MAY IS ASIAN-AMERICAN AND PACIFIC HERITAGE MONTH
The month of May is National Asian-American and Pacific Heritage Month. This year's theme, selected by the Federal Asian Pacific American Council, is "Advancing Leaders Through Collaboration."
To Cynthia Choi, co-executive director of Chinese for Affirmative Action and co-founder of Stop AAPI Hate, the month is "a time to speak out, share stories and debunk myths about Asian communities, she said. But it's not the only time to celebrate Asian culture or diversity. Our history is also filled with incredible stories of resilience, of persistence, of determination, to fight for our basic rights. This is a celebration of our history, of our culture... and all the different ways in which our community has really demonstrated that we're not only here to stay, we are a part of this fabric - a part of this country."
History of the Month
According to NPR, the month was the brainchild of Jeanie Jew, a former Capitol Hill staffer, who shared the idea with U.S. Rep. Frank Horton, who introduced the legislation that formed it. In 1977, Horton introduced a resolution that would establish Pacific/Asian American Heritage Week. Sen. Daniel Inouye introduced similar legislation to the U.S. Senate. In the following year, Horton, with cosponsor Rep. Norman Mineta, introduced another related resolution that passed. President Jimmy Carter signed it in October, 1978. The resolution "authorized and requested" the president to proclaim the 7-day period beginning May 4, 1979 as Asian Pacific American Heritage Week.
Congress later passed legislation to extend the observance to a month in 1990. In 1992, Congress passed a law to annually designate May as Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. The legislation to annually designate May was due to two events that happened during that month in U.S. history: May 7 and May 10. On May 7, 1843, the first Japanese immigrants to the United States arrived. On May 10, 1869, or Golden Spike Day, the first transcontinental railroad in the U.S. - which had significant contributions from Chinese workers - was completed.
In Baltimore
The Baltimore Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs (MIMA) is hosting many events during this month. Stay tuned for a special edition of "The 410 Report" with Mayor Scott on May 19th at 6:00 p.m.
The Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Institution, and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum joining in several events to pay "tribute to the generations of Asian and Pacific Islanders who have enriched America's history and are instrumental in its future success."
The Smithsonian's Stand site has several very interesting and informative virtual exhibits and presentations.
There follows some very useful links. The source of this information is here. It is part of the Teacher's Guide, which "offers a collection of lessons and resources for K-12 social studies, literature, and arts classrooms that center around the experiences, achievements, and perspectives of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders across U.S. history" (Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center, 2022).
National Archives11Hide All
- The Chinese Exclusion Act interactive book on iBooks and iTunes U course
- The Chinese Exclusion Act and Related Primary Sources
- Chinese Exclusion Broadside Analysis
- The Chinese Village Exhibit at the 1899 Export Exposition
- Contextualizing a Photograph: On Exhibit at the "Chinese Village"
- Japanese American Incarceration During World War II
- Petition Against Annexation of Hawaii
- Primary sources and teaching activities on the Vietnam War
- Primary sources related to Chinese immigration to the United States
- Primary sources related to Hawaii
- Primary sources related to Japanese internment during World War II
National Endowment for the Humanities16Hide All
- Asian American and Pacific Islander Perspectives within Humanities Education
- Asian American Civil Rights in Civil Rights Movements of the 20th Century
- BackStory: To Be A Citizen? The History of Becoming American
- Beyond Island Wear
- Challenging School Segregation: The Fight of Chinese Americans
- Exclusion or Inclusion? The Japanese Struggle to Own Land in California
- Hamlet Meets Chushingura: Traditions of the Revenge Tragedy
- An Introduction to Japanese Noh Plays
- Japanese American Internment Camps During WWII
- Landmarks of American History: From Immigrants to Citizens: Asian Pacific Americans in the Northwest
- Life in the Floating World: Ukiyo-e Prints and the Rise of the Merchant Class in Edo Period Japan
- Lu Shih: The Couplets of T'ang
- NEH Virtual Bookshelf: Asian American and Pacific Islander Experiences
- Outside the Frame: How Asia Changed the Course of American Art (Site supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities)
- Tanka: Japanese Poetry
- The World of Haiku
National Gallery of Art5Hide All
National Park Service8Hide All
- “Breathing Fire”: Asian/Pacific American Chapter from the LGBTQ Theme Study
- “A Brief Glimpse: Asian American Pacific Islander National Historic Landmarks Theme Study” (.pdf) [PDF: 2.51 MB]
- Find Your Place: Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (.pdf) [PDF: 2.13 MB]
- “Japanese Americans in WWII” (.pdf) Theme Study [PDF: 8.68 MB]
- Internment: Forced Relocation of Japanese Americans
- Locke and Walnut Grove: Havens for Early Asian Immigrants in California
- Teaching with Historic Places: Lessons on Asian American and Pacific Islander History
- The War Relocation Centers of World War II: When Fear Was Stronger than Justice
Smithsonian Institution7Hide All
- Asian America
- Asian Pacific American Heritage Teaching Resources
- BookDragon—a round-up of the latest titles in children's and young adult literature for diverse readers
- Island Soundscape: Musics of Hawai'i, the Solomon Islands, and Papua New Guinea
- Learning Together
- Music & Migration: “We Are the Children” (Smithsonian Learning Lab collection)
- Standing Together Against Hate
