Our Story
Our Story
Founded in 2012, Mekong NYC traces its roots back to a community needs assessment of Southeast Asians, which galvanized emerging local leadership. As Southeast Asian youth organizers, the founders had organized rallies at local welfare offices to bring attention to community struggles under the 1996 welfare “reforms”. These events are documented in the film Eating Welfare (released in 2000). The report that started it all can be found here.
Our Mission
Mekong NYC is a social justice organization that brings dignity and value to the lives of Southeast Asians in the Bronx and throughout New York City. We do this through community organizing and movement-building, centering healing through arts and culture, and creating a strong safety net rooted in community power.
Our Vision
The Southeast Asian refugee community’s history in the Bronx is grounded in struggle and resilience. We were resettled into already systemically disinvested communities. Mekong NYC’s work in the Bronx honors the history of the Bronx and all its people. We envision a thriving, empowered, and safe Southeast Asian community rooted in justice and self-determination and led by the most impacted.
Our Values
Mekong NYC is committed to uplifting the voices of those in our community who are most impacted and marginalized, in order to build a multiracial social justice movement.
In this work, we value:
Building collective power for our Southeast Asian communities;
Southeast Asian history, culture, and the intergenerational relationships that keep it alive;
Leadership of youth, women, LGBTQ+, elder community members;
Pride and respect for each other and our work;
Accountability to each other and our community members;
Solidarity with other communities of color in the fight for shared liberation;
Love for our people.
