September 2020 Cultural Work Roundup

/// September 2020 ///

While some of us know our special powers and have found places to give, others are still searching for their purpose in this growing, multifaceted movement against the dominant culture. How does one find their way through the noise, stay true to themselves, and strengthen their communities? Below is a list of BIPOC makers, radical thinkers, and doers who can guide and ground us, featuring recommendations by Cultural Work Volunteer Lillyanne Pham at lillyanne@apano.org and APANO's Arts & Media Project (AMP) members.

Watch

The Black Box Experience Conversation Series – Hosted by Kiara Walls. The series so far consists of three episodes on Anxiety/Depression, Childhood Trauma/ Healing Repair, and Creativity. These one-on-one’s aim “to create a safe space where POC can hold meaningful conversations around their human experience.” Recommended by Roshani Thakore.

Practice

Resilience Series: Resilience of Rest – Hosted by APANO, featuring Sophia Austrins (she/her), Spatial Artist + Architect at Bora Architecture + Interiors + Lavender Suarez (she/her), Sound Healing Practitioner + Candace Kita (she/her), APANO Cultural Strategy Director. Wednesday, September 9, 2020, 5:00 PM - 6:30 PM on Zoom. “How is rest important in cultivating resilience? How do we ask for spaces to rest? How is rest radical for BIPOC communities?”



First Thursday: "Haile(y)'s Sideways Piece?" – Hosted by p:ear Gallery, featuring artist and p:ear youth Daniel Haile. Thursday, September 3, 2020 at 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM at p:ear Gallery (338 NW 6th Ave, Portland, OR, 97209). Stay tuned for Virtual Gallery showing dates! “Being a member of the deaf community, Haile's subject matter often revolves around themes of discrimination, disability and diversity. He works both traditionally and digitally often focusing on portraiture where he captures static moments of everyday life.”



Time-Based Art Festival – Hosted by PICA from September 10-30, 2020, featuring Dao Strom and Garima Thakur, APANO community leaders. “For 21 days, these 40+ artists will come together with our global audience for a shared experience of performances, films, audio projects, publications, conversations, music, workshops, and participatory events, with a mix of virtual and in-person programs.” Recommended by Roshani Thakore.



Let's Talk About Race – Hosted by Multnomah County Library, presented by Alexis Braly James. There will be six online workshops from September 10, 2020 to February 11, 2021 on topics ranging from “Race and Oregon history” to “MicroAggressions.” In this, these workshops aim to ground individuals in their racial experience and its relation to their communities.



BLM PDX Solidarity March – Hosted by Friends of Noise, Snack Bloc PDX, Fridays4Freedom, Community Creating Unity, and more. March on Labor Day (Monday, September 7) from 3:00 PM to 7:00 PM. There will be four starting points: Salmon Springs (youth), S. End Saturday Market (Black community), East End Steel Bridge (labor/teachers), East End Hawthorne Bridge (BLM Activist). Timeline: 3 pm - meet up, 3:30 - march, 5:30 - meet up at the final Rally for poetry, music and speeches.

Listen

Queer Astrological Technologies, Live from the 2020 AMC! – Hosted by How to Survive the End of the World (Autumn Brown and adrienne maree brown), featuring queer astrologer Chani Nicholas. Transcript. This episode unravels how to meaning-make in a movement by grounding us in astrology as an ancestral technology. Chani states, “And I think that when we feel like I'm made on purpose and these things that I'm good at are good for the world, we can more easily kind of relax into the ways in which we are built to serve.”



The United States' Pre-Existing Conditions – Hosted by NPR Code Switch (Gene Demby and Shereen Marisol Meraji), featuring Ed Yong, a science writer for The Atlantic. Transcript. This episode emphasizes the historical normalization of social inequalities before the pandemic and suggests for us to move beyond “going back to normal.” Yong states, “In all the dimensions we've already talked about - you know, the carceral state, the health care system, you know, the legacy of racism and colonialism - if we can't even look all of those problems in the face, we're just going to be weak again the next time 'round.”

Read

POC Online Classroom – Compiled for and by young BIPOC. Their website consists of suggested readings, theoretical frameworks, and syllabi on critical social justice issues. Their volunteer-based initiative aims to empower, educate, and uplift BIPOC communities and individuals. To collaborate with them, email poconlineclassroom@gmail.com.



If you have BIPOC art and culture to add to this list or additional resources, please contact Cultural Work Coordinator Roshani Thakore at roshani@apano.org or Cultural Work Volunteer Lillyanne Pham at lillyanne@apano.org.