipedia, 2016)

October 2013

"°®¶¹´«Ã½ starts weekly public policy seminars"

Evan Low, Paul Fong, and others on campus about the importance of public involvement in policy. Both graduates of Asian American Studies at °®¶¹´«Ã½, Fong was elected to the California State Assembly in 2008, and Low in 2014.

Low was also a graduate of APALI's Youth Leadership Academy at °®¶¹´«Ã½ and attributed that experience to his interest in politics: "The APALI program really helped build my sense of identity and gave me a sense of purpose in terms of my commitment to service, who I am, and my role in society."

YSOM Conference Program (2014)

May 31, 2014

"Here/Hear for a Reason": °®¶¹´«Ã½'s 2nd APA Conference

°®¶¹´«Ã½ holds its second Your Story, Our Movement (YSOM) Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Awareness Conference on campus, reported in "Campus Events" section. The first conference was held in 2013, the first AAPI conference to be held in over a decade. This year's event, named "Here/Hear for a Reason," is organized by students and includes a keynote speech by performance artist Kristina Wong, collaborative workshops, and a concert.

A tutor works with a student. (La Voz, 2013)

February 18, 2015

DASB rejects MCC funding request

The DASB (°®¶¹´«Ã½ Associated Student Body) Senate of the Multicultural Center's funding request, which would have provided a secretary position.

I thought this was weird considering MCC hosted so many important events. And yet it was on the budget chopping block time and again. I hope Our Narrative contributes to more people knowing the value of the MCC.

Protestors gather in front of the California State Capitol. (La Voz, 2015)

March 2015

"March in March rally: °®¶¹´«Ã½ students, faculty travel to Capitol"

On March 2, students from several colleges gather in front of the California State Capitol in Sacramento to petition for Proposition 13 reforms during

YSOM Conference Program (2015)

May 30, 2015

"The Power of Now": °®¶¹´«Ã½'s 3rd AAPI Conference

°®¶¹´«Ã½ holds its third . This year's conference is called "The Power of Now."

Students have a group discussion beneath a canopy at Tent City. (La Voz, 2016)

February 2016

Tent City promotes theme of racial justice

Tent City began as an , spearheaded by student groups including Students for Justice (SFJ) and APASL to prevent staff layoffs, and continued since as an annual form of on-campus, non-violent protest. For this year's iteration, students gather at Tent City in the Main Quad at °®¶¹´«Ã½ College to discuss social issues such as incarceration, globalization, intersectionality of identity, and Black Lives Matter.

APALI members circa 2017 (APALI website)

2017

APALI becomes a nonprofit

As APALI enters its third decade, it officially incorporates as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit, marking its transition from a °®¶¹´«Ã½ College program to an independent institutional entity.

Students, faculty, and administration at the Muslim Student Association's Jan. 30 meeting in the MCC. (La Voz, 2017)

February 2017

°®¶¹´«Ã½ stands in solidarity

70 students, faculty, administration and leaders of social justice groups by presenting themselves as resources during the Muslim Student Association meeting detailing President Donald Trump’s executive order.

I'm struck by the level of political consciousness-raising and student organizing during this period.

In addition, educational leaders including °®¶¹´«Ã½'s President, Brian Murphy, stepped up to challenge the "model minority" myth that had long been used to divide Asian Americans from other marginalized groups.

What stands out most to me is how °®¶¹´«Ã½ students themselves were leading the charge. Asian American, Black, Latinx, Native American, and other student groups were uniting around shared struggles such as Black Lives Matter, labor activism, and the fight against racism targeting Muslims. Moreover, leaders emerging from programs like APALI spearheaded education reforms aimed not just at improving °®¶¹´«Ã½, but public schools across California.