Reze Becker Eng 101 Afro - Asian Solidarity as an example: Blasia will save us. Asian and Black - Americans have built the country with their blood and sweat, from railroads to slave plantations, they’re as much a part of this country as white people are. Yet their struggle is disgraced at best and ignored at worst. In realizing the American dream for many, she failed to recognize the American dream for her black and brown children. When you’re brown in America you’re taught to be as close to white as you can in effort to build a better - quality life for yourself. In doing so, it reinforces the idea that one’s proximity to whiteness increases one’s power. Socializing black and brown people to idolize whiteness to an end . The two groups most notorious for putting whiteness on a pedestal and used by whiteness in comparison against each other are Black and Asian - Americans . In history the two groups have worked together to combat their socialization; doing so earned America’s ire and the government struck their movements down. I argue, that if we examine the history of Black and Asian - American power across community lines - we can then use that to overcome the divides that separate us. My father struggled, a refugee from Vietnam who landed in California and was sponsored by a Minnesota Charity; he was suddenly in a country that shunned, mocked, demeaned and racialized his culture. He didn’t have any other options but to pick between Black and brown cultures or assimilate into the predominant white culture. Unfortunately for his children he chose to assimilate as best he could, leaving me and my brother t o suffer from being an outsider in our own culture. My father didn’t teach me nor my brother how to speak Vietnamese, causing a rift between me, his mother and his siblings. However, it isn’t uncommon for S outheast Asian immigrant children to struggle with this issue. Their parents – escaping a war – didn’t have time to worry about teaching their children about their culture. They worried about how their children will be able to stabilize themselves in this new country and make a name for themselves. This plight isn’t unlike any struggling family in Am erica – especially brown and b lack America. Despite most Black Americans not being immigrants, they still struggle to raise their children. They struggle raising them because of police violence, racial prejudice. Sadly, most Black children choose to assimilate themselves within white American culture due to various reasons, like my father choosing to assimilate when he immigrated. In assimilation, one chooses to forgo their connections to their culture, their family; instead choosing to immerse themselves in an entirely other culture, usually for survival. In immigrating, my father eventually would bring over the 12 other people in his family – his 10 siblings and parents. It wasn’t easy, and it wouldn’t be easy for them. In the time between bringing his family over my father experienced much racism. One story he likes to tell is when he heard some football player say, “those stupid boat people, they should go back to their country.” And my father hit him over the head with a chair. My father was known to get into fights over hearing racism or protecting his younger siblings when they went to school and someone racially harassed them. The first few jobs my dad took upon himself were in manufacturing. He so on found his passion for chef work and that would be his career for the next 40 years of his life before he retired when he was 60 years old. I mention these things to not fetishize the things my father went through but to give context to what many people went through at the time. When he immersed himself in those careers, he found himself amongst fellow laborers. While he wouldn’t label himself “a racist”, he still openly held prejudice. He would use the hard - er, would avoid walking by Black men etc. Even though he worked around the same people he was racist against, he would simultaneously advocate for them within his job and help them when they needed to. The racism among Southeast Asian immigrants is a difficult one to unravel. Unravel it, we must, if we’re to achieve anything we can call community and democracy. If we’re to unravel the anti - Black racism that southeast Asians possess, we must first look to the reason for the immigration. War. Like so many others, my father was a refugee, and thankfully he was able to find a sponsor in Minnesota that allowed him to immigrat e. Later on in his life, he was able to bring the rest of his 12 family members over to America with him. Him and his family were one of hundreds of thousands of immigrants that would flee various S outheast Asian countries in the 1970s - 1980s. In response to those immigrants the United States government passed various acts to support the new citizens of their country, such as the Indochinese Refugee Assistance Program. This program provided states wit h federal funds for supporting refugees with social welfare (medical care) and integration programs (English classes). (1). Luckily, when my father landed in the