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This year’s first South Asia special edition of APEX Express spotlights a discussion with noted South Asian feminist scholar, activist, geek, poet Anasuya Sengupta on decolonizing the Internet and the project she co founded, Whose Knowledge?

In the second half of the show, we turn our attention to the South Asian island country of Sri Lanka. Known as a global tourist destination, the country is also neck deep in deep political crisis, which took a new turn of events in October 2018 when the president Maithripala Sirisena unilaterally displaced the sitting Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinge with MahinDa Rajapaksa, himself former President who presided over the end of Sri Lanka’s bloody 25-year civil war and is accused of serious human rights abuses during his rule from 2005 to 2015. What does this mean for a country that is still reeling recovering from the civil war? How are feminists and civil society grappling with the ongoing political and socio economic crisis plaguing the country? Listenup next to a discussion I had with noted Sri Lankan feminist activist Shreen Saroor.

Interview with Anasuya Sengupta in collaboration with KPFA’s Women’s Magazine 

Show hosted & produced by Preeti Mangala Shekar

On December 20 at 7pm, hosts Ayame and Miko Lee, the PowerLeeGirls, a mother and daughter team are Talking About Comics on APEX Express.

We feature three talented APA female artists/thinkers/activists telling stories about the Vietnamese refugee experience, Desi feminists and Filipino myths and rewriting the rules about how POC are seen in the comic world. Thi Bui, Shebani Rao and Rachelle Cruz.

Stay close APEXers, because tonight, we’re shedding light on what happens at night. Awooo! First up, we’re going down, to the dungeon, to speak in-studio with Domina Colette, a professional Asian dominatrix in the San Francisco Bay Area whose interests lie in BDSM and fetish exploration. Stay close…we promise you’ll like it. After that, we hear from with Kyle Chu, aka Panda Dulce, a drag queen and multidisciplinary artist who writes about race and desirability, intersectional justice and LGBTQ inclusion. We’re going all the places, talking about race, stereotypes, and the power of drag. And finally, we have a special community calendar update for you – we’re talking in studio with MC Canalas, Cultural Specialist at the Filipino American Development Foundation, to learn more about the Parol Lantern Festival.    

The PowerLeeGirls Miko Lee & Jalena Keane-Lee, talk about our future and the ELECTION.  Next Tuesday November 6 is Election DAY! Voting is important and we are speaking today with folks about issues that matter. We welcome filmmaker PJ Raval, activist Saru Jayaraman, activist Tram Nguyen and filmmaker Reena Dutt. They will be dropping knowledge about trans rights, workers rights, and gun violence.

Know your voting rights in multiple languages. Thanks Asian Americans Advancing Justice!

This Saturday, there will be a Bay Area Transgender Visibility Rally 12-3pm at Oscar Grant Plaza in front of Oakland City Hall.

More info about ROC and Fair Wage that Saru talked about.

This year’s films range from homelessness and domestic violence, to comic book and real-life superheroes. Documentaries abound featuring sex-positive advice columnists and probing filmmakers who battle the rising tide of fundamentalism in both India and Pakistan. This year, the festival also explore the theme of healing, and the importance of dialogue – sometimes even with the enemy. As always local filmmakers shine bright. Listen to APEX Express’ first of 2 parts of our 3rdi spotlight. Preeti Mangala Shekar sits down in conversation with two local film makers Rucha Chitnis and Harleen Singh, whose short films debut at this year’s festival. These two films screen on Friday, Nov 3rd at the New People Cinema, San Francisco.

For tickets and other films’ information, visit: http://www.thirdi.org

Watch the trailer of Rucha Chitnis’ film: In the Land of my Ancestors:

Watchthe trailer of  Harleen Singh’s film, Drawn Together:

Special thanks to Lawrence Liu for his financial expertise.

On Apex Express, PowerLeeGirls, Jalena Keane-Lee and Miko Lee talk with Artists featured in the 17th annual APAture festival including filmmaker Evelyn Obamos, Hip Hop artist Ruby Ibarra, showcase performing artists: Jyun Jyun and MissTANGQ, and Animator, Grace Villaroman. All that and more, so keep it locked on APEX Express.

We also hear from Thanu Yakupitiyage from 350.org, about the ongoing climate actions in resistance to Governor Brown’s Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco, and why climate change is also a South Asian issue; and the piece de resistance: a sneak peek into a brand new storytelling podcast by APEX Express’ Preeti Mangala Shekar!