ROAR Story Slam to feature six Korean American stories
2021-04-30 18:00 - 19:30 (America/Chicago) | MN
The organization KoreanAmericanStory will hold its annual story slam in a virtual format on Friday, April 30, 6 to 7:30 p.m. CST (7 to 8:30 p.m. EST) on the organization’s website.
KoreanAmericanStory.org’s Story Slam is an annual competition where six contestants showcase their oral storytelling about their Korean American experience in front of a live audience for a chance to win a cash prize of up to $1,000. All finalists also receive free virtual storytelling coaching, free LG Tone free earbuds, and a free circle light for their virtual performance.
The past two story slams have been live; this year’s is completely virtual, and speakers will be asked to use the theme “My Taboo.” All stories are true life experiences, as the storytellers remember them.
KoreanAmericanStory is an organization that collects and preserves stories of Korean Americans in written, audio-only (podcast) and video archive formats.
Submissions of stories are now closed. Further information for the live event can be found at: https://koreanamericanstory.org/roar-story-slam/ for more information.

"What We Hunger For" virtual book launch
2021-05-04 19:00 - 20:00 | MN
A virtual book launch will be held Tuesday, May 4, 7 p.m. CST for a new collection What We Hunger For: Refugee and Immigrant Stories about Food and Family, edited by Minnesota poet and author Sun Yung Shin.
Through 14 contributors, this book relates, in individual stories, how newcomers to Minnesota bring their own culinary traditions and may re-create food memories at home, introduce new friends and neighbors to their favorite dishes, and explore comforting flavors and experiences of hospitality at local restaurants, community gatherings, and spiritual ceremonies.
It also explores the broader context of how food can unify, heal, and bring people together across generations and cultures. It is published by the Minnesota Historical Society Press.
Shin is a multi-award winning poet and author of the bestselling anthology A Good Time for the Truth: Race in Minnesota. Her most recent poetry collection is The Wet Hex (April 2022).
The launch will be streamed on the Via the Minnesota Historical Society Facebook Page and YouTube Channel, and also archived as a recording on both platforms.

Adoptee Hub holds workshop on letter writing
2021-05-08 13:00 - 14:00 | MN
Adoptee Hub will hold a virtual writing workshop led by adoptee and author Mei Hwang, who wrote 100,000 Cranes for My Mother, Saturday, May 8, at 1 p.m. (CST). The workshop will be a letter-writing exercise for transracial adoptees, or any adoptees, who will address the letter to their birthmothers. Hwang will address the range of emotions, from grief to relief, that participants feel while engaging in this exercise in a safe and supportive environment. Due to the sensitivity of the subject matter, this workshop is open to adoptees only.
Hwang is a professional educator and counselor who conducts workshops in expressive arts, healthcare and education, and educates organizations in cultural competency and diversity development. She also conducts individual, group, and family private coaching.
The workshop will be online via Zoom. A link will be sent out to registrants in advance of the event. Register at the link below.

Minneapolis-St. Paul Film Festival opens May 13 in hybrid format
2021-05-13 | MN
The MSP Film Society presents the 40th Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival May 13-23, sponsored by the MSP Film Society. The MSPIFF is one of the largest and longest-running film festivals in the U.S. The festival will showcase more than 150 films representing more than 100 cultures. This year, MSPIFF40 will be a hybrid festival, with films and panels screening online, plus special in-person outdoor screenings in Minneapolis and St. Paul.
For more information and tickets, visit the website: MSPfilm.org

Adoptee Bridge to hold Twin Cities retreat for adult transracial adoptees
2021-05-14 - 2021-05-16 | MN
Adoptee Bridge, a Twin Cities area social and outreach organization serving transracial adoptees, will hold a retreat for adult (age 21-plus) transracial adoptees, to be held Friday, May 14 through Sunday, May 16, in Shoreview (MN).
The OurHistory Retreat, named for the Adoptee Bridge’s monthly Zoom peer-led discussion group, will be focused on the theme of Healing Connections. Guest speakers will be writer/activist Shannon Gibney, music therapist Hillary Fredenburg, and Lindsey from Embody Yoga.
Cost is $100 for the full schedule plus meals and hotel. The retreat will be held at the Best Western Plus-St. Paul North, located in Shoreview. See link for further information on costs, times, topics and schedule.

