Asian American / Asian Research Institute

National Asian Pacific American Museum Commission Virtual Session for Students and Youth
2026-07-30 19:00 - 20:00 (America/New_York)
Join the National Asian Pacific American Museum Commission for a virtual session to learn more about the Commission’s work and the process to create a future national museum dedicated to Asian Pacific American history and culture.
The Commission will share a short presentation, followed by Q&A. There will also be a brief opportunity for attendees to share input and reflections on what a future museum could look like.

History of “Asian American” Identity
2026-07-31 17:30 - 19:30 | The People’s Forum, 320 West 37th Street, New York, NY, 10018
Join us for AAJIL’s Foundations, the second leg of our Core Community Racial Justice Trainings, facilitated by AAJIL founder and board member; Dr. Sandra So Hee Chi Kim. These sessions focus on aspects of systemic racism that ideologies of whiteness strategically invisibilize: the function of Asian racializations and oppressions within a white-dominant societal complex built upon anti-Indigenous and anti-Black infrastructures.
This session explores the origin and history of “Asian American” identity, both as a racial construct and as a political movement, as well as the origin of the model minority stereotype and its function within white supremacy.

AABANY Presents: Crafting Connections
2026-07-31 17:30 - 20:00 | On Lab, 106 Rivington Street, New York, NY, 10002
In the spirit of International Friendship Day, celebrate with AABANY by turning beads into bracelets and conversations into connections! Join us for a fun-filled evening where law students, attorneys and members of the AABANY community can create colorful bracelets and custom phone charms while meeting new friends, mentors and colleagues. Whether you are looking to grow your network, reconnect with familiar faces or simply enjoy a creative break, we look forward to seeing you there!

Global Racism and the Dark Side of "Modernity"
2026-08-01 12:30 - 14:30 | The People’s Forum, 320 West 37th Street, New York, NY, 10018
Join us for AAJIL’s Foundations, the second leg of our Core Community Racial Justice Trainings, facilitated by AAJIL founder and board member; Dr. Sandra So Hee Chi Kim. These sessions focus on aspects of systemic racism that ideologies of whiteness strategically invisibilize: the function of Asian racializations and oppressions within a white-dominant societal complex built upon anti-Indigenous and anti-Black infrastructures.
This session takes a deep dive into understanding systemic racism, with a focus on institutional racism as the historical engine of global “modernity.”
These 3 sessions comprise the Foundations level of AAJIL’s Core Community Racial Justice Trainings. The third and final level of AAJIL’s Core Community Racial Justice Trainings will be Formations.

Coloniality, Anti-Blackness, and White Supremacy
2026-08-02 14:00 - 15:30
Join us for AAJIL’s Foundations, the second leg of our Core Community Racial Justice Trainings, facilitated by AAJIL founder and board member; Dr. Sandra So Hee Chi Kim. These sessions focus on aspects of systemic racism that ideologies of whiteness strategically invisibilize: the function of Asian racializations and oppressions within a white-dominant societal complex built upon anti-Indigenous and anti-Black infrastructures.
This third and final session will be VIRTUAL only via Zoom.
This session unpacks the connections between global histories of settler colonialism, militarization, and capitalism with anti-Blackness and white supremacy.
These 3 sessions comprise the Foundations level of AAJIL’s Core Community Racial Justice Trainings. The third and final level of AAJIL’s Core Community Racial Justice Trainings will be Formations.

China Institute Centennial Celebration: ﻿SummerStage Concert
2026-08-02 18:00 - 22:00 | Chinese Institute of America, Central Park Rumsey Playfield,, New York, NY, 10021, United States
August 2 @ 7:00 pm – 10:00 pm

Doors Open: 6:00 PM

Central Park

Rumsey Playfield, New York, NY, 10021

All Ages

Free

For a century, China Institute of America has been dedicated to deepening the world’s understanding of China. In celebration of their Centennial, SummerStage brings two takes on the future sounds of Chinese pop to Central Park. The K-pop boy band NCT is so massive that it’s become its own ecosystem, spinning off members into their own sub-groups that establish their own voice. WayV are the fourth such to spin off—and its first China-based collective—recording pop songs that fuse hip-hop and dance with R&B-stylized vocals sung in Mandarin since their 2019 debut EP The Vision. They’re joined by THE EITHER, formed in New York in 2017. Their sound — Post-Orientalism — rebuilds Eastern elements for today, blending electrified traditional instruments, Chinese opera-inspired vocals, progressive rock energy, and compositions with a strong Eastern melodic identity into a bold, future-facing performance.
The Member RSVP Deadline for WayV (8/2) is Friday, 7/31 @ 6pm. Memberships bought the day of a show do not guarantee entry — RSVP confirmation required.

