New Jersey

Yoland Skeete Research Files on Newark Chinatown

APA Staff
Newark014Date Range: 1999 – 2009
Survey Conducted: Fri, 2011-05-06
Creator: Sumei Multidisciplinary Center

History: Founded in 1993 by a group of artists, musicians, and writers, the Sumei Multidisciplinary Arts Center (permanently closed as of 2021) aims to support emerging and established artists through exhibitions, lectures, seminars, workshops, and residencies. Sumei serves as a platform for artists around the world to connect with communities in Newark, and provides educational programming and art workshops for elementary to college age youth throughout the area. The organization aims to be a space for community building and engagement through art, writing, video, and performance. Read more →

SAKHI for South Asian Women Records

APA Staff
Date Range: 1990 – 2009
Survey Conducted: Tue, 2010-04-20
Creator: SAKHI for South Asian Women

History: SAKHI for South Asian Women is a New York City-based not-for-profit dedicated to ending domestic violence against women. Founded in 1989 by a group of five South Asian women from diverse professional backgrounds, SAKHI, meaning “woman friend,” provides culturally-sensitive and language-specific support to survivors of domestic violence. The organization works to mobilize the South Asian community to actively engage in the movement to end violence against women, challenging the silence surrounding domestic abuse within the community. Their work with survivors includes crisis intervention, monthly support groups, assistance in accessing free or low-cost legal representation, health services, public benefits and housing, and accompaniments and translation assistance in court, during health care visits, and at welfare agencies. Their Economic Empowerment Program assists survivors on their paths to self-sufficiency, providing classes and workshops on basic computer literacy, English communication, resume writing, and internet job-searching. Their Swarna Chalasani Economic empowerment fund provides small grants to qualified survivors to pursue career and educational opportunities. Read more →

Charles Lai and Patricia Eng, East Coast Asian Student Union Collection

APA Staff
Date Range: 1978 – 1987
Survey Conducted: Mon, 2010-05-17
Creator: Lai, Charles and Eng, Patricia; East Coast Asian Student Union

History: Charles Lai was a founding member of the East Coast Asian Student Union (ECASU), a network of Asian American student groups based at East coast colleges and universities. Presently known as the East Coast Asian American Student Union (ECAASU), ECASU formed at the Asian Student Unity conference held at Princeton University in 1978. Though it was established in the late 1970s, the organization claims roots in the protest movements of the 1960s – when the Civil Rights Movement and anti-Vietnam War protests inspired Asian Americans on campuses across the country to engage in political action. In its early years, ECASU promoted student activism among Asian Americans on various campuses. In addition, ECASU organized social and cultural events, worked to establish “Asian in America History Week,” and hosted College Days (college application informational and financial aid sessions) for high school students. Read more →

Families with Children from China – New York Records

APA Staff
Date Range: 1994 – 2009
Survey Conducted: Tue, 2010-02-09
Creator: Families with Children from China – New York

History: In 1992, China passed an act allowing foreign adoption, and became a viable option for Americans interested in adopting internationally. Founded in 1993 by a group of adoptive families, Families with Children from China – New York (FCC NY) fosters community among families with children who were adopted from China, provides resources to families at all stages of the adoption process, and celebrates the lives and experiences of adoptees. China’s emergence as a world power and its new adoption policy, which went into effect on May 1, 2007, however, has lead to a significant decrease in international adoption from China, and FCC NY has seen its membership numbers stagnate as fewer American families adopt children from China. Read more →

DJ Rekha Papers

APA Staff
Date Range: 1998 – 2010
Survey Conducted: Tue, 2010-02-16
Creator: DJ Rekha

History: Often credited for introducing bhangra and British Asian music to North American audiences, DJ Rekha is a producer, activist, and musician. Named one of the most influential South Asians in the United States by Newsweek, DJ Rekha was proclaimed by “one of the ten women of downtown music” by the New York Times Magazine. From the 1997 launch of Basement Bhangra, a monthly party held at New York City’s SOBs, to Mutiny, which she co-founded with filmmaker, DJ, and MIT professor Vivek Bald, DJ Rekha has been instrumental in establishing a South Asian music scene in the United States. Read more →