OUR STORY
Mission
ACL Spokane centers the power of Asians and Asian Americans to build a just, healthy, and thriving community for all.
Vision
Collective liberation where Asians and Asian Americans can live in a community of wellbeing, safety, and belonging.
Values
Joy & Celebration
Belonging
Honoring Complexity
Accountability
HISTORY
Our organization began as APIC Spokane, part of the Asian Pacific Islander Coalition (APIC) formed in 1996 to support marginalized communities after the Welfare Reform Act. created even more barriers for marginalized communities. Initially volunteer-led and sponsored by Asian Counseling and Referral Services in Seattle, our activities included participating in APIC WA Lobby Days and Asian American Heritage Month.
During COVID-19, we provided services such as vaccine clinics and education, while addressing the rise in anti-Asian hate. In 2021, we became a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and rebranded to Asians for Collective Liberation in 2022 to better represent our diverse communities. This came with a call to disaggregate Asian/Asian American(A/AA) and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (NH/PI) communities as many social determinants of health and long, complex histories exposed the vast need for differentiation. Our new name has been well-received, and we remain focused on legislative advocacy to overcome barriers facing our communities.
APPROACH
People and planet are one — and so we put human and environmental well-being at the forefront of our internal policies. Our work has a ripple effect as we bring liberation to our society from the inside, out. We bring lived experiences of liberation to our elected leaders and community partners as a hopeful example of what is possible when we build systems intentionally with equity, justice, and belonging at the center.
Ryann Louie (they/them)
Ryann has the humble honor as Executive Director to try their best to support the team in working with community to bring about collective liberation. Outside of work, they’re either cooking, biking, skiing, playing music, or being a servant to their cat, Fred.
What anime character represents you?
Puppycat from Bee and Puppycat–a space outlaw transformed into a puppycat who acts tough on the outside but is really soft on the inside.
Lillian Hochleutner (she/her)
Lillian is the Communications Director at ACL, where she ensures ACL’s voice echoes the community’s stories and needs—connecting to hearts, bringing hope, and inspiring action. To her, good communication is like a bowl of steaming málà tāng: thoughtfully curated with hand-picked ingredients that reflect your deepest desires, simmered in a rich broth that takes time to develop, and best enjoyed with community.
When she’s not juggling words, she’s balancing on a yoga mat, teaching at Shala Living Yoga, trail running at Saltese, or zipping across the water on a jet ski. A dedicated dog parent and thrifting enthusiast, she’s always searching for hidden treasures—whether it’s a vintage gem, a rare plant for her garden, or the next unforgettable meal to share with friends.
What anime character represents you?
Arale Chan from Dr. Slump—a curious, free-spirited robot girl with more strength than she realizes, figuring out the world one quirky moment at a time.
Lea Molina (she/they)
Lea is the Environmental Justice Program Manager at ACL, where she builds community power through advocacy, education, and creative healing spaces. She believes environmental justice isn’t just about policies—it’s about people, connection, and collective care. To her, a just world is one where love and justice are inseparable, where community care is a radical act, and where healing is part of the fight—lessons she carries from bell hooks and Audre Lorde. When she’s not organizing, she’s probably advocating for coral reef conservation, snuggling with her dachshund, or thrift shopping.
What anime character represents you?
Eliza Thornberry from The Wild Thornberrys—curious, adventurous, and always listening to the voices of nature and the communities around her.
Tia Moua (she/her)
Tia is the Political Organizer at ACA, where she helps encourage people to see our interconnectedness in order to make collective change. Whether it’s advocating for policies on the local or statewide-level, training folks on how to use storytelling to persuade legislators, or hosting workshops with Asian food, she’s always looking for ways to build community and engage others in reimagining our communities to be more just, equitable, and inclusive.
She believes effective organizing is like salsa dancing—requiring trust, leaning into one another, building off of each other’s strengths and skills, meeting each other where they are at, and learning when to step up and when to step back. When she is not organizing our community around an issue, she is probably dancing, playing with her kitten, planning her next solo travel adventure, or listening to an NPR Tiny Desk Concert.
What anime character represents you?
Katara from Avatar: The Last Airbender—a courageous, outspoken, young indigenous woman from a water tribe who helps teach water-bending skills to the Avatar. Like Katara, I am part of an indigenous ethnic Hmong group. Also, like Katara, I enjoy empowering others to find their inner strength and recognize their unique gifts in order to organize people for change.
Frances Grace Mortel (she/her)
Frances believes that arts and culture are key tools to collective power. As the Cultural Programs Manager at ACL, she loves connecting with the community through books, films, music, podcasts, performances, and other meaningful ways we can bring people together to build a just and compassionate world. As a parent and artist, she is currently interested in unmaking and making—exploring the process of destruction and mending through digital archives and fabrics—often thinking about displacement and mapping out memories through play and placemaking with her son, Soleil.
