What do young Asian Americans care about? What issues are important to them? What is their vision for their neighborhoods and communities? In June 2023, seven Asian-led organizations in the Twin Cities hosted a community event, Spring into Action: Cultivating Grassroots Asian Power. As nonprofits whose mission is to uplift the community, we must also be accountable to what the community wants and needs. During the event, attendees had the opportunity to participate in a live podcast recording as a way to ground our work in community voices and provide an empowering space for young people to te ..read more

As Asian Americans, art and storytelling is an integral part of our communities, yet Asian American performers and stories continue to be underrepresented in film, television, media, and theater. This special episode of New Narratives features interviews from four Asian American actors based in the Twin Cities who performed in various productions at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis. Listen in as we discuss Asian joy, taking leaps of faith to pursue your dreams, finding your voice, and cultivating an artistic home in the Twin Cities. Thank you to the actors for their beautiful words, and than ..read more

Episode 16: In this episode, we’re joined by Alex Vang and Lynn Nguyen from the Minnesota Chapter of the National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum (NAPAWF). We discuss their journey coming to work with NAPAWF, how abortion restrictions impact the AAPI community and more. Guests: Alex Vang and Lynn Nguyen Music by AudioCoffee from Pixabay ..read more

Episode 15: In this episode, we’re joined by Our Justice to discuss abortion access and reproductive justice in Minnesota. Our Justice is a Minnesota-based abortion fund that provides financial and logistical support for folks seeking an abortion. Guests: Megumi Rierson, Shayla Walker Music by AudioCoffee from Pixabay ..read more

Episode 13: In celebration of May (APAHM), this episode is decided to our names. You’ll hear from four guests about their cultural and personal connections to their names, the meaning behind their names, and the pride they have in them. The music throughout this episode is from pixabay. Guests: Marie Stebbings, Hamy Nguyen Huynh, Simran Chugani, J Nguyen ..read more

In this special bonus episode of New Narratives, a companion to our mixed race Asian identity-focused episode “We Are What We Are,” documentary filmmaker serena (they/them) and AAOP Content Creator Intern and New Narratives co-host Siena (she/her) talk about both their experiences growing up mixed, the complex positionality of being mixed race with white, and, fittingly for May and Asian Heritage Month, how it might be possible to pass on heritage traditions and values as burgeoning mixed race mentors and potential future mixed race parents. If you are interested in learning more about mixed r ..read more

March 16th marked the one-year anniversary of the Acworth-Atlanta shooting where eight people died, six of them being Asian American women. In this episode, we hear from Anthea Yur about the solidarity march she organized last year and Professor Jigna Desai on media portrayals of Asian American women and historical events that have led us here. Guests include: Anthea Yur (Kokoro Project), Professor Jigna Desai (University of Minnesota-Twin Cities), Kay Moua, Phoua Chang, Jun Lin, and Siena Milbauer ..read more

Where do we go from here? That’s the guiding question of the finale of our special mini series “Justice for George Floyd.” We’re moving our transformative justice-focused podcasting out of this specific basket and into our main podcast “New Narratives.” But before “Justice for George Floyd” bows out, we’re taking a journey through its episodes to reflect on the impact of storytelling, the incredible movement we’ve witnessed in our Minnesota communities, and what the future of public safety can and will look like if we all step up to shape it. This series is made with support from the Minneapol ..read more

Election day is fast approaching and alongside important local races, Minnesota voters will be deciding on some crucial ballot measures. None is getting more attention than Minneapolis Ballot Measure 2. Thousands of Minneapolis community members already voiced their support for the ballot measure via petition, and if passed on November 2nd, Ballot Measure 2 would open the door to a model of public safety that stops enabling police brutality and starts funding community-based solutions to health and safety crises. In this episode, we speak with Jessie Lee-Bauder (she/her), Communications Manage ..read more

Join New Narratives' creator & host Anya Steinberg as she says goodbye to AAOP! She'll take you on a tour of some of her favorite interviews -- including moments you've never heard before. Music by Takénobu. Guests include: Jane Jeong Trenka (she/her), Professor Bee Vang-Moua (she/her), and Julian Saporiti (he/him).  ..read more