Entry FAQ for WayV / The Either / Chopstix

Will there be a ticketed/wristbanding system for entry?
As with all SummerStage free events, entry will be first-come first-serve. We will issue wristbands beginning at 11:00 AM on show day, August 2, 2026.
When are attendees allowed to line up?
Lines will open at 11:00 AM on August 2 at 72nd St & Fifth Ave. Wristbands will be handed out on a first-come first-serve basis. These bands will guarantee entry. Do not buy, sell, or transfer your wristband – they are free, non-transferable, and void if obtained off-site or tampered with.
Once you receive your wristband, keep it on and untouched all day. At 4:00 PM, if you have a wristband, you are permitted to come back and line up outside the venue for entry. Wristbands guarantee entry for the first hour of doors 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM, after which the venue will open for any remaining attendees if space permits.
A general admission line for entry will also be available at the venue starting at 4:00PM for those without wristbands, first-come, first-served. Waiting in this line does not guarantee entry. Once this line exceeds capacity, the general line will be closed for entry.
Camping is strictly prohibited in Central Park. We will not allow lining up before 11:00 AM or camping overnight. Any camping or lines that attempt to form on Fifth Avenue or outside of doors will be dispersed by venue security or NYPD, including after 4:00 PM if there is believed to be a safety risk.
Do not block the Fifth Avenue sidewalk or crosswalks — follow all staff instructions.
What is permitted inside the venue?
Please follow the list of permitted items on our website FAQ. You are allowed to bring:

Food
Factory sealed plastic bottles and non-glass reusable bottles
Strollers
Hats, sunglasses, your phone – basic things you need to enjoy your time at SummerStage!

Do not bring large bags, banners, poles, or professional signs.
Are lightsticks allowed?
Yes, lightsticks are allowed inside the venue during this event. Lightsticks must not exceed 10 inches in length.
Will Capital One cardholders be permitted express entry?
Due to the expected demand for this show, there will not be a Capital One cardholder express entry line at door time, but instead a select number of guaranteed entry wristbands for Capital One cardholders only will be distributed simultaneously at the 11am wristband distribution. Only one (1) wristband will be distributed to each cardholder and must be applied to that person’s wrist. Cardholders must present their Capital One card or show their bank account with a valid photo ID.
Capital One cardholders who receive a wristband can return at 4:00 PM and join the entry line at the main SummerStage venue entrance.
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For real-time weather and Day of Show updates, announcements will be made via Instagram, X, Facebook, and our website. Please stay tuned.

2026 Building CAPACD Convention
2026-08-03 - 2026-08-05 | Hyatt Regency Long Beach, 200 S. Pine Ave, Long Beach, CA, 90802
The Building CAPACD Convention is where we come together to turn community power into action. Every two years, community development practitioners, leaders, and allies from across the country convene to strengthen neighborhoods and advance housing and economic opportunity in low-income communities. At this convening, powerful voices from diverse backgrounds will share strategies for building inclusive, equitable places and for preventing displacement and gentrification that disproportionately impact Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AA and NHPI) communities. We will share what’s working on the ground, learn from one another, exchange stories and narratives, and build strategies rooted in place and people—while also celebrating culture, honoring community joy, and recognizing the resilience that carries us through challenging times.

AABANY Book Club Presents: I Feel Bad about My Neck (And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman)
2026-08-04 18:00 - 20:00 | Anderson & Associates Law, P.C., 347 West 36th Street, New York, NY, 10018
Join us at 6pm on August 4, 2026, for a wonderful discussion of Nora Ephron’s I Feel Bad about My Neck (And Other Thoughts On Being a Woman).
Remote attendees are welcomed! Please indicate remote attendance by noting it in the RSVP comments at registration, and a link will be sent to you.

