March 2020 Cultural Work Roundup

/// March 2020 ///

March is blossoming with radical BIPOC arts and culture! Some of our community event highlights are below. Get out and support artists and cultural workers of color around town this month!

EVENTS

• Sunday, 3/1: Jezebel + Again and Again – As part of the Hollywood Theatre's Feminist March programming, JOOP JOOP presents a screening of feature film JEZEBEL and short film AGAIN AND AGAIN in partnership with local organizations that have missions aligned with the content of these two films, both written and directed by womxn: Couch Film Collective, a feminist film collective; Stroll, a harm reduction, outreach, and education group run by and for sex workers; and Meals 4 Heels, Portland's late-night clean meal delivery service catering to the sex worker community. 7 - 9 pm, The Hollywood Theatre, 4122 NE Sandy Blvd.
• Sunday 3/1: The Journal of Ben Uchida: Citizen 13559 – In 1942, 12-year-old Ben Uchida and his family are forcibly removed from their home in San Francisco and imprisoned at Mirror Lake, an American concentration camp, along with hundreds of thousands of other Japanese-American families. In this unfamiliar place, removed from everything he once knew, Ben’s emotional journey is even more upsetting than his physical one. Originally commissioned by the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, this play details—with anger, despair, sadness, and hope—a dark chapter in this country’s history; it tells a story that is relevant, moving, and one that cannot be forgotten. Through March 22. More info can be found here. 2 pm, Oregon Chidren’s Theatre, Winningstad 1111 SW Broadway.
• Monday, 3/2: Renter’s Rights Workshop! – The Community Alliance of Tenants and ASPCC are partnering to host a Renter's Rights Workshop! The presentation will be an accessible and interactive Renter's Rights overview for tenants, designed to empower PCC students, faculty, and members of our community to stand up against unfair housing practices. The subject matter of the workshop will cover documentation, repairs, fair housing law, deposits, SB 608, screening, and applications. Interpretation services in Mandarin and Spanish will be provided. Free food will also be available for all participants, with gluten free and vegan options available. 4 - 6 pm, PCC Southeast, Community Hall 7901 SE Division St.
  
• Tuesday, 3/3: CultureSEast, Artist Talk – CultureSEast seeks to address topics of identity and culture, bringing awareness and appreciation for the rich cultural diversity that makes up our community through storytelling, visual arts, workshops, and more. Samantha Wall and Georgina Brooks will be giving an artist talk in the gallery. 12 - 1 pm, PCC SE, Southeast Gallery, 2305 SE 82nd and Division. Exhibition on view until March 9th.
  
• Wednesday, 3/4: Portland BIPOC Karaoke! – Please join us on March 4th in Portland for an evening of karaoke where you can learn about upcoming events, share ideas, see old friends, and meet new Black, Indigenous and people of color! Hosted by the Social Justice Fund NW. 6 - 8:30 pm, Voicebox Karaoke, 734 SE 6th Ave. RSVP here.

• Saturday, 3/7: IPRC BIPOC Writer & Artist Residency Program Q&A Info Session – The IPRC’s mission has always been about access and empowering alternative paths to publishing for vital work & unique voices. To fulfill our mission better, we’re introducing this residency program that is designed specifically to support Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) artists and writers to develop and create their art, and to share with the wider community. We want to give artists and writers time, financial (in the form of $3k stipends) and community support, as well as resources to create. The Call For Proposals is now open: https://bit.ly/3bEnPaz with an application deadline of Wednesday, 3/25 at 11:59 PST. We're offering this info session with IPRC ED Alley Pezanoski-Browne for anyone interested in applying. 6 - 7 pm, IPRC, 318 SE Main St., Suite 155
• Monday, 3/9: Census 101 Workshop – This workshop led by Forward Together will provide valuable insight into the upcoming 2020 census. Come by and learn why the census is so important for fair representation and why it plays such a vital role in so many areas of public life. 12 pm, PCC Southeast, Great Hall, Mount Tabor Building, 7901 SE Division St.
• Tuesday 3/10: 'emBODY poetry' – 'emBODY poetry' explores an experimental form of poetry on unorthodox canvases, with original work by Jessica Mehta presented in virtual reality and painted onto a live nude model. Experience poetry as it merges with technology, revealing itself on those who inhabit bodies who are traditionally under-represented and hyper-sexualized in much of mainstream western society. 6:30 - 8:30 pm, Open Signal, 2766 NE MLK Jr. Blvd.
• Saturday 3/14: Restaurant Babies – Whitenoise Project is popping up at the one and only Canton Grill for an evening of writers including Jane Wong, Jenny Chu, and Rosy Thowtho. More info here. 7 pm, Canton Grill, 2610 SE 82nd Ave.
• Saturday, 3/14: This Is My East Portland – How do you invest in East Portland? The Community Investment Trust partnered with Metro to call on local artists to visually represent their connection to the East Portland community. Join your neighbors at Plaza 122 to celebrate East Portland and see how 11 local artists express what their community means to them. 12 - 2 pm, 1441 SE 122nd Ave.
• Saturday, 3/21: St. Johns 1910: Riot & Rebels – Honor Immigrants and Punjabi Freedom Fighters! St. Johns 1910 will honor the 110th anniversary of the anti-immigrant riots in St. Johns that targeted Sikhs, Muslims, and Hindus in 1910 — and planted the seeds of a radical anti-colonial movement in India. The commemoration will include speeches by community members and historians performances by South Asian dancers and musicians, and a historical walking tour of St. Johns. 1 - 4 pm, St. John’s Plaza, 8608 North Lombard St.
• Saturday, 3/21: RENT PARTY III –Black Arts Ecology of Portland (BAEP) and Nat Turner Project (NTP) are throwing a rent party for NTP 2020 programming. There will be karaoke, a raffle, drinks and eats. Come show your support! 4 - 7 pm, Alberta Abbey, 126 NE. Alberta St.

