Oakland Asian Cultural Center

SOLD OUT: 48 Years After the End of the Vietnam War: A Continued Conversation About Empathy & Healing
2023-03-17 18:00 - 20:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT! Our apologies for the inconvenience.

Book Talk and Discussion with Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai and Thi Bui
Join us at OACC for a powerful author talk and reading with author Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai and her new novel, Dust Child. Author Thi Bui will moderate a discussion with Quế Mai about intergenerational trauma, racism, the cost of war, and healing and reconciliation among the Vietnamese community and between Vietnam and the United States.
“Scenes of past and present Việt Nam come alive in these pages, drawing you into the lives of a handful of characters who become like your family, and in whose stories lies the heartbreaking story of Việt Nam’s complicated relationship with America. With her generous heart and unmatched ability to write across languages and cultures, Quế Mai is the perfect guide for the wounded who search for home and healing.” -Thi Bui, American Book Award-winning author of The Best We Could Do and illustrator of Finding Papa.
Eastwind Books of Berkeley will be vending at the event and will have copies of Quế Mai and Thi’s books available for purchase. The authors will be available to sign and personalize books for readers at the end of the event. Pre-order Dust Child using the code DVAN10, and Eastwind Books will generously donate 10% of title books sales to DVAN’s publishing series to publish books about the Vietnamese experience in order to fight against invisibility and misrepresentation.

About Dust Child

From the internationally bestselling author of The Mountains Sing, a suspenseful and moving saga about family secrets, hidden trauma, and the overriding power of forgiveness. Told in the voices of two Vietnamese sisters, an American veteran, as well as the child of a Black American soldier and a Vietnamese woman, Dust Child tells an unforgettable and immersive story of how those who inherited tragedy can redefine their destinies through love, hard-earned wisdom, compassion, courage, and joy.
Praised by the Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Viet Thanh Nguyen as “Another triumph! Powerful and deeply empathetic” and by Library Journal as “achingly honest and ultimately hopeful; essential reading”, Dust Child has been voted a best book of December by Library Journal and a most anticipated book of the year by many publications including BookPage, Salon Magazine, San Diego Union Tribune, Orange County Register, Zibby Magazine, Trenzle Magazine, She Reads, Beyond the Bookends and We Are Bookish.

About Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai

Born and raised in Việt Nam, Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai is the author of the international bestseller The Mountains Sing, runner-up for the 2021 Dayton Literary Peace Prize, winner of the 2020 Book Browse Best Debut Award, the 2021 International Book Awards, the 2021 PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award, and the 2020 Lannan Literary Award Fellowship for Fiction. She has published twelve books of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction in Vietnamese and English and has received some of the top literary prizes in Việt Nam. She is an advocate for the rights of disadvantaged groups in Việt Nam and has founded several scholarship programs, and she was named by Forbes Vietnam as one of twenty inspiring women of 2021. Dust Child is her second novel. For more information, visit www.nguyenphanquemai.com.

About Thi Bui
Thi Bui was born in Vietnam and came to the United States in 1978 as part of the “boat people” wave of refugees fleeing Southeast Asia at the end of the Vietnam War. Her debut graphic memoir, The Best We Could Do (Abrams ComicArts, 2017) won an American Book Award and been selected as an NEA Big Reads book, a Common Book for UCLA and other colleges and universities, an all-city read by Seattle and San Francisco public libraries, a National Book Critics Circle finalist in autobiography, and an Eisner Award finalist in reality-based comics. It made over thirty best of 2017 book lists, including Bill Gates’ top five picks. She illustrated the picture book, A Different Pond, written by the poet Bao Phi (Capstone, 2017), for which she won a Caldecott Honor. With her son, Hien, she co-illustrated the children’s book, Chicken of the Sea (McSweeney’s, 2019), written by Pulitzer winner Viet Thanh Nguyen and his son, Ellison. Her short comics can be found online at Reveal, The Nib, PEN America, and BOOM California. She is currently researching and drawing a work of graphic nonfiction about immigrant detention and deportation, to be published by One World, Random House. For more information, visit www.thibui.com.

This event is brought to you by the Oakland Asian Cultural Center in partnership with Eastwind Books of Berkeley, Algonquin Books, Pacific Links Foundation, English Department of UC Berkeley, PIVOT, Stories of Vietnam, and Diasporic Vietnamese Artists Network.

Singles Oakferno: 21+ Singles Mixer for Young Professionals
2023-03-24 18:00 - 19:30 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Attention all singletons! It is time to emerge from the frosty shells of your lonely, wintry heart and find new love this spring. Whether you’re looking for that special someone or to just make new friends, join us at Singles Oakferno for an electrifying night of fun, flirting, and new connections.
Held at the luxurious Oakferno Lounge at OACC, our event promises to be a night you won’t forget. Featuring a comedy set, drinks, and plenty of opportunities to mingle, you’ll have the perfect setting to find your new spring fling and make some new friends along the way.
So what can you expect from Singles Oakferno? How about:
– Live comedy
– Exciting ice-breaker games and activities to get the conversation flowing
– A chance to win fun prizes including date night bundles from local businesses
– Delicious drinks and desserts
– The opportunity to meet and chat with other young professionals based in the Bay Area
So what are you waiting for? Grab your tickets now and join us for a night of sizzling singles mingling!
Meet Our Emcee & Featured Comedian for Singles Oakferno

EARLY BIRD DISCOUNT:
For Singles Admission, use the promo code SINGLE by 3/19 for $5 off.
For General Admission, use the promo code OAKFERNO by 3/19 for $5 off.
This 21+ social mixer for young professionals is also a fundraiser for our Lotus Link-Up series. Tickets and bundles available on Liveimpact and Eventbrite. Every ticket purchased supports OACC’s work to uplift AAPI arts and culture in Oakland.

Have You Eaten Yet? A Conversation with Cheuk Kwan & Martin Yan on Food and the Chinese Diaspora
2023-04-02 14:00 - 16:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT
From Cape Town, South Africa, to small-town Saskatchewan, family-run Chinese restaurants are global icons of immigration, community, and delicious food. The cultural outposts of far-flung settlers, bringers of dim sum, Peking duck and creative culinary hybrids, Chinese restaurants are a microcosm of greater social forces. They are an insight into time, history, and place.
Author and film-maker Cheuk Kwan, a self-described “card-carrying member of the Chinese diaspora,” weaves a global narrative by linking the myriad personal stories of chefs, entrepreneurs, labourers, and dreamers who populate Chinese kitchens worldwide. Have You Eaten Yet? Stories from Chinese Restaurants Around the World is an eye-opening and soul-nourishing journey through Chinese food around the world.
Cheuk Kwan will be joined by legendary television icon Chef Martin Yan, who has hosted more than 3,500 cooking shows around the world and is an accomplished chef, a respected culinary educator, commentator, and food and hospitality consultant. He has authored a library of 30 plus titles, among which include the award-winning Martin Yan’s Feast and Martin Yan’s Chinatown (with intro by Julia Child).
Yan will host a conversation with Cheuk Kwan on Have You Eaten Yet? Stories from Chinese Restaurants Around the World. Together they will discuss the stories of the Chinese Diaspora and its food, how politics, culture, family and food merge together to create a most unique global phenomenon that shapes cultural identity. Additionally, there will be a surprise cooking demonstration by Chef Martin Yan.
This event is co-sponsored by Eastwind Books of Berkeley. Copies of Have You Eaten Yet? Stories from Chinese Restaurants Around the World are available for in-store purchase at Eastwind Books of Berkeley and online at www.asiabookcenter.com.
This event will be conducted in English.

More About Cheuk Kwan
Cheuk Kwan was born in Hong Kong and grew up in Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan. He has also lived in the US, Saudi Arabia and Canada, and speaks English, Japanese, French and several Chinese dialects. Kwan is the co–founder of The Asianadian, a magazine dedicated to promoting Asian Canadian arts, culture and politics, and a film production company, Tissa Films. His cinematic works from the Chinese Restaurants documentary series—Song of the Exile, Latin Passions and Beyond Frontiers—braid his personal experiences with his love of travel and appreciation for Chinese culture worldwide. He now resides in Toronto.

More About Martin Yan
In 1978, Martin Yan launched the now classic, “Yan Can Cook” series, infusing cooking lessons with his brand of humor and skill. For close to a quarter of a century, the “Yan Can Cook Show” has been a fixture on the television screen (PBS) in North America and around the world. Generations of audiences have grown up watching and learning the joy and wonders of Chinese and Asian cuisines.
Chef Yan is also a successful restaurateur. His latest ventures are M.Y. Asia in Las Vegas, a joint effort with Caesars Resorts, USA and M.Y. China in the heart of San Francisco’s Chinatown. As a culinary professional, Chef Yan is a true ambassador for the food and hospitality industry.

Celebrating Our HeART-filled Heritage: Joe Kye, SURRIJA, and Nikbo
2023-04-22 19:30 - 21:30 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
What does it feel like to be Asian American in 2023? How do we express the depth and nuance of our identities? Join us on Earth Day for this special performance featuring Asian-American soul-pop band Joe Kye & the Givers (Portland), electro-pop singer-songwriter SURRIJA (LA), and “third culture pop” musician Nikbo (SF), whose music and storytelling explore the Asian-American soul with vulnerability and personal perspective. A part of Celebrating Our HeART-filled Heritage Series, this evening will hold and heal you, unearthing your joy that you may root with intention and self-love.

