1. History
    House Resolution 540 

2. Role in War

3. Medal of Honor Recipients
    Philippine-American War  Peacetime  World War II  Korean War  Vietnam War 

4. Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus
    Purpose 

5. Culture
    Traditions  Icons 

6. Events
    Pan-Asian  Specific nationalities 

7. See also

8. References

9. External links

Asian Pacific American Heritage Month (APAHM), now officially proclaimed Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month,^[1] takes place in May. It celebrates the culture, traditions, and history of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the United States.

History

In June 1977 Reps. Frank Horton of New York and Norman Y. Mineta of California introduced a United States House of Representatives resolution to proclaim the first ten days of May as Asian-Pacific Heritage Week.^[2][3][4] A similar bill was introduced in the Senate a month later by Daniel Inouye and Spark Matsunaga.^[2] "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."^[2][7][5] President Jimmy Carter signed a joint resolution for the celebration on October 5, 1978.^[2]

House Resolution 540

"A joint resolution authorizing the President to proclaim annually a week during the first 10 days in May as Pacific/Asian American Heritage Week." This resolution as well as Senate Joint Resolution 72 did not pass through however, did lead to the passing of Rep. Horton's House Joint Resolution 1007 which passed through both the House and the Senate and ultimately signed by President Jimmy Carter on October 5, 1978 to become Public Law 95-419.

In 1990, George H.W. Bush signed a bill passed by Congress to extend Asian-American Heritage Week to a month;^[6][7][8] May was officially designated as Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month two years later.^{[9][10][11][12]} On May 1, 2009 President Obama issued a Presidential Proclamation which recalls the challenges faced by Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and celebrates their great and significant contributions to our society.^[13]

Role in War

Medal of Honor Recipients

Philippine-American War

PVT José B. Nísperos

Peacetime

Fireman 2nd Class Telesforo de la Crux Trinidad (only Medal of Honor issued in peacetime).

World War II

CPT Jose Calugas, Sr.,

SSG Rudolph B. Davila,

PVT Barney Fushimi Hajiro,

PVT Mikio Hasemoto,

SGT Joe J. Hayashi,

PVT Shizuya Hayashi,

2LT Daniel K. Inouye,

TSGT Yeiki Kobashigawa,

SSG Robert T. Kuroda,

PFC Kaoru Moto,

PFC Sadao S. Munemori,

PFC Kiyoshi k. Muranaga,

PVT Masato Nakae,

PVT Shinyei Nakamine,

PFC William Kanzo Nakamura,

PFC Joe M. Nishimoto,

SGT Allan Masaharu Ohara,

TSGT James K. Okubo,

TSGT Yukio Okutsu,

PFC Frank H. Ono,

SSG Kazuo Otani,

PVT George Taro "Joe" Sakato,

SGT Ted "Tak" Tanouye,

CPT Francis Brown Wai

Korean War

SSG Hiroshi "Hershey" Miyamura,

SGT Leroy A. Mendonca (youngest MOH recipient),

PFC Herbert K. Pilila'au,

PFC Anthony T. Kaho'ohanohano

Vietnam War

CPL Terry Teruo Kawamura,

SFC Elmelindo Rodrigues Smith,

SFC Rodney Jamus Takahashi Yano

Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus

Co-Founded by Norman Y. Mineta on May 16, 1994, the caucus is made up of members of Congress from Asian and Pacific Islander descent or are advocates dedicated to the community, striving to promote well-being.

Purpose

"To ensure that legislation passed by the United States Congress, to the greatest extent possible, provides for the full participation of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and reflects the concerns and needs of the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities;

To educate other Members of Congress about the history, contributions and concerns of Asian American and Pacific Islanders;

To work with other Members and Caucuses to protect and advance the civil and constitutional rights of all Americans;

To establish policies on legislation and issues relating to persons of Asian and/or Pacific Islands ancestry who are citizens or nationals of, residents of, or immigrants to, the United States, its territories and possessions; and

To provide a structure to coordinate the efforts, and enhance the ability, of the Asian American and Pacific Islander Members of Congress to accomplish those goals."^[14]

Culture

Traditions

Asian Pacific and Asian Americans of all ethnicities and languages come together to celebrate their heritage through many activities such as dancing, sharing traditional meals, observing and appreciating their rich history. Many more diverse beliefs and practices come with the already diversified Asian American community, with many different religions, traditions, and practices.

