Celebrate Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month with APASS!
Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month – a time to celebrate the diverse identities, histories, and experiences of all Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. AAPIs share in the narrative of being immigrants, refugees, and dreamers, as well as being indigenous to the many Pacific Islands of Polynesia, Micronesia, and Melanesia. They have made significant and meaningful contributions to our society and have been a part of the history and fabric of the United States. Today, AAPIs make up one of the fastest-growing populations in the U.S. and the largest racial group at USC.
President Folt helped us to kick-off our celebration, and we were thrilled to highlight some key campus and community members. Check out our kick-off celebration below.
*USC coordinates an early celebration of AAPI Heritage Month in the month of April.
Special thanks to the following campus and community members for making this kick-off event possible:
Carol Folt, USC President
Asli Baat, USC Acapella
Representative Judy Chu, US Congresswoman, 27th District of California
Patrick Fang, ’22, USC Dornsife School of Letters & Sciences
Dr. Ashley Uyeshiro Simon (OTD, OTR/L, MSCS), Faculty in Residence at Birnkrant Hall and Associate Professor of Clinical Occupational Therapy
Niles Wilson, ’21, Graduate Student, M/Ed Postsecondary Administration and Student Affairs
Wenda Fong, Co-Founder of the Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment (CAPE)
Bao Nhia Moua, Center Supervisor, Asian Pacific American Student Services
Trogons, USC Acapella
Isaac Vigilla, Assistant Director, Advising and Academic Services at USC Annenberg School for Communications & Journalism
Varun Soni, Dean of Religious Life and Vice Provost for Campus Wellness and Crisis Intervention
How to Celebrate AAPIHM This May
What to Read
AAPI Authors and Writers You Should Know
How to Write An Autobiographical Novel: Essays by Alexander Chee
Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning by Cathy Park Hong
Marriage of a Thousand Lies by SJ Sindu
The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts by Maxine Hong Kingston
The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen
Ode to Chinese Superstitions, Haircuts, and Being a Girl by Dorothy Chan
The Invention of I by Kaveh Bassiri
Night Sky with Open Wounds by Ocean Vuong
If They Come For Us: Poems by Fatimah Asghar
Did You Know? Viet Thanh Nguyen is a Professor at USC! He teaches at USC Dornsife College of Letters and Science under American Studies and Ethnicity and Comparative Literature. Read more about Nguyen here.
AAPI Literary Organizations You Should Know
Kundiman – www.kundiman.org
Kaya Press – kaya.com
The Asian American Literary Review – www.aalrmag.org
Lantern Review – www.lanternreview.com
Did You Know? Originally based in New York, Kaya Press is currently housed in the Department of American Studies and Ethnicity at USC.
Where to Visit: Los Angeles Ethnic Enclaves
If you have traveled around LA, you most likely have visited at least one of LA’s ethnic enclaves. Our API neighborhoods make LA very unique, and they have the best food (at least we think so!). These neighborhoods are not only filled with delicious and creative cuisine, but they have rich history and culture, too. We highly encourage you as students to visit an ethnic enclave to make the most out of your college experience.