The Nature of Light
2026-08-05 12:30 - 13:30 | High Line Spur at 30th St, 10th Av, 30th Street & 10th Avenue, New York, NY, 10001, United States
Featuring a lecture by Donald S. Lopez, a distinguished university professor of Buddhist and Tibetan Studies at the University of Michigan. This session delves deeper into the name of the artwork The Light That Shines Through The Universe, and explores light in Buddhist thought—both literal and metaphorical.
The lecture will be followed by a guided meditation by Jungwon Kim, a Zen practitioner of the Plum Village Tradition and the facilitator for Love Circle, a Brooklyn-based BIPOC sangha.
Rain date: August 6, 12:30 – 1:30pm

Webinar: Navigating Changing Laws on Voter Registration Drives
2026-08-05 14:00 - 15:00
Join us to ensure your efforts are informed, impactful, and ready for the road to 2026.
Anyone who’s planning on registering voters this year will get stronger clarity on:

Varying requirements around voter registration drives between states

Which state legislatures have made major differences to their laws in the past year

Access to this year’s 50 state guides for voter registration drives

The Unheard Melody: Music in Chinese Paintings
2026-08-05 14:00 - 15:30 | China Institute of America, 40 Rector Street, 2nd Floor, New York, NY
Drawing from the musical imagery found in A Collection of Song Dynasty Paintings, The Unheard Melody: Music in Chinese Paintings invites visitors to discover the sounds and stories embedded within these masterpieces. Featuring three thematic section —“Harmony Through Music”, “Elegance and Refinement in Music”, and “Music in Common Life”—the special showcase reveals the diverse roles of music in Song society, from court rituals and ceremonial performances to literati gatherings and everyday life. Through high-resolution digital reproductions, audiovisual installations, and interactive experiences featuring traditional Chinese instruments, visitors will experience how ancient paintings preserve the sounds, movements, and musical imagination of their time.

The Impact of AI on Asian American Careers in Technology
2026-08-05 18:00 - 19:00 | Committee of 100 Asian American Career Ceilings Initiative
Overview

Committee of 100 Asian American Career Ceilings August 5, 2026 from 6 pm ET to 7 pm ET

Committee of 100
Asian American Career Ceilings Initiative
August 5, 2026 Webcast
▦ Topic: “The Impact of AI on Asian American Careers in Technology”
▦ Speakers: Buck Gee, Executive Advisor, Ascend
Deb Liu, Co-Founder, Ember AI and former CEO, Ancestry.com
▦ Moderator: Peter Young, Committee of 100 Board Member and New York Regional Chair, and Chair of the Asian American Career Ceilings Initiative
▦ Time: 6:00 pm EST
We are pleased to invite you to attend the 58th Committee of 100 Asian American Career Ceilings Initiative event, featuring a panel on “The Impact of AI on Asian American Careers in Technology” featuring Buck Gee, Executive Advisor, Ascend and Deb Liu, former CEO of Ancestry.com.
With the rapid advancement and implementation of AI in industry and society, one of the issues on the minds of everyone is what the impact will be of AI on careers and, in particular, for careers in technology and for Asian Americans. Where will jobs be lost and will there be job creation? Will the nature of job tasks change and in what way? Will this affect the way one plans your career? Will AI make Asian American Career Ceilings worse or just different?
Our panelists are veterans in the technology industry and have either just recently left the industry or have done extensive research work related to Asian American careers in industry. They will use their experience and knowledge to shed light on this challenging topic.
Asian Americans succeed at the entry and the middle ranks of many professions, but consistently do not do as well in the senior ranks. Over the last five years, Committee of 100 has hosted many webcasts, seminars, masterclasses and summits that have brought experts forward to share their research and individuals from many different fields, genders and age groups to discuss their experiences, observations and solutions.
Peter Young, Committee of 100 Board Member and New York Regional Chair, and Chair of the Asian American Career Ceilings Initiative, will moderate.
After the conclusion of the fireside chat, there will be a Q&A session during which members of the audience may ask questions.
The webinar will be held on August 5, 2026 from 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm Eastern Time / 5 pm to 6 pm Central Time / 3:00 pm to 4:00 pm Pacific Time. There is no fee for the webcast.
There is no fee and you can register at: https://c100-8-5-2026.eventbrite.com.
We hope you will join us.
Best regards,
Peter Young
Chair, Committee of 100 Asian American Career Ceilings Initiative
Committee of 100 Member and New York Regional Chairman