country, he was 17 years - old so he was able to attend regular high school along with his subsidized English class. Between October 1975 and 1980, approximately 433,000 refugees from Vietnam, Laos or Cambodia had immig rated to the United States, and Minnesota had received the largest number of refugees in the Midwest. (1). The massive wave of immigration resulted in an equally massive wave of racism, from Southeast A sians criticized for “taking” white American jobs, to war veterans taking their anger out on the newly immigrated population. This wasn’t an all - bad time though for the immigrants, while they were wholly met with racism and slurs, they were also met with s upport and care from their community. That also just so happens to be majorly Black Americans. I must preface this by acknowledging that not every Black person supported the Southeast Asians the same way or at all, I am simply stating that a vast majority of support of Southeast Asians came from Black Americans. This is interesting because the Vietnam war was one of the first wars that was fought with a desegregated military. Black men have fought in Vietnam and died in Vietnam and yet many of them, as well as popular support came from Black America. According to Amistad Digital Resource, in their section about the Civil Rights Era they write. “By July 1965, SNCC [Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee - a major proponent in desegregating sc hools.] members had produced their first uncompromising statement on the war, declaring that Blacks should not “fight in Vietnam for the white man’s freedom, until all the Negro people are free in Mississippi.” Later, in the same post they go on to list, “ Malcolm X was the first Prominent African - American leader to denounce the Vietnam war, others soon followed his lead.” (2) Showing us that many Black progressives in America saw the Vietnam war for what it was — a white man’s war to further his own gain and refused to participate . Another famous Black civil rights leader, Martin Luther King, took a strong public stance against it, owing in part to his dedication to pacifism. All this opposition before America even sent troops over could have been attributed to the growing anti - war sentiment that grew at home. As we know, the majority of the protestors of the war were students. Students who saw the war for what it was, an extension of America’s racism and domestic policy disguised as foreign relations. Students who saw police open fire on protestors on May 14th in Jackson State College, the Ohio Nationa l Guard killing another four students — linking the police violence they suffered to the war. Sparking a truly massive wave of anti - war protests. The Vietnam war was one of the first modern examples of Afro - Asian solidarity. In realizing that domestic policies about race found a foreign stage, Malcolm X and Dr. King realized that they must stand up for these injustices even if they don’t even have their own rights. In realizing that sole thing, the two legends have realized the main issue that is stopping A fro - Asian solidarity today. Domestic violence (police, hate crimes etc.) and military violence are just state violence at the end of the day. Protesting the Vietnam war would set the stage for further Black - Americans' support of Asian - Americans. Before we discuss Black - American support of Asian - Americans we must first discuss how the two massively influential men viewed Asian - Americans and their struggle against racism. Both in their home nations and in America. Despite neither of those men having visited East Asia, many of their teachers did. Such as Langston Huges — famous American poet — being the first African - American to step foot in the “incredible” 1933 Shanghai. Profoundly sympathetic to the Chinese under c olonial oppression, Hughes would pen “Roar, China!” Emboldening China’s resistance. W.E.B. Du Bois would make his own pilgrimage to China in 1959, even going so far as to cry in the streets, “Africa, Arise, and stand straight, speak and think! ... China is t he flesh of your flesh and blood of your blood.” In an article written in the Sixth Tone by Liu Zifeng on April 03, 2022. She discusses the “Alliance that shook the world” describing African - American intellectuals and nationalist Chinese while interviewing Professor Gao Yunxiang of history at Ryerson University in Toronto, Canada. Gao cites on e of her inspirations to writing her book, (3 ) as growing up in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, she saw a newspaper headline that said, “Robert Williams and Madam Du Bois fervently acclaim Chairman Mao’s statement supporting Black Americans.” Gao later states in the interview that Hughes claimed to observe the Chinese as “a very jolly people, much like colored folks at home,” as well as calling the Chinese his “physical cousins.” (4 ) Aside from these men, many African - Americans consider themselves communist or the very least socialists, and siding with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) (5). When examining these figureheads of Black progressivism, one can