APANO’s Board of Directors appointed Eugene area Board Member Melissa “Mimi” Nolledo to facilitate the writing and submission of a community response to the tasering of a University of Oregon international student from China on September 22, 2009.  The following commentary was published in the Oregonian, Eugene Register-Guard, University of Oregon Daily Emerald,and submitted to the Salem Statesmen Journal.

Thanks to Mimi and our community partners who signed on to this public letter.

APANO Membership Meeting Many Nations Longhouse (University of Oregon, Eugene)
Date: 24 October 2009, Saturday 12:30 PM

Hello APANO members,

As the summer has rapidly turned to fall, we hope to see you at our upcoming APANO Membership Meeting.  This is our 3rd and final membership meeting of 2009.  We held the first in April in Woodburn OR with 32 people, then in Portland OR with 65 people, and now our final gathering in Eugene OR.  This is an opportunity to meet Asian and Pacific Islander activists and leaders from across the Southern Willamette Valley.

• Many Nations Longhouse [click here for a map]
• University of Oregon Campus Eugene, OR
• 12:30 PM to 2:00 PM
• Lunch and childcare are provided.

Topics include:

• Special panel on Asian and Pacific Islander Community Organizing from student and adult perspectives including:
  • Soteria Fa’aolataga Moli, Chair of Pacific Islander Student Assocation of Oregon
  • Reagan Le, Adviser to University of Oregon Asian Pacific American Student Union
• Updates on APANO’s Policy Advocacy Projects on Health Equity, Educational Equity and Environmental Justice
• Information about Measure 66 & 67 Oregon Special Election January 26th, 2010

Please join us, RSVP online by clicking here.

Sincerely,

APANO Board and Volunteers (503)512-0274 / organizer@apano.org

You’re invited to a special Meet & Greet social and reception for Facilitators and Organizers, and the APANO Board and Volunteer Leaders.  RSVP Online

Wednesday, October 7th 5:00-7:00 PM
Biwa  Resturaunt, 215 SE 9th Ave, Portland, OR 97214

APANO’s Many Rivers Project is a series of 12 Listening Circles taking place throughout Oregon this Fall engaging our diverse communities.  Each Listening Circle is envisioned as a way to intentionally connect with under-represented communities within our own Pan-API community, to better inform our policy advocacy, community organizing, and to improve the accountability of APANO Board and Leadership.

Each Listening Circle is designed by people from the specific community, utilizing prompting questions and activities in order to encourage the sharing of personal and collective experiences based on the identities of the Listening Circle.  APANO has trained over 40 facilitators and organizers, who will team up to lead these circles.  Listening Circles will be between 5 and 15 participants who will gather for up to 3 hours, with support for childcare, transportation and interpretation.

RSVP Online

APANO’s Many Rivers Project is a series of 12 Listening Circles taking place throughout Oregon this Fall engaging our diverse communities.  Each Listening Circle is envisioned as a way to intentionally connect with under-represented communities within our own Pan-API community, to better inform our policy advocacy, community organizing, and to improve the accountability of APANO Board and Leadership.

Upcoming:

• Multiracial API – September 29th
• Burmese Refugee Youth – October 17th
• Bhutanese Refugee – October 17th
• Bisexual/Gay/Lesbian/Transgender/Queer API – October 24th
• Check back for information on our Eugene/Lane County API, API Parents, Unemployed API, and more.

Each Listening Circle is designed by people from the specific community, utilizing prompting questions and activities in order to encourage the sharing of personal and collective experiences based on the identity of the Listening Circle.  APANO has trained over 40 facilitators and organizers, who will team up to lead these circles.  Listening Circles will be between 5 and 15 participants who will gather for up to 3 hours, with support for childcare, transportation and interpretation.

To learn more and RSVP for a Listening Circle, please visit our EVENTS page or contact APANO at 503-512-0274 / organizer@apano.org

[Thomas Ngo Photo Album]

Dear Community -

This Friday Aug 7 at 5:15 PM – 6:00 PM at the Beaumont Middle School (41st and NE Fremont) you are invited to join community members and neighborhood leaders for a Community Speakout for Neighborhood Safety and Justice.  After the highly publicized attack [KATU Story] against a young Vietnamese man in the Beaumont-Wilshire Neighborhood, who grew up in the neighborhood, elders in APANO, the young man and community allies met today to discuss the crime and are calling for the gathering.

IRCO Engage Diversity and Civic Leadership graduates and multiracial allies will be gathering along with Central Northeast Neighbors, local businesses and concerned residents to speakout against hate, and for a safe and just community.