▦ Speaker Bios:
Buck Gee
Executive Advisor
Ascend
Buck Gee is an Executive Advisor to Ascend, a nonprofit Pan-Asian organization of business professionals. In 2010, he co-founded the Advanced Leadership Program for Asian American Executives, an executive education program at the Stanford Graduate School of Business.
He has co-authored numerous Ascend research papers on the topic of the Asian glass ceiling, including “Hidden in Plain Sight” (2015), “The Illusion of Asian Success” (2017), “The Diversity-Equity Gap in the Fortune 500” (2023), and “What About the Women” (2024). He has written opinion pieces on Asian American issues published in the Harvard Business Review, the New York Times, USA Today, the San Jose Mercury-News, KQED, and salon.com.
He is a member of Committee of 100 and serves on its board of directors as NorCal regional chair. He also serves on the boards of the Chinatown Media and Art Collective (CMAC), the Asia Society/Northern California, and APIAVote.
Mr. Gee retired in 2008 from Cisco Systems, where he was Vice President and General Manager of the Data Center Business Unit. He joined Cisco with its 2004 acquisition of startup Andiamo Systems where Mr. Gee was President and CEO. A Silicon Valley serial entrepreneur, he was an executive at Crescendo Communications (acquired by Cisco ‘93) and Com21 (IPO ’98). He has also taught computer and engineering courses at Stanford University and Howard University.
This year, he has received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation (AIISF) and the Leadership Award from the International Leadership Foundation (ILF). He has also received the received the Distinguished Leader award from the Chinese Historical & Cultural Project (CHCP) in 2022, the Distinguished Community Leadership Award from Ascend in 2019, the Executive Excellence Award from the Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA) in 2015 and the Civic Entrepreneurship Award from the Asian Pacific Islander Leadership Institute (APALI) in 2012.
He holds BSEE and MSEE degrees from Stanford University and an MBA from the Harvard Business School.
Deb Liu
Co-Founder
Ember AI and
Former CEO
Ancestry.com
Deb Liu is the co-founder of Ember AI, a startup bringing workflow automation to enterprises, and the former President and CEO of Ancestry. A veteran technology executive, she spent over a decade at Meta, where she created Facebook Marketplace, and previously held product leadership roles at PayPal and eBay. She serves on the Board of Directors of Intuit and Poshmark and is the founder of Women in Product, a nonprofit with over 30,000 members. She is the author of Take Back Your Power: 10 New Rules for Women at Work and holds a B.S. from Duke University and an MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business.
▦ Moderator:
Peter Young
CEO and President, Young & Partners
Committee of 100 Member

Peter Young is CEO and President of Young & Partners, a corporate strategy and boutique investment banking firm focused on the life science and chemical industries. He manages the firm and is actively involved in client transactions and financings. Under his leadership, Young & Partners has established and maintained its position as a highly regarded firm serving the corporate strategy, M&A, restructuring and financing needs of clients worldwide. He was previously head of industry groups at Salomon Brothers, Schroders and Lehman Brothers, a senior private equity executive with J.H. Whitney & Co. and a senior member of Bain & Co., the corporate strategy firm.
Mr. Young received a BA in Economics from Yale, an MS in Accounting from NYU, and MBA from Harvard Business School where he graduated as a Baker Scholar. He is a CPA and a Chartered Global Management Accountant. He serves on a number of boards of directors, both corporate and non-profit and is President and board member of Société de Chimie Industrielle, a leading life science and chemical industry non-profit organization.
The Committee of 100
The Committee of 100 (C100) is a non-profit, non-partisan leadership organization of prominent Chinese Americans in business, government, academia, and the arts founded 36 years ago.
The Committee’s purpose is to provide leadership and act as a constructive force in the dual mission of:
● Promoting the full participation of all Chinese Americans in American society and acting as a public policy resource for the Chinese-American community;
● Advancing constructive dialogue and relationships between the peoples and leaders of the United States and Greater China.
To learn more about the organization, please go to https://www.committee100.org

