Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) celebrates Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month 2022 by honoring and highlighting the diverse culture, heritage, achievements, and contributions of the AAPI community throughout history. This year, the Federal Asian Pacific American Council (FAPAC) has selected “Advancing Leaders Through Collaboration” as the theme for AAPI Heritage Month 2022. We encourage our community to study, observe, and celebrate the AAPI today and every day in support and recognition of the history and culture of this community.
STEM Scholar Highlights
- Dr. Peter Tsai (Material Scientist and Inventor)
- Dr. Jennifer O. Manilay (Developmental Immunologist)
- Nicole Yamase (Marine Biologist)
Read, Watch, Listen
- Explore the Gordon Library’s Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month collection
- Explore the Federal Asian Pacific American Council resources online
- Explore AAPI Art & Culture online
- Read the Library of Congress AAPI Collections online
- Read “How Did the US’s History of Anti-Asian Racism Start? It Goes Back Centuries” online
- Read the AAPI National Archives News online
- Watch the documentary series Asian Americans by PBS online
- Asian Americans is a five-hour film series that delivers a bold, fresh perspective on a history that matters today, more than ever. As America becomes more diverse, and more divided, while facing unimaginable challenges, how do we move forward together? Told through intimate and personal lives, the series will cast a new lens on U.S. history and the ongoing role that Asian Americans have played in shaping the nation’s story.
- Watch Eddie Huang online via the Gordon Library
- Restaurateur, author of “Fresh off the Boat,” and host of his own television series, Eddie Huang guides us through his unique path to the American dream. Through the eyes of a first-generation Asian American, the former t-shirt hustler turned business mogul tracks the influence of his family and the cultural significance of food that led to his ultimate success.
- Watch Rise of the Wahine: Champions of Title IX online via the Gordon Library
- In the years following the Civil Rights movement and the passage of Title IX in 1972, Dr. Donnis Thompson (a headstrong African-American female coach), Patsy Mink (the first Asian-American U.S. congresswoman), and Beth McLachlin (the team captain of a rag-tag female volleyball team), battle discrimination from the halls of Washington D.C. to the dusty volleyball courts of the University of Hawaii, fighting for the rights of young women to play sports.
- Listen to the Dear Asian Americans podcast
- Listen to the Asian Boss Girl podcast
- Listen to AAPI Stories by WORLD Channel online
Take Action
- Participate in Bystander Intervention to stop anti-Asian/American and xenophobic harassment
- Discover and support AAPI artists
- Donate to AAPI non-profit organizations
- Support the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies
- Register to Vote -OR- Check Your Voter Registration
- Everything you need to vote. Vote.org
“Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month (AAPI Heritage Month) is an annual celebration that recognizes the historical and cultural contributions of individuals and groups of Asian and Pacific Islander descent to the United States. The AAPI umbrella term includes cultures from the entire Asian continent—including East, Southeast and South Asia—and the Pacific Islands of Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia. As of 2019, there were about 22.9 million people of Asian or Pacific Islander descent in the United States. According to the Pew Research Center, AAPI people are a diverse and growing population that make up about 7 percent of the total U.S. population. AAPI Heritage Month 2022 will take place from Sunday, May 1 to Tuesday, May 31. Today, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders are the fastest growing racial group in the United States. AAPI Heritage Month celebrates the unique journey of all AAPI immigrants and citizens in the United States and their unique life experiences, traditions and cultures.”
Learn more: https://www.history.com/topics/holidays/asian-american-pacific-islander-heritage-month