Hi friend! It’s September, which means it’s our 13th anniversary this year! And we’re excited to re-introduce you to our new team and Theory of Change.
Since 2012, 18MR has been a digital-first organization. We’ve used the power of the Internet to organize Asian Americans online. But with the shifting political landscape, algorithmic oppression and an increased need for organizing across all playing fields, we’ve been building out our IRL organizing arm and launched a membership program. And we’ll continue to do that by harnessing the power of the internet, cultural work, and movement building.
Check out the launch of our new theory of change here. By working on the ground AND online, we’re building a reliable base of Asian activists committed to advancing racial & immigrant justice, abolition, anti-militarism, and democracy. Our membership program roots Asian American power in a political home that’s sharpening our organizing skills, and shifting our collective consciousness.
Celebrate our 13th year with some sweet, sweet merch.
We’re sad to see Kari, our Social Media Manager, leave our team. She joins Brenda, our previous Communications Designer, as they both venture onto a new journey. Both Kari and Brenda joined in 2022 and have led the cultural and narrative work at 18MR.
Brenda’s beautiful illustrations and designs have given 18MR’s brand visuals what they are today. And Kari’s thoughtful and fun insights into social media trends and video have allowed us to experiment with how we message and engage online.
Thank you Kari & Brenda for making Asian American political power beautiful! We wish you the best of luck on your future adventures!
Joining the 18MR team as our new Digital Organizing Strategist and Communications Designer are Sunee and Sonia! As we shift into a new direction for 18MR, we’re excited for Sunee and Sonia to deepen our narrative and cultural strategy alongside our members.
Sunee is excited to bring her experience in local community organizing and digital media production to her role at 18MR. She’s passionate about using cultural work to strengthen peoples’ movements and has supported campaigns for various issues such as migrant workers’ rights, anti-militarism, and bail reform.
A designer with roots in Michigan, Sonia brings over a decade of experience using design to resource movement and experimental arts spaces, from leading design justice workshops to creating merch fundraisers for Release Aging People in Prisons, Trans Oral History Project, F2L Relief Fund, and more. Sonia is excited to support 18MRs organizing and vast network through skillsharing and vibrant storytelling.
Please give them a warm welcome!
Earlier this month, we held our People’s Conference for Palestine Reportback. Co-hosted with Palestinian Youth Movement, Palestinian Feminist Collective, and Asians for Palestine NYC, we grounded ourselves in our continued solidarity and national organizing for an arms embargo. We also held our first public Donor Organizing 101 workshop, reframing what it means to mobilize funds for our communities.
On 10/8, we’ll be joined by author Mark Tseng Putterman for his new book launch: Asian Americans Rising. We’ll hear from writers of the anthology on the stories that give us new directions for political activism, and the work they’ve done. So save the date and keep your eyes peeled for the link!
If you join our membership, you’ll see more members-only events coming up as well, including a book club. (And if you’ve already signed up, don’t worry – you’ll see something soon!)
We’ve been busy organizing and working on the ground and online. But we’re also trying to deepen our knowledge and understanding alongside. Here are some resources our team thinks you should check out:
- Allison: Organizing is tender work, and we struggle… a lot! It’s why I always come back to this “Dreaming Accountability” essay by Mia Mingus. Mia challenges us, “What if we rushed towards our own accountability and understood it as a gift we can give to ourselves and those hurting from our harm?”
- Irma: These days, I’m reading Choosing to Lead Against the Current because it offers strategies for leaders to face organizational attacks and political unrest without losing sight of their values. Eveline Shen’s Courageous Operating System shows how to turn challenges into growth and resilience. As a leader navigating the rise of authoritarianism, this book has been helping me stay grounded and transform setbacks into meaningful impact for a more just future.
- Leyen: I’ve been listening to Kelly Hayes’ Movement Memos and this particular episode talks about gentrification as a marker of authoritarianism.
- Sharmin: I’m doing a lot of coaching and conversations with leaders and friends about conflict, repair, relationship mending and transformation – so Dean Spade’s Love in a Fucked Up World is resonating hard. I especially loved these two podcasts that help us understand what we can try on when things get hard, and be able to name how our relationships reflect our movements:
- Sonia: I recently read Céline Semaan’s A Woman is a School, which traces her experiences surviving war and transitioning between Lebanon, France, and Canada, creating movement spaces, and archiving the resistance and wisdom of Indigenous femmes in her lineage.
- Sunee: Learning the histories of anti-colonial struggle can help us understand what we’re up against in this moment. I recommend reading War Against All Puerto Ricans: Revolution and Terror in America’s Colony by Nelson Antonio Denis where he shares the history of the 1950 Puerto Rican revolution for independence. Denis’ account is infuriating yet eye-opening; and it ultimately strengthened my resolve to fight for our collective liberation.
- Turner: How did we get here?! Learn about the roots of the contemporary white power movement and its ties to U.S. war in Vietnam thanks to Kathleen Belew’s book, Bring the War Home.
- Van: This podcast has supported me so much in thinking and feeling through my organizing work in the last couple of years. The host, Prentis, helped expand my understanding of what it means to be working toward our collective transformation and healing as we transform the world.
In solidarity,
Leyen, Sunee, Sonia, Turner, Van, Sharmin, Allison, and Irma – the 18MR Team
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