Aypal: Building API Community Power

Join us for the 28th annual MAY ARTS FESTIVAL!
See you Saturday, May 9th in the Funk/Little Saigon at Clinton Park 💚

Tabling and volunteering opportunities available. Tap in with us or sign up with our LinkTree links.

Join us this upcoming Monday 3/16 for the first spoken word workshop in preparation for performance at AYPAL's May Arts Festival. We'll be learning about oral history & spoken word from Isabel C. Shen!

Isabel is a diasporic poet and oral history advocate from Oakland. She is a 2025 and 2026 Oakland Youth Poet Laureate Finalist, a three-time Scholastic National Gold Medalist, and an Iowa Young Writers’ Studio alumna. Her poetry has been recognized by the national Nancy Thorp Poetry Contest, the international Fischer Prize, the Marin Poetry Center, and the National Federation of State Poetry Societies. She is currently a national Call 4 Kindness fellow for her Oakland oral history project, where she is grateful to work with Harbor House, Heads Up, and other community organizations. She has a dog that acts like a cat.

Want to learn more about AYPAL?
Come hang with us this Saturday for games, Thai food, karaoke, and new friends 🙂‍↕️👾🀄️🧩🎶🎤🤝
Screenshot & scan the QR to RSVP!

If you donated to AYPAL, this is for you! The youth wanted to fundraise $1000 for programs by FOB and they met their goal. Thank you for your support! Donate $10 or more by the end of the year, and we’ll send you a zine from this year’s Fresh Off the Block.

FOB Teacher Spotlight: Cara Nguyen
Graphic Designer & AYPAL Intern: Raylin D.

See what AYPAL youth created with Cara tomorrow, December 12th, at

FOB Teacher Spotlight: Andie Nguyen

Come see what AYPAL youth created with Andie on Friday, December 12 at

“Love Letters to Oakland” means sharing the parts of the city that inspire us, the experiences that shape us, and the ways we can continue to love our community. We want to highlight what shapes The Town; our culture built through resilience, diversity, and people power. This encompasses our environment, our community, and our rich history that has brought us to where we are today. Growing up here, Oakland youth know these defining traits firsthand. Despite the challenges that come with living here, we choose to uplift the vibrancy, life, and shared love for the Oakland that shaped us.

Join us December 12th at for the Fresh Off the Block 2025 opening reception. This event is free and open to the public, but we’d appreciate an RSVP!

This event is supported by the City of Oakland, , and . Thank you!

‼️CALLING ALL MIDDLE & HIGH SCHOOL AGE YOUTH‼️
📣Join us for AYPAL’s Back to School Kick Off event next Saturday, Sept. 27th from 11am-1pm
🥟Food Provided
✍️RSVP Link in Bio

Are you going to Chinese Progressive Association's Summer Dinner Series? AYPAL Co-Director Rhummanee Hang will be one of the speakers for the July dinner, along with artist and educator Francis Wong and Sabreen Imtair from AROC. The topic is: Anti-Imperialism/Anti-War Movements.

RSVP: https://lght.ly/jok60ho

Thank you to everyone involved in making this year's May Arts Festival possible last weekend! Youth, teachers, performers, crew, tablers, volunteers, funders, and everyone who showed up- we're so grateful for each of you. 27 years of May Arts would not be possible without your support! 🧡✊

Photo by Jinsu Elhance. More photos coming soon.

Last week, AYPAL joined other New Breath Foundation grantee partners (, Empowering Marginalized Asian Communities - EMAC, Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity , and ) for their Collective Liberation event where we got to meet some of the people who are supporting our work. Grateful to be in community with you all and thank you NBF and NBF supporters for collaborating with us!