#apiahm

#FreshOffTheBoat #Day #KICKOFF #APIAHM#May 022017 (at Los Angeles City Hall)

I've seen a lot of different takes on what May means to a lot of people. Got those identity politics on my mind. Is May a time to celebrate the 'over there' that we carry still 'over here'? Do our communities actively include and uplift Pacific Islander experiences within our spaces? Do we actively include and uplift non-East Asian American experiences in our spaces? Do we actively support and uplift our stories of struggle and radical history? Is May where we remind ourselves that the multi-generational, college graduated, middle class, East Asian American narrative isn't the only or prime narrative for our heterogeneous community? Is May the month we have hard conversations about who we are here, what legacies we carry forward, and what being POC in the U.S. means for where we go from here? I know the version of #APIAHM that I'd like to see is one of nuance, remembering old struggles and committing to supporting current ones, uplifting the stories that run counter to the narrative of assimilation alongside the stories we're familiar with, one that reflects the stories of gangsters and farmers as much as those of doctors and programmers. Maybe it's just me. #APIHM15 #AsianAmerican #KnowSelf

Colette Masunaga went to UC Davis expecting to meet other students from Hawaii, and was surprised to find that "Asian Pacific Islander" didn't look the way it sounded. Today's AAPIvoices essay, "Low Pacific Islander college enrollment hurts us all." - CM

Happy AAPI Heritage Month! We're excited to announce that, along with AAPI-Data, we've launched a new website, http://aapivoices.com/ This month, we'll be crunching numbers, telling stories, and busting myths about Asian Americans & Pacific Islanders. Check it out! - CM