FEATURED ARTISTS

Joe Kye
Portland-based musician and storyteller Joe Kye discharges worlds of emotion with his lush violin loops and eclectic style. From viral TikTok jingles skewering microaggressions to delivering keynote speeches about creativity and community, Joe’s work taps into an inner core, inspiring audiences to compassion and empathy. His band, Joe Kye & the Givers, is a unique blend of soul, pop, hip-hop, and Korean traditional music–distinctly original yet familiar, like blasting through outer space only to arrive at your childhood home. The project blurs genres and geographies, arriving at a transnational sound that grooves as hard as it pushes against boundaries. Kye has opened for Yo-Yo Ma, recorded a Tedx Talk, and been featured on NPR. He is an Oregon Arts Commission 2023 Arts Fellow.
joekye.com
instagram.com/joekye
youtube.com/joekye

SURRIJA
SURRIJA (sur–Rye–ya) is an electro art pop project by Jane Lui that plays with asymmetry, glitch, and electronic treatment of classical training. The album features drummer Matt Chamberlain (David Bowie, Fiona Apple, Perfume Genius), produced by Surrija, Sophocles, and Maxwell Gualtieri. The new sound is a departure from Jane’s singer–songwriter roots, exploring lure and feral tendencies. “I’m a little addicted to change. I think – my love for playing tactilely plus a need for newness – lands me squarely in these micro electronic textures.” This album is about finding voice.
SURRIJA (album) was Kickstarter funded ($40K) while she traveled as an arranger, actor, and multi–instrumentalist in Cambodian Rock Band (Lauren Yee) to Oregon Shakespeare Festival, La Jolla Playhouse, and NYC Off–Broadway Signature Theatre. She was composer and music director for Secret In The Wings (Mary Zimmerman), a production by Coeurage Theatre (Los Angeles). She has been named YouTube’s Unsigned Pick, her music video Southern Winds earned Best Music Video in Dublin Web Fest 2017, and multiple works have been featured on Virgin America, Huffington Post, Jezebel, MAKE:Mag. Her song “How Do I” is currently nominated for Best Pop Song at San Diego Music Awards 2022. She has worked with Matt Chamberlain, Jason Mraz, Felicia Day, CDZA, Son Lux.
youtube.com/luieland
facebook.com/surrija
instagram.com/surrija

Nikbo
Nikbo (she/they/siya) is a Filipinx and Third Culture artist who makes music for deep-feelers and collective freedom-seekers. Blending elements of art pop and neo-soul with sounds from their childhood living in Morocco, Malawi, and Kazakhstan, Nikbo shares stories from the diaspora and provides sonic refuge to process the highs and lows of living in these times.
Their music video for “Be A Little Lonely” won an Independent Music Award in 2020 as an audience favorite, and their 2021 song, “We Need Each Other,” was featured in Smithsonian Magazine, and included in the “We Rise” Spotify Playlist featuring revolutionary voices in Asian-American music.
For their latest project, Breathe Underwater, Nikbo collaborated with family in the Philippines and Canada. “Making this EP was a way to feel close to them during the pandemic,” they explain. “And I wanted to do something to tend to the grief that has been building up over the last couple of years. While our society views grief as something to hide, making Breathe Underwater was a way to for me to experience grief as love. Something that wants to be shared. Something to embrace, listen to, and learn from.”
nikbomusic.com
patreon.com/nikbomusic
instagram.com/nikbomusic

ABOUT THE SERIES
“Celebrating Our HeART-filled Heritage” champions local Asian and Asian Pacific Islander performing artists, with the goal of providing a platform for accomplished local performing artists and exposing our diverse community in the East Bay to compelling, culturally relevant artists and performances that inspire intergenerational and cross-cultural exchange. The performing arts series is supported in part by the Walter and Elise Haas Fund.
Donations are appreciated and no one will be turned away for lack of funds.

Unsigned, Unsealed, Delivered (I'm Yours)
2023-05-10 12:00 - 2023-07-30 17:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Poinciana Hung-Haas is a Chinese-American arts activist who grew up in Oakland Chinatown. She uses arts as a medium to share stories of growing up in a town engulfed by a rich culture, one that is filled with a diversity of people, music, food, and street art. Her upcoming exhibition, Unsigned, Unsealed, Delivered (I’m Yours), featuring poetry from spoken word poet, Ellis Chhourn, shines light on Asian American youth and how their experiences influence what they portray through a variety of art forms. The exhibition title draws inspiration from Stevie Wonder’s song, “Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I’m Yours)”, but here, “unsigned” represents those who are undocumented, “unsealed” represents open wounds and trauma, and “delivered” represents arriving in America. Finally, “I’m yours” represents belonging here and taking up space with pride.
Unsigned, Unsealed, Delivered (I’m Yours) can be viewed at OACC during OACC’s business hours (Wednesday – Saturday, 12 PM-5 PM) starting May 10th, 2023.

Featured Artists

Poinciana Hung-Haas
For the past seven years, Poinciana has developed her fine art and fashion design skills through her education at Oakland School for the Arts. Her work has been exhibited at the Exploratorium in San Francisco and throughout Downtown Oakland. Poinciana also created the Dragon Power design representing Oakland Chinatown, which is currently being sold by Oaklandish. Outside of school, Poinciana advocates for her community as an intern for AYPAL. She also works at the Lincoln Recreation Center, where she strives to introduce kids to her own passions. Poinciana plans to major in Urban Studies at UC Berkeley next Fall, where she can continue strengthening her voice and power.

Ellis Chhourn
Ellis Chhourn is a Cambodian and Lao-American spoken word poet from the Dubbs in East Oakland California. He is a Social Justice advocate and uses his writing to speak for himself and his community by expressing his struggles in a beautifully poetic way. He shares his stories not to seek pity but for the sole purpose of telling his story for others to hear and possibly relate to. He finds freedom in his writting being able to have no restrictions on what he has to say or how he says it.

Celebrating Our HeART-filled Heritage: Son of Paper
2023-05-13 18:00 - 20:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Where are you from? Where are you really from? Join us for this special performance featuring Son of Paper at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center, as we come together to celebrate our complex lineage and deep histories as Asian Americans. This event is a unique opportunity to connect with our cultural roots, from San Francisco to Oakland, traditional and contemporary, through the vibrant sounds of Son of Paper’s music.
A part of Celebrating Our HeART-filled Heritage Series, this will be an unforgettable evening of music, culture, food, and community as we discover where we really come from, and how we are connected as a community from Chinatown to Chinatown. This event will feature guest performances from Guzheng player, Winnie Wong, DRAGON OF THE WEST, DJ Dailo Mac, and Bianca Brown, as well as other fun activities like:
? Free 5 minute photo sessions for registered guests for “Generations of Joy”, a project by Annie’s T Cakes, Oakland Fortune Factory, and Sasha’s House Oakland
? Free snacks and light food provided for the community
? Local vendors
? And a dance party!
Parental Advisory: Please be advised that the performances may contain explicit language alluding to violence and racism. Listener discretion is advised.

ABOUT Son of Paper
A native of San Francisco, Son of Paper (SOP) (he/him) is a songwriter and performing artist that blends Conscious Hip-Hop flows with R&B grooves and East Asian influences, reflecting the rich and diverse cultural heritage of our community.
Son of Paper is a great grandson of a Paper Daughter, a term that describes Chinese people who immigrated to the U.S. by falsely claiming to be the child of Chinese-American citizen, one of the only ways for Asian immigrants to enter the United States during the 83 year period of Chinese Exclusions. Son of Paper makes use of this history and seeks to reckon with Anti-Asian sentiment and racism both towards and within the Asian community. Looking inward, Son of Paper knows he is a product of generations, of combinations and of contradictions. He doesn’t reject this — instead, he embraces it.

FEATURING
Winnie Wong
Winnie Wong was born in Hong Kong and raised in San Francisco, CA. She started her training on the guzheng in 1982 at the age of four under the expertise of guzheng virtuoso, Ms. Weishan Liu. Being from a Chinese immigrant family, guzheng allowed her to stay connected to her roots, but more importantly, share with the community the beauty and importance of diversity.
In 2003, she founded the “China’s Spirit Music Ensemble” to give her growing population of guzheng disciples a “home” to share and develop their skills and understanding for the guzheng, its culture, as well as an outlet to share their musical achievements. On March 28, 2016, “Listen for Life” presented Ms. Wong with the “Musician of the Heart” award for her performances, achievements, and her dedication towards bridging cultures through music and encouraging a new generation of cultural musicians!

DRAGON OF THE WEST
Jason Wu, also known as “Dragon of the West,” is a rapper and producer from San Francisco, California.
Through his intricate rhymes and meticulously crafted instrumentals, he documents his experience as an Asian American immigrant growing up in the United States. He’s been making music since he was in middle school, and uses his music to influence and inspire the future generation of Asian American youth. He draws his inspiration from anime and video games, being that “Dragon of the West” is a reference to Uncle Iroh, a character from the very popular TV series “Avatar: the Last Airbender”.

DJ Dailo Mac
Mackenzee aka DJ Dailo Mac (she/her) has been djing in the Bay Area for over 20+ years and has performed at many venues all over the Bay Area.

Bianca Brown
A graduate of Oakland School for the Arts, Bianca (BB) Brown has grown up surrounded by music. While at OSA, she was vocally trained in various genres including R&B, musical theater, jazz, and classical music. She took what she learned there and combined it with her natural ear for music to teach herself piano.
BB has performed at various venues around the Bay Area, including Oakland City Hall, The Fox Theater, and at the top of Salesforce Tower. She is currently doing shows with community based organizations around the Bay Area, private events, and Sofar Sounds.
Whether she is singing published music or something she has written herself, BB believes in the power of music to heal and relate to her listeners and uses her music to communicate to the world around her.

ABOUT THE SERIES
“Celebrating Our HeART-filled Heritage” champions local Asian and Asian Pacific Islander performing artists, with the goal of providing a platform for accomplished local performing artists and exposing our diverse community in the East Bay to compelling, culturally relevant artists and performances that inspire intergenerational and cross-cultural exchange. The performing arts series is supported in part by the Walter and Elise Haas Fund.
Donations are appreciated and no one will be turned away for lack of funds.