understand how figures like Malcolm X and Dr. King came to the conclusions of Afro - American Solidarity. Even though he never identified communism, during a speech at the Militant Labor Forum (which was sponsored by the Socialist Workers Party), he criticized capitalism (6). We can understand how many Black - Americans can look to communism as an alternative to capitalism when they were in t he depth of their struggle with Jim Crow and segregation. In the 1970s at the height of civil rights movements, there was one man who dared to bridge communities together to unite against the government that took our children to war and left our pantries empty. Fred Hampton was a twenty - one - year - old deputy chairman of the Black Panther Party and chair of the Illinois chapter. He founded the anti - racist, anti - classist Rainbow Coalition. Which was a political organization that encompassed Black Panthers (Black - Americans), Young Patriots (White southerners), Yo ung Lords (Puerto Ricans). And was an ally to major Chicago street gangs in effort to combat infighting and enact social change. Due to the Panthers communist beliefs, they saw the struggles of Vietnam and China as a revolutionary model. Even though they were not included in the Rainbo w Coalition, Asian - Americans looked up towards the Black Panthers. In 1969 the Bay Area Asian American revolutionary organization (Red Guard) was modeled on the Black Panthers (7). It was formed to deal with Asian - American struggles in the state at the time, specifically around Chinatown. So influenced by the Panthers that the Red Guard had devised their own “Ten - Point Plan” that centered Asian - American struggles at the time. Even though the Red Guard only existed for two y ears, the group had a transformative reflection on Asian - American politics at the time. The height of the Vietnam war was happening and Asian - Americans at home saw other Asians being brutalized for a country that already doesn’t care about their quality of life. Many Asian - Americans already in America were unsure about how to navigate their social reality of racism they suffered. The wars in Korea and Vietnam brought it uncomfortably close to home for many of them. In response to an interview question about the reason for Asian - Americans needing to be a part of the civil rights movement, the founder of the Red Guard — Alex Hing says, “ When you grow up in a community you don’t look at it as large or small, it’s just what it is. Our people, my friends, comrades, brothers and sisters were all facing the same thing that other people were facing. The same kinds of situations due to capitalis m, U.S. imperialism as it applies to minorities. We didn’t have equality, and the only way that we can get that equality is by making a revolution.” — Alex Hing (7) The Red Guard cornerstoned the idea of racial identity to Asian - Americans , as well as their place within America’s racial hierarchy. To understand racial hierarchy, one must understand the systems that are in place. The pitting of Asian - Americans and Black - Americans against each other. One to hold up the model minority myth, an d the other to be the punching bag for it. Not unlike when your parents compare you to your cousins during the holidays with, “well, your aunt’s child is the same age as you and already graduated, why haven’t you?” If one can understand America as a family, then Asian - Americans are the cousins that Black - Americans get compared too, i.e, “why aren’t Black people as rich as Asian people? Asian people aren’t w hite, so what’s Black people’s excuse?” Examining race relations in that light becomes a game of who has it worse than the other, which is what they want us to do. Because if we focus on fighting each other, then we cannot fight the top class. We cannot fi ght for rules and laws that represent us. We cannot fight for legislation that keeps our roads paved and water clean if we’re fighting over who suffers the most in America. It is clear that Malcolm X and the Black Panthers had influence over Asian - American activism in the past and have always discussed Afro - Asian solidarity but we must analyze if they’ve ever worked in tandem with Asian - Americans within their various organizations and communities and understand what it was like for those Asian - Americans inv olved. We can start by examining Malcolm X and whether he incorporated Asian - American activists within his inner circle. I am pleased to write that he did in fact, include Asian - Americans. One of them is Yuri Kochiyama, Japanese - American civilian turned activist after her and her family spent three years in an internment camp for Japanese - Americans. Her first glimpse of anti - Black racism faced by African - Americans in the south would spark her journey. She moved to Harlem in the 1960s and became involved with her community, she also encouraged her family to partake as well, taking her family on a trip to see the aftermath of racial protests in Birmingham. The story of her and Malcolm’s meeting is one where she told Malcolm that she admired his work but disagreed on racial se