Dear Friends,

Don’t miss your chance to be part of something truly exciting and meaningful: the inaugural 1990 Institute Youth Symposium 👉  “Roots and Wings: Celebrating Asian American Youth with the Power of Community“ 👉 taking place on Saturday, September 6, 2025, at the College of San Mateo.

In this fast-changing and challenging time, we are all seeking connections and community more than ever. The 1990 Institute’s Youth Symposium was created to meet this moment — with strength, support, and celebration.

What makes this event truly special is its inclusive approach — bringing together students, parents/guardians, and educators in one space to support the next generation. Each group will also benefit from their own individual breakout sessions to address important issues, including discovering new career fields and passions with Asian American leaders (youth); managing young people’s stress, cultural expectations, and mental wellness with mental health professionals (parents/guardians); incorporating Asian American experiences in the classroom (teachers) — culminating in a robust conversation where everyone joins together to build our community, taking turns to listen, learn, and share.

This vibrant event brings together attendees with 30+ inspiring speakers and trailblazers to gain fresh perspectives, practical insights, and a deeper commitment to personal and community growth. It is a unique opportunity to immerse yourself in Asian American culture, including music, entertainment, Asian food, a film screening, and a comedy performance. Connect with your roots and celebrate the richness of the Asian American experience.

👉 Learn more about the event and the schedule and speakers and register HERE while registration is open. Space is limited. Those who register early will have a better chance of attending the breakout sessions of their choice. Scroll down to Spotlight for more information about this symposium including a list of our dedicated sponsors and partners who are joining us in building this powerful gathering.

Thank you for your continued support of the newsletter and the 1990 Institute — your tax-deductible donation of any size supports teachers and students and programs like the Youth Symposium. Please share this newsletter with your friends and family and encourage them to subscribe.

We’ve added so many inspiring speakers and exciting program details — it’s a day full of learning, connection, and celebration. Here is our keynote panel and click to see a quick video with more than two dozen of the speakers who are looking forward to meeting you at this event. Register today — youth aged 14-21, parents/guardians, and educators are all welcome!

How can community help Asian American youth in this time of pressure and possibility?

By Frances Kai-Hwa Wang

My mother always said that the most important part of Chinese School is not learning Chinese; the most important part of Chinese School is meeting other Chinese American children and creating community. Chinese School then becomes a safe space to complain about traditional immigrant parents, to find older brother and older sister role models, to be lifted up by the community of aunties and uncles. 

At our Chinese School graduation ceremony, as we celebrate the big brothers and big sisters before they head off to college, we make them give one last speech (after years of Chinese School speech contests) to the assembled little brothers and little sisters. Invariably, they tell the little ones to keep studying Chinese, do their Chinese School homework every week, and take care of their parents and each other. 

I think about the power of those speeches now as I consider the unprecedented challenges Asian American youth face today on so many fronts. Instead of just worrying about what to study, where to go to school, how to make that cute boy/girl notice them (without mom and dad noticing), or what to be when they grow up, Asian Americans are facing more existential concerns. 

According to Pew Research, the majority of Asian Americans, 54 percent, are immigrants. We are the only major racial or ethnic group that is majority immigrant. When looking at Asian American adults, 67 percent are immigrants. This makes our community particularly vulnerable in this moment.

Many of us are used to translating for our parents. This can be a challenge at any age. But now we also worry about what will happen if our immigrant or refugee parents (or we) are detained or deported, lose their citizenship or green card or temporary protected status or work visa, lose their livelihood or Medicaid or Medicare. What if we have to raise our younger siblings without them? How will we pay our student loans? What if our university cancels our major or scholarship? What if a war starts and the draft is reinstated? What if we are detained or deported for exercising our freedom of speech? Even if we are not the protesting type, there are many ways that we can speak out and stand up for ourselves and for our community.

