Welcome to IAC!

The Inter-Asian Council (IAC) at Johns Hopkins University is a student-led organization founded in 1992 by the Dean of Student Life to coordinate with APIDA (Asian Pacific Islander Desi American) organizations in exploring, educating, and celebrating APIDA cultures and identities at the Homewood campus.

As the umbrella group of Hopkins’ diverse APIDA organizations, IAC serves as a medium for APIDA cultural groups to collaborate and work towards shared goals of allyship, advocacy, and activism. We aim to connect with and support our constituent groups through inter-organizational collaborations promoting awareness of APIDA student groups and cultures. In the past, we have collaborated with the South Asian Students at Hopkins, Hopkins’ Chinese Student Association, Vietnamese Student Association, and many others. Our new and longstanding APIDA constituent groups have also hosted remarkable festivals, banquets, educational programs, and more that showcase their cultural traditions while also encouraging important discussions on topics within and beyond their respective communities.

As a student activist group, we look to engage the community with speakers and discussion series championing for APIDA political rights and social justice, addressing many of the prominent issues underlying our community. IAC has launched yearly educational campaigns covering topics within and beyond APIDA identities such as immigrant stories, media representation, xenophobia and the racialization of disease, parental expectations, and health equity. We have also had the honor of bringing esteemed speakers to campus to speak on their experience as a member of the APIDA community, including Women’s March Organizer Mrinalini Chakraborty, JHU Alumnus and Author Frank Wu, and Boxed CEO Chieh Huang. Today, IAC continues to strive for a greater APIDA student presence and to amplify their voices on campus.

Although IAC serves as an advocate for APIDA organizations, we also aim to build solidarity and allyship with other communities. For IAC’s future, we are especially looking forward to collaborating with non-constituent groups to expand and broaden our horizons. Our past collaborations have included a joint event with the Black Student Union discussing solidarity between the Black and APIDA communities, a symposium with university mental health resources to discuss the stigma and presence of mental health within the APIDA community, and a joint discussion with the Hopkins’ Feminists to share our experiences as APIDA-identifying individuals. We hope to continue hosting more events like these into the future.

As an organization, we also strive to not only focus internally on the Hopkins community, but also project outwardly and establish close relations with the residents of the City of Baltimore. We are hoping to further engage with the local Baltimore community by collaborating with such organizations as Baltimore Asian Resistance in Solidarity (BARS) and the Baltimore Community Foundation, whose missions we identify with intimately. We aim to share our discussion with everyone and promote coalition-building between the university, students, and wider community.

Inter-Asian Council has always been about building community. So while you’re here, why not stop by, browse some blog posts, and have a few snacks. We would love for you to join our members list, leave a comment, and reach out if you have any ideas or projects that you would like to work with us on. We look forward to seeing you here now and into the future!

Sincerely,

The Johns Hopkins Inter-Asian Council