gregation. Maybe he was impressed by her stating her position, either way the two had become close friends, and Yuri would later join the Organization of Afro - American Unity. According to Yuri, he had sent her postcards of the places he visited on his pilgrimage. After he came back, he would meet with J apanese survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and spoke to them regarding the effects of racism and American imperialism. Unfortunately, she was there when he was assassinated on February 21, 1965. There is a photograph of her cradling Malcolm’s head as she urged him to stay alive. After his death, her house became a sort of hu b for the Black community, seeing a vast array of visitors including Angela Davis and Tupac Shakur. Another Asian - American that worked briefly with Malcolm was Grace Lee Boggs. She was born in Rhode Island, and e arly in her career Boggs translated Karl Marx’s works and was actively involved in several leftist organizations. Having lived in Chicago for a time, she found the man who would become her husband, James Boggs in 1951. James was an African - American auto worker and political activist. That same year, James and her would move to Detroit, Michigan where they focused on Civil R ights and the Black Power Movement. Her friendship with Malcolm X was a deep one, him choosing to stay at her house whenever he was in Detroit (14). At one point, she tried to convince him to join the U.S. Senate in 1964. After Malcolm’s passing, Grace and James decided to set up local community efforts such as Detroit Summer, a multi - racial and intergenerational collective with the goal of empowering local youth (11). After James’ death in 1993, the James and Grace Lee Boggs Center to Nurture Community Leadership was founded in 1995 as a non - profit to acknowledge their memory and hard work for their community. (11). I was lucky enough to have the chance to interview a volunteer at the Boggs Center named Sharon Howell. In our interview she described their mission statement, developing “placed - based” organizing. (13 ) Which is supporting community efforts that are responding to neglect and devastation in our cities. To further that, Sharon goes on to describe what kind of work the Center does, “A lot of our efforts are creating place - based community self - determination and self - sufficiency.” She then elaborates on what that means, “We do urban gardens. We connect with people who are providing alternative forms of energy. We also engage in decision making.” The organization focuses on rebuilding Detroit after the abandonment of industrialization. They aren’t stuck in the past with their organizing, in an effort to stall gentrification in Detroit. They have purchased lots and are using that land for community centers, gardens, and culture centers. They also do political education, discussions, books and ideas; along with a skill building workshop. From practical skills such as how to store dry food to how to de - escalate confrontation the center focuses on “increasing people’s ability to create safe, productive and joyful community spaces.” (13). One of the ques tions I asked Sharon was how did not participating members of the community feel about the changes the center has made, she says, “we [the Center] created a process called a community benefit agreement.” Essentially what the Community Benefit agreement [Ordinance] (CBO) is; an agreement between anyone who gets city tax breaks or money to develop a part of Detroit must enter into agreement with the impacted community and about how they will give back to that community. (14 ) Shae goes on to say, “It’s an effort to try and leverage the desire to develop in Detroit and tailor it to the specifically impacted community.” I interviewed Shae on April 10th, 2026 and she mentioned to me that the next day (April 11th) she would be attending a breakfast in celebration of the 10th anniversary of the CBO. While it’s great that the Black community has supported Asian - Americans in times of war and the like, what was their response to Asian - Americans experiencing violence at home? On June 19, 1982, Chinese American Vincent Chin went with friends to a strip club in Detroit to celebrate his wedding. He was harassed and was attacked by two white men, then beaten to death. At the trial, each man got a $3, 000 fine and no prison time. A dancer at the club heard one of the men shout at Chin, “It’s because of you motherfuckers that we’re out of work.” (16) I don’t want to get into the gory details of Chin’s death, but I will say the murder sparked a newfound energy for the Asian - American racial movement — the Pan - Asian American movement. At the forefront of the movement was Vincent’s mother and alongside her was a Black political activist and one time U.S presidential nominee, Rev. Jesse Jackson. (17 ) This was the kind of movement that Grace Lee Boggs was working in, she was deeply involved within her community until her time of death in 2015. In 2021, the Center posted in their Newsletter called Thinking for Ourselves (written by Shae), titled Violent Hands , goes on to