- This event has passed.
Continuing Dialogue on Gender, Sexuality, and Mental Health: Afakasi Experiences
September 18, 2023 @ 11:00 am - 12:00 pm HST
We’re continuing the dialogue on gender, sexuality, and mental health and focusing on the experiences of LGBTQ+ Afakasi! The session will feature Stanson Afoa and Li‘olemāsina “Li‘o” Pele Lubanski who will be hosted by Dr. Lesther Papa. Throughout the session, we will explore a diverse range of topics, including navigating Afakasi/Queer identity, experiences with mental health, and messages for both members and providers of the Samoan community.
What will you learn?
Experiences navigating intersectional identities and mental health.
Who is this for?
Members of the Samoan community and providers who serve them.
This event has passed. You can watch the replay on our YouTube, or here on the website.
Workshop Presenters
Stanson Afoa
Content Creator/Senior Social Media Analyst
Stanson Afoa is a Content Creator on TikTok where he has curated a following of over 117,000 people. His content predominately revolves around the intersections of his identity as a queer, mixed-Samoan born and raised in Alaska. He utilizes his background in Communication Studies to inform his content style, utilizing both serious and humor-forward approaches. He has been able to use his platform to connect and create cultural conversations that have gained traction in the diaspora, in the islands of Samoa and across Oceania.
Li‘olemāsina “Li‘o” Pele Lubanski
Community Organizer, Board Secretary, Advocate
Li‘olemāsina “Li‘o” Pele Lubanski (li-oh-leh-MAH-see-nah PEH-leh loo-BAN-skee)
Li‘o’s mom is from Mālie, Sāmoa and their dad is from Fox Lake, Illinois. Li‘o was born in Southern California and raised in Arizona where they still live. They have always wanted to know more about fa‘asāmoa especially what life was like before colonization. This led them to majoring in Asian & Pacific American Studies at Arizona State University where they were the first to graduate with that degree in 2014.
They are an alumnus of the 6th cohort of Pacific Islander Leaders for Tomorrow (PILOT) through Empowering Pacific Islander Communities (EPIC) and was asked to return as a Mana Mentor for the 10th cohort. They currently serve as Community Organizer for Arizona Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders for Equity (AZ AANHPI For Equity) and as board member and secretary for Island Liaison.
Li‘o is trans nonbinary (culturally fa‘atama), queer, ADHD, and Autistic and has always advocated for underrepresented people like them. They believe taking into account a person’s whole identity and understanding cultural history are keys to uplifting one another in community. This shows up in their Community Organizer work facilitating healing circles for their local Asian and Pacific Islander communities. Li‘o hosts these circles as spaces to discuss mentally and emotionally heavy topics like climate change, LGBTQ+ issues, intergenerational trauma, and more.
In their free time, Li‘o loves to draw, write, sing, and cuddle up with their partner and 3 cats.