Conversation about immigration, food, and "What We Hunger For"
2021-05-20 19:00 - 20:00 | MN
A free virtual conversation event about food and immigration will be held Thursday, May 20 as part of a series of conversations with writers across genres, discussing the experience of migration, leaving one’s home, and building a new one.
The event, Perspectives: Writers on Migration – What We Hunger For is hosted by the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, and will feature Sun Yung Shin, editor of the new anthology What We Hunger For: Refugee and Immigrant Stories About Food and Family, with two of the anthology contributors Roy G. Guzmán and Saymoukda Duangphouxay Vongsay. The panel will discuss the complexities, humor and joy related to relationships to food, cooking, and eating.
Sun Yung Shin is a poet/author and racial justice activist. She is also the editor of the anthology A Good Time for the Truth: Race in Minnesota.
The event is free, but registration is required by Wednesday, May 19. Zoom Meeting Link will be sent after registration.

International Korean Adoptee Association hosts virtual age-breakout groups
2021-05-28 | MN
On Saturday, June 5 and Sunday, June 6, a free series of virtual age-breakout sessions will be held to facilitate discussion among a global group of intercountry adoptees. The event is co-hosted by the coalition group International Korean Adoptee Associations (IKAA) and Also-Known-As (AKA), a U.S.-based founding member of the IKAA network.
During previous (in-person) annual IKAA adoptee gatherings, one of the most meaningful events has been the Age Breakout Sessions, which allow adoptees from around the world to connect and share their experiences. The pandemic has provided an opportunity to host these sessions virtually.
This event is open to all intercountry adult adoptees. Registration closes Friday, May 28.
The event honors the growing community of intercountry adoptees seeking connection with other adoptees. It is also in recognition of the 25hth anniversary of Also-Known-As. The anniversary, themed “Celebrating the Global Adoptee Community” is an acknowledgement that the Also-Known-As community is also global, although it is based in New York.
While the majority of adoptees in the IKAA network are of Korean origin, international adoptees share similar experiences, milestones and challenges . The event will provide an opportunity for adoptees to share common experiences with other adoptees in their age group.

Virtual Korean History and Culture workshop to be held
2021-06-28 15:00 - 2021-06-30 18:00 | MN
The Sejong Cultural Society will hold a virtual Korean History and Culture Workshop, from Monday to Wednesday, June 28, 29, and 30, 3 to 6 p.m. CST.
Lectures include Korean history, democratization, the economic development of South Korea, Korean American immigration and community development history, including the LA Riots of 1992 and aftermath. It will also include a review of Korean traditional music and arts.
A detailed program schedule is available on the Sejong Cultural Society website. The Sejong Cultural Society, located in Chicago, offers annual music, essay writing, and traditional poetry writing contests. It also offers classes to enhance teachers’ ability to teach about Korean arts and history in the U.S.
The Korean history and culture classes are free for K-12 and college-level educators and administrators. For more information about sponsorship for educators, refer to the website (www.sejongculturalsociety.org) or email se****@*******************ty.org.

Mina Cheon artist talk
2021-06-30 17:30 - 18:30 | MN
Art activist Mina Cheon, who creates visual art around the theme of Korean reunification, will speak in a virtual event sponsored by the Korea Society. The event will be held June 30, 5:30 CST (6:30 EST). Her work includes painting, sculpture, video, installation, and performance to portray the precarious relationship and turbulent history of North and South Korea. Her solo exhibition at The Korea Society showcases her most recent painting series of Unification Flags.
Mina Cheon will discuss her art and career; with a special introduction by Ethan Cohen, director of Ethan Cohen Gallery, New York.