Find Your Crew: Connecting Bay Area Filmmakers and Content Creators
2023-05-19 18:00 - 20:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
The future of filmmaking is in the Bay Area! In 2023, the film industry is finally recognizing that diversity in representation has a huge impact in the stories we tell and the audiences we connect with. From Black Panther to Shang-Chi, the Bay Area has contributed incredible talent and storytelling to the film industry. At the same time, content creation through social media influencer culture has democratized communication and storytelling, giving everyone a platform to speak to the world (for better or for worse). When the film industry reflects the diversity of our communities both on-screen and behind the camera, we get to be seen in our complexity and humanity, and pass down our sacred stories, something that audiences have been demanding for far too long.
Join us for a keynote from Pixar creative Theo Hollingsworth, followed by a short film screening and mixer as we bring together the Bay Area’s brightest minds in the filmmaking and content creation industry. “Find Your Crew” is an opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals and build meaningful relationships that can take your career to the next level. We will feature short films from REEL, an immersive film program that allows students to produce short films together as a crew. We invite local filmmakers at all levels of the industry to connect with us, from seasoned professionals to those just starting out. Through this event, we hope to empower and amplify our voices, shaping tomorrow’s leaders one camera at a time.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Bio: Theo Hollingsworth is video creative with over 15 years of experience helping to produce videos, TV, and Film productions. He studied film production at Howard University. He’s been in Oakland for the past 8 years and has worked on a variety of projects including web series, documentaries, feature length films and more. He loves to tell the stories of black people and has an affinity for comedy and sci-fi. Now at Pixar he’s mission bound to help make the next great black animated feature length film! When he’s not working he can be found biking around the town or shopping at his favorite grocery store, Mandela Grocery Cooperative.

ABOUT THE PANELISTS
Jason Wu is a rapper, producer, and filmmaker from San Francisco, California. His journey with media production began in high school when he started writing his own music, and has since then expanded his skill set into video production as well. In addition to doing work for local businesses, he also regularly works with local hip-hop artists and dance studios to help push the Bay Area’s hip-hop scene, as well as creating social media content for his own music.

Jordon Briggs was born in Los Angeles and raised in Sacramento, CA. He is a writer, filmmaker and musician. Jordon writes across genres and forms and has had writing published in the disciplines of short fiction, poetry, creative nonfiction, film criticism, personal essay, and others. His first documentary Her Hair was a finalist for SF3 Smartfone Flickfest’s Best Feature Film category. He graduated with an MFA in Creative Writing from Saint Mary’s College of California and holds a BA in Film from CSU-Sacramento. He currently lives in Oakland, CA.

Emily Yamauchi is a second-generation Japanese American writer and multidisciplinary artist based in Oakland, CA. She writes fiction, essays, hybrid work, graphic novel/memoir and comics. Her work has been supported by fellowships and residencies from Kundiman, Hedgebrook, VONA, Real Time & Space, A Place of Her Own and others, and has been featured in various readings and exhibitions. She received her MFA in Creative Writing at Saint Mary’s College of California and BA from Brown University. Emily’s work disrupts the silent agreements that hold together historically engrained or ancestral patterns of behavior, and insists that new patterns are possible, playing with memory, ambiguity, form and nonlinear storytelling to uncover and understand our private and communal lives.

ABOUT REEL
Founded in 2016, REEL is an immersive film program that allows students to produce short films together as a crew. They provide media education like cinema theory, camera training, professional development, and more.
REEL is taught by Teaching Artists who are successful Bay Area filmmakers and multifaceted artists. Over the years, students’ films have tackled topics such as racial political issues, mental illness, health, and wellness. Ultimately, REEL has created a creative and safe space for students to explore their own personal journeys while expressing it through multimedia.

Strong Like Bamboo: Stories of Resilience for Healing in the Era of Anti-AAPI Violence
2023-05-28 14:00 - 17:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
On Sunday, May 28th, from 2pm to 5pm, six professional Asian American storytellers, co-hosted by Eth-Noh-Tec and Oakland Asian Cultural Center, will share their stories of discrimination and the outcomes that can strengthen our own ability to not only survive, but thrive in this continuing era of anti-Asian hate.
About the Program
A panel will follow facilitated by Russell Jeung, Phd, Professor at Ethnic Studies, SF State and co-founder of StopAAPIHate!
Participants will gather in small groups with the opportunity to share their own stories with compassionate and supportive listening. Counselors will be present in the room.
Finally, there will be a training on how to be a safe witness to support a victim of racial violence. Please join us! A recording will be made for those who are unable to attend in person.
Featured Storytellers:

Eth-Noh-Tec: Since 1981, award-winning Co-Directors Nancy Wang, dancer, choreographer, performer and playwright, and Robert Kikuchi-Yngojo, musician, composer, performer and playwright, have created and staged original performances and conducted workshops in the Bay Area, across the nation and oceans in libraries, festivals, conferences, museums, and schools reaching audiences exceeding a million people, including at the presidential inaugurations of Bill Clinton in 1993 and of Barack Obama in 2009. They also organized storytelling tours to Asia.

Alton Takiyama-Chung is a Japanese-Korean storyteller who grew up with the superstitions and the magic of the Hawaiian Islands. He tells stories from Hawaii, Asian folktales, ghost stories, and historical tales like those of the Japanese-Americans in WWII. He performs across the USA and internationally.

Emil Guillermo is an award-winning columnist and social wit, hosting his own podcast ‘Emil Amok’, and writing essays on Asian American life that have appeared for mainstream and ethnic newspapers around the country. Since 2017, he has written and performed his “Amok Monologues” on American Filipino history.

M.J. KANG is a Korean American playwright, actor, director, and storyteller based in Los Angeles and Montreal. As an actor, she has appeared in film, television, and acted on stages across the US, Canada, and London, England. As a storyteller, she has won 5 Moth story slams and has been featured on PBS, USA Today and NPR.

Linda Yemoto, a Japanese American, was an award-winning Park Naturalist with the East Bay Regional Park for 33 years. She produced the Bay Area Storytelling Festival for over 30 years, served on the National Storytelling Network Board of Directors for six, and volunteers as a storyteller and docent at the SF Asian Art Museum. She has been regularly performing at conferences, libraries and festivals.

Panel Facilitator:

Dr Russel Jeung will facilitate the post-performance panel discussion exploring anti-AAPI racism. He has authored many articles and books about the Asian American experience and has taught as SF State university for the last 21 years. He is the co-founder of Stop AAPI Hate and specializes in the Sociology of Race, of Religion and Social Movements.

Sponsors
This event is sponsored by the California Arts Council.
This event is FREE to attend. We welcome donations. To donate to Eth-Noh-Tec, please visit http://www.ethnohtec.org

Celebrating Our HeART-filled Heritage: Pasifika Futurism, the SPULU Experience
2023-06-02 19:30 - 21:30 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
What does the world of Pasifika Futurism look like? How do we express our native traditions, immigrant culture, and queerness in one body? Join us for the final event in our Celebrating Our HeART-filled Heritage series by Oakland native, SPULU.
Through the lens of SPULU (a creative entrepreneur, storyteller, and multidisciplinary performing artist), the audience is guided through a ninety-minute experience of dance, movement, fashion, and film. SPULU will share stories highlighting the juxtaposition between preserving Native Tongan traditions by way of immigrant parents and finding balance with the reality of life for Tongan Americans in Oakland. As first generation, he will explore what it means to act as a bridge to honor the past while embracing the challenge of establishing roots in the melting pot.
“Pasifika Futurism: The SPULU Experience” will showcase customs and traditions through various art forms to express the impact social issues has on the relationship one has with self, their family, their community and the world around them. By inviting you to see the world as SPULU sees it, our hope is that people walk away with an awareness of embracing our connection to one another, embracing the uniqueness and individuality of each story, and embracing the call to action to use these two things to bring about change through what was, what is, and what’s to come.
The event will feature a marketplace of vendors and community resources as well as snacks and beverages before the show. Arrive early to snag a seat!
FEATURED ARTISTS
By way of Tongan South Pacific Roots, Ohlone Territory (Oakland, CA), and proud immigrant parents, SPULU is a creative entrepreneur, storyteller and multidisciplinary performing artist whose work has been showcased all over the world via social media in response to social issues facing Pasifika communities throughout the diaspora.
SPULU uses several mediums of art and movement as a form of resistance and protest while building community. Some of the recent work and involvements which celebrate SPULU include: earning a Bachelor of Arts in Dance with a focus in Race and Resistance studies from San Francisco State University, being featured at Oakland’s 2022 Life is Living Festival, participated in the Levi’s Pride 2019 International campaign, co-created a custom NIKE shoe (AirMax 95s), invited as a featured designer for custom pieces in a body positivity fashion show formerly known as MyBodyUTAH but now called MyBodyInclusive, and last, has had work featured in 2016 Pacific Worlds Display at Oakland Museum of California, a display in De Young Museum, San Francisco HipHop International Festival, Queer Rebel Festival and 2020 Black Joy Parade.
SPULU’s work stems from his early active engagement in the community as a youth advocate in programs like AYPAL Oakland, Californians For Justice, Destiny Arts Youth Performance Company, Culture Shock Oakland, EBAYC, and Mosaic Project. Programs like these have provided a platform and space that allowed artists/activists like SPULU to discover the impact and power their voice has had as a proud representative in their respective communities. In an effort to share their vision for change, SPULU’s ultimate goal is to share their talent and story to celebrate the parts of us that often go unseen/unheard in hopes of inspiring others to find their own voice and to go and do the same.

OPENING PERFORMANCE
Akhil Joondeph (he/they) is a dancer, dance teacher, student, and choreographer from the San Francisco Bay Area. He has trained extensively in Odissi and other indigenous South Asian dance forms, as well as various other disciplines, including contemporary, modern, and hip hop. In his work, he strives to find connections between the various artistic disciplines he has studied, while opening and embodying questions and stories pertinent to today’s world. He is particularly interested in exploring critical and diverse perspectives on modern South Asia, and conjuring these critiques through modes of whole-body practice like dance. He is currently performs and collaborates with the Ishami Dance Company in the San Francisco Bay Area. Akhil is currently an undergraduate student at Wesleyan University studying Anthropology and Dance.
A special thank you to our program partner Parivar, and our marketing sponsor Ethnic Media Services.
ABOUT THE SERIES
“Celebrating Our HeART-filled Heritage” champions local Asian and Asian Pacific Islander performing artists, with the goal of providing a platform for accomplished local performing artists and exposing our diverse community in the East Bay to compelling, culturally relevant artists and performances that inspire intergenerational and cross-cultural exchange. The performing arts series is supported in part by the Walter and Elise Haas Fund.
Donations are appreciated and no one will be turned away for lack of funds.

