(Summary at the bottom)
In the Month of May, we take the time to celebrate and honor the histories, cultures and contributions of the Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities. AANHPI Month is also a time to reflect and learn about the ongoing challenges faced by these communities. This year’s theme centers the power of sharing stories, building connections, and creating stronger communities through collective action.
To give each point the attention it deserves, we’re going to be splitting up this newspost into four parts to be posted throughout the month. Follow along each week as we highlight new themes, stories and important topics.
Stay tuned and join us in a month filled with shop drops, competitions, awareness and celebration!
AANHPI Heritage Month: History
Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific islander Heritage Month is celebrated in May. The month was officially designated in the U.S. in 1992, but its origins go all the way back to 1978. May was specifically chosen to commemorate two very important events:
1. On May 7th 1843, the first known Japanese immigrant (Nakahama Manjirō) came to the United States.
2. On May 10th 1869, the first Transcontinental Railroad was finished, built largely by Chinese laborers under grueling and dangerous conditions.
AANHPI Heritage Month started off as Asian Pacific Heritage Week. It wasn’t until 1992 that the U.S. Congress permanently extended it to a monthly celebration. From 2021 onwards, the name was also officially changed to Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month to reflect the diversity and variety of cultures and nationalities.
Confronting Invisibility and Erasure
AANHPI communities have consistently contributed to building societies across the world through labor, innovation and activism. However, these contributions are often overlooked, credited to other communities or entirely erased from history books and mainstream media. These are just a few moments in history that aren’t talked about often but still contributed greatly and yet were left largely unrecognized:
- The Ghadar Party, founded on July 13th 1913 by Lala Har Dayal and Sohan Singh Bhakna, aimed to overthrow the British rule in India. While their attempts were unsuccessful, this movement would go on to inspire future revolutions that would build the foundation for India’s eventual freedom.
- Chinese, Japanese and South Asian immigrants contributed to mining, agriculture and infrastructure projects across the United States. Even though, like the first Transcontinental Railroad, the work conditions were extremely dangerous, in the end the economic growth that resulted from these infrastructures was attributed to white industrialists.
- Native Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders and Asian immigrant workers maintained sugar and pineapple plantations, although the large sums of money that these produced was credited to the white landowners.
- Filipino workers organized agricultural strikes across the United States, including the Delano Grape Strike and Boycott. These protests and marches led to the unionizing of farm labor and the creation of the UFW labor union, as well as the implementation of higher wages, health benefits and better working conditions.
AANHPI individuals have always been present, even when history doesn’t acknowledge it. Recognizing these contributions is essential for these communities, as it is a big part of their respective cultural roots.
“In Between Frames” Competition
The first competition celebrating AANHPI Heritage Month is “In Between Frames,” where users are invited to explore how AANHPI identities show up in everyday life, whether that’s through language, humor or everyday experiences, by selecting a video and sharing a brief reflection on why it resonates with them.
You can check the competition out here!
AANHPI goDesigner Collection
A new AANHPI inspired drop is now available! We would like to thank gDs Priestley and St4rlet for their amazing designs.
Priestley’s look is inspired by Laos’ national clothing, which is called Xout Lao. It features the Sinh, a silk skirt seen worn by women in their daily lives, at work, formal events, temples and religious ceremonies. The patterns that adorn these pieces of cloth have different meanings and might be worn for different occasions. It also features the Suea Pat, a silk wrapping jacket that tapers at the waist; the Sbai, a scarf draped diagonally across the shoulder; the Khan, an offering bowl used to hold items at temples or during Sai Bat, a ceremony that consists in donating items to monks in the early morning as they walk along the streets; and bands of white cotton thread worn around the wrists, which is part of the Baci ceremony.
St4rlet’s look is inspired by an outfit that the Queen consort of the Kingdom of Bhutan wore during the United Kingdom’s Duke and Duchess of Cambridge royal visit back in 2011, which consists of the Bhutanese women’s traditional clothing. It features the Kira, a colorful rectangular piece of cloth that wraps around the body and can be worn as a dress or as a skirt; the Tego, a short jacket-like garment; the Wonju, a long sleeved blouse that is worn underneath the Kira and Tego; and the Rachu, a ceremonial scarf.
This collection will be a permanent addition to the shop!
Summary
- May is AANHPI Heritage Month, which aims to celebrate different cultures and histories.
- The newspost will be split into four parts, each of them focusing on different themes, with additional information about related competitions and shop drops!
- AANHPI communities have historically faced invisibility and erasure despite their contributions and impact.
- The “In Between Frames” competition, which is now live, invites users to explore AANHPI identity through everyday experiences.
Now it’s your turn! Share what you personally find inspiring or join in on our celebration of AANHPI Heritage Month, always aiming to embrace the power of unity and community.
With love,
The Inclusivity Group