Virtual course on Korean poetry, and comparative Japanese and Chinese poetry offered
2021-07-06 15:00 - 17:00 | MN
A poetry writing and teaching course, Virtual Sijo Workshop: Comparing Verses from Korea, China, and Japan, will be offered by the Sejong Cultural Society, on three Tuesdays – July 6, 13 and 20, 3 to 5 p.m. CST.
Participants will learn about the Korean traditional poetry form, the sijo, Korean traditional literature, Chinese jueju, and Japanese haiku. The webinar will additionally discuss how to teach sijo in a school setting and how to edit and improve sijo. Participants will be invited to write their own sijo and discuss lesson plans for sijo.
A stipend of $100 is available for current K-12 teachers in the U.S. upon completion of both the sijo and related Korean history webinars and all related homework assignments. Current educators are also eligible for free reference books upon completion of the courses. Other applicable certifications are available; see website: sejongculturalsociety.org
A detailed program schedule is available on the Sejong Cultural Society website. The Sejong Cultural Society, located in Chicago, offers annual music, essay writing, and traditional poetry writing contests. It also offers classes to enhance teachers’ ability to teach about Korean arts and history in the U.S.

Korean adoptee-themed St. Paul restaurant to hold birthday bash
2021-07-29 17:00 - 20:00 | MN
Bap and Chicken, a St. Paul eatery that reflects the story of Korean adoptee John Gleason will hold a party in honor of turning two (and making it through the pandemic) on July 29.

The party will feature specials, entertainment, prizes and a “Free Chicken for a Year” giveaway.

Beginning July 1, Bap and Chicken visitors can enter a drawing for free chicken for a year. On July 29, there will be dining specials and giveaways throughout the day. From 5 to 8 p.m. on July 29, there will be entertainment, complimentary cake, plus Mimosas and sparkling teas from Jinx Tea, another local business that opened in 2019. The evening will wrap up with the grand prize “Chicken for a Year” drawing on-site, broadcast via Instagram Live at @bapandchicken

Sijo teaching class offered to all educators
2021-09-04 | MN
The Sejong Cultural Society is offering a free online five-part class for all educators on how to teach sijo, a traditional Korean poetry form.
Course start dates this fall are on Sundays (September 12, October 24, and December 5) and continue into 2022. The course is designed to train teachers about the sijo poetry form and how to use it in their classrooms. It includes detailed analyses and critiques of student and professional sijo, and guidance and writing and editing in sijo form. Participants will practice creating and implementing a sijo lesson plan.
To register, see the website for a link to a registration google form. Teachers who complete all assignments. Teachers who complete all course assignments and submit a lesson plan at the end of the course will be eligible for a $50 stipend after the course ends. Exceptional lesson plans will earn an additional $50, and will be distributed to other teachers with the author’s permission. For more information and details on this program, email: se****@***********ty.org

Boston Korean Adoptee hold virtual Korean cooking classes
2021-09-04 11:00 - 13:00 | MN
A series of online classes hosted by the Boston Korean Adoptees association ongoing into the fall will focus on street food and how it has become an integral part of Korea’s history.
Two tracks of cooking classes will focus on meat dishes and vegetarian dishes. Each has four two-hour sessions with a maximum of eight participants each. Each class will instruct on creating a main dish and some side dishes. The classes are appropriate for all levels of cooking experience. Class registration is available on a first come, first served basis.
As part of the registration, participants will receive a Korean cooking starter kit, comprised of many common Korean pantry items. Participants in the Boston area can pick up the kit at two or more locations. Non-local participants (with advance notice) can request a kit to be shipped to them. Participants are responsible for purchasing fresh produce, meat, and other ingredients on their own. Participants will receive a menu and a list of ingredients one week before the scheduled class through email.
Menus include snacks such as kimchi, pickled radishes and carrots, radish water kimchi, Korean corn dogs, kimchi pork buns, Korean-style barbecue, and various savory pancakes, among other dishes. Online lessons on Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. are coming up in September, October and November. For more information, see the website at: bkadoptee.org/events.
Boston Korean Adoptees, Inc. is a Boston/Boston-Metro organization committed to building a community of adult adoptees and their families in the New England area. We host, sponsor and collaborate on panels, workshops, cultural events and casual get-togethers. Its primary goal is to provide a safe space and forum for the exchange of ideas and experiences of our members and the greater community.
Classes will continue (all from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.) on September 4 and 18, October 16, and November 6. Class registration for the virtual cooking series is available on a first come, first served basis. To register, email to in**@*******ee.org. A Google form will be emailed for registration. See blog post at link below for updates.

