January 2025
No Arena Campaign won!
October 2025
30th Mid-Autumn Celebration
July 2022-January 2025
No Arena Campaign
AAU co-hosted a community meeting for Chinatown residents, workers, and business owners to share information about the proposed 76er Dev Corp arena — over 300 community members attended! Working with community members to gather and translate information, AAU helped build the Save Chinatown Coalition, made up of 20+ groups united to stop the arena. Together, we’ve published the bilingual Here to Stay paper, screened documentaries about the value and history of Chinatowns, participated in demonstrations against developers who put profit over people, took a road trip to Washington DC to learn from former Chinatown residents about the destruction caused by an arena, and gathered thousands of signatures on a petition to Save Chinatown.
December 2024:
30+ protesters arrested in City Council as part of mass demonstration for No Arena
March 2024:
“Our Chinatown” public story telling project launches
May 2022:
Our City Our Schools Youth Summit hosted at AAU
2020-2021:
Corona Virus rapid-response
All AAU programs moved online in March 2020. AAU pivots to meet community outcry for support: in-language surveying community members for Corona-virus related needs and education; working with Chinatown Dragonboat to distribute 6000 masks and 7500 gloves; supported Asian Mosaic Fund to develop corona-virus community relief funding drive; distributing more than $125,000 to undocumented individuals and families ineligible for covid-relief unemployment compensation with funding from PICC PA Is Ready, The Philadelphia Mayor’s Fund, and Nationalities Service Center.
2021:
PA statewide API communities survey
AAU worked with the AAPI PA Power Caucus to design and carry out the first-that-we-know of comprehensive statewide survey of our API communities. Information gathered will support the development of an issue-based policy platform for progressive Asian communities across the Pennsylvania. Hosted online forums in March on “Community Response to Anti-Asian Violence” and in April on “Asian Communities in Solidarity for Black Lives” featuring 10 Asian leaders, attended by more than 600 community members
April 2022:
Language access
First time that voting materials are required to be in Chinese for all Philadelphia elections, as a result of AAU’s 2020 Census work.
March 2020:
Anti-Asian Violence and Black Lives Matter
Hosted online forums in March on “Community Response to Anti-Asian Violence” and in April on “Asian Communities in Solidarity for Black Lives” featuring 10 Asian leaders, attended by more than 600 community members.
2020:
Release for Asian detainees at York Detention Center
Worked on release for Asian detainees at York detention center during Covid-19. Conducted Know-Your-Rights education on detention and legal defense and assisted community members with U-visa applications.
2019:
Immigrant Rights Work
As deportations and detentions continue in our Asian communities, organizing: Know-Your-Rights in Chinatown daycare centers and Philadelphia small restaurant owners; accompanied parents to ICE check ins; assisted families in finding reliable legal assistance; worked with Modero & Co. and Viet Lead to build community defense work in the Indonesian community.
2018:
AAU’s Chinese Youth Organizing Project worked in partnership with artists in New York’s Chinatown Art Brigade and the Asian Arts Initiative to create and project messages about neighborhood displacement and immigrant rights on Chinatown walls.
September 23, 2017:
AAU's 22nd Annual Mid-Autumn Festival
October 13, 2017:
A conversation with Professor Scott Kurashige. Dr. Kurashige currently works at the University of Washington, Bothell School of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences. He received his Ph.D. of History and M.A. of Asian American Studies from UCLA, and his B.A. of History from the University of Pennsylvania.
December 8, 2017:
Annual Celebration: Community & Collaboration
December 9, 2016:
AAU's 31st Anniversary Celebration
July - August 2016:
AAU Summer Program
December 11, 2015:
AAU's 30th Anniversary Celebration
September 19, 2015:
AAU's 20th Mid-Autumn Festival
July 6 - Aug. 14, 2015:
AAU Summer Program
April - May 2015:
Chinatown Vote, Get Out the Vote for Primary Elections
September 13, 2014:
AAU's 19th Mid-Autumn Festival
March 11, 2014:
American Revolutionary, The Evolution of Grace Lee Boggs
February 5, 2014:
The State of Asian Americans in Philadelphia report launched.
September 14, 2013:
AAU's 18th Mid-Autumn Festival.
August 2, 2013:
AAU Summer Program 2013 Final Event Celebration
July 25, 2013:
Tea & Dessert Community Building Night. We updated folks on happenings at AAU, engaged in conversation to get to know each other, enjoyed homemade desserts, and explored ways of deepening our connections
April 29, 2013:
We Cannot Keep Silent Exhibit Closing Night & Special Forum on the Shifting Politics of Race at Cedar Works
March 1, 2013:
Fun & Games with AAU. Meet new people, have fun, share your favorite Asian games and learn to play games you’ve always wanted to try: mah jong, gostop, parcheesi, hana fuda, Chinese chess, and whatever you bring to the mix! We will also have a potluck dinner together.
