About Us
Montgomery County Progressive Asian American Network (MoCoPAAN) is a nonprofit membership organization
based in Montgomery County, MD,
working to cultivate equity, justice and solidarity.
Our History
MoCoPAAN was established in 2021 in response to unprecedented challenges facing Asian Americans.
In an ironic juxtaposition, the community found itself contending with two opposite problems at once: the underreporting of COVID-related hate crimes, and a hyper-focused news spotlight on the community's polarized positions on issues like affirmative action.
On a local scale, Asian American voices - particularly progressive ones - were missing from the public discourse. Meanwhile, a narrative was circulating within Montgomery County that broadly mischaracterized Asian Americans as opposed to racial equity and social justice - which is not supported by polling.
Recognizing this missing constituency, a small group of concerned community members came together to launch MoCoPAAN.
How We Work
Organizationally, our work lies at the crossroads of public policy advocacy, community education, and narrative change.
We’ve asserted policy positions related to educational equity, immigrant rights, government programs and services coverage, and hate crimes; spoken before diverse audiences on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders; worked in coalitions; and, mentored youth.
Among the few Asian American-led organizations that work in the civic space, MoCoPAAN positions Asian Americans as active civic participants, community leaders and allies in the movement for racial equity and social justice.
Who We Are
What started as a handful of advocates who were working in the national arena and decided to build a community in their backyard has since grown into a pan-Asian American network of nearly 100 members.
