Asian American Literature Festival

Literary event in Washington D.C.

Asian American Literature Festival

Time| Biannual
Location| Washington, D.C.
Organised by| Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center
Website| smithsonianapa.org/lit/literature-festival/

The Asian American Literature Festival is a biannual Washington, D.C.–based literary festival dedicated to sharing and growing Asian American literature.[1] It was first held in 2017.[2]

## History

[edit]

The Asian American Literature Festival is an event produced by the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center.[1]

The first Asian American Literature Festival was held in 2017 at the National Portrait Gallery, Library of Congress, and The Phillips Collection.[3][4][5][6] Major guests included Kazim Ali, Li-Young Lee and Karen Tei Yamashita.

The second Asian American Literature Festival was held in 2019 at the Eaton D.C. and The Library of Congress. Major guests included Kaveh Akbar, Monique Truong, and Arthur Sze.[1][7]

In July 2023, Smithsonian leadership abruptly cancelled the event one month before its scheduled date, citing “unforeseen circumstances."[8] The cancellation came as a surprise to thousands of planned attendees and partner organizations, including the governments of Australia and New Zealand who had spent nearly $90,000 in programming, flights, visas, and other costs.[8] By 18 July, more than 70 authors and academics connected to the festival had signed an open letter decrying what they saw as a cancellation motivated by fear of controversy, citing the Smithsonian's recent review of "trans and nonbinary" programs that were planned as part of the festival.[9]

In May 2024, the Washington Post announced that the Asian American Literature Festival would return in September without the Smithsonian. Instead, the festival is organized by "a collective of literary groups" including Kundiman and Kaya Press.[10]

## References

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Asian American Literature Festival.

1. ^ a b c Stephanie, Williams (July 31, 2019). "The Asian American Literature Festival makes a big, bold return". Washington Post.
2. ^ "A Report from the First-Ever Smithsonian Asian American Literature Festival". Literary Hub. 2017-07-31. Retrieved 2019-08-04.
3. ^ Gupta, Anika. "At the Smithsonian's First Asian-American Lit Fest, Writers Share Falooda, Politics and Poetry". Smithsonian. Retrieved 2019-08-04.
4. ^ "The Smithsonian's Asian-American Literary Festival Celebrates Classic Authors and Young Writers". DCist. Archived from the original on 2023-05-04. Retrieved 2023-05-04.
5. ^ Magazine, Smithsonian; Gupta, Anika. "At the Smithsonian's First Asian-American Lit Fest, Writers Share Falooda, Politics and Poetry". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 2023-05-04.
6. ^ "A Report from the First-Ever Smithsonian Asian American Literature Festival". Literary Hub. 2017-07-31. Retrieved 2023-05-04.
7. ^ "Ocean Vuong (and his mom) steal the show at the second biannual Asian American Literature Festival". Literary Hub. 2019-08-05. Retrieved 2023-05-04.
8. ^ a b Nguyen, Sophia (14 July 2023). "Smithsonian abruptly cancels Asian American literary festival". The Washington Post. Retrieved 18 July 2023.
9. ^ Lyons, Ivy (18 July 2023). "Smithsonian says it canceled Asian American Literature Festival due to 'event planning' issues. Participants say that's not true". WTOP News. Retrieved 18 July 2023.
10. ^ Nguyen, Sophia (May 2, 2024). "The Asian American Literature Festival returns-- without the Smithsonian". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 4, 2024.

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