Emotional Filipinos: The American Myth of the “Lazy Native” and Islamic Separatism in the Philippines
2026-08-05 18:30 - 19:30 | NYU Wagner – Lafayette Conference Room, Floor 2, 105 East 17th Street, New York, NY, 10003
Description:
Join NYSEAN and Sulo: The Philippine Studies Initiative at NYU for a talk by George B. Radics, senior lecturer in the Department of Sociology at the National University of Singapore. Dr. Radics will discuss his new book, Emotional Filipinos The American Myth of the Lazy Native and Islamic Separatism in the Philippines.
About the Book:
Emotional Filipinos documents how in the first half of the twentieth century, the United States attempted to build a colony in the Philippines in its own image—one fraught with racist notions of what it means to be civilized, developed, and worthy of self-rule. I argue that these imported notions of race and modernity left a profound imprint on the nation. Moreover, with the menacing rise of Islamic “terrorism,” political polarization, populism, xenophobia, and isolationism, conventional wisdom has attributed this rise to a “failed state” or economic insecurity and cultural backlash. In this book, I explore emotions as a driving force behind social action. The Philippines is currently experiencing the longest-running Muslim-Christian conflict in the modern world and an increasingly anti-Western populist government. By unpacking the role of emotions from the American colonial period to the present, my book blurs the line between American colonizer and Muslim-Filipino “terrorist,” highlighting the lasting effects of America’s footprint in Southeast Asia. My book is the culmination of over two decades of engagement with the Philippines and its southern islands of Mindanao. It provides an analytical sociology of race and emotion lens, borne out of the Global South, to study other emerging conflicts throughout the world.
To hear more about the book, listen to Dr. Radics’s podcast episode with the New Books Network, a NYSEAN Partner.
About the Speaker:
George B. Radics is a senior lecturer in the Department of Sociology at the National University of Singapore. After receiving his PhD in sociology from the National University of Singapore (NUS), he earned a juris doctor with a concentration in Asian law from the University of Washington and worked for the Supreme Court of Guam for two years. He is also a member of the New York Bar. His work involves the judicial system, notions of justice, human rights, minorities, and comparative legal studies, and his articles have been published in Columbia Human Rights Law Review, Journal of Human Rights, Current Sociology, and Philippine Sociological Review.
Registration:
To attend the event in person, please register here.

Screening - Characters Disappearing
2026-08-05 19:00 - 20:30 | Roxy Cinema, 2 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY, 10013
CHARACTERS DISAPPEARING, the debut feature film from A4’s 2022 Van Lier Fellow Connor Sen Warnick, is opening its first theatrical run in NYC at the Roxy Cinema!
August 5 at 7pm.
SYNOPSIS: The paths of Mei, Chris and Leonard intersect within a melancholic vision of the Asian American Movement. This is a Chinatown rarely seen, where bursts of unexplained violence and spectral figures co-exist with the promise, and fragility, of multi-ethnic solidarities.
This project was produced with the support of A4 and explores historic threads informed by first-hand research into the archives of 1970s Chinatown artist/activist communities such as the I Wor Kuen and Basement Workshop.
Distributed by Lunette Films.

APAICS 2026 National Leadership Academy
2026-08-07 - 2026-08-08 | Amazon HQ2, 210 14th Street, South, Arlington, VA, 22202
The APAICS National Leadership Academy is a two-day, non-partisan leadership training program for current elected officials and individuals seeking to run for public office. Established in 1999, the program provides aspiring candidates and elected officials with the skills and resources needed to succeed in their campaigns through an interactive leadership training program and guest speakers.
The National Leadership Academy is open to both elected officials seeking higher office and individuals who may be interested in running for elected office in the future.
Participants who are also interested in attending the 2026 Women’s Collective Summit should be sure to indicate their interest when asked on the application, as airfare coverage will be adjusted accordingly.
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Screening - Stanley Kwan’s CENTER STAGE
2026-08-07 - 2026-08-13 | Film Forum, 209 West Houston Street, New York, NY, 10014
International superstar Maggie Cheung (IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE) embodies tragic screen siren Ruan Lingyu, known as the “Greta Garbo of China,” in this unconventional biopic by Hong Kong New Wave master Stanley Kwan (ROUGE). Praised for her moving and emotive onscreen presence, Ruan’s private life, which was frequent fodder for the vicious Shanghai tabloids, began to mirror the melodramas which brought her fame, culminating in her suicide at age 24. Kwan and Cheung paint a kaleidoscopic yet intimate portrait of the ill-fated actress, deftly blending lush period drama, archival footage, and metatextual documentary sequences of Cheung reflecting on Ruan’s legacy. The result is, much like the films of Ruan Lingyu themselves, “tender, vivid, and almost overwhelmingly moving” (Time Out).
Use code AAARI for $4 discount.

