Artist Drue Kataoka Auctions NFT Art to Raise Funds to Fight Asian Hate

May 13, 2021

Artist and activist Drue Kataoka is auctioning her first non-fungible token (NFT) “In the Club: #StopAsianHate” to support Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) community causes.

About the auction: Kataoka, who recently became the face of audio-only social media app Clubhouse, will run the sale for 24 hours through the art marketplace, Nifty Gateway, starting on May 13 at 1:30 p.m. ET, CNN reports.

Proceeds of the sale will go to Catalyst Fund for Justice, a fund set up by advocacy group Stand with Asian Americans.
Nifty Gateway will waive its auction fees to maximize the amount that will reach the fund.
Kataoka pointed out that hate against Asian Americans has existed for centuries and COVID-19 merely “added fuel to the fire.”
“Asian Americans have been invisible in our political chambers of power,” she added. ”In the history of our country, we have never had an Asian American supreme court justice. Similarly, we are three times less represented in both the Senate and the House of Representatives for our population size.”
She also highlighted how “critical” it is for people of influence “to take leadership, raise funds and move the needle on these issues.”

In the Club: #StopAsianHate
100% of Historic NFT Art Drop
to benefit The Catalyst Fund for Justice @asiapacificfund

✨Dropping on @niftygateway
this Thu May 13th @ 10:30am PT / 1:30pm ET / 5:30pm GMT@Clubhouse launch party
@ 10:15am PT / 1:15pm ET👇https://t.co/LXpbClY0Sn pic.twitter.com/KZSd08cEXI— Drue Kataoka 🌎 (@DrueKataoka) May 12, 2021

NFT auction trend: NFTs, unique digital tokens with no tangible form, are growing in popularity in the art world after recent auctions sold NFT art for exorbitant amounts.

Beeple — real name Mike Winkelmann — sold his digital art at Christie’s auction house for over $69 million.
For Kataoka, NFT can be a “digital monument to the elevating power of Pan-Asian unity, allyship, and the diverse Asian American and Global voices marching to the heartbeat of a higher calling.”
NFT fulfillment platform NFT4GOOD similarly put NFT to good use with its recent “AAPI 88” campaign, which also supports organizations active in the #StopAsianHate movement.

Featured Image via Drue Kataoka

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