An awards banquet honoring the Asian, Desi and Pacific Islander communities will kick off Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, a four-week celebration based on the theme “Together We Rise.”
Asian Pacific American Heritage Month is the official federal name for the month’s celebration. At the OU, however, it is often called Asian Pacific Islander American Heritage Month to more accurately reflect the diversity of the community. “Desi” refers to the people and culture of the Indian subcontinent and South Asia, including Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan.
“Together We Rise” highlights the unity between diverse and distinct cultures, heritages and histories. The awards banquet includes dinner, dancing, musical performances and awards for students, faculty, staff and community members. The event will take place on May 6, from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., in the Giustina Ballroom of the Ford Alumni Center. A RSVP is encouraged.
Gordon Hall, professor of psychology and member of the Asian, Desi and Pacific Islander Strategies Interest Grouphighlighted the importance of this year’s theme.
“Although Asian Pacific Americans are the fastest-growing group in the country and include more than 30 cultures, they are invisible in societal priorities,” he said. “Asian Pacific American Heritage Month gives them visibility and a voice. »
Asian Pacific American Heritage Month began in 1978 with a Congressional bill to proclaim May as Asian Pacific American Week; in 1990, Congress extended it to the entire month of May. They chose the month of May to honor the immigration of the first Japanese to the United States in 1843 and to commemorate the anniversary of the completion of the transcontinental railroad in May 1869. The majority of the workers who laid the tracks were Chinese immigrants.
Festive and educational events will take place throughout the month.
The Taiwan Student Association and Kultura Pilipinas, the Filipino student organization, will celebrate with cultural evenings. Taiwan Night will take place on May 11 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in the Erb Memorial Union Ballroom. Filipino Culture Night will take place on May 18 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the main hall of the Global Scholars Hall. The annual Flagship Chinese Student Conference will take place on May 30 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the main hall of the Global Scholars Hall.
The 44th annual Lū‘au will be presented by the Hui ‘O Hawai‘i Student Club on May 25 from 5:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at MacArthur Court; doors open at 5 p.m. This year’s theme is “ʻO Nā Hoku Nō Kiu O Ka Lani”, which means “The stars are the spies of the sky”. Food, raffles and entertainment will be provided by members of Hui ʻO Hawaiʻi and the Pacific Islander Club. Tickets can be purchased at the UO box office or online.The BEseries and the Center for Multicultural and Academic Excellence will host BE Voice —William Nu’utupu Giles on May 14 from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the EMU ballroom. Giles is a fa’fafine, a person of the third gender or non-binary, and second-generation Samoan immigrant, poet and arts educator born in Honolulu, Hawaii. He is the first Pacific Islander to win the National Individual Underground Poetry Competition and was part of the Hawaiian team that won the International Slam Poetry Championship.
Student organizations representing diverse Asian, Desi, and Pacific Islander cultures will collaborate to present the Asian Desi Pacific Islander Night Market, which will feature cultural performances, food, and interactive activities and games. The night market will take place on May 20 from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the EMU Ballroom.
Conferences and presentations will be offered throughout the month and will focus on various cultures, disciplines and issues.
THE Oregon Humanities Center will offer two conferences. “Unfinished Translation: Writing Modernism Before the Pacific Century” with Tze-Yin Teo, assistant professor of comparative literature and 2018-2019 Oregon Humanities Center research fellow. The conference, which will focus on issues related to translation between English and Chinese, will take place on May 3 at noon in Room 159 of Prince Lucien Campbell Hall.
Sharon Luk, assistant professor of ethnic studies, will present “The Life of Paper: Letters and Poetics of Life Beyond Captivity” on May 10 at noon, also in Room 159 of Prince Lucien Campbell Hall. Luk’s talk explores “the evolution of racism and confinement in California history,” including the early detention of Chinese migrants, the internment of Japanese Americans, and the mass incarceration of African-Americans. Americans.
“Freedom of expression and the press in Asia: human rights in balance with cultural values?» will take place on May 16 at 4:30 p.m. at the Jaqua Center auditorium. Kyo Ho Youm, professor and Jonathan Marshall Chair of the First Amendment in the School of Journalism and Communication, will present the lecture as part of the “Rethinking Free Expression in East Asia” lecture series offered by the Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures.
The College of Design will offer “Greco-Asian identity on the Telephos frieze of the great altar of Pergamon” with professor of art history and architecture Kristen Seaman on May 9 from 11 a.m. to noon in Room 241 of Lawrence Hall. The conference will explore the complex Asian-Greek cultural identity in the Telephros frieze.
Whether it’s an evening of culture, poetry, food, dance, music or lectures, the diversity and community connections that make up OU’s Asian, Desi and Pacific Islander communities will be evident throughout the month. Molly Schuster, an ethnic studies major and member of the Asian, Desi, and Pacific Islander Strategies Interest Group, offered a Samoan proverb to express her feelings about this year’s theme and the importance of diverse communities working together : “O le tele o sulu e maua ai figota, e mama se avega pe a ta amo fa’atasi,” which means “Unity is strength. My strength does not come from me alone but from many. »
For more information, visit the Division of Equity and Inclusion website.
—By Tova Stabin, University Communications
