Donate to AAPIP's Twin Cities Rapid Response Fund

And Other Items of Note From Angry Asian America.

AAPIP Twin Cities Rapid Response Fund

As ICE's surge in Minnesota continues, AANHPI-serving organizations are responding, providing legal defense, food assistance, know-your-rights education, and emergency wrap-around support. In times of crisis, community members turn to these trusted organizations for information and support, but they're critically underfunded.

Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy has developed a Rapid Response Fund, created in direct response to requests from Twin Cities community leaders who needed a fast, trusted way to move resources to AANHPI-serving organizations. The AAPIP Twin Cities Rapid Response Fund will distribute grants to AANHPI-serving nonprofits to help meet their urgent needs during this critical time. Learn more and donate here.

After ICE release St. Paul woman, she says agents keep returning to her home

Thi Dua Vang legally came to the United States two years ago as an asylum seeker and is awaiting final approval for her green card. So when ICE showed up, she thought it must have been a mistake. But she was detained and sent away to a processing center in Texas for nearly two weeks. And then released. Since then, ICE has shown up at her home three times. Why won't they leave her alone?

BTS Returns with Their First Performance in 3 Years — Streaming Live on Netflix

Attention, Army: BTS is back. And they will be celebrating the release of their highly anticipated new album, ARIRANG, next month with a comeback concert on Netflix, streamed live from the historic Gwanghwamun in Seoul. The comeback festivities will also include a feature-length documentary, BTS: The Return, chronicling the making of ARIRANG and the group's return to global icon status.

LANA LIN with Porochista Khakpour

Filmmaker, artist and scholar Lana Lin talks to Porochista Khakpour about art, Asian Americans, "autobiomythography," and her book The Autobiography of H. Lan Thao Lam

F*CK ICE T-Shirt by Sailor Moon Wisdom

ICE has no place in our communities. Tell them how you feel with this t-shirt.

Coffee shop owner killed in massive explosion

Donate to support the family of Kong Lee.



Some tragic news out of North Carolina, with a family that could use your help... This week, a 61-year-old man was killed in a massive explosion caused by a gas leak in downtown Durham.

Emergency responders were evacuating people in Durham, N.C., when a gas explosion killed 1

Kong Lee, owner of the Kaffeinate coffee shop, was killed Wednesday morning when contractor boring under the sidewalk hit a 2-inch gas line, causing the explosion. Lee was inside the building when it collapsed.

Minutes prior to the explosion, Lee had called his children to let them know he was closing up the shop.

"Tommy deserves justice and closure."

Donate to the family of Tommy Le, who was killed by police while holding a pen.


Photo Credit: seattlepi.com
In Washington state, 20-year-old Tommy Le was shot and killed by King County Sheriff's deputies on June 13 -- the day before he was supposed to graduate from an alternative high school program. Officers were responding to a call about a man armed with what they thought was a knife. He turned out to be holding a pen.

'My baby is kind': Family tries to make sense of young man's killing by deputies in Burien

It's been over a month since the shooting, but Le's family and the local Vietnamese American community still don't have satisfactory answers about what transpired on the night he died. Last week, community members held a public forum to seek answers from the sheriff's office and other elected officials about Le's death.

Many in attendance at the forum questioned King County Sheriff John Urquhart on the details of shooting, pointing out inconsistencies in the deputies' account. Others urged for increased de-escalation training and accountability for police in cases of deadly force.

Urquhart said that the Sheriff's Office will ask the FBI to take over investigation of the shooting.

#keepTNfree: Celebrating 18 Years of Art+Community

Support the oldest currently running Asian American open mic space in the country.



Tuesday Night Project is the Asian American grassroots and volunteer-based organization that presents Tuesday Night Cafe, one of the longest-running free arts and performance series in downtown Los Angeles, and the oldest currently running Asian American open mic space in the country.

One the first and third Tuesday of every month, in the Aratani Courtyard of the Union Center for the Arts in Little Tokyo, you will find a passionate, positive space that serves Asian American/Pacific Islander artists. Now in its 18th year, Tuesday Night Cafe is a community institution, fueled by blood and sweat and art and love.

And that's why we need to pitch in to #KeepTNFree. Tuesday Night Project is in the throes of its annual fundraising campaign to sustain another year of art+community and keep this incredible, valuable community operation going. They have a goal to raise $12,000 by July 31. Can you help them out?

Support the families of Milwaukee shooting rampage victims

Phia Vue, Mai Vue and Jesus Manso-Perez were fatally shot by a neighbor in their apartment building.


At Sunday's vigil for Phia Vue and Mai Vue.
Last week, Phia Vue and his wife Mai Vue were gunned down by their neighbor Dan Popp, who went on a shooting rampage in their Milwaukee apartment building. Popp also fatally shot Jesus R. Manso-Perez.

Family of couple killed in triple homicide at 92nd & Beloit speak out: "Their kids are in need"

The Vues' families are speaking out about the tragedy, and have set up a memorial fund to help to pay for Phia and Mai's funeral services and supporting their four surviving children.