AAPI Mental Health and Wellness Jam
2023-06-10 12:00 - 16:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Join OACC and PEERS for an AAPI Mental Health and Wellness Jam, where we will embrace the warmth of our community and celebrate joy. We hope to create a space where Asian American and Pacific Islander communities can access tools and resources to address the needs of the whole person, and have many options for how they want to practice mental wellness.
We will cultivate a space of joy through local performers, and engage in wellness practices through free workshops that allow us to move our bodies and express our creativity.
Registration is free and required for entry. Early registration is encouraged to ensure adequate food and planning for facilities, but same day registration is allowed. This is an all-ages event, open to everyone including AAPI and allies!
ABOUT THE PERFORMER
Full Out Studios is a premiere Dance Studio created for dancers by dancers. Located in the East Bay/West Oakland, Full Out Studios is a spacious, converted warehouse turned dance studio where dancers of all levels can enjoy and connect through a shared passion for dance. Our programs house many influential teachers from across the bay area. In our adult program, we offer dance instruction in Hip Hop, House, Popping, Jazz Funk, Lyrical Hip Hop, Wacking.

ABOUT THE WORKSHOPS
Tai Chi by Sifu Johnny and Evelyn Lee
Gain the health benefits of traditional Tai Chi and Chi Gung practice in a friendly group setting. Master Jang has studied with some of the best Kung Fu masters from China and the U.S. From 1987 to 1991, and he was the national champion in Tai Chi, Xing Yi, and Ba Qua both in hand forms and weapons. This workshop is designed for students of all levels.

Chinese Calligraphy with Mr. Liu
Learn how to write using visual art as you design and letter using different calligraphy brushes. It is a form of writing through an expressive, harmonious, and skillful manner. Learn Chinese Painting and Calligraphy skills and be introduced to the Chinese language and culture.

Movement for Wellness Workshop with King Theo Ogum
Move & Groove, Release Relax
Join King Theo Ogum for a fun movement workshop filled with joy and excitement. Increase your flexibility stamina and strength as you learn new dances, chant and clap to a healthier you. With Live African Brazilian drums, participants are encouraged to hydrate. All Ages Welcome

ABOUT OUR PARTNERS
​PEERS is a diverse community of people with mental health experiences with a mission to promote innovative peer-based wellness strategies. They create culturally-rich, community-based mental health programs that honor diverse experiences and eliminate stigma and discrimination.
​Since 2002, PEERS has been funded by Alameda County Behavioral Health Care Services through the Mental Health Service Act (Prop 63) budget, and other grant opportunities, to offer programs and resources for the community of mental health consumers. Their work focuses on building tools to assist in the pursuit of overall wellness, the idea that each and every person — regardless of what they’ve been through — can recognize the value they hold.

"Celebrating Our HeART-filled Heritage" Performing Arts Series
2023-07-20 08:00 - 17:00
“Celebrating Our HeART-filled Heritage” (COHH) champions local Asian and Asian Pacific Islander performing artists, with the goal of providing a platform for accomplished local performing artists and exposing our diverse community in the East Bay to compelling, culturally relevant artists and performances that inspire intergenerational and cross-cultural exchange.
2022-2023 Season
This season is supported in part by the Walter and Elise Haas Fund, our generous sponsors, and individuals like you.
Season Schedule

APRIL 2023: Rooting Self featuring Joe Kye and the Givers, Surrija, and Nikbo

MAY 2023: Son of Paper

JUNE 2023: SPULU

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Special thanks to our 2023 performing arts series funders who helped make our programming possible!

Past Seasons
2021-2022 Season
Click on thumbnails below to view details. This season was supported in part by the Walter and Elise Haas Fund.

2020-2021 Season View our season compilation video!
Click on thumbnails below to view details. This season was supported in part by the Walter and Elise Haas Fund.

Book Reading with Grace Lin
2023-09-13 15:00 - 17:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Join OACC and Eastwind Books of Berkeley for a book talk with award-winning and bestselling children’s book author Grace Lin in celebrating the release of her new anthology, CHINESE MENU: The History, Myths, and Legends Behind Your Favorite American Chinese Foods (suitable for ages 8 – 12 years old).
From fried dumplings to fortune cookies, here are the tales behind your favorite foods. Do you know the stories behind delectable dishes—like the fun connection between scallion pancakes and pizza? Or how dumplings cured a village’s frostbitten ears? Or how wonton soup tells about the creation of the world?
Separated into courses like a Chinese menu, these tales—based in real history and folklore—are filled with squabbling dragons, magical fruits, and hungry monks. This book will bring you to far-off times and marvelous places, all while making your mouth water. And, along the way, you might just discover a deeper understanding of the resilience and triumph behind this food, and what makes it undeniably American.
Grace Lin provides a visual and storytelling feast as she gives insight on the history, legends, and myths behind your favorite American Chinese dishes.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Grace Lin, a NY Times bestselling author/ illustrator, won the Newbery Honor for “Where the Mountain Meets the Moon” and the Theodor Geisel Honor for “Ling and Ting.” Her novel “When the Sea Turned to Silver” was a National Book Award Finalist and her picture book, “A Big Mooncake for Little Star” was awarded the Caldecott Honor. Grace is also an occasional commentator for New England Public Radio, a reviewer for the NY Times, a video essayist for PBS NewsHour, and the speaker of the popular TEDx talk, “The Windows and Mirrors of Your Child’s Bookshelf,” as well as hosting the two podcasts: kidlitwomen* and Kids Ask Authors. Grace is In 2016, Grace’s art was displayed at the White House where Grace, herself, was recognized by President Obama’s office as a Champion of Change for Asian American and Pacific Islander Art and Storytelling. In 2022, Grace was awarded the Children’s Literature Legacy Award from the American Library Association.

This event is co-sponsored by Eastwind Books of Berkeley.

7th Street’s Secret Sauce: Celebrating Everett and Jones Barbeque’s 50-Year Legacy
2023-09-16 08:00 - 2023-09-25 17:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Featured Artists & Curators

Kenneth McGhee
Kenneth McGhee is a Los Angeles County native, raised in the San Fernando Valley, California. His true passion for drawing began at 6 years of age, with his main inspirations being the illustrators of DC, Marvel comic books, and Mad Magazine. He began a formal art education at Art Center College of Design, Pasadena, California and later enlisted in the United States Navy. After serving overseas for four years, he became a design atelier Graphic Artist and freelance illustrator in Bonn, Germany. Since his repatriation to the United States in 1996, Kenneth continues working as a freelance Commercial Illustrator/ Graphic Artist, Art Tutor, and Fine Artist. You can view his multi-styled commercial illustration and graphic design work samples at: https://Kensfunkyart.com.

Shirley Everett-Dicko
Shirley Everett-Dicko is the fifth child of Dorothy Turner Everett, and a member of the legendary family of not eight, nine, or ten but eleven Black pitmasters from Oakland, CA, and nine of these pitmasters are dynamic Black women who have been cooking delicious smoked meat on brick pits for 50 years. She is the family’s historian, the social media director, and one of four surviving Everett siblings. Shirley was there on opening day in 1973 and has been the marketing director for Everett and Jones Barbeque since day one. Shirley has authored a new book titled Brick House. The new book is about barbeque from the perspective of a Black woman. Her late mother and five deceased siblings’ legacy will live on through these collections of short stories.

Save the Date: Vibe, Vine, & Vino Fundraiser and Mixer
2023-09-16 17:00 - 20:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Stay tuned for more information soon!

This event is co-sponsored by Project by Project.

Elder Voices: Chinatown Legacy Businesses Exhibition
2023-10-11 13:00 - 2024-01-22 17:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
“Elder Voices: Chinatown Legacy Businesses” features stories and portraits from six cultural keepers whose businesses have been and continue to be Chinatown pillars. Oral histories will feature stories about the legacy and contributions of Cam Ahn Restaurant, Green Fish Market, Draline Tong Herbs, Yuen Hop Market, Imperial Soup, and the Great China (1950s). Featuring photos by Chinatown Pretty photographer, Andria Lo.

This exhibition will be available to view during OACC’s business hours (Wednesday-Saturday, 12 PM -5 PM).

Meet the Exhibition Artists & Curator
Lead Artist

Andria Lo
Raised in Alaska and Texas, Andria Lo a freelance editorial and commercial photographer now based in San Francisco Bay Area. With a background in studio art with a degree from University of California Berkeley, her first photo book, Chinatown Pretty, was published in fall of 2020 by Chronicle Books. For more information, visit http://www.andrialo.com/about.
Contributing Artist

William Gee Wong
William Gee Wong is a print journalist, author, and amateur historian. A native of Oakland, California’s Chinatown, William was previously a journalist for The Wall Street Journal (1970-1979), The Oakland Tribune (1979-1996). He also wrote for The San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco News Call Bulletin, San Francisco Examiner, East West: the Chinese American Journal, and Asian Week. William is the author of Yellow Journalist: Dispatches from Asian America, Images of America: Oakland’s Chinatown, and co-author of Images of America: Angel Island, and his forthcoming book Sons of Chinatown, A Memoir Rooted in China and America to be released in Spring 2024. For more information, visit https://www.williamgeewong.com.

