Asian American Literature Association (AALA) at the University of Colorado-Boulder
General Information
Our Mission:
Asian American Literature Association (AALA) at the University of Colorado-Boulder is a student-run organization aiming to foster and examine dialogues of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) narratives within and outside of . In doing so, we not only recognize the resilience of AAPI authors and their diasporic experience(s), but also reflect on how culture, history, and politics of Asian America affects/effects everyone and BIPOC communities today. As a community of students striving to learn more about Asia America, we hope to educate on anti-Asian racism and embrace AAPI culture through art, storytelling, and conversation.
Contact:
Website - https://cuaala.wixsite.com/aala Email - cuaala@colorado.edu
Socials -
● Instagram - @aala_boulder
● Discord - https://discord.gg/p2DKhkYKFW
Meeting Times, Location:
5:30-6:45 PM, Wednesday; Eaton Humanities (HUMN), Room 125
What We Do Our Commitment:
● Education: We navigate, confront, and challenge stereotypes that misconstrue the identity of Asian Americans by addressing historical and contemporary issues.
● Community: We nurture an independent and critical student body by embracing every voice within the complex issues of Asian American literature and culture.
● Culture: We recognize everyone’s different background is a chance to learn more as artists, communicators, and storytellers.
Our Projects:
● Online Blog: The blog/journal is an integral platform and online
publication for having creative voices heard within and outside of our community. The platform will include local news, artist feature/spotlight, fiction, non-fiction, poetry, essay, visual art, photography, book review, podcast and many more projects to be planned. With AALA’s website, the student organization intends for its members and students of Boulder to be contributors to this platform as artists and storytellers.
● Book/Film/Media Club: The book/film/media club will be an avenue where students and others can connect directly to talk about AAPI culture and experiences. To facilitate this conversation, the club will choose a text (e.g., novel, article, news, film, music, art, anything in pop culture, etc.), make plans to meet weekly via Zoom or in-person, and discuss the text on a desired level by the collective.
● Virtual Archive: Asian American narratives have been difficult to access precisely because these stories have been repressed and, as a result, are seemingly sparse. AALA wants to be an easy and accessible resource for anyone to navigate Asian American literature by providing an organized collection of already existing and non-existing information about Asian American history, culture, and resistance. Not only does
AALA desire to be another setting where members can explore the literature, but it also should be a site from which they can draw inspiration, whether that be through personal, professional, artistic, and/or scholarly pursuits. Everyone will have access to the archive through AALA’s website by opening our 'Resources' page. If you are interested in contributing to the archive feel free to reach out to us!