The East Coast Asian American Student Union conference was held from March 2-4, 2018 at Cornell University, and it brought together students from various universities and colleges to “inspire, educate, and empower those interested in Asian American and Pacific Islander issues.” Several workshops sought to explore student’s internal and external identifies, identify the stratification of privilege, define radical love, and draw lessons from past activists’ actions to inspire our own quests for transformative justice.
There were also spectacular speakers who came and provided empowering words of wisdom despite the snowstorm. Paul Tran, a Vietnamese poet, educator, and editor ignited roars from the crowd as they expressed their passions through well-written poems. Steven Lim from Buzzfeed told us he was honestly nervous speaking in front of us, and we had a good laugh from his talk. Mei Lum and Diane Wong talked about the violent gentrification in Chinatown and how the displacement of residents was perpetual and stripped away their basic livelihoods. Lastly, Mimi Thi Nguyen, who is the Associate Professor of Gender and Women's Studies and Asian American Studies at the University of Illinois, mentioned about POC punks and her journey as a zine creator.
Vassar students believed that this conference was a great way to “get to meet and connect with new people better.” ECAASU had given individuals a better sense of different environments for Asian Americans at other colleges. One student said, “I realized the impact I can have if I choose to make a difference.” Students were motivated to be more active and create change that could better the lives of other people.
Photo credits to Heather Phan Nguyen