2026 ICSA Annual Conference - Bridging Traditions and Innovations: Sociological Perspectives on Transformation in Chinese Societies
2026-08-07 08:30 - 18:00 | CUNY Graduate Center, 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY, 10016
The International Chinese Sociological Association (ICSA) is pleased to announce its 2026 Annual Conference in New York City. In an era of profound global transformation, societies are navigating unprecedented social, economic, political, and cultural shifts. This conference will convene leading scholars to examine the dynamic challenges and opportunities confronting Chinese communities worldwide, fostering a critical and vibrant dialogue on their evolving futures.

Summer Mahjong with Potluck Asian America
2026-08-07 18:00 - 21:00 | Honors Bridge Club, 110 East 55th Street, 6th Floor, between Lexington and Park Avenues, New York, NY, 10022, United States
JOIN US FOR MAHJONG, DINNER AND GREAT SUMMER VIBES!
Join Potluck Asian America for another fun night of food and Hong Kong-style mahjong! Players of all levels, including beginners, are welcome to learn and practice this game of skill, strategy, and luck, and meet other mahjong enthusiasts.
A full dinner will be served! The evening will also include a special raffle as well as random prize giveaways!
Sokie Lee will once again lead the event and will be providing guidance and instruction throughout the evening. Sokie is passionate about bringing mahjong to the masses and continues to teach countless beginners the game — often in just 15 minutes! She has led workshops at institutions such as the Museum of Chinese in America, Rotary Club, Brotherhood Synagogue, Pearl River Mart, and Think!Chinatown.
All skill levels are welcome, so bring your friends!

NapRyang: Midnight Scream in NY - A Tale of Two Sisters
2026-08-07 21:00 - 2026-08-08 00:00 | Korean Cultural Center NY, 122 E 32nd St, New York, NY, 10016
Directors: Kim Jee-woon
Synopsis: In a remote rural village, at the end of a quiet country road lined with wildflowers, stands a solitary Japanese-style wooden house. By day, the house is picturesque enough to seem as though the sound of a piano might drift from its windows. But when darkness falls, it takes on a chilling and ominous presence.
It is in this house, steeped in an unsettling atmosphere, that two beautiful sisters, Su-mi and Su-yeon—neither quite children nor adults—begin living with their elegant yet emotionally volatile stepmother. From the day they move in together, a terrifying family ghost story begins to unfold.
After returning home from a lengthy stay in Seoul for treatment, the sisters are warmly welcomed by their stepmother, Eun-joo. Despite her apparent affection, the girls clearly feel uneasy around her. From their very first day back, strange occurrences begin to plague the household. Family members experience disturbing visions and suffer from recurring nightmares.
Determined to care for her younger sister and her father, Moo-hyeon, in place of their deceased mother, Su-mi takes on the role of protector. Su-yeon, who bears a striking resemblance to her late mother, lives in constant fear. Tensions quickly escalate between the sensitive and unstable Eun-joo and the two sisters, while their father remains a passive observer of the growing conflict.
As Eun-joo’s emotional instability deepens and fear begins to consume the household, Su-mi struggles desperately to protect her sister. Meanwhile, a series of increasingly bizarre and terrifying events unfolds throughout the house…

Chinatown Storytelling Festival 2026
2026-08-08 - 2026-08-18 | Think!Chinatown Studio, 1 Pike Street, New York, NY, 10002
From August 8 to 18, 2026, Chinatown Storytelling Festival is back for its third year! This August, look out for screenings at DCTV’s Firehouse Cinema, workshops and presentations at Think!Chinatown’s Studio, and walking tours in the neighborhood. Chinatown Records will also be launching their Radio Station on August 8th, listen LIVE! Chinatown Storytelling Festival is here to cultivate the creation and viewership of projects featuring our under-told stories. The Festival celebrates stories from within the Chinatown community and informs our next generations of storytellers to come.