Mai Vue's sister, Linda Xiong, asks for your support:

2016 Angry Asian Subscriber Drive Telethon

Watch live on Wednesday, March 9, 3:00-11:00pm PST on YouTube.



As you may have heard, we're currently in the middle of the 2016 Angry Asian Subscriber Drive, asking for your support to keep the work of this website going. A huge thank you goes to everyone who has contributed so far. For your help, you're getting this sweet limited edition "Stay Angry" t-shirt.

So check it. In celebration of the Subscriber Drive, we're hosting an online "telethon" of sorts. My pal Jenny Yang and I, along with a handful of special guests, will be hanging out and streaming live on YouTube in an attempt to encourage some generous giving. It's happening Wednesday, March 9 at 3:00-11:00 pm PST.

Here's where you can watch the live stream:

Help raise up the next generation of APA media-makers

Make a donation and become a member of Visual Communications #GivingTuesday



If you haven't heard, today has been designated #GivingTuesday, a day to inspire philanthropy and charitable giving as you recover from your post-Black Friday blues. There are dozens upon dozens of Asian American causes worthy of your altruism, but today I'd like to highlight an organization I am directly involved with.

Visual Communications is the premier nonprofit organization dedicated to the honest and accurate portrayals of Asian Pacific American peoples, communities and heritage through the media arts. Full disclosure: I proudly serve as a member of Visual Communication's Board of Directors.

If you're looking for a worthy cause to support, please consider Visual Communications.

Help Wo Chan and his family fight unjust deportation

Poet and his family were victims of a crooked immigration official's false document scheme.



Queer Fujianese poet, writer, and drag performer Wo Chan and his family are facing deportation in a pretty messed up situation after an immigration official issued them false naturalization documents.

Help Poet Wo Chan & His Family Fight Unjust Deportation

In 2006, Department of Homeland Security supervisor Robert Schofield was convicted of bribery and falsifying immigration documents. Of his nearly 200 victims, all were Asian. Chan's family thought they were lawfully obtaining citizenship, but DHS thinks otherwise. Starting in 2011, his family was stripped of U.S. citizenship and are now subject to deportation proceedings.

In Chan's own words:

Donate to CAAM's Memories to Light Campaign

Home movie initiative helps preserve Asian American memories and experiences.



The Center for Asian American Media's Memories to Light: Asian American Home Movies initiative is a project to collect and digitize home movies and to share them -- and the stories they tell -- to a broad public.

For the past three years, CAAM's Memories to Light team has gathered, archived, and digitized home movies from 19 families -- comprising 180 films totaling about 15 hours of footage, spanning six decades. The films represent diverse communities including Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, Korean, Thai American and mixed-race families, representing twelve states and the District of Columbia.

CAAM is now ready to take Memories to Light to the next level, and is asking for your support to make it happen. They've launched a campaign to raise funds that will help them collect and preserve more home movies from diverse Asian and Asian American communities from all 50 states.

Watch this video for more information about the project:

Cincinnati police officer killed in shootout

Officer Sonny Kim, a decorated 27-year veteran, was fatally shot while responding to an emergency call.



The city of Cincinnati is mourning a decorated veteran police officer who was shot and killed Friday during a fatal shootout after responding to an emergency call about "an erratic man armed with a firearm."

Cincinnati police officer Sonny Kim fatally shot in Madisonville

48-year-old officer Sonny Kim, was killed in a shootout after responding to a 911 call about a gunman acting erratically in the Madisonville neighborhood. Several shots were fired between the suspect and officers, and Officer Kim, who was wearing body armor, sustained fatal injuries. The suspect was also shot and killed.

Kim, a 27-year veteran of the Cincinnati Police Department, was a husband and father of three boys. He also worked as the owner and main karate instructor at the Japanese Karate-Do dojo in Symmes Township.

He is remembered for his passion, dedication and service.

Adam WarRock Donation Drive 2015

Support an independent artist making overly enthusiastic hip hop.



Our friend Eugene Ahn makes cool, fun, smart, geeky hip hop as emcee Adam WarRock, regularly churning really great music and making it available for free to all on his website. Once a year, he opens up the donation jar and asks folks to pitch in to support his art and all that free content. So it's that time of year again.

For the fifth annual Adam Warrock Donation Drive, all donors who give any amount of money will receive the following rewards, as explained by Eugene:

Ernie Reyes Jr. is fighting for his life

Veteran actor/martial artist is suffering from kidney failure and needs your help.



Ernie Reyes Jr. needs your help. I recently learned that the 43-year-old actor and martial artist, who you may remember as a kid in movies like The Last Dragon or the television show Sidekicks, or in more recent fare like The Rundown and NCIS: Los Angeles, is suffering from kidney failure and fighting for his life.

Ernie is currently undergoing dialysis treatment three times a week for four hours a day while waiting for a kidney transplant. As you can imagine, this has been challenging for him and his family. His sister Destiny Reyes has started a GoFundMe campaign for his kidney transplant fund.