Will you join us?  Will you spread the word?

Our goals are to acknowledge the hate crime, educate about crime prevention resources, and ultimately build stronger relationships between communities and neighbors.

Sincerely,

Rev. Joseph Santos-Lyons 503-512-0490

Thanks to Sandra LeFrancois, Allison Stoll of Central NE Neighbors, Christina Albo of Resolutions NW, Bao Vuong, Bachtuyet Le, David Kong, Phyllis Lee, June Arima Schumann, Pam Phan, Hongsa Chanthavong, Thach Nguyen, My Linh Nguyen, Simeon Mamaril, Chom Sou, Makerusa Porotesano, Jeri Williams, Ronault Catalani, Byron Wong of THYMOS and others for your vision and commitment to civic engagement and equity.

APANO’s Many Rivers Project

Asian and Pacific Islander communities are the 2nd fastest growing population in Oregon, and APANO is working hard and thoughtfully to build a strong coalition. We have intense diversity within “Asian” and “Pacific Islander” cultures, with different languages, religions, customs and immigration experiences. Yet we have much in common, our family story of immigration to America, our relationships with our family “back home”, and the discrimination we overcome through education and social change in the US.

Through a small grant from the MRG Foundation, APANO is convening 12 “Listening Circles” to better understand the experiences and issues facing key Asian and Pacific Islander groups in Oregon. We come from many rivers, and together through APANO we seek to build unity in our diversity. APANO’s Many Rivers Project is hosting an orientation-training for persons interested in organizing and facilitating a “Listening Circle” in Fall 2009.

APANO Many Rivers Organizer and Facilitator Training
(next training Aug

As a way to increase APANO’s accountability to the communities within our communities, we are holding twelve Listening Circles.   They are intended to:

• Bring people together to listen to one another, get to know each other, share stories and build trust
• Identify the people most affected, most marginalized, most vulnerable among our communities and surface their experiences
• Develop/ articulate shared values and shared understanding of our diverse experiences Affirm, recognize our community strengths
• Empower and educate one another, particularly about the community we are building through apano Gain relationships among and across communities, to build solidarity
• Use their input and feedback to inform apano actions and policy recommendations

Training Purpose: An orientation to APANO’s Listening Circle process, and training on organizing and facilitation. The training will introduce key resources, discuss best practices for bringing together Asian/Pacific Islander communities, and offer experiential learning in facilitation.

Organizer Training
Saturday, August 8 9:00-12:00 PM
New Location City of Portland Office of Human Relations 5315 N Vancouver, Portland

Facilitator Training Saturday, August 8 1:00-4:00 PM
New Location City of Portland Office of Human Relations 5315 N Vancouver, Portland

Application: Please complete an online application to participate in this project or call APANO’s Field Organizer Chom Soucsou@apano.org or 503-896-7560.

Tuesday evening over 50 Asian and Pacific Islanders from across Multnomah, Washington and Clackamas Counties, and from as far as Eugene and Salem, gathered for APANO’s Metro-Portland annual regional membership meeting.  Highlights included:

• Makerusa Porotesano sharing his experience working across API communities and building Pacific Islander Student Association of Oregon
• Thach Nguyen, former Chair, discussing the origins of APANO
• Kurt Jun, Portland Public Schools Workforce Diversity and Equity Director encouraging participation in schools to close the racial achievement gap and strengthen the future of our educational system
• Corey Chan presenting a short video of API Legislative Day

APANO Electronic News June 2009
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Members & Friends Update

8. Community Strategic Training Institute July 31-Aug 2
9. DisOrient Film Festival Comes to Portland June 26

8. Community Strategic Training Institute July 31-Aug 2
Are you interested in more leadership training?  Are you available to help volunteer to support one of the West’s premier social justice training institutes?  APANO is recruiting volunteers to help provide local logistical support for this 3 day training at Reed College July 31-Aug 2, as well as sending members to several of the day long workshops.  If you can attend and/or help for a few hours, a day, or the whole weekend, we’d love to hear from you.  Learn more about the event online, or call us and we can have a brochure sent to you.

9. DisOrient Film Festival Comes to Portland June 26
DisOrient, an annual Asian Pacific Islander film festival in Eugene, OR, is holding its first shows in Portland June 26 at the Hollywood Theater showing White on Rice and Manilatown is in the Heart.  Hat tip to Jason, Anselmo, Reagan and Mimi from Eugene!