Bandung Community Conversation: Kei Williams on Scaling Up Your Practice

“We’re talking about practice.” – On May 7, 2002, the legendary Philadelphia 76rs basketball player Allen Iverson gave one of the most iconic rants of his career. During the infamous press conference, Iverson said the word “practice” 22 times, where he discussed the critical eye that surveilled his every move and how it was an unjust assessment of his value to the League.

Community organizing, as a formalized approach, emerged in the late 19th and 20th centuries. But there is no doubt that human beings have always found solace in one another as the only way through difficult moments, establishing common cause, and creating movements to bring about change. Over the past two decades we have seen a robust showing of solidarity, an awakening of political consciousness, and a withstanding demand for progress.

Now in 2025, we are in the midst of deep disruption to our social movements. These are very challenging times. And that is where practice comes to play. The best thing about practice is that you can always return to it, with the opportunity to deepen and grow it especially when you have the right tools.

In this interactive workshop, participants will learn about decentralized network building as a means of movement sustainability, ways to grow their organizing skills, and the importance of pedagogy. Kei will share concepts derived from on-the-ground strategies from the Black Lives Matter movement, and influenced by experiences in climate justice and gender equity spaces.

Learn how to assess the phase your organizing is in and how best to respond, methods of co-creation through valuing interdependence, plan and act together on multiple levels beyond the individual, while being grounded as your spirit is tested. It’s a reminder that “when you are not practicing, someone else is getting better.” Let’s return – by being in community together.

This talk is part of an ongoing series created for the Bandung Residency, an opportunity designed to uplift artists, educators, and organizers whose work is intended to foster solidarity between AAPI and Black communities.

This event is free and open to the public, but RSVP is required. In addition to Zoom, the event will be livestreamed on the MoCADA website.

Accessibility:
If you have any questions or accessibility needs, please email programs@aaartsalliance.org.

Recordings:
This event will be recorded and uploaded to A4’s YouTube channel after it concludes.

About the Bandung Residency
The residency is named for the groundbreaking 1955 summit held in Bandung, Indonesia, bringing together leaders from 29 newly independent Asian and African states emerging from colonial rule, with the aim of ending racial discrimination and ensuring collaboration and a peaceful coexistence. This Residency is made possible through the NYS AAPI Community Fund, Ford Foundation, the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs, the NYC Department of Youth and Community Development, and Apicha Community Health Center.

About Kei Williams
Kei Williams (they/them) is a Black queer/transmasculine abolitionist organizer, historian, and artist. With Black Gotham Experience, Williams acts as Community Manager and Story Guide, supporting on a number of commissions for the storytelling project. They are a founding member of Black Lives Matter and part of Movement Netlab—a practice-centered “think-make-and-do” tank. Aside from art-making, Williams is an effective community
organizer whose work spans nearly a decade at the intersections of racial justice, prison abolition, queer liberation, gender equality, and climate justice movements. They have presented and provided learning experiences at several institutions including Federal Hall, Barnard College, The Lark Theatre, Columbia University, Museum of the City of NY, and Community Justice Action Fund. They have previously worked with the People’s Climate Movement, the Marsha P. Johnson Institute, and is currently the Interim Executive Director
for the NEW Pride Agenda. Kei was honored with the Black Voices for Black Justice Award (2022). They serve as a board member for Queer|Art. Follow Kei @blackboikei on Twitter and Instagram.