Honoring AAPI Heritage Month…
Hi Everyone,
I hope everyone is continuing to stay safe & well.
We welcome May, a month also known as Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month, honoring the many contributions and influence of Asian Americans & Pacific Islanders to the history, culture, and achievements of the United States. Being an Asian American myself, this month means a great deal to me, especially with the most recent national reports of hate crimes against Asian American rising to 150% in 2020, 66% targeted at Asian American women. Though hate crimes against Asians are nothing new in the U.S., the dramatic rise is no less disturbing.
My own experiences in the U.S. have not been easy for me or my family. We moved quite a bit within the city of Philadelphia, anywhere from middle class to low income neighborhoods. Whatever the demographic, even as a child, I could feel the hate directed towards us because we were “different". My experiences went anywhere from being called “Ching Chang Chong”, a derogatory term used to mock people of Chinese descent, being told to “Go back to where you came from”, to having a home-made bomb thrown at our home and place of business. I understood at a very young age that hate came in all different shapes and sizes.
I won’t lie, having experienced a great deal racial violence first hand, I also could have easily fallen into the vicious cycle of hate & racism as some of my fellow Asian peers with similar experiences of racial hate. However, in the midst of all the hate, there were also good, good people who generally wished us well. I still remember the conversation I had with my older sister when I was a teenager. She said that in spite of the hardships & violence we had endured because we are Chinese American, she was glad we had moved around so often. Because of that, we learned that not everyone hates, and whatever color of the skin, you will always find good people among them. I always return to that conversation whenever I feel saddened or discouraged. I am reminded of how important it is to learn from these experiences, to find the good & continue to learn in order to grow, so as not to fall into this vicious cycle of hate.
Therefore, in honor of AAPI Heritage month, I’d like to again announce that I will be holding a fundraiser yoga class on Saturday, May 8th @ 1pm-2:15pm. May 8th is also an important date to me as it’s my father’s birthday. Though I have to wait a bit longer to see him before my whole family is fully vaccinated, I want to honor him, the sacrifices & hardships he had to endure in order to create a better life for his entire family.
There will be a minimum donation of $10. All funds will be donated to Stop AAPI Hate, an nonprofit social organization that is working to tracks incidents of discrimination, hate and xenophobia against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) in the United States.
Class will be 75 mins, starting slowly with a meditative flow as we transition from one sequence building to the next, allowing you to find your fullest expression, ending the last 10-15 minutes in support/restorative postures. This class, “Love Your Yoga/ Speak Your Yoga” will also honor the music of BTS, featuring the song, “We Are Bulletproof, the Eternal”, which tells of the hardships BTS had endured during the first sevens years to become stronger than ever. BTS, a world renowned K-pop group, have also had to deal with prejudice & adversity, being mocked for the way they looked & endured racial expletives without reason, when they achieved mainstream success in the U.S. They have been a huge advocate against any type of racial injustice & violence, not shying away from putting personal & social issues in their lyrics. They have continued to partner with Unicef for the Love Myself campaign to advocate against youth violence since 2017. I can’t think of a better group to honor in this fundraiser class to Stop AAPI Hate.
If you’d wish the learn more about Stop AAPI Hate:
https://stopaapihate.org/
Finally, I will also be recording this particular class, which I will post on a private link on my website until May 15th. So for those who wish to make a donation for this class but can not attend because of timing, I will send you a private link to have access to this video to practice at your own time. I hope you can make it.
Wow… this was a long one. In the meantime, I look forward to seeing you in class.
Stretch’n Flow Yoga “Home Edition”, live-streaming schedule offered directly by me via Zoom this week. See schedule below:
1. Tuesday morning @ 7 am - 8 am: Hatha Flow’n Strength
2. Wednesday evening @ 6 pm – 7 pm: Gentle Flow’n Restore
3. Thursday morning @ 7 am - 8 am: Hatha Flow’n Restore
4. Saturday @ 1pm - 2:15 pm: Love Your Yoga/ Speak Your Yoga (min. donation of $10. Please specify this class date when you send your donations via PayPal as all proceeds will be donated to www.stopaapihate.org )
To sign up for class, go to: https://www.juneliloyoga.com/live-streaming Classes will continue to be donation based, with a suggested donation of $10. Please send donations for class via my PayPal account: Stretchnflow@gmail.com
This week’s class schedule:
Sunday:
Studio in the Heights
5pm – 6pm: Yoga for Athletes: Slow Flow
Monday:
Bread and Yoga
7am – 7:45am: Vinyasa
NYRR Run Center
8am – 8:45am: Virtual Yoga: Classic Flow
Tuesday:
Stretch’n Flow Yoga
7am – 8am: Hatha Flow (suggested donation $10 via PayPal)
Wednesday:
Studio in the Heights
7:15am – 8am: Yoga Express: Slow Flow
Stretch’n Flow Yoga
6pm – 7pm: Gentle Flow (suggested donation $10 via PayPal)
Thursday:
Stretch’n Flow Yoga
7am – 8am: Hatha Flow (suggested donation $10 via PayPal)
Friday:
Bread and Yoga
7am – 7:45am: Vinyasa –
Saturday:
Stretch’n Flow Yoga
1pm-2:15pm: Love Your Yoga/ Speak Your Yoga (min. donation $10 via PayPal- all funds will be donated to www.stopaapihate.org )
“Throw stones at me. We don’t fear anymore. We are, we are together, bulletproof… Even if winter comes again. Even if I’m blocked off, I will still walk. We are, we are forever, bulletproof.”
-BTS, lyrics from “We Are Bulletproof, the Eternal”
Check out the photos on my Instagram page, Juneliloyoga.
New photos will be posted throughout the week.
xoxo,
June Li… “Think Yoga Differently…”