Flo Oy Wong
Flo Oy Wong, co-founder of the San Francisco-based Asian American Women Artists Association, is an artist, poet, and educator. She is a recipient of three National Endowment for the Arts awards, and has been a visiting artist at various colleges and universities. She has also been featured in articles in multiple publications. Growing up in Oakland Chinatown, she spoke her family’s ancestral dialect, Hoisan-wa. In 2018, Flo published her art and poetry book, Dreaming of Glistening Pomelos, inspired by her childhood. Contemporary Asian Theater Scene presented Wong with their 2022 Image Hero Award.
Nellie Wong

Nellie Wong has published four books: Dreams in Harrison Railroad Park, The Death of Long Steam Lady, Stolen Moments, and Breakfast Lunch Dinner. Her poems and essays appear in numerous journals and anthologies, including This Bridge Called My Back: Writings By Radical Women of Color, and excerpts from two poems have been permanently installed at public sites at the San Francisco Municipal Railway. A building at Oakland High School is named after her, she is co-featured in the documentary film, Mitsuye and Nellie Asian American Poets, and a poem of hers was nominated for the Pushcart Prize. She traveled to China in the First American Women Writers Tour with Alice Walker, Tillie Olsen, and Paule Marshall, among others. She taught at Mills College and the University of Minnesota, and is the recipient of the 2022 PEN Oakland/Reginald Lockett Lifetime Achievement Award.
Curator
Roy Chan

Roy Chan is an Oakland-based oral historian and urban planner committed to using the power of storytelling to build community and empower local residents to have a voice in the local decision-making process. Since 2007, he has been director of the Oakland Chinatown Oral History Project/ AAPI Elder Voices Project and was previously Co-Executive Director at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center. Roy has previously practiced architecture and city planning in San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles, and is currently a program director at National CAPACD. Learn more at www.chinatownmemories.org
This exhibition is made possible by the support of the Senior Assistance Foundation Eastbay (SAFE).

“Everything I Learned, I Learned in a Chinese Restaurant: A Memoir” Book Launch with Curtis Chin
2023-11-17 14:00 - 15:30 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Register for this event

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Featuring

CURTIS CHIN
A co-founder of the Asian American Writers’ Workshop in New York City, Curtis Chin served as the non-profits’ first Executive Director. He went on to write for network and cable television before transitioning to social justice documentaries. Chin has screened his films at over 600 venues in sixteen countries. He has written for CNN, Bon Appetit and the Emancipator/Boston Globe. A graduate of the University of Michigan, Chin has received awards from ABC/Disney Television, New York Foundation for the Arts, National Endowment for the Arts, and more. His memoir, Everything I Learned, I Learned in a Chinese Restaurant will be published by Little, Brown in Fall 2023. He’s currently writing projects for PBS and Warner Bros. and his essay in Bon Appetit was just selected for Best Food Writing in America 2023. curtisfromdetroit.com

EVERYTHING I LEARNED, I LEARNED IN A CHINESE RESTAURANT
From filmmaker and co-founder of the Asian American Writers’ Workshop, Curtis Chin’s memoir about coming of age and coming out traces the author’s journey through 1980’s Detroit as he navigated rising xenophobia, the AIDS epidemic, and the Reagan Revolution to find his voice as a writer and activist — all set against the backdrop of his family’s popular Chinese restaurant. The book, which features plenty of Chinese food and Motown vibes, will be published by Little, Brown in the fall of 2023.

TERRY PARK
Dr. Terry K Park (he/him) serves as The Asian American Foundation’s Education and Narrative Change Program Officer. An award-winning educator, social justice advocate, and former performance artist, Terry has over twenty years of experience at the transformative intersections of anti-racist education, social change storytelling, and media advocacy.

Elder Voices: Chinatown Legacy Businesses Exhibition Opening Reception
2023-12-09 13:00 - 15:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
REGISTER FOR OPENING RECEPTION

Exhibition Opening Reception
“Elder Voices: Chinatown Legacy Businesses” features stories and portraits from six cultural keepers whose businesses have been and continue to be Chinatown pillars. Oral histories will feature stories about the legacy and contributions of Cam Ahn Restaurant, Green Fish Market, Draline Tong Herbs, Yuen Hop Market, Imperial Soup, and the Great China (1950s). Featuring photos by Chinatown Pretty photographer, Andria Lo.
Join us for the opening reception of this extraordinary exhibition on Saturday, December 9, 2023 at 1 PM featuring a screening of Drawn from Life: The Creative Legacy of Flo Oy Wong, a brief discussion with the exhibition curators, and food from a few of the featured local businesses!

This exhibition will be available to view during OACC’s business hours (Wednesday-Saturday, 12 PM -5 PM).

Drawn from Life: The Creative Legacy of Flo Oy Wong (20 minutes)
As the sixth daughter of Chinese immigrants living in Oakland’s Chinatown in the 1940s-1960s, Flo Oy Wong was determined to break free of a life of pre-destined invisibility. She began her art career at the age of forty. Her poetry career started at seventy-five. Now eighty-five, her life came full circle when The Community Rejuvenation Project proposed to paint a mural of her at 723 Webster in Oakland, the former site of her family’s restaurant, The Great China. In this film, Flo’s beginnings in Oakland’s Chinatown come to life once more— this time through the eyes of another artist.
Meet the Exhibition Artists & Curator
Lead Artist

Andria Lo
Raised in Alaska and Texas, Andria Lo a freelance editorial and commercial photographer now based in San Francisco Bay Area. With a background in studio art with a degree from University of California Berkeley, her first photo book, Chinatown Pretty, was published in fall of 2020 by Chronicle Books. For more information, visit http://www.andrialo.com/about.
Contributing Artist

William Gee Wong
William Gee Wong is a print journalist, author, and amateur historian. A native of Oakland, California’s Chinatown, William was previously a journalist for The Wall Street Journal (1970-1979), The Oakland Tribune (1979-1996). He also wrote for The San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco News Call Bulletin, San Francisco Examiner, East West: the Chinese American Journal, and Asian Week. William is the author of Yellow Journalist: Dispatches from Asian America, Images of America: Oakland’s Chinatown, and co-author of Images of America: Angel Island, and his forthcoming book Sons of Chinatown, A Memoir Rooted in China and America to be released in Spring 2024. For more information, visit https://www.williamgeewong.com.

Flo Oy Wong
Flo Oy Wong, co-founder of the San Francisco-based Asian American Women Artists Association, is an artist, poet, and educator. She is a recipient of three National Endowment for the Arts awards, and has been a visiting artist at various colleges and universities. She has also been featured in articles in multiple publications. Growing up in Oakland Chinatown, she spoke her family’s ancestral dialect, Hoisan-wa. In 2018, Flo published her art and poetry book, Dreaming of Glistening Pomelos, inspired by her childhood. Contemporary Asian Theater Scene presented Wong with their 2022 Image Hero Award.

Nellie Wong

Nellie Wong has published four books: Dreams in Harrison Railroad Park, The Death of Long Steam Lady, Stolen Moments, and Breakfast Lunch Dinner. Her poems and essays appear in numerous journals and anthologies, including This Bridge Called My Back: Writings By Radical Women of Color, and excerpts from two poems have been permanently installed at public sites at the San Francisco Municipal Railway. A building at Oakland High School is named after her, she is co-featured in the documentary film, Mitsuye and Nellie Asian American Poets, and a poem of hers was nominated for the Pushcart Prize. She traveled to China in the First American Women Writers Tour with Alice Walker, Tillie Olsen, and Paule Marshall, among others. She taught at Mills College and the University of Minnesota, and is the recipient of the 2022 PEN Oakland/Reginald Lockett Lifetime Achievement Award.
Curator
Roy Chan

Roy Chan is an Oakland-based oral historian and urban planner committed to using the power of storytelling to build community and empower local residents to have a voice in the local decision-making process. Since 2007, he has been director of the Oakland Chinatown Oral History Project/ AAPI Elder Voices Project and was previously Co-Executive Director at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center. Roy has previously practiced architecture and city planning in San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles, and is currently a program director at National CAPACD. Learn more at www.chinatownmemories.org
This exhibition is made possible by the support of the Senior Assistance Foundation Eastbay (SAFE).

Love and Protect Mural Series
2024-01-26 12:00 - 2024-03-02 17:00
“Love and Protect” is a condemnation of violence and a commitment to uplift, nourish, fortify and pay homage to our communities so that when we rise, we rise up together. On April 10th-11th, 2021, local Asian and Black Bay Area visual artists and community members came together to produce a series of mobile public art murals in Oakland Chinatown for communities impacted by Asian hate crimes.
Artists Cece Carpio of Trust Your Struggle Collective and Tommy Wong of Civic Design Studio and Good Good Eatz brought together local artists who are deeply rooted in the fight for racial and environment justice.
PARTICIPATING ARTISTS:
Emory Douglas, Tarika Lewis, Cece Carpio, Robert Liu-Trujillo, Elaine Chu, Priya Handa, Miguel “Bounce” Perez, Eric Norberg, Karen Seneferu, Malik Seneferu, Thitiwat Phromratanapongse, Cecilia Dong, Catherine McMahon, Ming Mur-Eay, Elokin Orton Cheung, Harrison Street Senior Art Collective, Deanna Brownfield, Malik Byers, Greer Nakagawa Lee, Maya Looney, Lauryn Marshall, & Asians 4 Black Lives.

"The Six: The Untold Story of RMS Titanic’s Chinese Passengers" Film Screening & Discussion with Research Team Members
2024-01-26 19:00 - 21:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
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When RMS Titanic sank on a cold night in 1912, barely 700 people escaped with their lives. Among them were six Chinese men. Arriving in New York with the other survivors, the six were met not with compassion, but suspicion and slander. Less than 24 hours later, they were expelled from the country, and vanished. What became of them, and why did they disappear so completely?
Join us on Friday, January 26, 2024 at 7 PM for a film screening and discussion of The Six: The Untold Story of RMS Titanic’s Chinese Passengers. Together, we will embark on an epic journey that crosses continents, as an international team of investigators sets out to uncover the truth about the six surviving Chinese passengers of the Titanic, and to right a century-old injustice. The Six is an extraordinary story of survival and dignity in the face of racism and anti-immigrant policy that still reverberates today. It was directed by Arthur Jones, produced by Luo Tong for LostPensivos Films, and executive produced by James Cameron.
This film includes subtitles in Chinese.

STEVEN SCHWANKERT
Steven Schwankert is an explorer and writer based in New York. He is the co-creator and lead researcher of The Six, a book and documentary film project revealing the story of RMS Titanic’s Chinese passengers. In 2006, he discovered the unknown fate of Royal Navy submarine HMS Poseidon, which became both the book, Poseidon: China’s Secret Salvage of Britain’s Lost Submarine《波塞冬号正传》and the documentary film The Poseidon Project. In 2007, he and his team discovered two century-old wooden shipwrecks in Mongolia’s Lake Khovsgol.

