Honoring My Blasian Identity and Going Further w/ Rohan Zhou Lee

(S5, EP 5) In honoring Pride Month, Rohan Zhou Lee (They/Siya/祂 (Tā)), artist, activist, and founder of the Blasian March, joined me for this episode as part of the 5th season theme "Our Becoming: An LGBTQ Asian Experience).  They took the time out of their busy schedule to chat with me about the creation of the Blasian March, and how critical it was to have a movement that included Blasian community members, and to build Black and Asian solidarity in a time where Anti-Black and Anti-Asian violence has been escalating in recent times. Rohan shared their experiences growing up as both queer non-binary and Black and Asian, and how this would inform their work in the movement.  We talk more about self-care and sustainment in the movement and what work lies ahead in the fight against white supremacy.  Check out this episode and follow them @BlasianMarch on IG

Bio:

Rohan Zhou-Lee They/Siya/祂 (Tā) is dancer, writer, and organizer. Previous credits include a soloist role in the Off-Broadway revival of Over Here! The Musical, West Side Story [New Bedford Festival Theatre,] and The Bluebird from Sleeping Beauty [Victoria Ballet Theatre.] They also trained at the Dance Theatre of Harlem and Ruth Page Center For the Arts. Their short act play, The Soldier’s Home, was produced in 2015 by Circa Pintig, Chicago’s premiere Filipino theatre company. Zhou-Lee is the founder of the Blasian March, a solidarity movement for Black, Asian and Blasian [mixed] communities through education on parallel struggles with racial injustice and mutual celebration. Independent of the Blasian March, they organised a rally for Asian American communities on February 20th with a team of women of color. They hold a BA in Ethnomusicology from Northwestern University.