AAP I BELONG INC
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Mission Statement
AAP(I belong)® aims to shed greater awareness to AAPI discrimination and cultural challenges through education by providing a safe platform for the AAPI community to share their anonymous stories of encounters with Anti-Asian hate. Our goal is to showcase the collected stories in popup exhibitions around the country with the intention of sparking self-reflection, community conversations, and general AAPI education to the public. AAP(I belong)® has also received mentions on Good Morning America, Nightline episode, Elle.com, CNN, Time Magazine, Nasdaq, and the White House 2022 United We Stand summit.
About This Cause
On March 29, 2021, Vilma Kari [board member of AAP(I belong)] was attacked in New York City in a vicious anti-Asian hate crime. The video of the attack garnered the attention of both national and international coverage for the sheer brutality of the attack but also the lack of action of the bystanding doormen seen in the video. In the days following the attack, Vilma and her daughter, Elizabeth, received overwhelming messages of love and support from people around the world upset by what Vilma had endured. Some messages included deep stories of personal anti-Asian hate attacks, some from children recounting stories from their parents, others from AAPI allies that had witnessed/interceded in hate crimes. Each night, Elizabeth would read all of the stories and correspond with the writers. She found comfort in the stories from the AAPI (Asian American and Pacific Islander) community and allies and wondered why there were so many anti-Asian hate incidents that she had never heard reported. She was inspired to showcase stories of encounters with anti-Asian hate as way for AAPI community and allies to have a greater sense of empathy for the AAPI community. AAP(I belong) was created as a safe and anonymous platform to share stories of encounters with anti-Asian hatred and provide words of encouragement for the AAPI community. Content shared to the website will then be collected and posted to the website and social media accounts, as well as used to curate physical pop-up exhibitions. AAP(I belong) has already successfully executed a pop up exhibit of stories at the MOCA Museum (Museum of Chines in America) in NYC’s Chinatown in honor of May’s AAPI Heritage Awareness Month. Media outlets such as Time Magazine, ABC Nightline, ABC 7, Good Morning America, World News with David Muir, Elle Magazine.com, The Verge have all covered AAP(I belong) in conjunction with Vilma’s attack. Continued exhibitions will expose the AAPI community and allies to a greater understanding of those that have experienced hate and/or discrimination. AAP(I belong) aims to open a conversation in the AAPI community and educate the public on challenges that the AAPI community faces. Elizabeth will use her first-hand experience of her relationship with her mom and her mom’s attack to encourage others to contribute their own personal experiences to the platform. Exhibits will showcase cultural AAPI issues such as the intergenerational conversation between parents and children, immigrant mentality versus American born mentality, deep reverence for elders, the shame associated with being a victim of an attack, language barriers, model minority myth, bamboo ceiling, idea of perpetual foreigner and any other AAPI cultural issues affect the community and which are not well understood. Research of these topics will be presented with the stories to further underline the educational understanding of these topics. Story submissions will serve as real-life examples of these topics. Through the sharing and discussion of these stories, AAP(I belong) intends to spread awareness of AAPI hate issues through personal, first-hand experiences that the AAPI community has experienced both during the pandemic, in prior years and in recent decades. The platform will highlight the importance of numerous AAPI issues, which may not have been reported in the media, and continue to support the Stop Asian Hate movement while encouraging others to speak out to report injustices and bring continued attention to this issue. Upon submission the website, contributors will be encouraged to seek mental health as needed and report any injustices to the authorities. As a spectator of the exhibits and social media content, viewers are encouraged to think about their own personal stories and contribute submissions as desired. AAP(I belong) aims to normalize more of the difficult conversations within the AAPI community and create a sense of belonging and unity. In June 2021, AAP(I belong) collaborated on a public service announcement video with the New York Yankees. Vilma, Elizabeth, the New York Yankees players, former Yankee Hideki Matsui, Yankees staff and fans read the stories submitted to the AAP(I belong) website to breathe life into the stories and promote the message of empathy. The AAP(I belong) exhibit was also physically displayed as a small pop up within Yankee Stadium’s Grand Hall. AAP(I belong) will continue to encourage submissions to the website by participating in public speaking engagements, visiting Asian and Pacific Islander community centers, social media announcements, group story submission readings and exhibitions. Exhibitions will be held throughout the United States to educate the public in different parts of the country. Fundraising efforts will be accomplished through, but not limited to, crowd sourcing, corporate donations and branded merchandise sales.