GRANT DIN
Grant Din is a genealogist, historic researcher, and nonprofit consultant based in Oakland who was a member of the international research team for The Six. He has worked with the Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation and many other local nonprofits and has spoken about Angel Island immigrants and Asian Americans to many local and national organizations. Grant is co-curator of an exhibit at the former immigration station in Angel Island State Park about the wartime detention of Japanese immigrants on Angel Island, Taken From Their Families.

Lunar New Year x Black History Month 2024: Celebrating Asian & African-American Solidarity
2024-02-03 11:00 - 16:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
REGISTER

Join us on Saturday, February 3, 2024 as we partner with the Malonga Arts Residents Association (MARA) for the Oakland Asian Cultural Center’s second annual Lunar New Year x Black History Month Community Celebration.
We welcome our community back for another celebration of Asian and African-American solidarity through art, music, and dance.
We are thrilled to present this year’s incredible lineup of Black and Asian martial artists, musicians, and dance groups including Blood Moon Orchestra with Van Anh Vo and special guest Kev Choice, Diamano Coura drummers, Carla Service Dance-A-Vision Entertainment, Kenneth Pitts’ Martial Arts student, and CAL USA Lion Dancers.
In addition to a full day of performances, we are bringing back a local vendor marketplace, a children’s zone with Eastwind Books, and an exhibition on Black and Asian solidarity.
This event is part of OACC’s ongoing Open E.A.R.S. for Change initiative started in 2020 to build stronger relationships among local APIA and Black communities.
This event is funded by The City of Oakland Cultural Affairs Grant and the CA State Grant for Stop the Hate (CDSS), and sponsored by Ava Community Energy, Alameda County Behavioral Health/Health Equity Division, and Council President and District 2 Council Member, Nikki Fortunato Bas.

Program Emcee

Miko Lee
Miko Lee is an activist, storyteller and educator. She believes in the power of story to amplify voices. Miko is Director of Programs for Asian Americans for Civil Rights and Equality and is lead producer of APEX Express on KPFA Radio focused around AAPI activists and artists. She is also on the National Advisory Committee of Teaching Artists Guild. Miko’s career has been rooted in the nonprofit world, first as a theater actor, director and writer and then as an artistic director and an arts education leader.
Performer Spotlights
Headliner: Blood Moon Orchestra with
Van-Anh Vo and special guest Kev Choice

Van-Anh Vo
Van-Anh Vanessa Vo is one of the finest performers of Vietnamese traditional instruments in the world and a rapidly emerging composer. A Vietnamese-American artist, Vo’s mission has been to build a bridge between both cultures. Her Blood Moon Orchestra’s mission is to promote cultural understanding and respect while raising awareness about political and social issues through the use of musical instruments of diverse cultures, pushing boundaries, and expanding and exploring the sonic capabilities of their respective instruments.

Kev Choice
Kev Choice is a pianist, composer, emcee, producer, educator, and activist, hailing from Oakland, CA. He began studying piano and rapping at the age of eleven. After graduating from Skyline High School in Oakland, he went on to earn music degrees from Xavier University of Louisiana and Southern Illinois University.
Additional Performers

Cal VSA Lion Dance
Cal VSA Lion Dance, founded in 2012 through the Vietnamese Student Association’s Culture Show, is UC Berkeley’s one and only student-run lion dance team. Earnestly serving the local bay area for the past 11 years, they’ve developed a tight-knit team of students and alumni connected by culture, passion, and camaraderie.

Carla Service Dance-A-Vision Entertainment Group
Performers from the Carla Service Dance-A-Vision Entertainment Group, both youth and adult will perform on this day in honor of bringing us all together. Carla has been in business for over 35 years as a performer, choreographer, and dance teacher, mentoring youth through adulthood.

OH-IN Taiko
OH-IN (桜音) means “sounds of cherry”. Producing not only the powerful sounds of taiko but also the sensitive and elegant parts of taiko sounds in their playing style. OH-IN Taiko performers are sharing three songs on this day: Phoenix, Komen no Mizudori (water bird song), and Richmond Wind.

Diamano Coura
Diamano Coura is a not-for-profit community African arts organization with a cultural focus. Located at the Malonga Casquelourd Center for the Arts, the company is dedicated to the preservation, education, and appreciation of traditional West African music, dance, theater, and culture.

GER Youth
GER‘s Mongolian traditional dances not only express distinct ethnic identities and promote family unity and mutual understanding among different Mongolian ethnic groups, but they also show the daily routine of nomadic lifestyle, imitating the movement and manner of deities, mystical creatures, legendary heroes and the grace & beauty of Mongolian women through smooth and elegant movements of their arms.

Pitts Martial Arts Academy
Kenneth Pitts is a master instructor and the owner of Pitts Martial Arts. He has been teaching martial arts for more than 35 years. Master Pitts holds a 7th-degree black belt in Taekwondo, a 2nd Dan in judo, is a Mestre in Capoeira, and teaches Escrima, Tai Chi, and kickboxing.

Toishan Benevolent Association
The Toishan Benevolent Association has served the greater Bay Area community for the last 22 years with different cultural programs. They promote Chinese ethnic culture in different forms of performances: lion’s dance, dragon dance, traditional art dance, tai chi demonstration, kung fu demonstration, and youth kung fu.
Featured Exhibitions

Bandung to the Bay
Eastside Arts Alliance will be partially reinstalling their exhibition “Bandung to the Bay”, which consists of historical, archival documents connected to the International Bandung Conference and Bay Area Asian & Black activist solidarity movements like the Black Panther Party of Self-Defense.

Love + Protect Mural Series
“Love and Protect” is a condemnation of violence and a commitment to uplift, nourish, fortify and pay homage to our communities so that when we rise, we rise up together. On April 10th-11th, 2021, local Asian and Black Bay Area visual artists and community members came together to produce a series of mobile public art murals in Oakland Chinatown for communities impacted by Asian hate crimes.
Artists Cece Carpio of Trust Your Struggle Collective and Tommy Wong of Civic Design Studio and Good Good Eatz brought together local artists who are deeply rooted in the fight for racial and environment justice.
PARTICIPATING ARTISTS:
Emory Douglas, Tarika Lewis, Cece Carpio, Robert Liu-Trujillo, Elaine Chu, Priya Handa, Miguel “Bounce” Perez, Eric Norberg, Karen Seneferu, Malik Seneferu, Thitiwat Phromratanapongse, Cecilia Dong, Catherine McMahon, Ming Mur-Eay, Elokin Orton Cheung, Harrison Street Senior Art Collective, Deanna Brownfield, Malik Byers, Greer Nakagawa Lee, Maya Looney, Lauryn Marshall, & Asians 4 Black Lives.

ALTERNATIVE FACTS: The Lies of Executive Order 9066
2024-02-15 19:00 - 20:30 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
“ALTERNATIVE FACTS: The Lies of Executive Order 9066” Day of Remembrance Film Screening & Discussion
In honor of Day of Remembrance, join us on Thursday, February 15, 2024 for a screening of ALTERNATIVE FACTS: The Lies of Executive Order 9066 followed by a discussion of the film with film director Jon Osaki and film producer Lauren Kawana.
Day of Remembrance, on February 19th, marks the day in 1942 when President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, giving the U.S. Army the authority to forcibly remove and incarcerate Americans of Japanese ancestry residing on the West Coast during WWII. Every February, the Japanese American community commemorates Executive Order 9066 as a reminder of the impact the incarceration experience has had on their families, community, and our country. It is an opportunity to educate others on the fragility of civil liberties in times of crisis, and the importance of remaining vigilant in protecting the rights and freedoms of all.

Register

About the Film

ALTERNATIVE FACTS: The Lies of Executive Order 9066 is a documentary feature film about the false information and political influences which led to the World War II incarceration of Japanese Americans. The film sheds light on the people and politics that influenced the signing of the infamous Executive Order 9066, which authorized the mass incarceration of nearly 120,000 Japanese Americans, and chronicles one of the most dark, twisted, and nefarious cover-ups in American history.

In today’s climate of fear and “fake news”, the story of the unjust World War II incarceration of Japanese Americans is a cautionary tale about this country’s democracy and the fragile balance of power within our government. While the WWII incarceration of Japanese Americans has been acknowledged as a “mistake,” ALTERNATIVE FACTS challenges the historical narrative and promotes healthy dialogue about race, religion, and the importance of speaking out when our democracy falters.
About the Director

Jon Osaki is a native San Franciscan and has served as the Executive Director of the Japanese Community Youth Council since 1996. During Jon’s tenure as Executive Director, JCYC has grown to become one of San Francisco’s most successful child and youth development organizations, annually serving over 6,000 children and youth from all ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds. Under Jon’s leadership, JCYC’s programs have received national recognition for achieving outstanding outcomes for young people and the organization is frequently called upon by the City of San Francisco to implement new initiatives for children and youth.
Jon is also an award-winning filmmaker who has directed and produced promotional, educational, narrative, and documentary films. Over the past few years, he has had films screened at film festivals and community events across the country. As a filmmaker, Jon views this genre as the next step in his lifelong pursuit of social justice and equity.
Currently Jon’s first feature documentary, ALTERNATIVE FACTS: The Lies of Executive Order 9066 is broadcasting nationwide on PBS stations. In addition, he has recently received the “Activism in Film Award” by the DisOrient Asian American Film Festival of Oregon, “Outstanding Achievement Humanitarian Award” by the Best Short Film Competition, and the “Health Equity Community Award” by the Asian and Pacific Islander American Health Forum.

About the Film Producer

Born and raised in Hawai’i, Lauren Kawana currently works in the San Francisco Bay Area as an independent documentary director, producer, camera operator and editor. She has worked on doc shorts, series, and feature films such as Try Harder! directed by Debbie Lum; FREE: The Power of Performance directed by Suzanne LaFetra and David Collier, and Mind/Game: The Unquiet Journey of Chamique Holdsclaw directed by Rick Goldsmith.