Minnesota China Garden to hold celebration and poetry contest
2021-09-18 10:00 - 19:00 | MN
The Minnesota China Friendship Garden Society will hold a site dedication and launch of its proposed expansion plan on September 18. Various events, free to the public will be held at and around the garden, located at Phalen Regional Park in St. Paul and Maplewood, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Events will include a Nine Art Stones celebration, and New Voices in the Garden poetry contest reading and prize ceremony, and Mid-Autumn Moon Festival Celebration.
Entries are being sought for the New Voices in the Garden poetry contest. Prizes will be awarded for poems in each of four languages: English, Chinese, Hmong, and Dakota/Lakota, Theme of the contest is Earth’s Balance, and prizes will be awarded in two age categories; younger than age 18, and 18-plus. Winners will read their entries at the ceremony on Sept 18 at 3:30 p.m. See the Minnesota China Friendship Garden Society Facebook page for a link to the entry form (link also below).

Sejong Cultural Society announces first international sijo competition
2021-09-30 | MN
Sejong Cultural Society of Chicago will hold its first International Sijo Competition, which will be open to participants globally. Deadline for submission is set for September 30.
Since 2008, Sejong Cultural Society has been hosting a writing competition with essay and sijo (traditional Korean poetry) categories. This separate international contest has been developed for poetry enthusiasts outside the U.S. and Canada. This contest is offered in one division, and is open to poets of any age. Contestants may be from any country (including the U.S. and Canada). Entries must be written in English, and one entry per applicant is permitted. Previously published (or awarded) sijos will not be accepted. Entries must be received as an online submittal by September 30, 11:59 p.m. CST. Cash prizes will be awarded for the winner ($500), runner-up ($250) and honorable mentions ($100).
Other details and resources, including sijo samples, and links to video workshops about this poetry form, are available on the website (link below).

KAM Center celebrates 20th anniversary
2021-10-09 16:30 - 20:00 | MN
Korean Adoptee Ministries, a Christian non-profit organization targeted to Korean adoptees and their families, will celebrate its 20th anniversary with a dinner and fundraising event on Saturday, October 9.
Keynote speakers will be Rev. Hyung Joon Kim, senior pastor of Dong An Church, Seoul; and Kim Deardoff, production manager of NRBTV, a network that features Christian programming content on various platforms.
The event, from 4:30 to 8 p.m. CST, will also include the testimonies and stories of those who attended the KAM tour to Korea and/or participated in other KAM Center programming over its 20-year history.
KAM Center is seeking donations of cash and silent auction items for the event, as well as stories and photos from participants whose lives have been positively impacted by KAM Center’s programs.
The event will be held at the Delta Hotel Minneapolis Northeast, and a block of rooms has been reserved for the event. Many details are to be determined (at press time). Tickets will be available closer to the event through an on-line reservation system. For more information, please contact email: ka*******@***il.com or phone: 651-324-0208.