write about how the community cannot turn itself away from violence. In understanding the rise of state violence can be our morbid vehicle to examine A fro - Asian societal standings. The only times we lift our communities up are when these two groups come together and stand in defense of their people. Either by meeting militarism with militarism, via the Black Panthers or with community focused work such a s the James and Grace Lee Boggs Community Center. Both ways of resistance are important, and both must be included in any future resistances if they are to work. Because if the government doesn’t care about Black or brown bodies then somebody has too. As America continues to be riddled with cases of police not caring about our bodies. It grew even worse after 9/11 as well as the crack epidemic on Black communities. In the same token, one can see how both groups have come together under those plights to share cult ure and community with one another. An example is easily found in Hip - Hop, a music genre that taught youth about their cultures, themselves and their people. It’s not surprising then, that young Asian - Americans found themselves drawn to the music, even going so far to write their own songs about their struggles. However, in discussing this we must also acknowledge the appropriation of Black culture from Asian - Americans so immersed into hip - hop are often the perp etrators of appropriation. In effort to find their voice and liken their struggle with Black - America, Asian - Americans have unintentionally (or intentionally) appropriated Black culture and struggle as their own. We can see an example of this in groups like the Black - eyed Peas and the Far East Movement. This shaped much of the media landscape in the early 2000s, and the culture. These groups I’ve grown up listening to, it wasn’t a one - way trade either; Asian - Americans have started their own groups influenced by anti - authoritarianism and working - class rebellion. As someone who grew up in early post - 9/11 America, it felt like we were the closest we’d ever possibly be to people genuinely feeling united together. Unfortunately, those times wouldn’t last. The murder of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri in 2014 would put an end to that rose - colored time . During the time, many Asian - Americans felt like they now had to find where they stand. The younger generation had not heard much about Afro - Asian solidarity in their education growing up, nor were they taught of things like the Panthers or Vincent Chin. They now had to contend with the fact t hat they either perpetuate anti - blackness or don’t; it was an uncomfortable situation for many of them (19). Asian - Americans are having to contend with where they stand in the 21st century when seeing Black people get murdered endlessly by the hands of the state - the police. In the upcoming years there are more innocent Black people murdered, and every time increasingly Asian - Americans understood what side they were on. The most jarring one was George Floyd. A Black man murdered at the hands of a White cop with a Hmong man standing right next to him, not helping the man screaming he can’t breathe. This was an important moment for many Hmong and Southeast Asian Americans in Minneapolis. Their face was on the screen next to the murderer, and they had to deal with that social destabilization. After the horror of his murder, the thoughts that plagued Asian - Americans were ones that debated on their role in police brutality and racism on a whole. In this time, many Asian - American authors wrote about the effect on their families and community. In an essay by Mai Der Vang, titled To Hmong Americans, On Racial Justice and Patriarchy (2020), she writes specifically about the Hmong - American plight. Even in the war that the Hmong people were displaced by, “It’s time for us to collectively wake up. The American Dream will not save us. On the contrary, the pursuit of the ‘Dream’ feels as though it is leading to more harm than good.” (20 ). Calling for the action of Asian - American people to understand what’s at stake for us and why it matters. Harkening back to activists like Yuri or Grace Lee Boggs, or even the Panthers when understanding that police violence is the Nation putting their brute force behind a militant force, not unlike the U.S. military in war . George Floyd came right after COVID - 19 mangled the nation with millions of deaths. Along with that, came a rise in anti - Asian crimes “[W] here 32% of all Asian - American adults say they personally know an Asian person in the United States that has been threatened or attacked because of their race or ethnicity since COVID - 19 began in 2020.” (20). In response to this, Asian - American’s started their own movement called Stop AAPI (Asian Ameri can, Pacific Islander) hate, that movement started a non - profit organization of the same name. They mostly report on anti - Asian hate crimes as well as and publish critical data and research, and challenging misconceptions about their communities. (22). The Black Lives Matter movement responded