Social Impact Heroes: How Lisa Sasaki of the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center is helping to bring the stories of Asian Pacific Americans to the public

The power of telling these stories comes from people feeling heard or seen for who they are, whether as an artist or as an audience member. In the words of Nesima Aberra, an Eritrean-American Muslim artist who shared her poetry and music with audiences during a program co-presented by the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center and the Kennedy Center, “I don’t do this often, but I felt very encouraged and inspired to put myself out there.” This particular performance, called “Now You See Us: From Periphery to Presence,” explored Central and South Asian diaspora narratives that are routinely marginalized within the broader cultural landscape of the United States. It was also the first time that a group of performing artists from…