Asian Media Access holds pop-up vaccine event
2021-10-17 14:00 - 17:00 | 7901 12th Avenue South, Bloomington, Minnesota, 7901 12th Avenue South, Bloomington, MN, 55425, United States
A free vaccine event with COVID testing and free food giveaway, targeted to the Asian American community, will be held in Bloomington on Sunday, October 17.

The free event will include $50 Target gift cards for each vaccine recipient. Registration is required for a vaccine (see below link), but not for the free testing kits and food giveaway.

The event will be held 2 to 5 p.m. at the Chinese American Chamber of Commerce, 7901 12th Ave. S., Bloomington.

Register for vaccination https://bit.ly/3ofSfc0

The event requires standard COVID-19 precautions, including masks and social distancing.

Virtual event commemorates 25 years of Asian American Studies
2021-10-26 15:00 - 17:00 | MN
A virtual conference, Asian American Studies Now, will be held October 26 to mark the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Asian American Studies program at New York University. The program was launched when a group of students came together, and with faculty support, began organizing for the first Asian American Studies course, and a program. The Asian/Pacific/American Studies program was founded in 1996.The program will welcome back alumni and faculty who were instrumental in the historic founding.
In the 1990s, college students in the Midwest and on the east coast began to fight for the establishment of Asian American studies programs. This movement came nearly three decades after the pivotal student strikes in Califormia that led to the nations first Asian American studies programs there.
The conference will begin at 4 p.m. EST, 3 p.m. CST. o register for this historic conference see the below link.

Hyon Kim to speak for Great Decisions series on Korean peninsula
2021-10-29 12:30 - 14:00 | MN
Hyon Kim, a Twin Cities entrepreneur, non-profit co-founder, author and thought leader will be a featured speaker for the annual Great Decisions series of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at the University of Minnesota.
The presentation via Zoom will be held 12:30 to 2 p.m. on Friday, October 29. The topic is about the Korean peninsula.
Kim is the founder and CEO of MN Best, Inc., a Twin Cities project management and engineering support firm. She also serves as chair of the Asian-African Business Development Committee at the International Leadership Institute. Named one of the Top 25 Women to Watch by Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal she was the first Asian person to serve on the University of Minnesota Board of Regents.
Kim is the author of the autobiographical My Name is Maria, published in South Korea in the Korean language. It is now being translated to English. Kim is also co-founder of the Twin Cities non-profit education and advocacy organization Midwest Alliance for North Korean Refugees.
OLLI classes are open to the public; with an annual membership, participants can register for an unlimited number of classes. Fall offerings include topics in finance, photography, literature, creative writing, history, botany, a study of the Mississippi River and economic theory, among many others. More information is available on the OLLI website, link below.

Land of My Father film is in TCs Film Festival lineup
2021-10-29 16:30 - 18:30 | 1625 West End Boulevard, Minneapolis, 1625 West End Boulevard, Minneapolis, MN, 55106, United States
The Twin Cities Film Festival will screen a documentary film by Matthew Koshmrl, Land of My Father, about the story of the territory dispute between Japan and South Korea over the Dokdo Islands. It details the stories of two activists. One is a Korean farmer who protests the Japanese government regularly in Tokyo, after finding out his father was abducted and enslaved in a coal mine during the Japanese occupation of Korea. The second is a woman who lived on Dokdo with her father, and considers Dokdo her homeland. She struggles to keep her father’s legacy alive after the Korean government mysteriously erases the history of their family as pioneering residents of this remote island group.
This screening includes a short Q and A with the filmmaker and the producer Christina Kim. The film will be shown at 4:30 p.m. Friday, October 29, at the Showplace Icon Theaters, 1625 West End Blvd, Minneapolis. The film festival price is $12. See the TC Film Festival website for more information.

