May We Gather 2024 – A National Buddhist Pilgrimage for Asian American Ancestors

We invite you to join us in Antioch, California on Saturday, March 16, 2024 for the May We Gather (MWG) 2024 pilgrimage. There is no cost to register or attend. Due to space restraints, in-person attendance will be limited to 350 people. The ceremony will be livestreamed for those who wish to participate virtually.

Antioch’s Chinatown in 1876 was precipitated by the scapegoating of six Chinese women for spreading immorality and illness, and recognized a parallel with the targeting of six Asian massage workers in the Atlanta-area shootings. Both cases were shaped by racial (white) and religious (Christian) notions of morality that were used to justify violent attacks. In the case of Antioch, the racial and religious sentiment prevented the long-term establishment of the Chinese community and their religious practices.

We gather in Antioch to recover this history, to acknowledge the legacy of America’s racial karma as demonstrated by the Atlanta-area shootings and the ongoing racial violence in Antioch, and to heal as a sangha.