"Love & Protect" Mural Series Closing Reception and AR Workshop
2024-02-29 16:00 - 19:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
“Love & Protect” Mural Series
Closing Reception & AR workshop
Join us for the closing reception of the “Love & Protect” Mural Series, and meet and celebrate with some of the artists, learn how the AR exhibit was created in collaboration with Black Terminus AR, and learn how to create your own!
Closing Reception & AR Workshop Schedule
4:30 PM: “Love & Protect” Muralist Talk
5:00 PM: Augmented Reality Workshop w/ Black Terminus AR
6:00 PM: Celebration
“Love and Protect” murals are a condemnation of violence and a commitment to uplift, nourish, fortify and pay homage to our communities so that when we rise, we rise up together. On April 10th-11th, 2021, local Asian and Black Bay Area visual artists and community members came together to produce a series of mobile public art murals in Oakland Chinatown for communities impacted by Asian hate crimes. This exhibit reflects and resonates calls for unity among global communities historically impacted by systems of oppression. Artists Cece Carpio and Robert Trujillo of Trust Your Struggle Collective, and Tommy Wong of Civic Design Studio, brought together local artists who are deeply rooted in the fight for racial and environmental justice. Damien McDuffie and the Black Terminus AR team then collaborated to turn the murals into an amazing augmented reality experience.
PARTICIPATING ARTISTS:
Emory Douglas, Tarika Lewis, Cece Carpio, Robert Liu-Trujillo, Elaine Chu, Priya Handa, Miguel “Bounce” Perez, Eric Norberg, Karen Seneferu, Malik Seneferu, Thitiwat Phromratanapongse, Cecilia Dong, Catherine McMahon, Ximaps Dong, Ming Mur-Eay, Elokin Orton Cheung, Harrison Street Senior Art Collective, De’Ana Brownfield, Malik Byers, Greer Nakagawa Lee, Maya Looney, Lauryn Marshall, & Asians 4 Black Lives.

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"Method Sampling: How to Build the Future Together" Documentary Film Premiere Screening & Discussion with Ensemble Mik Nawooj
2024-03-01 19:00 - 20:30 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
“Method Sampling: How to Build the Future Together” Documentary Film Premiere Screening & Discussion with Ensemble Mik Nawooj
Join us for the Bay Area premiere of the documentary film, “Method Sampling: How to Build the Future Together” featuring Ensemble Mik Nawooj, on Friday, March 1, 2024, at 7 PM. After the screening, we will have a Q&A with producer JooWan Kim and co-producer Christopher Nicholas.
Method Sampling is the principle that any paradigm shifting change only happens by sampling and reframing differences that spark innovation. In this film, we will see how Kim tests his hypothesis, meeting a disabled choreographer who revolutionized modern dance, a self-taught Black mycologist who wrote the first books on Cordyceps cultivation, and a tiny house builder with a shipbuilding background who looks at houses as inverted boats. Additionally, Ensemble Mik Nawooj uses Method Sampling by fusing hip-hop and classical music to magical effect.
This film explores how Method Sampling may allow society to overcome the challenges it faces today.
*There is limited seating for this event

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About Ensemble Mik Nawooj

Ensemble Mik Nawooj (EMN)’s Hip-Hop Orchestra Experience is part concert, dance party, and club night featuring original music that samples from classical and hip-hop—all presented in an underground setting like the New York scene that birthed hip-hop. Their music uniquely challenges the MCs and classical musicians pushing the boundaries of both hip-hop and concert music, creating something completely new. The program includes seminal works of Mozart, Bach, and Beethoven, deconstructed and reimagined with funky rhythms and rapid-fire rhymes.
Led by composer/pianist, JooWan Kim, the Hip-Hop Orchestra Experience featuring EMN creates Metamusic by sampling principles of Hip-Hop and Classical. Executed with resident MCs, a lyric soprano, woodwinds, French horns, strings, piano, and drums, the music is rigorous, nuanced, accessible, and free from the dogmas of Western European concert music aesthetic. The result is seamless tête-à-tête with “textures swimming through the sound…like the world’s fastest ping-pong game” (Pitchfork) and is considered the “cutting edge of hip-hop” (Huffington Post).
In today’s climate of fear and “fake news”, the story of the unjust World War II incarceration of Japanese Americans is a cautionary tale about this country’s democracy and the fragile balance of power within our government. While the WWII incarceration of Japanese Americans has been acknowledged as a “mistake,” ALTERNATIVE FACTS challenges the historical narrative and promotes healthy dialogue about race, religion, and the importance of speaking out when our democracy falters.
About the Film Producers
Korean composer JooWan Kim, starting his formal composition studies in the U.S. at 20, embraced Zen meditation and Sundo. A pivotal moment occurred with the success of a novelty piece featuring an MC and chamber ensemble, reshaping Kim’s compositional direction. This marked an escape from the conventional concert music aesthetic. Kim developed Method Sampling, involving borrowing and reframing rationales from various fields. His work has gained recognition on platforms like National Geographic, ESPN, Wall Street Journal, Pitchfork, and the United Nations. He is represented by Opus 3 Artists.
Christopher Nicholas received a dual B.M. in Songwriting and Vocal Performance from Berklee College of Music in 2004 and an M.M. in Jazz Studies in 2009 from the University of North Texas. In 2010, alongside his college friend, composer/pianist, JooWan Kim, Christopher co-founded the Oakland based Hip Hop Orchestra Experience. Together, they have run the organization resulting in features, collaborations and commissions from Amazon, National Geographic, NPR, Pitchfork, ESPN, United Nations, and more.

Passage: A Dancing Moons Festival Art Exhibition
2024-03-06 12:00 - 2024-03-24 17:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Passage: A Dancing Moons Festival Art Exhibition
As part of its Dancing Moons Festival 2024, the Oakland Ballet presents Passages, an exhibition celebrating the creativity, culture, and artistic expression of these participating AAPI artists: Sanjay Vora, Dave Young Kim, Ranu Mukherjee, Mark Shigenaga, JaYing Wang, and Kyong Ae Kim. Through captured movements, paintings, photographs and works on paper, stories of the past, present and what is yet to come ultimately become the bond that ties us all together. Also included in this exhibition are the voices of 8th grade AAPI students from St. Paul’s Episcopal School in Oakland.
This exhibition is open March 6, 2024 – March 24, 2024, and will be available to view during OACC’s business hours: Wednesday – Saturday, 12 PM – 5 PM.
Curated by Sanjay Vora and the Oakland Ballet.

Dancing Moons Festival 2024
2024-03-14 19:30 - 2024-03-16 19:30 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Oakland Ballet Company & the Oakland Asian Cultural Center presents
Dancing Moons Festival 2024
Featuring works from Elaine Kudo, Phil Chan, Caili Quan, and Seyong Kim!
Performance Dates:
Thursday, March 14, 2024 at 7:30pmFriday, March 15, 2024 at 7:30pmSaturday, March 16, 2024 at 2:30pm & 7:30pm

BUY TICKETS

Details About the 2024 Program Below:

Oakland Ballet Angel Island Project
Based on Huang Ruo’s composition, Angel Island, which took its inspiration from the poems carved into the walls by detainees held at the immigration station between 1910-1940, OBC will realize this 70-minute oratorio for 4 voices and strig quartet in a two-year phase.
In spring 2024, several selections will be presented as “works in progress” as part of the Dancing Moons Festival 2024. Next year, 2025, the rest of the choreography will be realized and the entire work performed with live music.
About Ballet des Porcelains or The Teapot Prince:
A lost 18th Century Divertissement, the original ballet was performed in 1739 at the Chateau de Morville near Paris. It was presented once more, in 1741, in the garden of the château before being virtually lost forever. Not much survived of the 15-minute divertissement, no sets, costumes or choreography, but the score and the libretto which are kept at the National Library of France in Paris.
In 2021, Phil Chan was commissioned by the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art to reimagine the ballet’s centuries-old plot – creating a new version of the story more appropriate for today’s diverse audiences. Says Chan, “Now, instead of it being about, ‘Let’s triumph over Asian people,’ it’s about Asian people saying, ‘Hey, don’t treat us as porcelain dolls. See us with nuance.’”

About Exquisite Corpse:
The work borrows its name from a parlor game invented in 1925 by a group of artists and writers including André Breton and Marcel Duchamp. Participants took turns drawing sections of a body, then folding the work to hide their contributions. The next player added to the whole without knowing how the final result would appear. By emphasizing free play, unpredictability and collaboration, the game was quite popular in Surrealist circles in the 1920s and 30s.
Playing off this concept, Chan, Kim and Kudo have created three works each: a solo (the head), a group piece (the torso) and a duet (the legs), and the nine sections will be woven together to create an “exquisite corpse.”

"Sons of Chinatown: A Memoir Rooted in China and America" Book Release Reading with William Gee Wong
2024-03-24 13:00 - 14:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
“Sons Of Chinatown: A Memoir Rooted In China And America” Book Release Reading With William Gee Wong
William “Bill” Gee Wong will read from his newly published book “Sons of Chinatown: A Memoir Rooted in China and America”, followed by a conversation with Harvey Dong, of Eastwind Books, and a book signing.

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About William Gee Wong

A native of Oakland, California’s Chinatown, William received his B.A. at the University of California at Berkeley and M.S. at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. His print journalism career was spent at The Wall Street Journal and The Oakland Tribune. He also worked for The San Francisco Chronicle and the San Francisco News Call Bulletin, and has written for the San Francisco Examiner, East/West Chinese American Journal, and Asian Week, among other publications.
In the mid-1960s, Wong served in the Peace Corps in the Philippines. From 1995-1996, he was a regional commentator for The News Hour with Jim Lehrer on PBS.
Wong is also the author of “Yellow Journalist: Dispatches from Asian America, Images of America: Oakland’s Chinatown”, and co-author of “Images of America: Angel Island”.

About “Sons of Chinatown: A Memoir Rooted in China and America”

William Gee Wong’s father entered the U.S. legally as the “son of a native,” despite having partially false papers. Sons of Chinatown is Wong’s evocative dual memoir of his and his father’s parallel experiences in America during the Chinese exclusion era and in the subsequent decades.