2026 AAIFF: CUNY Shorts Showcase
2026-08-08 13:45 - 15:00 | Village East by Angelika, 181-189 2nd Ave, New York, NY, 10003, United States
Films in this year’s CUNY Shorts Showcase, part of the 49th Asian American International Film Festival deal with topics/genres including: an intimate connection of hope and solidarity between a Filipino steward and a Black welder in 1940s Brooklyn, a Sikh MMA fighter navigating the balance between faith and the brutal world of combat sports, a golden but challenged friendship between a Jewish girl and a Muslim girl in Jerusalem, and an immigrant woman examining her past, identity, and regrets in the wake of her American ex-boyfriend’s death.

Screening - Broken Rhythm
2026-08-08 16:30 - 19:00 | Village East by Angelika, 181-189 2nd Ave, New York, NY, 10003, United States
A Q&A will follow the screening with Alan Canvan (director/writer/producer), Matthew Polly (author of Bruce Lee: A Life), and Chris Poggiali (co-author of These Fists Break Bricks). It will be moderated by AAIFF Programming Director Kris Montello.
BROKEN RHYTHM is the first authentic documentary to delve into Bruce Lee’s unfinished film, GAME OF DEATH, while exploring the legendary martial arts icon as a real, complex, flesh-and-blood human being. Using GAME OF DEATH as a lens, the film offers a candid, unfiltered portrait of Lee as an actor, filmmaker, and artist.
Through exclusive interviews and rare archival footage, BROKEN RHYTHM examines the production of GAME OF DEATH and Lee’s ambitious vision for the project before his untimely passing. Through Lee’s story, the film grapples with larger questions of creativity, mortality, and the pursuit of artistic legacy.

An Evening Craft & Tea Party for Star Crossed Love
2026-08-08 19:00 - 21:00 | Land to Sea, 402 Graham Ave, Brooklyn, NY, 11211, United States
Learn and love in the spirit of Star Festival (七夕/たなばた) with Baby Tea Shoppe. Through a guided craft workshop, participants will explore star-crossed love through curated texts that reflect forms of star-crossed love among diaspora whether that’s family you are unable to see everyday, a hobby you had to give up, a food that you crave, a pet that you had to part ways with. Learn how to make a paper weave postcard to send far or near and take home a handmade star knot for your dreams.

Screening - Seat at the Table
2026-08-09 12:00 - 13:00 | Village East by Angelika, 181-189 2nd Ave, New York, NY, 10003, United States
A Q&A will follow the screening, with co-director/producer Sarita Khurana, executive producer Nick Rathod, producer Prerana Thakurdesai, editor Sunita Prasad. It moderated by AAIFF programmer Robert Fenske.
In immersive vérité style, SEAT AT THE TABLE follows several prominent South Asian political candidates during the 2024 election cycle, alongside a community galvanized by the groundbreaking campaign of the first South Asian presidential candidate.
With unprecedented access to congressional and state-level campaigns, as well as grassroots organizing efforts, the film captures a historic year for the South Asian diaspora as more candidates than ever run for office, providing us a rare front-row seat to an immigrant community awakening to its power in America.

From Queens with Love: Writers on the Borough that Inspired Them
2026-08-09 15:30 - 16:30 | The World’s Borough Bookshop, 34-06 73rd Street, Jackson Heights, NY, 11372
To celebrate the World’s Borough Bookshop’s third anniversary, these native Queens writers will share how growing up here shaped their lives, writing, and art.