Adoptee Hub fundraiser with film and dinner
2021-11-06 16:30 - 20:00 | MN
Adoptee Hub, a Twin Cities service and educational organization by and for intercountry adoptees, will hold its (in-person) annual fundraiser under the title theme Jeong: The Power of Reunification, on Saturday, November 6.
Keynote speaker for the event will be filmmaker Sun Hee Engelstoft (born Sun Hee Shin), a Korean adoptee from Denmark. Her 2021-released film Forget Me Not, will be shown at the event. Other special guests at the event will be a recently-reunited Korean birthmother and adult son (names to be announced). A panel discussion of the three guests will also be included in the event.
Adoptee Hub seeks to connect adoptees with one another and with resources and critical post-adoption services. It strives to offer programs, opportunities and events that encourage adoptees to know their history, have a sense of belonging, experience their birth culture, and access services in a safe and supportive environment.
The fundraiser will be held at Moundsview Community Center, starting at 4:30 p.m. with a social hour and silent auction, followed by dinner and program. Tickets will be available on the website: www.adopteehub.org/events.

Adoptee referral portraits collection to be featured at Weissman Art Museum
2022-01-16 - 2022-05-31 | MN
The work of Minnesota Korean adoptee artist Megan Rye will be featured in an exhibit entitled Foundling, to open at the Weissman Museum of Art, Minneapolis, on January 16, 2022.
More than 70 families participated in sharing referral photos of themselves or adoptee loved ones, who are adopted from many countries to Minnesota. She collected the photos over some years, and there are now portraits of 100 adoptees in the exhibit, rendered in paint on Target shopping bags.
The exhibit will have a soft opening in January, and there will be events at the museum in spring 2020. Because construction is ongoing at the museum with no solid finish date, and due to possible stricter COVID protocols in the future, and Minnesota weather generally, the events at the museum were delayed, although the exhibit will be opening on time, Rye said.
Rye said she got the idea after having her second child, and realizing she had only a few black and white photos of herself as a baby, while there were thousands of images of her son and daughter, as well as many keepsake objects, not to mention roomfuls of toys, clothes and other objects related to them.
Rye was brought up in the Twin Cities, got her undergraduate degree from Rhode Island School of Design, and her Master’s of Fine Arts from the University of Minnesota. The Weissman exhibit is a kind of a homecoming for her, she said, and she expects to invite in adoptee groups locally, as well as University of Minnesota students to observe and learn from the project.
Megan Rye’s website, featuring this collection and her I Will Follow You Into the Dark exhibit of her paintings of her brother’s photos of his military tour in Iraq, is at: meganrye.com . The Weissman Art Museum is at: wam.umn.edu.

Feminist thriller play opens at Mixed Blood Theater
2022-02-18 | Mixed Blood Theater, 1501 South 4th St., Minneapolis, 55454
Man of God, a funny feminist thriller play will open at Minneapolis’ Mixed Blood Theater in February.
The setting for the film, a mission trip to Bangkok by four members of a Christian girls’ youth group. They discover he has hidden a camera in their hotel bathroom. Their rage and rage and disillusionment fuel violent revenge fantasies, providing comedy and a timely social issue as a topic.
It is directed by Katie Bradley, a Twin Cities actor/director (and Korean adoptee). The playwright is Anna Ouyang Moench, an award-winning playwright and screenwriter. She is currently the 2019/2020 Page One Playwright in Residence at The Playwrights Realm and has received numerous fellowships and awards.
Special performances of this Theater Mu production include Thursday actor talk-backs (February 24 and March 3) and the community matinee (February 27) featuring Asian Women United of Minnesota and ManForward. The student and industry Wednesday matinees will include a post-show experience for youth, led by Women’s Initiative for Self-Empowerment and Transforming Generations.
The play runs from February 18 through March 6, and tickets are available on a sliding scale, with the suggested price of $35, or as little as $5 for those who need to pay less.
Mixed Blood Theatre is located at 1501 S 4th St, Minneapolis, MN 55454.Ticketing and other information is at: https://www.theatermu.org/man-of-god