Donate to Billy's Medical Fund

Billy, diagnosed with a rare kidney disorder, is asking for donations to support his family.



Spreading the word about a guy who could use your support... Billy was recently diagnosed with FSGS, a rare kidney disorder that has led to stage five kidney disease and end stage renal failure. This means that unless he receives a kidney from a matching donor in the next eight months, his body will shut down. They're looking for possible kidney donors, but Billy is actually asking for donations to support his family.

I don't know him -- this info passed along to me from a reader -- but Billy sounds like the kind of guy who has sacrificed a lot for his family and his community. His friends have set up a Gofundme acount to help him and his family during this time of need. Here's some more information about his situation:

Holiday Giving: Donate to the Museum of Chinese in America

Telling the untold stories in the making of America.



Looking for a worthy cause to donate some holiday cash? Throughout the month of December, I'll try to spotlight projects, causes and organizations that could use support through your generous giving.

Help tell the untold stories in the making of America. Donate to the Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA), which is committed to reclaiming, preserving and presenting the history of Chinese people in the United States. Your generous gift will go towards the Museum's current institutional expansion, which will create greater opportunities for MOCA to offer increased programming, to serve a broader audience, and to develop as the national Chinese American museum.

Here are some of the Museum's highlight's from the past year:

Holiday Giving: Donate to The Sikh Coalition

For a nation where Sikhs can freely and fearlessly practice their faith.



Looking for a worthy cause to donate some holiday cash? Throughout the month of December, I'll try to spotlight projects, causes and organizations that could use support through your generous giving.

Did you know that the majority of Sikh children in America, who wear a turban as part of their faith, experience higher-than-average rates of bullying? According to a recent report from the Sikh Coalition, two-thirds of Sikh children in four cities said that they are bullied in school. But we have the tools to help end school bullying.

Holiday Giving: Donate to the Center for Asian American Media

Support CAAM and be a champion for Asian American stories.



Looking for a worthy cause to donate some holiday cash? Throughout the month of December, I'll try to spotlight projects, causes and organizations that could use support through your generous giving.

Want to be a champion for Asian American stories? Support the Center for Asian American Media, whose mission is to bring Asian American stories and experiences to light through the power of media. Your gift will support CAAM's work to inform, educate, inspire and represent diverse media voices through public media.

But don't take my word for it. Here are my pals Steven and Patrick of National Film Society:

Holiday Giving: Donate to the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund

A national organization that protects and promotes the civil rights of Asian Americans.



Looking for a worthy cause to donate some holiday cash? Throughout the month of December, I'll try to spotlight projects, causes and organizations that could use support through your generous giving.

Considering making a donation to the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF), a New York-based national organization which is celebrating forty years of important civil rights work for the Asian American community through litigation, advocacy, education, and organizing.

Here's AALDEF's 40th anniversary slideshow video:

Support APA Filmmakers! Donate to Visual Communications.

All end-of-the-year donations will be matched dollar for dollar.



Hey, folks. If you're interested in donating some holiday cash to a worthy cause, how about supporting an organization that is trying to help up-and-coming Asian Pacific American filmmakers tell their stories?

Donate to Visual Communications.

Founded in 1970, Visual Communications is the first nonprofit organization in the nation dedicated to the honest and accurate portrayals of the Asian Pacific American peoples, communities and heritage through the media arts. Its mission continues today through a variety programs for APA mediamakers, including screenings, media education, the Armed With a Camera Fellowship and the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival.

For more information, check out this fundraising video:

Donate to Grace Lee Boggs' hospice care

Legendary Detroit activist, now 99 years old, needs your help.



As you may be aware, activist/philosopher/author Grace Lee Boggs, now 99 years old, is in ailing health and in hospice care at her home in Detroit. With over 75 years of work in the labor, civil rights and Black Power movements, she has lived an extraordinary life of love, struggle and revolution. In September, she released a statement recorded at her bedside, acknowledging the end of her journey.

However, it should be no surprise that Grace Lee Boggs is a fighter. Over the last month she has apparently become stronger, and it seems will be with us for much longer. But she will still require 24-hour care.

Friends of Grace are now asking for your support as she makes her final transition. Grace, who has been living on a fixed income and has always put the needs of others before her own, does not have the resources needed for her care. So her friends are making a public appeal for assistance in raising these funds:

Donate to the family of the fatal subway shove victim

61-year-old Wai Kuen Kwok was killed when he was pushed off a subway platform in front of an oncoming train.



Last Sunday, 61-year-old Wai Kuen Kwok was killed when he was pushed off a subway platform in front of an oncoming train. He was on his way to Chinatown for dim sum with his wife, who watched in horror as the train was unable to stop in time. Police have arrested a suspected in connection with the fatal shove.

But this is not about the assailant. If you'd like to help, community members have put together a fundraising page to collect donations in support of the Kwok family in their time of suffering. The goal is to raise as much money as possible to help offset the costs of Mr. Kwok's funeral. The funds will go directly to the Kwok family.