March 2013:
"WE CANNOT KEEP SILENT" Ongoing Exhibit at the Philadelphia Folklore Project
February 7, 2013:
AAU Movie & Discussion Night: Featuring the Academy Award nominated documentary "The Betrayal"
2013:
Grace Lee Boggs' Book Workshops with AAU
August 2010:
Conclusion of Club AAU After School Program. An after school club at FACTS designed for middle school youth. Students are challenged to learn about community and environmental issues as well as strengthen their leadership skills. Learn More
April 24, 2010:
AAU Bowl-a-Thon
December 2009:
Asian Immigrant Students Stand Up Against Racial Violence at South Philly High School
August 2009:
Conclusion of Middle School Paths to Leadership Program Learn More
June 2009:
Conclusion of AAU/FACTS After School Tutoring Program
July 14 - Aug 9, 2008:
Middle School Paths to Leadership Learn More
March 2008:
No Casinos in the Heart of Our City Learn More
September 22, 2007:
AAU's 12th Annual Mid-Autumn Festival
July - August 2007:
Middle School Paths to Leadership Summer Program. For middle school youth from both FACTS and from other local schools. The youth participated in a variety of leadership development activities, learned about environmental and community issues, and developed a plan to implement a recycling program at the FACTS. Youth met with leaders at FACTS to present their plan to create a recycling program. Learn More
March 2007:
The Folk Arts-Cultural Treasures Charter School (FACTS) celebrated its grand opening ceremony at its new building – and also AAU’s new home – at 1023 Callowhill Street in the fall of 2007.
2007:
AAU Greening Project (now Inch-By-Inch Garden). In 2007, when youth in Asian Americans United’s (AAU) leadership class surveyed the area around their school in Chinatown, they found neglected vacant lots, illegal dumping, and little green space. After succeeding in getting a lot next to their school cleaned up and the fence fixed by the absentee land owner, AAU youth are now working to transform this vacant lot into a garden. The Folk Arts – Cultural Treasures Charter School (FACTS), Chinatown's one public school, sits adjacent to an abandoned elevated railroad track that is bordered by neglected and vacant lots. Learn More
August 2007:
Inception of AAU/FACTS After School Tutoring Program. Following in the long tradition of our first summer program, AAU continued to work with high school students to provide leadership training and opportunities for them to mentor and tutor younger students. AAU provided training and support for high school students who volunteer as tutors and mentors in the FACTS after care program. FACTS after care is a homework help and enrichment program for 25 FACTS students who attend kindergarten through 6th grade (and that is run by AAU youth alumna, Anh Ha and two other FACTS staffers). AAU Executive Director Ellen Somekawa and Anh worked to design training sessions for high school students that were supportive and team building, helped them understand the needs of the FACTS students, and nurtured their potential for being positive role models and mentors to the FACTS students.
June 2007:
Inception of Club AAU After School Program. Learn More
April 2007:
Bowl-a-Thon. AAU hosted a Bowl-a-Thon fundraiser and was able to raise $7,400 to put towards their programs aimed at building lasting Asian American communities.
September 2005:
FACTS opened and realizes an alternative vision of education rooted in community and folk arts as vehicles for academic learning and social change. Learn More
March 2005:
AAU in partnership with the Philadelphia Folklore Project won a charter for FACTS.
Spring 2000:
Stadium Fight. A shock hit residents of Philadelphia’s Chinatown when the city announced Chinatown as the intended site for a new $600+ million baseball stadium. The project was announced without any communication to the Chinatown community (nor would any communication be granted during the course of the struggle).
1993:
Save Greenwich Library. When the Mayor Ed Rendell announced major cuts to the public libraries budget, only one library in the city was chosen for closing--Greenwich Library. The library served mainly African American and Asian American youth, and had the largest after school program of any library in the city. People of all races came together with door-to-door organizing, multi-lingual community meetings, petition drives, a lawsuit, lobbying, coalition building with other library advocates, street demonstrations and actions. After protests and debates, City Council restored the entire public library budget. However, Mayor Rendell still shut down Greenwich Library.
1992:
Chinatown School Bus Campaign
1992:
Fighting Police Harassment
1991:
McCreesh Playground Incident. Following the killing of a white youth during a playground fight between White Power Boys and Asians in Southwest Philadelphia, AAU worked intensely to bring clarity and humanity to the treatment of the seven young Asian defendants in the case. AAU fought to have due process and equal justice granted to the defendants despite a system bent on railroading the young men toward conviction. This struggle continued as the INS has sought to deport the convicted youth after they served their prison sentences.
1989:
Justice for Heng LimOne of AAU’s earliest organized campaigns against anti-Asian violence began when Heng Lim, a Cambodian American man, was beaten to death in front of his family by a man who called him a “f**king Chinese.”
1986:
Summer Pilot Project Youth Program, later named the Community Youth Leadership Project.
1985:
Founding of AAU. Founded based off of the mission to build leadership in Asian American communities and to encourage neighborhood growth and to grow unity to challenge oppression.