INSIDE STORY: Asian Girls Ignite empower middle and high schools girls to tell their own stories

Contact at: hello@asiangirlsignite.org Follow at: @asiangirlsignite Visit their website and sign up for the monthly newsletter at: asiangirlsignite.org

EmPOWERs GENERATIONS THROUGH STORYTELLING

Since October 2020, Asian Girls Ignite (AGI) has been building a strong community of Colorado Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) girls and women to celebrate their individual and collective power. Through shared stories, they elevate their voices, explore their identities, and care for their wellbeing. Co-Founders Joanne Liu and Mehgan Yen believe that every girl carries immense power and guide the organization with these fundamental values of connection, respect, growth, and empowerment.

Liu grew up in a predominantly white suburb outside of Boston, MA where she was one out of two Asian girls in her class in middle and high school. She recalls an experience when a friend said to her, “Joanne, sometimes I forget that you’re Asian.” At the time, she was excited that her friend considered her one of them. Not until college when Liu started meeting more Asians, joining Asian clubs, and learning about Asian American history for the first time did she realize how much of her identity was ignored outside of her home. Today, Liu is mother of two young children including a 9-year-old daughter and a 5-year-old son. Thinking about them growing up in the predominantly white state of Colorado, she asked herself, “How can I ensure that my children have a different experience growing up?” That was when the idea for Asian Girls Ignite was born.

AGI is committed to lifting the limits on the ways AAPI girls and women are seen, heard, united, and empowered. They do this by creating spaces where AAPI girls feel they belong, valued, and can live authentically. They cultivate AAPI girl empowerment to honor themselves, their values, and communities. They connect AAPI girls to each other and to AAPI women who are positive representations of themselves in their communities, and they provide experiences for AAPI girls to find tools, strategies and opportunities to help them grow.

AGI’s team consists of four AAPI women from diverse backgrounds and experiences. Co-Founders Liu and Yen are supported by Esther Song (Youth Wellness Advisor) and Doen Lee (Programming Coordinator). Beyond the team, numerous AAPI girls and women volunteers help them co-design and participate in their programs. AGI launched their first event in the fall of 2020 and piloted a total of eight virtual events from October 2020 to May 2021. AGI believes that storytelling has the power to connect people. They can help disrupt misconceptions and assumptions, build community, and develop a sense of belonging. At each event, students play community building games and listen to women’s stories about growth, development and resilience. Students connect with women through reflecting on how they relate to those stories. In July 2021, AGI held their first summer program for 15 students that included in-person and virtual components. Students explored how representation can shape how we are viewed by society, how we view ourselves, and the implications of the lack of representation. Through storytelling, students connected with each other and women representing various industries (health, activism, creative arts, food science, education, media, and entrepreneurship). Students explored the power of their voices through improv and creative activities. To strengthen community bonds, the program ended with a community gathering of students, families, and staff.

Last month, AGI kicked off the school year with storytelling on positive identity and hiking for their middle school

program and an ice cream social for their high school program. This month, middle school students are invited to a virtual storytelling session to discuss the power of names and how names can shape identities. The high school program will visit the Colorado Supreme Court to speak with two AAPI women judges who will discuss their journeys and the implications of the lack of representation in their field.

Asian Girls Ignite’s vision is to empower the next generation of AAPI women to live authentically by honoring themselves, their values, and their communities. They welcome anyone who identifies as a girl, queer, or gender-expansive. AGI hopes that girls will feel empowered to write their own stories.

UPCOMING EVENTS

The Power of Storytelling: Identity & Representation When: Monday, October 18, 2021 | 1PM - 4PM Where: Colorado Supreme Court Who: High School Pilot Program Participants RSVP: Contact joanne@asiangirlsignite.org Students are invited to take a tour of the Colorado Supreme Court, Connect with storytellers, Judge Sueanna Johnson and Judge Neeti Pawar, and discuss the implications of the lack of representation in the US judicial system.

The Power of Storytelling: My Name, My Identity When: Sunday, October 24, 2021 | 1:30PM - 3:30PM Where: Zoom Who: Colorado Asian & Pacific Islander girls in Grades 6-8 RSVP: https://tinyurl.com/aginames A person’s name may be the greatest connection to their own identity and individuality. Some might say it is the most important word in the world to that person. It is also a word that allows people to make quick judgments and assumptions about us. Join Asian Girls Ignite as we hear from storytellers and discuss the power of names and how they can shape our identities.