Making Waves: The Rise of Asian America
Sunday october 19, 2025
11:00 aM - 12:30 PM
film: Making Waves: The Rise of Asian America
Making Waves: The Rise of Asian America explores the vital role of Ethnic Studies in redefining the narrative and promoting service to Asian American communities across the country. From the birth of Ethnic Studies at UC Berkeley and San Francisco State to present-day movements, Making Waves documents the stories of Asian American activism and efforts to lift up Ethnic Studies as a strategy to address present and future waves of anti-Asian hate.
Q&A
Moderator: Yvonne Kwan
Dr. Yvonne Kwan is an Associate Professor of Asian American Studies at San Jose State. She teaches classes in Asian American History and Politics, Southeast Asian Diaspora, Asian American Representation and Popular Culture, Asian American Communities, and Quantitative Methods. Dr. Kwan serves as the Chair of the CSU-wide Asian American Studies Caucus and is a statewide representative of the CSU Council of Ethnic Studies. She also authored the proposal for an Asian American Studies BA at SJSU.
Director/Producer: Jon Osaki
Jon Osaki is an award-winning filmmaker who has directed and produced promotional, educational, narrative, and documentary films. His initial interest in film grew from his desire to raise awareness of critical social justice issues he has encountered over this thirty-year career as a youth development activist. Jon’s filmmaking is focused on activism and narrative change through which he has addressed issues such as the targeting of immigrant communities, reparations for the Black community, and the model minority myth. His films have been screened on Capitol Hill in Washington DC, at national policy conferences, the National Judicial College, film festivals, and broadcasted nationally.
Co-Producer/Director: Josh Chuck
Co-Director/Producer Josh Chuck has served as a community filmmaker for over a decade. He has brilliantly captured the stories of San Francisco’s many community-based nonprofit organizations and illuminated their impact through film. In 2019, he released his first feature documentary the award-winning Chinatown Rising, which he co-directed with his father Harry Chuck. The film exquisitely waves together ten hours of unreleased footage of the Asian American movement shot by Harry in the 1960’s. Chinatown Rising was broadcasted nationally on the World Channel’s America Reframed series and continues to be screened through educational, theatrical, and community venues.