FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | April 22, 2026
Media Contacts:
Lillian Hochleutner, lhochleutner@aclspokane.org
Asians for Collective Liberation in Spokane Invites Community to Celebrate Asian and Asian American Heritage Month This May
Month-Long Programming Explores Theme “Be the Bridge: The Strength of Us is Together”
Spokane, WA — April 22, 2026 — Asians for Collective Liberation in Spokane (ACL Spokane) announces a month-long celebration of Asian American Heritage Month this May, bringing the community together through culture, connection, and collective care under the theme “Be the Bridge: The Strength of Us is Together.”
Be the Bridge is a call to action and an invitation to build the pathway together. Like an arched bridge, our strength is not made from a single stone, but from many pressed close, each one helping hold the others in place. The more we show up for one another, the more the bridge holds. Its strength comes from trust, connection, and the willingness to lean toward one another — carrying not only ourselves, but the generations to come. The strength of us is together.
This year’s Asian American Heritage Month programming follows those crossings through culture, story, art, care, and social justice — bridging generations, bridging art and action, bridging our relationship to the environment, and bridging isolation into community. Every crossing lays a stone. Every act of solidarity strengthens the arch.
The celebration begins with Be the Bridge Art Exhibit, a month-long collective show in the Saranac Building Lobby featuring local Asian and Asian American artists. Located where the historic Trent Alley marker stands as a witness to Asian community history in Spokane, the exhibit brings together intergenerational community stories through art, memory, and presence. Honoring the lives and contributions of Japanese Americans in the United States, the exhibit will also feature renowned artist Patti Warashina’s Woman with Pear, a newly acquired sculpture from Marmot Art Gallery in the Saranac Building’s collection. The Opening Reception on May 1 will launch the month with artist talks, performances, and community celebration.
Throughout May, ACL Spokane will host a dynamic lineup of events, including the Asian Graduation Celebration, Chai Culture Club’s Risographing Resistance Workshop, Climate Chats Cafe, Boba Buddies and Boba Breaks youth and campus events, and Asians for Queer Liberation: A Panel Discussion on Bridging Gender and Immigration Rights. In partnership with Spokane Public Library and other community partners, this year’s programming will also feature literary conversations and film events that offer intimate lens and critical discourse on Asian American families, including discussions around They Called Us Enemy with George Takei and the Spokane premiere of the award-winning documentary Third Act with filmmaker Tadashi Nakamura.
This year’s Asian American Heritage Month celebration honors the intergenerational stories of Asian immigrants and refugees in Spokane, the labor and care that helped shape community life here, and the ongoing work of building a city where all of us can belong and thrive. From the historic memory of Spokane’s Trent Alley to the creative and civic leadership of Asian and Asian American communities today, the month of May is both a celebration and an invitation: to lean in, to strengthen one another, and to be the bridge.
Full event details and registration can be found at aclspokane.org/heritagemonth.
We would like to thank the following partners and sponsors for their generous support in making these events possible: Asians for Collective Action, Arts Fund, Charlotte Martin Foundation, Waters Meet Foundation, Community and Saranac Building, Avista Foundation, Gesa Credit Union, Hifumi En Society, Gonzaga University’s Office of Inclusive Excellence and Division of Student Affairs, KH Consulting, Arcora Foundation, Spokane Public Library, Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture, Eastern Washington University, Spokane Colleges, Peace and Justice Action League of Spokane, YWCA Spokane, Jasmin Group, Spokane Community Against Racism, Spectrum Center, Peony Counseling, Electric Photoland, SNAP Spokane, Auntie’s Bookstore, KYRS, Magic Lantern Theater, Feast World Kitchen, Asian Student Association of EWU, GU Filipino American Student Union (FASU), Boots Bakery & Lounge, Spokane Slice, Black Label Brewing Co., Tea’s Company,Global Neighborhood Thrift Store, Lunarium, Red Dragon, Best Asian Market, Indicana, Art Salvage, Hatch Beaker + Burr, From Here, Terrain, Mom’s Tattoo and Body Piercing, Shala Living Yoga, Pure Northwest, and Izzie’s K-Dogs.
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Events Schedule
All Asian American Heritage Month events are free
May 1–31, 2026 | Saranac Building Lobby
“Be The Bridge” Art Exhibit
May 1, 2026 | 6–8pm (doors at 5pm) | Saranac Building Lobby + Saranac Commons
Opening Reception: “Be The Bridge” Art Exhibit
May 1, 2026 | 3:45–6pm | TBD
May Day Action: March & rally to commemorate the International Labor Day
May 2, 2026 | 3–5pm | Philanthropy Center
Our 5th Annual Asian Graduation Celebration
May 7, 2026 | 7pm | Virtual
One Book, One Coast: The Afterlife Is Letting Go with Author Brandon Shimoda
May 8, 2026 | 1:45–2:45pm | Wilson Elementary School
Boba Buddies and MAC Pack @ Wilson Elementary School
May 9, 2026 | 1–5pm | EWU Catalyst Building
Chai Culture Club: Risographing Resistance Workshop
May 10, 2026 | 11am–1pm | Meeting House Cafe
Celebrate Mother Earth this Mother’s Day with Climate Chats Cafe
May 12, 2026 | 5:30–6:30pm | Liberty Park Library
One Book, One Coast: They Called Us Enemy discussion with Lisa Heyamoto and Sharma Shields
May 13, 2026 | Eastern Washington University
Boba Breaks @ EWU Spring Market
May 15, 2026 | 4–6pm | Gonzaga University, Hemmingson Center Auditorium
Asians for Queer Liberation: A Panel Bridging Asian and Queer Identities
May 16, 2026 | 11am–12pm | Gonzaga University
Boba Buddies: Drag Storytime with ALEKSAMANILA
May 29, 2026 | 6pm | Magic Lantern Theatre
Spokane-premiere screening of the award-winning documentary feature Third Act with filmmaker Tadashi Nakamura
May 31, 2026 | 2pm | Live Stream Virtual
One Book, One Coast: They Called Us Enemy Virtual Book Club with George Takei