#98 Anjan Chaudhry, National CAPACD

National CAPACD is painfully aware of gentrification and displacement hurts its AAPI membership. They look at the challenge through an historical lens, starting with colonialism to more recent strategies for driving renters and homeowners out of their homes based on rising prices, tax liens, intimidation and buy-outs. Anjan Chaudhry, Director of Community Empowerment, reviews the legacy of colonialism within AAPI communities in their home countries and explains how that experience shaped a new and important resource, National CAPACD’s Our Neighborhoods Anti-Displacement Toolkit. The Toolkit is guide for people and organizations challenged by public agencies and private developers whose proposed plans would destroy Chinatowns and other established neighborhoods. It is also a pro-active tool for generating the resources that many communities lack, from affordable housing to grocery stores. Chhaya CDC in Queens, and ACT LA are just some of the organizations that are leading effective campaigns, some of which are youth led, to create the change they want to see.