In this powerful episode, we sit down with Christina Baal-Owens, Executive Director of NAPAWF (National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum), to dismantle the "model minority" myth and expose the systemic barriers holding AAPI women back. Christina breaks down how this term was manufactured to pit communities of color against one another and why the "pull yourself up by your bootstraps" mentality is a dangerous fallacy.In this episode, we dive into:

• The AAPI Community is Not a Monolith: Why certain subgroups are faring significantly worse than others and the urgent need to disaggregate data to make these struggles visible.
• The Minimum Wage Crisis: The reality of the $7.25 federal minimum wage and why we need nationwide pay transparency to close the gender and racial wealth gap.
• Language Access as a Human Right: How the lack of translated resources keeps immigrant workers in the dark about their rights and workplace protections.
• The Perpetual Foreigner Trope: How ICE enforcement and current immigration policies feed into a culture of fear and exclusion.
• The Power of Solidarity: How NAPAWF’s framework was inspired by Black women’s advocacy and why collaboration across women of color organizations is the only path toward collective liberation.

The AAPI community is projected to be the largest racial minority group by 2055. It is time we invest in their future, their safety, and their dignity. Connect with our Guest & Support the Mission:

• Learn more about NAPAWF: https://www.napawf.org