by issuing a statement denouncing attacks against Asian - Americans, and the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) issued multipl e posts about supporting the Asian - American community. Rev. James Woodall, state president of the Georgia NAACP, attended an Asian - American rally along with holding an Instagram live discussion with journalist Lisa Ling on how White Supremacy impacted both communities - as well as how the two groups can move forward together. (21). On February 7th, 2025 a Neo - Nazi group waved swastika flags and shouted racial slurs, demonstrating on an overpass at the edge of a majority Black community. The police, as expected, did nothing to protect the community from the obvious hate group that was hiding behind their right of freedom of speech. Tired of the police ignoring the issue, the community banded together with other members of the Heights Movement, an existing community empowerment organization. The community movement sought volunt eers to openly carry around weapons (which is legal in Ohio), with armor. To protect their community from the hate group that police let be. (24). When the Unite the Right movement happened in 2017 there wasn’t anyone rallying cry from Asian - americans to denounce those ideas. There is however, a Neo - Nazi website that was reportedly helped back online by an Asian - American. In commenting about it, one post says, “Hate site calls Nick Lim, “honorary Aryan” and a “hero of the White Race” for enabling white supremacist Daily Stormer to stay online.” (25). The rise of ICE in America presents a new angle for Right Wingers to display their ideas. And that civil rights groups have to contend against. When I interviewed Shae I asked her that exact question. She responded with "There's a big mutual aid group.” Continuing with, “We’ve had some success in getting some people who’ve been detained, especially high school kids.” (13). Along with the recent ICE protests nationwide, especially in Minneapolis, the various Black and Asian communities have helped their more at - risk members. Which is impressive because Asian - Americans have started being targeted by ICE along with Latino - Americans. Another Afro - Asian writer I’ve had the amazing opportunity to interview is Yuichiro Onishi, and I found him because of his article in the UNMargin titled, A Politics of Our Time: Reworking Afro - Asian solidarity in the wake of George Floyd’s killing. Published on May 25, 2025, it analyses past and contemporary social movements. Onishi writes, “ To recast an optic on Asian - American identification with the Black struggle against the police state, we need to recall our own experiences and memories [he is referring to Asian - Americans ] of living through wars, aggressive militarism, invasion and occupation in Asia and Southeast Asia, U.S - led or otherwise; exclusion, detention and interrogation at the borders, here and elsewhere in the world; and forced mass removal and displacement, dep ortation, surveillance and incarceration, then and now.” (27). In the interview I asked him to elaborate, “Where do you think we should start then? [Referring to social movements going forward] If not, is it for fear of almost fetishizing the people of the past?” Onishi said, “I would put more emphasis on discernment rather than judgement.” Discernment being able to sit with an idea before making a decision on it. While referencing the younger Asian - American generation trying to teach their parents about this subject he spoke, “I mean they [the parents of Asian - A mericans ] know state - violence better than anyone ... They ended up here because they had to deal with the war.” In elaborating his point he describes, “How do you get them [the parents] to make connections between what state violence does to people in various ways a nd they also were, have been and still are targets of state violence?” (26 ). He brings to light the core of this essay; how do we teach our parents - our community - that police violence is state violence. Military violence that caused massive waves of immigration from every race is state violence. Of course, it isn’t the same as the violence that Black people are suffering under, i t comes from the same source, the government. My father suffered state violence from the Vietnam war, just as Fred Hampton suffered state violence when he was assassinated at 21 years old in Chicago for daring to unite different people for a communal goal. When communities of any color and creed realize that to some degree, they are all suffering under state violence, whether it be from union busting, K - 9 units, military actions, or wars that raise our gas prices. I truly believe that communities will overcome racism within them and turn their efforts towards the greater villain. The villain is not the Black neighbor or your undocumented Mexican laborer; the villain is the military that sacrifices its people in the interest of oil blood money. The villain is the government who willingly encourages suffering for greater profit margins. If we can look at the history of Afro - Asian solidarity, then we can learn from them to strive towards community across racial and class boundaries. Works Cited 1. Monica Mong Trieu. Fighting Invisibility . Rutgers University Press, 2023, www.google.com/books/edition/Fighting_Invisibility/Ia6zEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=bl ack+asian+solidarity+%22Minneapolis%22&pg=PT8&printsec=frontcover. Accessed 7 May 2026. 