Mina Fedor is an American 14-year-old. For her family, disturbing acts of anti-Asian American and Pacific Islander hate have always been a possibility, but it's felt more intense since the pandemic.
In 2020, Mina watched a woman cough at her mother. This act spurred the then-12-year-old to advocacy.
"The lady who did that didn't see a mom. She didn't see a community member. She didn't see an American. She just saw an Asian lady," said Mina.
MORE: Video 'Take It From Me:' AAPI celebs share their most empowering adviceThe middle schooler took action--she decided to host a rally. She didn't expect many people to show, maybe just 50 friends and family from school.
Mina created an online form and saw the numbers tick up ... 75 … 250. The following day around 1,200 people showed up.
That was the birth of AAPI Youth Rising, and Mina's thrust onto the national stage.
Activism in the United States among Asian-Americans is at an all-time high, said Neighbors United Below Canal Founder Jan Lee. He called the mass shootings at Asian themed spas in Atlanta--which killed eight, including six Asian women-- a turning point.
"Atlanta caused us to mourn collectively around that incident," Lee said.
He said it felt like a wake-up call.
MORE: Video AANHPI chefs come together to fight anti-Asian hateLee was one of 10 arrested while protesting the city's plans to build one of the world's tallest jails within Manhattan's Chinatown; one of four borough-based jails that will eventually be built in New York City to replace Riker's Island.
"We've watched the degradation of what happens to communities when you inundate them with jails and homeless shelters but no new housing," Lee said. "Disinvestment demoralizes people; it causes distrust."
He said that low-income seniors are among the most vulnerable populations in Chinatown, and would be the most affected by the mega-jail's construction.
"The enormity of the project and the long protracted time it will take to complete the structure will have great impact environmentally as well as economically, on Chinatown's future," said Lee.
Lee said his safety is second to a safe place for his elders to live during a rise of AAPI attacks. New York City saw a 262% increase in AAPI hate crimes from 2020 to 2021, according to a Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism report.