• Saturday and Sunday, 3/21-3/22: Otherness: Togetherness – Unit Souzou is excited to present Otherness: Togetherness featuring Horatio Law, visual installation artist; Joe Kye, violinist-looper, and Unit Souzou taiko ensemble - coming together to share stories grappling with ideas of identity, home, otherness. The program will showcase the commonalities amongst their experiences, melding together into a cohesive art experience to amplify the diverse perspectives of what it means to be Asian in America, both embracing “Asian American” as space for culture and community, but also pushing boundaries of stereotype, labels, and expectations. Saturday, 7: 30 pm, Sunday 2 pm and 7:30 pm, New Expressive Works, 810 SE Belmont St.

• Monday, 3/30: Riot and Revolutionaries in 1910 St. Johns –On March 21, 1910, some 200 residents of St. Johns, Oregon, rioted against the so-called “Hindu” mill workers working and living in town. While this little-known riot lasted two hours, its aftershocks reverberated for years. East Indians and Portland authorities pursued prosecution of the town’s mayor, several police officers, and multiple white laborers, their trials sprawling over two years. More significantly, following the trials, St. Johns became a center of East Indian anti-colonial organizing focused on the overthrow of British rule of India. This talk will explore the colonial roots of the riot and East Indian’s radical response. Johanna Ogden. 7 pm, Kennedy School History Pub,5736 NE 33rd Ave.

OPPORTUNITIES

• 
  
• Part-time Development Coordinator Position – Write Around Portland is looking for a part-time Development Coordinator who is excited to join an organization that values respect, writing and community. The ideal candidate will thrive in and contribute to a collegial, good-humored team and an organizational culture in which everyone pitches in on tasks big and small. The candidate we seek enjoys building relationships, is precise, detail-oriented, able to manage multiple projects at once, and can take ownership of their job role. We are looking for someone who is interested in growing and developing with our organization over time. Deadline to apply is the end of day on Sunday, March 15, 2020. Full posting can be found here.
• Responsive Program Grants - The Responsive Program Grants enable nonprofit organizations and federally recognized tribes in Oregon to address urgent or timely issues in their communities. Awards of up to $1,000 are intended to center those most affected by a topic in order to elevate perspectives that have historically been undervalued and particularly to support programming based in and led by rural communities and/or communities of color. Programs can be in multiple languages or be in a language other than English; however, the final narrative reports must be in English. Proposals are reviewed on a rolling basis until the allocated 2020 funds ($15,000) are spent. More information can be found here. Or Contact information: Louisa Mariki, Program Coordinator, l.mariki@oregonhumanities.org, (503) 241-0543 x 117.
• Immigrant Art Exhibition – First Presbyterian Church in Portland will be hosting an exhibition September and October 2020 focussed on the Immigrant experience for area artists born outside the U.S. Prize awards will be given to several participants and many artists will have their work on display during those two months. More information can be found here.
• 
  

/// More on the Cultural Work Roundup ///

The Cultural Work Roundup is a monthly spotlight on arts and cultural events and opportunities that:

• Directly relate to APANO's cultural work strategies to impact beliefs, actions and policies through centering the voices of those most impacted and silenced, resisting and shifting harmful narratives and ideas, and moving beyond defensive strategies to envisioning alternatives.
• Centralize the voices of Oregon-based Asian and Pacific Islander artists and/or artists of color.

Events may include readings, exhibitions, festivals, openings, and performances. Opportunities may include calls for artistic submissions, grant and funding opportunities, and volunteer opportunities.

The deadline for submissions is the third Monday of each month for events and opportunities that fall into the following month. For example, events and opportunities that take place in June are due to APANO by the third Monday in May.

The Cultural Work Roundup will be posted on APANO's website and shared via APANO's digital communications platforms. Events and opportunities will be posted at APANO's discretion based on alignment with our cultural work values. You may submit to the Cultural Work Roundup by filling out our Google Form at bit.ly/culturalworkroundup.

If you have any questions, please contact Cultural Work Coordinator Roshani Thakore at roshani@apano.org. Enjoy!