Asian American and Pacific Islanders History Month - May 2015

From the Smithsonian: "Asian and Pacific Americans make up more than 5% of the U.S. population, over 17 million people—and those numbers are growing. Their ancestral roots represent over 50% of the world, extending from East Asia to Southeast Asia, and from South Asia to the Pacific Islands and Polynesia." The Asian Pacific American Story   The Asian Pacific American Story - http://sites.si.edu/exhibitions/exhibits/asianPacificAmericans/index.htm



The White House Summit on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders - Opening Program

Asian Pacific Heritage Month May 2014

The Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Institution and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum join in paying tribute to the generations of Asian and Pacific Islanders who have enriched America’s history and are instrumental in its future success.   Asian Pacific Heritage Month

As Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month draws to a close SGT Bryan Spradlin brings us the story of the 442nd Infantry Regimental Combat Team, an all Japanese-American fighting force in the Second World War, and how they overcame adversity at home to become one of the most decorated units in U.S. Army History.



The White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and the U.S. Department of the Interior hosted the AAPI Heritage Month Opening Ceremony in Washington DC, May 6, 2014.

Asian-Pacific Heritage Month

About Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month

May is Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month – a celebration of Asians and Pacific Islanders in the United States. A rather broad term, Asian-Pacific encompasses all of the Asian continent and the Pacific islands of Melanesia (New Guinea, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Fiji and the Solomon Islands), Micronesia (Marianas, Guam, Wake Island, Palau, Marshall Islands, Kiribati, Nauru and the Federated States of Micronesia) and Polynesia (New Zealand, Hawaiian Islands, Rotuma, Midway Islands, Samoa, American Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, Cook Islands, French Polynesia and Easter Island).
Art above is "Warrior on White Cow"  by Yunnan Sheng (circa 1500?)

Like most commemorative months, Asian-Pacific Heritage Month originated in a congressional bill. In June 1977, Reps. Frank Horton of New York and Norman Y. Mineta of California introduced a House resolution that called upon the president to proclaim the first ten days of May as Asian-Pacific Heritage Week. The following month, senators Daniel Inouye and Spark Matsunaga introduced a similar bill in the Senate. Both were passed. On October 5, 1978, President Jimmy Carter signed a Joint Resolution designating the annual celebration. Twelve years later, President George H.W. Bush signed an extension making the week-long celebration into a month-long celebration. In 1992, the official designation of May as Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month was signed into law.  http://asianpacificheritage.gov/

May - Asian American Pacific American Heritage Month