Asian Pacific American Heritage Month

Did you know May is Asian Pacific American Heritage Month? It's a month dedicated to commemorating Asians and Pacific Islanders in the United States! Join us in celebrating Asian Pacific Heritage Month by checking out some of these great virtual events hosted by the LA County Library and National Park Service!

 

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).

 

Like most commemorative months, Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month originated with Congress. In June 1978, Rep. Frank Horton introduced House Joint Resolution 1007. This resolution proposed that the President should “proclaim a week, which is to include the seventh and tenth of the month, during the first ten days in May of 1979 as ‘Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week.’” This joint resolution was passed by the House and then the Senate and was signed by President Jimmy Carter on October 5, 1978 to become Public Law 95-419 (PDF, 158kb). During the next decade, presidents passed annual proclamations for Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week until 1990 when Congress passed Public Law 101-283 (PDF, 166kb) which expanded the observance to a month for 1990. Then in 1992, Congress passed Public Law 102-450 (PDF, 285kb) which annually designated May as Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month.

 

The month of May was chosen to commemorate the immigration of the first Japanese to the United States on May 7, 1843, and to mark the anniversary of the completion of the transcontinental railroad on May 10, 1869. The majority of the workers who laid the tracks were Chinese immigrants.

 

Info courtesy of asianpacificheritage.gov 

 

Established in 1993, Melody of China is a San Francisco-based group composed of professional musicians from some of the most prestigious music conservatories in China. They will perform a wide selection of pieces that show an audience how moving, expressive, and occasionally humorous Chinese music can be. For all ages.
Watch by clicking here: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84838423145

 

The National Park Service Office of Public Health and the National Environmental Education Foundation are joining forces to host a Power of Parks for Health Roundtable, Wednesday, May 26 6:30-8:00 pm EDT to highlight stories and experiences of individuals who identify with Asian American and Pacific Islander communities through the lens of health. Our goal is to engage NPS staff, national community leaders and our audience in an honest dialogue that:

Register for event here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN__T5Rs8FRQvyhhEm0ku2_Ow

 

Hosted by the LA County Library, join them on an adventure through San Francisco's Chinatown as we explore its alleyways and history through Minecraft. Chinatown Alleyway Tours (CATs) is a non-profit youth-run, youth-led tour group that specializes in revealing stories and secrets hidden within Chinatown's alleyways.
Register for event here: https://lacountylibrary.webex.com/lacountylibrary/onstage/g.php?MTID=eb59f641e40ef79eef55613baf90b7f36