On November 4, 2023, Asian American Collective Action for Racial Equity and Solidarity (AA CARES)partnered with the United Vietnamese Student Associations of Northern California (NorCal UVSA) to speak about stopping AAPI hate and reflecting on the impact of anti-Asian discrimination in our communities. AA CARES Executive Director, Dr. Mai-Nhung Le, and AA CARES Research Director, Dr. Dr. Loan Le delivered introductory remarks and also led a workshop with discussion and poetry writing regarding the impact of anti-Asian hate on our communities. Subsequently, a poetry contest and a poll were implemented, with 147 out of 200 VSA Summit participant responses (74% response rate). Participants indicated that although they knew about Stop AAPI Hate (94%), an overwhelming majority (75%)  wanted to learn more about Stop AAPI Hate. More than half of participants indicated that either they or their families had been impacted by anti-Asian hate. (See Figure below).

The NorCal VSA Summit XV was a 3-day leadership conference hosted by the Vietnamese Student Association (VSA) (a social-cultural organization that is focused on promoting Vietnamese culture and history) at SFSU and its theme was “Set Your Heart Ablaze.” A central theme for the conference consisted of stopping anti-Asian hate, in the hopes of helping students to find inspiration and empowerment in order to build community and awareness among participants. The Summit comprised a gathering of student organization members from college and university campuses across Northern California. This summit event supported students with the resources needed to develop leadership, professional, and educational skills to be successful in life and their careers, as well as performances, workshops and other programs.

Note on partner organizations: 

Northern California United Vietnamese Student Associations, or NorCal UVSA, is a 501(c)(3), non-partisan, non-profit, and community-based organization with a mission to organize youth socially and civically in Northern California. NorCal UVSA is an organization compiled of Vietnamese Student Associations across Northern California that serves Vietnamese and Vietnamese American students and communities at the following schools: De Anza College, Stanford University, UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UC Merced, UC Santa Cruz, University of Pacific, San Francisco State University, and San Jose State University.