Way to Win’s Commitment to the AAPI community

March was an incredibly tough month. The pain felt last month was a stark reminder of how powerful misogyny and white supremacy remain to be, despite our gains. We’re still continuing to reckon with our country’s history, including the policies that have a direct line in how we see (or choose not to) Asian American women. Our work must continue as we build and support cross-racial solidarity — our collective humanity depends on us choosing transformation. The multiracial vision of what this country can be is directly linked to building power to effectively root out the racism, sexism, and xenophobia so tightly tied into the fabric of our daily lives. Our communities showed us their power and came out in fierce solidarity during these difficult times.

As difficult as a time we’re in, Way to Win is so grateful and proud to be a part of this community. In immediate response to the current violence against Asian Americans, and as a step toward our larger commitment to this work, Way to Win is pledging $500,000 to three main categories:

• First, we are distributing $100,000 in rapid response funds to our partners in Georgia. This includes our friends at Asian Americans Advancing Justice — Atlanta, Asian American Advocacy Fund, and the New Georgia Project.
• Second, we pledge $325,000 towards supporting national and state Asian American and Pacific Islander power building efforts, and we call on our friends and Squad partners to join us in planting the funding needed now to grow stronger multiracial power in the future.
• Third, we pledge $75,000 to addressing and changing harmful narratives, as so much of the pain experienced by Asian Americans comes directly from the erasure of our history and being a critical part of the multiracial democracy.

Additionally, Way to Win’s leadership team also signed on to Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy’s call for solidarity and collective action among the philanthropic community, the full letter can be found here.

This past month was challenging but this community has been a true blessing and has given us strength. This work is ongoing and continues, and the funding commitments above are only the beginning.