We’ve dedicated the entire show to an interview Marie Choi and I did with Alex Hing, who is promoting the book “The People Make Peace,” in which he has a chapter detailing his work against the war in Vietnam. He’s been an organizer most of his life, and the interview was so good that we decided to air it in its entirety.
He talks about his social justice work, his professional career, his thoughts on organizing and its trajectory and the role of spirituality in the movement.
On tonight’s show, find out about the feminist films screening at this year’s 3rdi South Asian Film Festival kickstarting in San Francisco tonight through Sunday October 25th. Pakistani Canadian Fawzia Mirza talks about her queer performance, Me, My Mom and Sharmila and her short films; local film maker Nyna Caputi discusses her film Petals in the Dust focusing on the pervasive issue of female infanticide in India and in the South Asian diaspora. Plus Sara Bronco and Frank Sterling pay a melodious tribute to farm workers through spotlighting the legendary Filipino labor organizer Larry Itliong. Plus community calendar. Hosted and Produced by Preeti Mangala Shekar
On Monday, centenarian Grace Lee Boggs passed. She was a familiar voice on KPFA airwaves, inspiring us with her fierce and compassionate wisdom. Her genius was forged from decades of tireless activism in civil rights, anti-racism, labor organizing, environmental justice and feminism.Grace Lee Boggs inspired (and will continue to inspire) millions of organizers, thinkers and leaders. Here’s an APEX Express tribute to this wonderful leader, philosopher, revolutionary, and teacher, who showed us that is indeed possible to walk your talk.
Search apexexpress.org to find a number of interviews we conducted with her during her visits to the Bay Area. Thank you to Preeti Shekar, Sabiha Basrai and Ellen Choy for this tribute.
Also, please see this post Ellen Choy wrote about Grace for Movement Generation.
Today is April 30th, a very significant date to the Vietnamese people. It was 40 years ago today that the U.S. imperialist army was forced out of Viet Nam, ending what was known in the U.S. as the “Viet Nam War” and what was known in Viet Nam as the “American War,” a war that marked a long history of anti-colonial struggle in the country and that killed millions in Viet Nam, Laos, and Cambodia.
Colonialists, International Traitors, Think Carefully Before You Take Vietnam – To Lien (1978)
Tonight’s APEX Express is dedicated to commemorating the legacy of the Viet Nam War on the Vietnamese people – both in Viet Nam and in the Vietnamese diaspora here in the U.S. A complicated history in a divided country, we want to hear the voices of those impacted by the war, as well as those who resisted that war 40-50 years ago.
We will hear a personal commentary produced by APEX Contributor Yvonne Tran, pieced together out of conversations she had with her mother. Then, we have three guests live in the studio to talk more about the impacts of the war and to preview a community intergenerational teach-in happening in Oakland this Saturday called “Spirit of Viet Nam Is Stronger Than U.S. Bombs.” Our speakers include:
Thuy Trang Nguyen (VietUnity)
Michael Wong (Veterans for Peace, Chapter 69)
Armael Malinis (Migrante SF)
And we’ll play some awesome songs and historic speeches that came out in the ’60s and ’70s during the war!
Don’t miss it.
Tonight’s show is also in tribute to the thousands who lost their lives, and are still recovering, from the devastating earthquake in Nepal.
Below is a list of women-led organizations that have asked for support for their long-term responses to the crisis. They are already mobilizing their communities to take action and welcome donations at this time.
ACHA Himalayan Sisterhood – Funds will go to support recovery efforts for Tibetan refugees, and other minority groups, in Nepal.
The Global Fund for Women – Funds will go to support grassroots women’s groups in Nepal to assist women and girls impacted by this disaster.
The Nepal Women’s Fund (TEWA) – Funds will go to support community needs assessments and to mobilize grassroots women’s groups to rebuild and strengthen rural areas of Nepal.
Image from the shut down of the Oakland Police Department on Monday.
Yuri Kochiyama print by Melanie Cervantes with Dignidad Rebelde
As we kick-start the new year, we bring you the best of 2014 that the APEX Express crew covered in 2014. From the fierce movements challenging autocratic state and police power in Ferguson and across the U. S. through #Asians4BlackLives and other phenomenal grassroots groups; to demanding real democracies in Hong Kong and India; to celebrating the lives of revolutionaries like Fred Ho and Yuri Kochiyama, it’s been a year of celebrating and covering the power of movement building. South Asian American activist Nadia Khastagir joins us to highlight the context and importance of South Asian solidarity with #BlackLivesMatter
On tonight’s show we spotlight the inspiring Grace Lee Boggs’ life and work through a new documentary, “American Revolutionary,” about this amazing legend.
In the second half, we look at the Indian state and its new tactics to be a surveillance state through a discussion with two Indian activists Xonzoi Borbora and Dolly Kikon, about a newly issued report by the Indian Intelligence Bureau, that clamps down on freedom of speech and any form of public resistance.
Tonight we air part two of a special series honoring the life and legacy of civil rights leader, activist, and Asian American movement pioneer, Yuri Kochiyama.
We share with you Yuri’s thoughts on African and Asian solidarity across the globe, her intimate recollection of Malcolm X’s murder, and we also hear more from the youth and the up and coming generations that she has inspired.
Tune in tonight for:
A rare interview from the Pacifica Radio Archives recorded in 1972, where Yuri shares her memories of the day Malcolm X was assassinated
Tributes from youth leaders from AYPAL (Asian Pacific Islander Youth Promoting Advocacy and Leadership)
An interview with Adriel Luis, curator of digital and emerging media at the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center and creator of Folk Hero, an online exhibit featuring art that celebrates Yuri’s life through grassroots art
A sharing from Yuri Kochiyama’s daughter, Audee Kochiyama-Holman, about what it was like to grow up in the Kochiyama household
In September 2001, Japanese Americans in the Bay Area organized a peace vigil in San Francisco’s Japantown to speak out against racist scapegoating and knee jerk reactions to the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center and Pentagon. This is Yuri Kochiyama’s eloquent speech at the rally.
Yuri Kochiyama dedicated her life to cross cultural solidarity, and the rights of political prisoners. One story that exemplifies her commitment to both struggles was her work with the Young Lords in New York. Karl Jagbandhansingh produced this documentary in 2009 for the First Voice Apprenticeship Program when Yuri was 88 years old about her memory of working with the Committee to Free the Five Puerto Rican Nationalists by occupying the Statue of Liberty in 1977.
Here’s a teaser for tonight’s show that we played on KPFA’s Letters and Politics. It’s tape from Yuri’s surprise 80th birthday at Pro Arts Gallery where people from all over the attended. In this clip, former I-Hotel resident and activist, Emil de Guzman, shares how he met Yuri and how she was influencing folks even back in the 1970s.
APEX Express is a proud member of Asian Americans for Civil Rights and Equality, or AACRE. AACRE is a network of Asian American social justice groups with shared values that are working to create positive change.
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