Political Education: Rootwork
Organized by Aishvarya Arora, Hana Sun, and Denise Zhou, the Rootwork political education internal workshop series brought together youth, artists, and staff in monthly gatherings enriched by shared meals, delving into a collaboratively designed curriculum encompassing queer feminisms, Indigenous solidarity, anti-gentrification work, and conflict transformation. This carefully cultivated practice of political education served as a conduit for building a collective understanding of the intricate issues, systems of power, and vibrant communities that shape our cultural organizing.
The seeds of Rootwork germinated during The W.O.W. Project's annual planning retreat in the fall of 2022, during a pivotal moment of transition and challenge for our organization and community. Amidst internal shifts, staff changes, and the lingering impacts of pandemic-induced isolation and grief, our collective identity and purpose crystallized through the prism of centering our curiosity with humility. The surge of attention and funding toward Chinatown-based organizations, fueled by heightened anti-Asian racism, underscored tensions among diverse BIPOC communities and the entrenched anti-Blackness in our communities that requires our awareness and commitment to combat. Rootwork emerged as a response to this dense landscape, creating fertile ground for honing our political analyses, team cohesion, and manifesting goals of shared learning, creation, and leadership development among Asian Americans. The guiding questions and topics of Rootwork included:
Topic 1: Settler Colonialism & Indigenous Solidarity
Topic 2: Anti-Gentrification
Topic 3: Queer Feminisms
Topic 4: Conflict Transformation
Topic 5: Non-Profit Industrial Complex
Rootwork has served as a collaborative incubator for envisioning the future trajectory of W.O.W., nurturing facilitation skills among our youth and artist participants, and forging deeper connections between community members. As the anchor of this transformative year of pause, Rootwork has been defined by its fusion of study and community-building, united by the ethos of freely sharing knowledge and fostering political belonging. To document our learnings and create a vessel that might share them beyond W.O.W. and reach other organizations navigating similar questions, we created the Rootwork Zine. Rootwork and the vibrant essence encapsulated within these pages propel us ever closer to the realization of this transformative pause and regenerative future.