Standing up for each other is not new. We have birthright citizenship because in 1897, 21-year-old Wong Kim Ark went to the Supreme Court to prove that the fourteenth amendment applies to all of us. During World War II, young Japanese Americans like Fred Korematsu, Mitsue Endo, and the “No-No Boys” challenged the unjust incarceration of Japanese Americans, while those in the 442nd and 100th served in the military to prove their families’ loyalty to this country. In the 1960s, Asian American college students fought for the Voting Rights Act, Ethnic Studies, and an end to the Vietnam War. In the 1980s, young Asian Americans called for justice for Vincent Chin. Today, young Asian Americans are standing up for others in the community in many different ways including voting, protesting, advocacy, and more. 

“Asian American youth are navigating a new era of pressure and possibility,” said Sandra Pan, 1990 Institute Vice Chair and Program Lead for the 1990 Institute’s upcoming symposium for youth, “Roots and Wings: Celebrating Asian American Youth with the Power of Community.” “We are in a world where career prospects are uncertain and mental health needs are rising. Young people need more than academic support. They need community.”

This is a unique opportunity to immerse yourself in Asian American culture, including music, entertainment, Asian food, a film screening, and a comedy performance. Join in the fun by registering now. Space is limited.

Curated News

Asian American Motherhood Has Always Been Political | Sampan  Long before the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, before today’s heartbreaking family separations at the U.S.-Mexico border, the playbook was already written — control women’s entry, and you control a community’s future.

Asian Americans Left Out of Immigration Debates, But Not Crackdowns | American Community Media  Asian Americans are the only major racial or ethnic group that is majority immigrant, yet their concerns remain largely unheard as ICE raids continue across the country.

A refugee deported to Bhutan by the U.S. finds himself stranded and stateless | NPR  For years, Bhutan refused to accept Nepali-speaking Bhutanese refugees, but under President Trump, over two dozen people have been deported there, even as Bhutan is accused of turning them away.

U.S. State Dept. cuts China experts as administration says countering Beijing top priority | NPR  The State Department fired its top experts on the South China Sea and shuttered its office on Indo-Pacific security amid a sweeping reorganization, leaving gaps in knowledge and experience critical to U.S. interests. 

How China came to rule the world of rare earth elements | NPR  Many rare earth elements are mined globally, but China has a near-monopoly on refining them for use in everyday electronics as well as for crucial defense systems, like fighter jets. There are also downstream effects of China's rare earth mining.

How Trump’s tariffs on Asian allies impact the U.S. strategy to counter China | PBS News  The U.S., the Philippines, and other Asian allies are increasing their cooperation to counter China, but these partners are also being targeted by U.S. trade policies. 

EU and China agree to take action on climate change and nothing else at tense summit | PBS News  China and the European Union have issued a joint call to action on climate change, urging more emission cuts and greater use of green technology and affirming support for the Paris Climate Agreement.

U.S. government employee barred from leaving China, Washington says | Al Jazeera  U.S. State Dept. says the employee was slapped with an exit ban while visiting the country in a “personal capacity.”

As Ichiro Suzuki becomes 1st Asian MLB Hall of Famer, Asian players share how he paved the way for them | NBC News  “It kind of gave me hope at a really young age to see that someone who looks like me, plays like me, is able to succeed at the highest level,” said Steven Kwan of the Cleveland Guardians.

Maybe, Maybe Not: A Casting Controversy and the Conversation It’s Started | American Theatre  An Asian American theatremaker reflects on the intent and impact of Broadway’s "Maybe Happy Ending," and the precedent its latest casting decision may set. Tony-Winning Advocacy Org AAPAC Decries Move. Conrad Ricamora Launches Scholarship for Asian American Male Actors in response.

Ruth Asawa exhibition celebrates her influential art and extraordinary life | PBS News Hour  The work of artist Ruth Asawa, who died in 2013, is back in the spotlight with a major traveling exhibition. It’s a celebration of not only her work, but also an extraordinary life.

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