Yahoo News Michelle Yeoh, Simu Liu, Daniel Dae Kim to Headline TAAF Heritage Month Summit and Celebration (Exclusive)
Michelle Yeoh, Simu Liu and Daniel Dae Kim are among the headliners and honorees set to appear during The Asian American Foundation’s Heritage Month Summit and Celebration, as well as its inaugural awards dinner.
All three Hollywood talents are set to join fellow trailblazers, leaders and luminaries, along with more than 500 attendees, between May 5-6 in New York to celebrate the API community and TAAF’s second anniversary. The two-day event will feature panels and roundtable discussions, tied to this year’s summit theme of “Together We Build,” daytime discussions will focus on efforts to address the rise in hate crimes, underfunding of AAPI communities and representation gaps in media and leadership.
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That includes a fireside chat with Barbie and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings star Liu moderated by ABC News’ Juju Chang, as well as a screening and panel of the upcoming Disney+ series American Born Chinese, which stars Yeoh.
On Friday, the summit will feature the inaugural Heritage Heroes dinner, which will celebrate the achievements of AAPI leaders across industries, with a special performance from Tony award-winning singer and actress Lea Salonga. During the ceremony, Yeoh will be honored with the Culture Award; House of Slay founders Phillip Lim, Tina Leung, Prabal Gurung and Ezra William will accept the Art & Design Award; Bain & Company CEO Manny Maceda will receive the Corporate Award; Congresswoman Grace Meng will be bestowed the Public Service Award; and Harpreet Singh will accept the Community Award on behalf of The Sikh Coalition. On Saturday, TAAF will host an All-Star basketball game benefiting Apex for Youth.
TAAF CEO Chen, Yeoh, Liu and actor-producer Kim will be joined at the Summit by 2020 presidential candidate Andrew Yang; fashion legend Vera Wang; Netflix’s vice president of public policy Ruchi Bhowmik; journalists Richard Lui (MSNBC), Elaine Quijano (CBS News) and Jose Antonio Vargas (Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, Define American founder); and more.
TAAF board members will also be in attendance, including Li Lu (founder and chairman, Himalaya Capital); Joseph Bae (co-chief executive officer, KKR); Jonathan Greenblatt (CEO and national director, Anti-Defamation League); Sheila Lirio Marcelo (co-founder and CEO, Proof of Learn); Joe Tsai (governor, Brooklyn Nets and New York Liberty; co-founder and executive vice chairman, Alibaba Group); Jerry Yang (founder, AME Cloud Ventures, co-founder, Yahoo!); and Peng Zhao (CEO, Citadel Securities).
During the invite-only Heritage month celebration, the foundation — alongside AAPI leaders and its partners — will unveil a five-year philanthropic portfolio strategy designed to empower the community through four core initiatives: anti-hate, education, narrative change, as well as representation and resources.
In addition to programming, summit attendees will have access to a curated marketplace of local AAPI-owned businesses presented in partnership with Pearl River Mart and Yu & Me Books, and a special Heritage menu and snacks from a team of award-winning AAPI chefs. That includes Saigon Social, Nami Nori, Bonnie’s, Dhamaka, Lysée, Fish Cheeks, Golden Diner, Semma, SONA, Thai Supper Club and Bonbite Catering.
“There’s no better way to ring in AAPI Heritage Month than by celebrating the extraordinary achievements of AAPI trailblazers and visionaries from across all sectors,” Chen, CEO of TAAF, said. “The Asian American Foundation (TAAF) Heritage Month Summit and Celebration uniquely brings together 500 leaders from government, media, philanthropy, nonprofits and corporates to build a vision of a future where all AAPIs do not just belong, but prosper.”
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