Reading event for We Were Meant to Rise
2022-02-22 18:30 - 20:30 | MN
Carolyn Holbrook, Ed Bok Lee, and Alexs Pate will read from and discuss their writing from the powerful new book, We Are Meant to Rise: Voices for Justice from Minneapolis to the World in a free virtual event on Tuesday, February 22, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. (Central). The anthology features Asian American (including two Korean American), Black, indigenous writers and other writers of color discussing racism in Minnesota, including in the context of the pandemic and after the murder of George Floyd.
Ed Bok Lee, a Minneapolis poet and playwright, has authored three poetry books; most recently Mitochondrial Night. He teaches writing at Metropolitan State University. He is the son of parents from Korea – his mother was originally a refugee from what is now North Korea; his father was raised during the Japanese occupation is what is now South Korea. His literary honors include an American Book Award, a Minnesota Book Award, an Asian American Literary Award (Members’ Choice), and a PEN/Open Book Award.
Alexs Pate is a writer, novelist, and founder of Constructing the Innocent Classroom, an organization established to end educational disparities between educators and students of color. Alexs is the author of five novels, including Amistad which was commissioned for a film by Steven Spielberg. He has worked diligently and led initiatives for racial justice in Minnesota for decades.

Carolyn Holbrook is a writer, educator, and longtime advocate for the healing power of the arts. Her memoir in essays, Tell Me Your Names and I Will Testify won the 2021 Minnesota Book Award for memoir and nonfiction, and was an honoree for the 2021 Society of Midland Authors Literary Award in Biography and Memoir. She is a co-author with Arleta Little of a memoir of civil rights icon Dr. Josie R. Johnson entitled Hope In the Struggle. Her personal essays have been published widely, most recently in A Good Time for the Truth: Race in Minnesota and Blues Vision: African American Writing from Minnesota. Holbrook is the director of More Than a Single Story, an ongoing community conversation program to invite conversation about personal stories and racial equity, which she founded in 2015.

Registration to this Zoom event is at the link.

Coalition of AA Leaders hold Asian Minnesotan Day at Capitol
2022-03-07 09:00 - 16:30 | MN
The Coalition of Asian American Leaders (CAAL) will hold an Asian Minnesotan Day at the Capitol, to be held Monday, March 7, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The presentations will include champions on CAAL policy priorities, advocacy education from CAAL staff and leaders, and opportunities for constituents to speak with their legislators about issues impacting their communities.

The tentative schedule includes a rally in the Capitol Rotunda at 9 a.m. headed up by Lt. Gov. Peggy Flannagan and legislative caucus co-chair Rep. Kaohly Her, with performances by Asian American artists.

At 10:30 a.m., partcipants may watch a legislative caucus hearing on the status of Asian Minnesotans. From 1 to 4 p.m., consitutents may visit their legislators (two to three visits per team), and there will be a virtual celebration and closing at 4 p.m.

Masks are currently required at the State Capitol.

HANA Center hosts 2022 #IAmAnImmigrant storytelling speakers
2022-03-11 18:00 - 19:30 | MN
HANA Center will present its fourth annual #IAmAnImmigrant storytelling fundraiser event on Friday, March 11, 2022, 6 p.m., via Zoom.
The event is intended look back on the Atlanta shootings one year after eight people (including six Asian women) lost their lives. The event will feature a multigenerational panel of Asian American women from the Chicago Asian American community who will share their various experiences as immigrants, women of color and being undocumented.
Music for the event will be provided by Korean American adoptee Jacqueline Wells. She serves on the board of the New York transnational adoptee organization Also Known As www.jacquelynwellsmusic.com @oohjacquelina
Speakers include Dalin Eap, a Cambodian American undergraduate student at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota. She is a founding member of HANA’s youth group Women That Fight (WTF) which provides a space for young women and non-binary youth of color. She first joined HANA Center as a freshman at Chicago’s Mather High school and has also been a member of HANA’s youth leadership council, Fighting Youth Shouting out for Humanity (FYSH).
Yoon Kim, also a speaker, is a second-generation Korean American raised in the suburbs of Chicago. She joined HANA Center as a Civic Leaders Fellow in the summer of 2020 and is currently studying public policy and researching legacies of U.S. military occupation of Korea at the University of Michigan.
The third speaker, Jieun Han, is a first-generation Korean immigrant who moved to the U.S. with her family in 1999. A veteran Korean language teacher, she is also the chair of the Midwest Korean Schools Association. She is also an active member of HANA Center’s Racial Justice Committee.
Hana Center of Chicago is a service and advocacy organization that serves Korean Americans and the broader Asian American community. Its activists are working on a Citizenship4All campaign which includes the Adoptee Citizenship Act.
The event can be accessed free, however, reservations are required and donation amounts are suggested and raffle tickets available at the event registration page at the indicated link.