Alvin Eng, author of Our Laundry, Our Town
Heather Eng, author of Double Happiness
Sylvia Chen, author of Tricky Chopsticks and Sparkles for Sunny

May-Yi Theater Company's Intro to Playwriting Showcase
2026-08-10 19:00 - 20:30 | Fred Astaire Ballroom – Houghton Hall Arts Community, 22 East 30th St, New York, NY
Witness the culmination of our students’ work in our Playwriting Workshop, taught by Lisa Sanaye Dring. Directors Gaven Trinidad, Isabel Rodriguez, and Reena Dutt, along with professional actors Amaya Braganza, Tina Chilip, Ryan Fahey, Abuzar Farrukh, Del Gonzales, Kai Justice Rosales, Jon Norman Schneider, and Moses Villarama, bring the new work of playwrights Momo Akashi, Rose Gonzales, Karen Huie, Arielle Jovellanos, Amanda Faye Lacson, Elijah Estolano Punzal, Alyssa See-Tho, and Adam Tran to life for the very first time!

Film: American Doctor (with Q&A)
2026-08-11 - 2026-08-13 | Angelika Film Center, 18 West Houston St, New York, 10012, United States
From Oscar®-nominated and Emmy® Award-winning filmmaker Poh Si Teng, American Doctor follows three American physicians— Palestinian, Jewish, and Zoroastrian—united by a single oath to save lives. After volunteering in besieged hospitals in Gaza, they return home determined to fight for the patients and colleagues they left behind, taking their battle from the front lines of war to the halls of Congress.
Filmmaker Q&As Opening Week:
– Tuesday, 8/11 following 7:00pm show, with Director Poh Si Teng and Dr. Thaer Ahmad, moderated by Susan Sarandon
– Wednesday, 8/12 following 7:15pm show, with Director Poh Si Teng, Dr. Feroze Sidhwa, Dr. Thaer Ahmad
– Thursday, 8/13 following 7:00pm show, with Director Poh Si Teng, Dr. Feroze Sidhwa, Dr. Thaer Ahmad, moderated by Film Critic/Jounalist David Ehrlich

Chinatown at the Table – An Evening with Dame Grace Young
2026-08-11 08:00 - 17:00 | Hop Lee Restaurant, 16 Mott St, New York, NY, 10013, United States
On Tuesday August 25th join Dame Grace Young for a special evening celebrating the history, resilience, and future of Manhattan’s Chinatown. Grace is a James Beard Humanitarian of the Year and a Julia Child Award recipient, honored for her work in preserving America’s Chinatowns.

Hop Lee, 16 Mott Street, NYC 10013
August 25, 2026
6:30 – 8:30 PM
$75 Dames (with discount coupon code) /$85 Guests
Current event maximum is 36 guests*
Waiting List
BYOB is welcome

*An additional table has been added. We will add names to the waiting list if we exceed 36, and will release seats if the waitlist reaches 12.
Enjoy a family-style Cantonese dinner at Hop Lee, one of Chinatown’s oldest restaurants, where the menu reflects the cooking traditions brought by the first Chinese immigrants to America. The 9-course menu, selected by Grace, will include Cantonese Style Lobster with Longevity Noodles, Singapore Chow Mai Fun, and Steamed Egg Custard with Shrimp. After nearly closing during the pandemic, Hop Lee has made a remarkable comeback, earning a place on The New York Times’ list of New York’s 100 Best Restaurants in both 2023 and 2026. If you would like to enjoy wine with your dinner, you are welcome to bring your own bottle.
Grace will speak about why America’s Chinatowns matter and the challenges these historic communities face today. The evening will also feature Alice Liu, second-generation owner of Grand Tea & Imports, who will serve a special tea pairing with the dinner and speak about the realities of sustaining a family-owned business in Chinatown today. Each guest will receive a curated selection of teas from Grand Tea &. Imports to take home.

Our Shared Legacy: The Power of Place In AAPI Advocacy
2026-08-11 14:00 - 15:00
This event will explore why historic preservation is an important policy issue for AAPI communities and how it connects to broader work across immigration, civil rights, housing, health, education, and other issues. Attendees will learn about the federal policies and funding that support historic preservation, current and emerging threats to these efforts, and recent policy changes shaping the field. This educational event will highlight opportunities for coalition partners to engage in preserving and protecting AAPI histories, communities, and cultural heritage.

Our Shared Legacy: The Power of Place In AAPI Advocacy Webinar
2026-08-11 14:00 - 15:00 | National Council of Asian Pacific Americans – NCAPA