Icons

Asian American actors, actresses and celebrities play a major role in the adjusting to the American lifestyle. They start trends that their kinfolk alike begin to follow along like the kanji tattoo sported by former Seattle Mariners, American League Asian of the Year and Most Valuable Player Ichiro Suzuki. Furthermore, actresses like Lucy Liu take on major female roles in movies that send a message of hope and progress in Asian American eyes.

Events

During APAHM, communities celebrate the achievements and contributions of Asian and Pacific Americans with community festivals, government-sponsored activities and educational activities for students.^[15]

Pan-Asian

• National Queer and Asian Conference,^[16] first begun 2007

• Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Annual Gala hosted by the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies in Washington, D.C.
• Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month at Altoona, PA's Penn State campus, first begun 2010
• Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month at Waltham, MA's Brandeis University campus, first became a month-long celebration in 2002
• Asian Pacific American Heritage Festival^[17] in New York City, first begun 1981
• Silk Screen Asian American Film Festival^[18] in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, first begun 2005

• Asian-Pacific Islander Heritage Month at Portland, Oregon's Lan Su Chinese Garden^[19]
• Asian Cultural Festival of San Diego,^[20] first begun 2009
• The Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival,^[21] first begun in 1983
• Pacific Rim Street Fest^[22] in Sacramento, California, first begun in 1992
• Asian Pacific American Heritage Festival at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center in Chinatown, Oakland, California^[23]
• Asian Heritage Street Celebration^[24] in San Francisco
• Asian Pacific Islander Festival in Seattle, Washington^[25]
• Asian Pacific American Heritage Month at Seattle, Washington's Wing Luke Asian Museum^[26]

• Asian Kaleidoscope Month^[27] at the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida
• Asian Awareness Month at Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida^[28]
• Asian Festival^[29] in Dallas, Texas, first begun 1990
• Asian Pacific American Heritage Festival^[30] in Houston, Texas

• Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Celebration^[31] at the University of Illinois's Urbana-Champaign campus
• Asian Festival, Columbus, www.asian-festival.org^[32] in Columbus, Ohio, first begun in 1995 grown to be the largest Asian Festival in the Midwest with Fourteen ethnicity participation
• Cleveland Asian Festival^[33] in Cleveland, Ohio, first begun in 2010

Specific nationalities

• Taiwanese American Cultural Festival^[34] in San Francisco, first begun in 1992

See also

• Asian American
• Asian-Pacific American
• Pacific Islander
• List of commemorative days

Other history months

• Filipino American History Month
• Black History Month
  • African-American Heritage Sites
  • African-American history
• African-American Music Appreciation Month
• Women's History Month
• LGBT History Month

Heritage months

• Irish-American Heritage Month
• Jewish American Heritage Month
• National Hispanic Heritage Month
• Puerto Rican Heritage Month
• National Tibetan American Heritage Month
• Native American Indian Heritage Month
• Gay and Lesbian Pride Month

• Black Awareness Day, Brazil

References

https://www.congress.gov/search?q={%22source%22:%22legislation%22,%22search%22:%22hj+res+540%22,%22congress%22:95}

http://asianpacificheritage.gov/about/

https://www.defense.gov/Portals/1/features/2016/0516_aapi/Asian_American_Pacific_Islander_Heritage_Month_2016_slide_3.pdf

http://capac-chu.house.gov/about-me/purpose-mission-goals

http://www.asian-nation.org/index.shtml

External links

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