"Dalit Dreamlands: Toward an Anti-Caste Future" Exhibition and Opening Reception
2024-03-29 12:00 - 2024-06-08 17:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Dalit dreamlands: toward an anti-caste future
Asian American Women Artists Association (AAWAA), ARTogether, Discostan, and Oakland Asian Cultural Center co-presents “Dalit Dreamlands: Toward an Anti-Caste Future” – a landmark multimedia Dalit art exhibition and dance party that will bring together over 30 multiply marginalized artists from Dalit*, Adivasi*, Bahujan*, Afro-Indian, Indo-Caribbean, and Muslim communities to showcase the depths of creativity and community.
Dalit Dreamlands, curated by Manu Kaur (they/them) and supported through AAWAA’s Emerging Curator’s Program, will center queer and trans caste abolitionist futurisms through art across various mediums, including fashion design, music, performances, films, paintings and visuals. One of the headlining artists, Malvika Raj, is a Dalit artist who challenges the casteist restrictions present in the Madhubani style of painting, by incorporating pro-Dalit assertions into her intricate and hypnotizing designs. Nazrina Rodjan is a queer Indo-Surinamese artist who integrates the history of indentured labor and femme resilience within her large paintings of indentured Indian women.
London-based trans Dalit artist Mya Mehmi from Pxssy Palace will be one of four guest DJs and performers at the opening reception dance party in collaboration with Discostan’s Arshia Fatima Haq. Dalit Dreamlands is a historic event that marks one of the first queer Dalit-centered spaces to exist in California.
*Dalit is a caste marker for caste-oppressed communities formerly known as Untouchables, Adivasi refers to tribes who are indigenous to South Asia, and Bahujan is an umbrella term that includes all caste-oppressed communities.

CURATOR
Manu Kaur
EXHIBITING ARTISTS
Rinku Kumari, Jessie Sohpaul, Shivam Kamble, Nazrina Rodjan, Manpreet Singh, Malvika Raj, Seema Mattu, Mya Mehmi, Seema Hari, Shyama Kuver, Akhil Kang, Kaushik Tadvi, Rahee Punyashloka, Aravind Chedayan, Ajay Madhukar Dhoke, Shweta Ashokraj, Kamna Singh, Anika Nawar Ullah, Aindriya Barua, Ramnath Siddi, Siddi Tribe of Karnataka, Nrithya Pillai, Dalit Queer Project, Parth Pawar, Imaan Abbasi, Sri Vamsi Matta, R V Purusothaman (Purushu Arie), Shradha Raj, Jay Sagathia, Dee Chawla, Mia Kaur, Riri Kumbhar, Rohini bhadarge, John Spencer, Kulpreet Rana, & Simrah Farrukh
Event graphic by Parth Pawar.

Opening Reception Dates
April 6, 2024:
5:30 PM – 7:30 PM @ Oakland Asian Cultural Center
6:00 PM – 8:00 PM @ ARTogether, Oakland

Both venues are only 4 blocks away from each other. Enjoy both in the same evening!

ZINDAGI DANCE PARTY
April 6, 2024 from 8:00 PM – 1:00 AM @ 7th West, Oakland
Featuring Dalit Bahujan DJs: DJ Anjali, DJ Arshia, and DJ Seema Hari

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Southeast Asian New Year Celebration
2024-04-20 12:00 - 15:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
southeast asian new year celebration
Join us on Saturday, April 20, 2024, 12 PM – 3 PM, for an afternoon of performances, workshops, and vendors as we celebrate the Iu Mien and Cambodian New Year.

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WORKSHOPS
Khmer Traditional Costumes & Games with Sovandy Hang
Mien Egg Net making with the Iu Mien Scholarship Fund (IMSC)

FEATURED VENDORS
Mama Saing Kitchen and Zoey Tea House
Author David Saechao
TJStorybooks
Author Koy Saechao
May Saelee’s Traditional & Modern Mien Clothes & Jewelry
Nai Lium Saetern’s Mien Clothing
Persimmon and Roots

CHILDREN’S READ ALOUD

Koy Saechao is the author of “Count Yietc to Ziepc in Mien with Me!” and “Color in Mien with Me!” Beyond her passion for writing, Koy also holds the role of President at the Sacramento Iu Mien Association, Inc. She is passionate and dedicated as a community leader, alongside being a devoted mother and an avid marathon runner.

Theresa Saechao-Rother is a children’s book author. Theresa has work experience in educational advocacy, community engagement, business development and partnership. Her goal is to create diverse books, characters, and tales of adventure for children to enjoy.

PERFORMING GROUPS

Oakland Khmer Angkor Dance Troupe
Oakland Khmer Angkor Dance Troupe was established in 1996 to preserve Cambodian culture through cultural dances. The goal of Khmer Angkor is to develop and empower young leaders to support their peers and help them navigate life’s challenges.

Lotus Biangh Sieqv (Lotus Flower Girls)
Lotus Biangh Sieqv (Lotus Flower Girls), is a Iu Mien dance group that was formed to preserve and share traditional Iu Mien dances within the Iu Mien community and for younger generations.

Warn Luang Saechao & Ensemble
Iu Mien master flautist, Warn Luang Saechao, will perform traditional Iu Mien songs.

Thank you to our sponsors! Ava Community Energy, Nikki Fortunato Bas, Council President & District 2 Councilmember

Philippine Master Culture Bearers of T’boli, Yakan, Kalinga People: Weaving Workshop
2024-04-27 13:00 - 16:00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
Philippine Master Culture Bearers Of T’boli, Yakan, Kalinga People: Weaving Workshop

Photo Caption/Credit: (Left to Right) Virgie Nicodemus; Boi Myrna Bebing Pula, photo by Gabriel Nivera; Evelynda Otong Hamja, photo by Artu Nepomuceno; Jenny Bawer Young
Join visiting T’boli master culture bearer Boi Myrna Bebing Pula, Yakan master weaver Evelynda Otong Hamja, Kalinga Master Weaver Jenny Bawer Young and CulturAid’s Virgie Nicodemus for an afternoon of conversation, epic story-telling, weaving, dance and meryenda as a part of KULARTS’ Spring 2024 Philippine Master Artists in Residency Program.

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Meet the Philippine Master Culture Bearers

Virgie Nicodemus works with CulturAid, a non-governmental agency providing resources, funding, training and services for indigenous Philippine artisans and culture bearers.

Boi Myrna Bebing Pula is a master T’boli culture bearer born in Lake Sebu, South Cotabato. Her mother was a T’nalak weaver and food producer, while her father was a village chieftain and legal advisor. A T’boli cultural expert, storyteller, weaver, translator, and writer, Boi Myrna is a recipient of Tubas Talimbong Award of Excellence in Culture and the Arts. She has represented the T’boli people in Europe, Australia, Asia, and the USA.

Evelynda Otong Hamja is a fourth-generation master Yakan weaver from Lamitan Basilan. She works with a Yakan weavers collective, Tuwas Yakan Weavers of Basilan in Zamboanga City.

Jenny Bawer Young is the Master Weaver, co-founder, and driving force behind Kalingafornia Laga, a women’s collective dedicated to preserving and promoting traditional Kalinga culture in the Bay Area. She was born and cradled by a family that bears the Kalinga Traditional way of life. She is the daughter of Maria and Cirilo “Sapi” Bawer, who is internationally recognized as a Culture Bearer of Indigenous Knowledge, Skills, and Practices of the Kalinga people. Since childhood, Jenny’s parents and grandparents passed their knowledge and practice of Kalinga traditional arts—particularly laga (backstrap weaving), music, chants, and dances—to her siblings.

How K-Dramas Can Transform Your Life: A Fireside Chat with Clinician, Speaker, Coach, and Author Jeanie Y. Chang, LMFT
2024-05-03 14:00 - 15:30 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th St. #290, Oakland, CA, 94607, United States
how k-dramas can transform your life
Can a show like Squid Game change the world? In How K-Dramas Can Transform Your Life: Powerful Lessons on Belongingness, Healing, and Mental Health, licensed marriage and family therapist, speaker, and executive coach Jeanie Y. Chang explores how the wildly popular K-Drama global phenomenon can not just entertain us, but also help us grieve from losses, heal trauma, improve our overall mental health, and navigate the complicated roadmap of life no matter what challenges we may face. Join us for this innovative book launch event that is sure to provide insights and inspiration!
Susan Kim, a startup advisor and angel investor as well as former CEO of Edmodo, will be moderating the event. Susan calls herself an avid K-Drama fan.

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MEET THE SPEAKER

Jeanie Chang
Jeanie Chang is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and Certified Clinical Trauma Professional. She is an accomplished international speaker, providing keynotes and offers workshops for corporations, community organizations, and colleges addressing the intersectionality of mental health and identity, DEIB and psychological safety, as well as education about topics such as burnout, resilience, mindfulness, stress, and mental health conditions including anxiety, depression, and suicidality. She serves as a subject matter expert on mental health for media outlets around the world. Jeanie is the Founder and CEO of Noona’s Noonchi®, LLC, a global wellness company. Her book with Wiley Publishing titled, “How K-Dramas Can Transform Your Life: Powerful Lessons on Belongingness, Healing, and Mental Health” hits shelves on May 7.
ABOUT THE BOOK

In How K-Dramas Can Transform Your Life, celebrated licensed mental health professional Jeanie Y. Chang explores the powerful interrelationship between Korean dramas, mental health and belongingness. In the book, you’ll explore what K-Dramas have to teach us about our own wellbeing and how we can use the lessons they teach us to live better and more meaningful lives.The author discusses:

How powerful and dialectical forces determine our emotions and what Korean culture can teach us about how to best harness and manage those feelings
The realities of cultural identity and the impact that having readily identifiable media touchstones can have on our lives
How to develop your empathy and compassion by using K-Dramas as a guide and starting point

Perfect for any K-Drama fans and enthusiasts, How K-Dramas Can Transform Your Life is also a must-read for anyone interested in how pop culture can deeply affect and better our lives.