What anime character represents you?
Yūta Takemoto from Honey and Clover—a young art student who is always willing to help! A loyal friend who loves unconditionally (or more like unrequitedly), he escapes to a long journey of self-discovery and adventure.
Marc Dumaoal (he/his)
Marc is the Youth Program Coordinator at ACL, hosting events for children and young adults focused on cultural sensitivity and mental health. Marc is focused on making education approachable and enjoyable for young people of all ages. Outside of work, Marc enjoys lifting weights, thrifting, drawing, and spending time with the people he loves.
What anime character represents you?
While he has not watched any anime, Marc thinks Goku seems pretty cool.
Sarah Dixit (she/her)
Sarah was born and raised in Pasadena, California, to her parents Augustin and Sheela who immigrated to the U.S. in the 1980s from India. Growing up in an immigrant household provided a lot of opportunities to find her unique voice amidst the vastly different cultures.
In 2014, Sarah moved up to Spokane, Washington, to attend Whitworth University, where she majored in Sociology, with minors in Psychology and Spanish. It was during her college career that Sarah caught the bug for organizing after seeing a lot of misinformation and ugliness surrounding the 2016 presidential election. She and a group of friends advocated for a reproductive rights campus group (Generation Action) to represent a different voice on the campus, but faced a lot of pushback from the school administration. After a two-year long fight, they were victorious in their effort and Sarah was offered an opportunity to organize full-time for Planned Parenthood of Greater Washington and North Idaho (PPGWNI) when she graduated in 2018. Soon she got connected with ACL Spokane, and finally felt like Spokane could be home. Sarah has continued her work in social justice by becoming the Public Affairs Manager for PPGWNI and the Co-Chair for ACL Spokane, both avenues in which she focuses on making Spokane and the larger community a better and more inclusive place. In 2022, Sarah was one of the YWCA Women of Achievement Honorees and took the Young Woman of Achievement Award.
Pui-Yan Lam (she/her)
Pui-Yan has lived in Spokane for about 20 years. Besides the executive board of ACL-Spokane, she serves as a board member of Greater Spokane Progress (GSP) and a co-chair of its Office of Civil Rights, Equity and Inclusion Work Group. In addition, she serves on the steering committee of Spokane Community Against Racism (SCAR). For her day job, Pui-Yan works in higher education as a professor of Sociology at Eastern Washington University.
Naomi Abella (she/her)
Naomi is a mixed Filipina woman, public health research scientist and nerd. Naomi’s migratory upbringing in different places, Arizona, Colorado and the Bay Area to name a few, paralleled her experience as a mixed person and the way she feels that she walks between different worlds. Her experience is what drew her to ACL Spokane in 2018, with the desire to be an active part of creating a city where people experience community and belonging. Naomi currently serves as the Secretary for ACL Spokane’s Executive Board. Naomi’s understanding of health and wellness was redefined and expanded throughout her undergraduate studies and graduate studies, learning about how systems, environments, and communities impact health. Naomi’s work is rooted in the belief that communities deserve every opportunity to achieve their best health. You will find this plant mom spending time outside biking, dancing salsa, weightlifting, cooking and spending time with friends.
Anastacia Lee (she/her)
Anastacia is a queer, Chinese, transracial adoptee who has lived in Washington State since her adoption. She moved from Issaquah to Spokane in 2012 to finish her degree at Eastern Washington University and was drawn to stay in the area after years of work within the healthcare system, with local nonprofits, and with refugee communities. She completed her Masters in Public Health at Des Moines University with a concentration in policy work and systemic change, and has since been incorporating this into her work as the Assistant Director of Health and Wellness Promotion at Gonzaga University. In this position, she has been a staunch advocate for health equity for queer and BIPOC students and continues to educate on social and political determinants of health that can impact one’s access to care – especially when systems have been created to continue the marginalization of specific social identities. Anastacia has also focused on the impacts of the pandemic and the long-term effects of isolation on communities within Spokane. She centers community care and mental and emotional wellbeing in all of the work that she does. Anastacia can often be found proactively taking care of her health in the outdoors – climbing, skiing, biking, and hiking. She serves on the board for the Bower Climbing Coalition and pushes for equitable access to outdoor spaces in the Spokane community. She loves to explore these spaces with her partner and dog, and enjoy a good meal afterwards!
Katrina Brown (she/her)
Katrina (she/her) has lived in Spokane since 2013. She received a B.A. in Political Science, with Cross-Cultural Studies & Environmental Studies emphases. Katrina currently serves as the Program Manager at From Here, Terrain’s latest and widest-reaching arts program; providing 125+ artists a collaborative retail experience with unique professional development opportunities. Outside of her work with Terrain, Katrina is a textile artist that creates fiber pieces which explore our relationship to the natural world. She also serves on the Board of Directors for Main Market Co-op.