Virtual event for transnational adoptees will reflect on Atlanta shootings
2022-03-22 18:30 - 19:30 | MN
The Korean Adoptees of Chicago (KAtCH) will host a virtual discussion with activist (and Korean adoptee) Stephanie Drenka, entitled Connect and Reflect, on Tuesday, March 22. The intent of the discussion is to allow participants to talk about the significance of the Atlanta spa hate-crime shootings that took place March 16, 2021.
The event, to be held 6:30 to 7:30 CST, is intended for transnational adoptees only.
For more information, or to register for the free event, see the Eventbrite link

Adoptee Hub offers monthly sessions for birth search stories
2022-03-26 10:00 - 11:30 | MN
The adoptee service and advocacy organization Adoptee Hub will offer a virtual meeting and conversation about birth family search and reunion challenges with guest speaker Shelby Redfield Kilgore. The session will be offered online, via Zoom, Saturday, March 26, 10 a.m.
Kilgore, a Korean adoptee, has 15 years of experience as a filmmaker and documentarian of adoptee stories. She has listened to and recorded many search and reunion stories through her work. These are available at her website: www.wearemirrorlight.com/films .
Kilgore’s experience will provide a backdrop for adoptees to speak openly in a private and safe space about birth family search issues. Adoptee Hub will continue to offer monthly sessions to help adoptees share their successes and challenges.
There is a suggested donation of $5 to $10 to help keep these sessions available. For more information and registration, see the events on the website at: www.adopteehub.org/events.

Theater Mu invites applicants for Community Monologues
2022-03-31 | MN
A class for youth of color (age 18 and older) will be held March 31 through May 1, Monday and Thursday evenings. Playwright and Theater Mu actor Eric Sharp will instruct.
Participants will memorize and rehearse a single two- to four-minute monologue, with additional material if time allows. The class will be held via Zoom and will culminate in a semi-public Zoom showcase. Acting experience is preferred, and participants are expected to work on their monologues outside of class. Enrollment is limited to 10 students, and contingent on instructor approval. For application instructions, see the website: www.theatermu.org/mti.

First Adoptee Literary Festival to be offered virtually
2022-04-09 08:00 - 22:00 | MN
The first Adoptee Literary Festival will be held virtually on Saturday, April 9, 8 a.m. through 10 p.m. (CDT). The purpose of the festival is to highlight writing by adoptees from the perspective of their own experience.
It will feature numerous Korean adoptee writers such as Nicole Chung, author of the memoir All You Could Ever Know, Matthew Salesses, novelist and author of Disappear Doppelganger Disappear. It will also feature poet Lee Herrick, creative writing professor and author of several poetry collections including Scar and Flower (2018), and journalist/activist Stephanie Drenka, both Korean adoptees. The festival will feature the work of many writers who identify as adopted and include panels on novels, memoirs, journalism and literature for young adults.
The sponsorship of PEN America is making it possible for the festival to be free and open to the public. Registration is and more information is at: adopteelitfest.com