2. Amistad. “Amistad Digital Resource: Black Opposition to Vietnam.” Amistadresource.org , 2025, www.amistadresource.org/civil_rights_era/black_opposition_to_vietnam.html 3. Tone, Sixth. “How the Cold War Challenged Sino - African American Solidarity.” #SixthTone , Apr. 2022, www.sixthtone.com/news/1010001. Accessed 8 May 2026. 4. Brown, Ann. “Remembering When China’s Chairman Mao Met with WEB Dubois.” Moguldom , 9 Feb. 2022, moguldom.com/393176/remembering - when - chinas - chairman - mao - met - with - web - dubois/. 5. The Economist. “Black American Radicals Once Forged Links with Chinese Communists.” The Economist , 4 Mar. 2021, www.economist.com/united - states/2021/03/04/black - american - radicals - once - forged - links - with - chinese - communists. Accessed 8 May 2026. 6. Bruce Perry, and Internet Archive. Malcolm Internet Archive , Station Hill, 1991, archive.org/details/malcolmlifeofman00perr. 7. Wang, Esther . “The Counterculturalists: Alex Hing.” Asian American Writers’ Workshop , 9 Oct. 2014, aaww.org/counterculturalist - alex - hing/. 8. Workshop, Bennion. RED GUARD PARTY (UNITED STATES) 9. Maranzani, Barbara . “Yuri Kochiyama and Malcolm X’s Boundary - Breaking Friendship.” Biography , 14 May 2021, www.biography.com/activists/yuri - kochiyama - malcolm - x - friendship 10. Rhea, Shawn. “Detroit Renaissance.” YES! Magazine , 21 May 2004, www.yesmagazine.org/issue/courage/2004/05/21/detroit - renaissance 11. James and Grace Lee Boggs Center. “The James and Grace Lee Boggs Center.” The James and Grace Lee Boggs Center , 2025, www.boggscenter.org/history 12. https://brightplum.com. “Black Lives Matter: Solidarity between Black and Asian Communities | School of Medicine Anti - Racist Coalition | Stanford University.” Stanford.edu , Stanford University, 2021, blacklivesmatter.stanford.edu/2021/04/02/black - asian - solidarity.html. Accessed 8 May 2026. 13. Howell, Sharon. Interview with Grace Lee Boggs Center Volunteer . 10 Apr. 2026. 14. Ryerson, Jade. “Grace Lee Boggs (U.S. National Park Service).” Www.nps.gov , 7 July 2023, www.nps.gov/people/grace - lee - boggs.htm 15. City of Detroit. “Community Benefits Ordinance.” City of Detroit , 27 Feb. 2024, detroitmi.gov/departments/planning - and - development - department/community - benefits - ordinance. 16. Little, Becky. “How the 1982 Murder of Vincent Chin Ignited a Push for Asian American Rights | HISTORY.” HISTORY , 5 May 2020, www.history.com/articles/vincent - chin - murder - asian - american - rights 17. Lei, By Cecilia. “Lessons on Asian and Black Solidarity in the Bay Area, 39 Years after Vincent Chin’s Death.” San Francisco Chronicle , 23 June 2021, www.sfchronicle.com/local/article/Lessons - on - Asian - and - Black - solidarity - in - the - Bay - 16268639.php 18. --- . “The James and Grace Lee Boggs Center.” The James and Grace Lee Boggs Center , 23 Mar. 2021, www.boggscenter.org/thinking - for - ourselves/violent - hands. Accessed 8 May 2026. 19. Tang, Terry. For Many Asian Americans, Ferguson Unrest Set Them on a Path of Resistance and Reflection . 23 Aug. 2024, www.localsyr.com/news/national/ap - for - many - asian - americans - ferguson - unrest - set - them - on - a - path - of - resistance - and - reflection/. Accessed 7 May 2026. 20. Vang, Mai Der. “To Hmong Americans, on Racial Justice and Patriarchy.” Asian American Writers’ Workshop , 15 June 2020, aaww.org/to - the - hmong - community - on - racial - justice - and - patriarchy - mai - der - vang/. 21. Ruiz, Neil, et al. “Asian Americans and Discrimination during the COVID - 19 Pandemic.” Pew Research Center , Pew Research Center, 30 Nov. 2023, www.pewresearch.org/race - and - ethnicity/2023/11/30/asian - americans - and - discrimination - during - the - covid - 19 - pandemic/ 23. Moon, Kat. “How Black - Asian Solidarity Is Taking on White Supremacy.” Time , 25 Mar. 2021, time.com/5949926/black - asian - solidarity - white - supremacy/. 24. Franco, Aaron, and Morgan Radford. “A Majority - Black Town Starts Armed Protection Group after Neo - Nazi Rally.” NBC News , 15 Mar. 2025, www.nbcnews.com/news/nbcblk/lincoln - heights - ohio - armed - protection - group - neo - nazi - rally - rcna196240 25. Randall. “Asian American Helped Neo - Nazi Site Get Back Online, but Not for Long – AsAmNews.” AsAmNews , 20 Aug. 2017, asamnews.com/2017/08/20/asian - american - helped - neo - nazi - site - get - back - online - but - not - for - long/. Accessed 8 May 2026. 26. Onishi, Yuichiro. The Modern Plight of Afro - Asian Activism . 10 Apr. 2026. 22. Stop AAPI Hate. “Our Origins.” Stop AAPI Hate , stopaapihate.org/our - origins/. 27. A Politics of Our Time: Reworking Afro - Asian Solidarity — Unmargin. “Unmargin.” Unmargin , 2020, www.unmargin.org/apoliticsofourtime.