Why Is AAPI Heritage Month Celebrated in May?

Every May, the U.S. celebrates Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in recognition of the contributions of this diverse group, past and present. Learn how two women campaigned to get it started in this episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://people.howstuffworks.com/culture-traditions/cultural-traditions/aapi-month-may.htm

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to Brainstuff, a production of iHeartRadio, Hey Brainstuff Floren Vogelbaum. Here.
Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month is a celebration
of the twenty five million Asian and one point seven
million Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Island people currently living
in the United States and the role that they and

(00:23):
their ancestors have played in shaping American history. Although America
has celebrated AAPI Heritage Month of every year since nineteen
ninety two, when President George H. W. Bush signed legislation
designating this commemorative month, it started out as a week
long celebration in nineteen seventy nine thanks to the efforts
of a woman named Jeanie F. Jew. A Jew was

(00:46):
a board member of the Organization of Chinese Americans and
a Capitol Hill staffer when she approached government officials about
acknowledging and celebrating Asian Americans for their accomplishments. She took
on this challenge after noticing the lack of Asian and
Pacific representation during the bicentennial celebrations of nineteen seventy six.
It was personal for Jew, as her great grandfather had

(01:09):
helped build the Transcontinental Railroad. A jew enlisted the support
of Ruby moy, an administrative assistant to then New York
Representative Frank Horton, and the two worked together to gain
support for a proclamation. Horton introduced a bill in nineteen
seventy seven that called for the first ten days in
May to be Pacific Asian American Heritage Week, while Hawaii

(01:32):
Senator Daniel Inowey introduced a similar resolution. The drafters chose
the month of May in a remembrance of two historic events.
The first official Japanese immigrants arrived in the US on
May seventh of eighteen forty three, and the Transcontinental Railroad
was completed on May tenth of eighteen sixty nine. Before

(01:53):
the railroad's completion, it would take you half a year
to get from New York to California. After it was built,
took a week. About twenty thousand Chinese workers took part
in constructing it, about one thy two hundred of whom
died from explosions, avalanches, and other disasters. These two bills

(02:14):
actually failed, but the drafters didn't let that discourage them.
The legislation needed at least two hundred and eighteen members
of Congress to sign on, so the sponsors got to work.
During this period, the bill was revised to reflect the
Census Bureau's designation of the community as Asian Pacific instead
of Pacific Asian. A Ju and Moy founded the Asian

(02:38):
Pacific Congressional Staff Caucus, and Jew also founded and chaired
the National Coalition for an Asian Pacific American Heritage Proclamation.
Other groups like the Organization of Chinese Americans, the Japanese
American Citizens League, and the Organization of Chinese American Women
also advocated for the bill. Thanks to their persistence, two

(02:58):
hundred and thirty one congressional representatives co sponsored it, and
it passed with massive support in both the House and
the Senate. In nineteen seventy eight, President Jimmy Carter signed
the resolution declaring May fourth through eleventh Asian Pacific American
Heritage Week, and the celebration started in nineteen seventy nine.

(03:19):
Over the next decade, Presidents Carter, Reagan, and Bush passed
annual proclamations for Asian Pacific American Heritage Week. In nineteen ninety,
Congress expanded the celebration to a month, and in nineteen
ninety two it became an annual celebration in perpetuity. President
Barack Obama expanded the commemoration to include Pacific Islanders and

(03:41):
Native Hawaiians in two thousand and nine, and in his
twenty twenty two proclamation about the month, President Joe Biden
tweaked the name a little to Asian American, Native Hawaiian
and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, likely as a nod to
the individual experiences of Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander
Americans in the past and present. After all, this month

(04:04):
is a time to mark the individual historical events, hardships,
and amazing contributions that many millions of people have made.
Today's episode is based on the article why is AAPI
Heritage Month celebrated in May? On HowStuffWorks dot com written

(04:24):
by Francisco Gusman. Brain Stuff is production of iHeartRadio in
partnership with HowStuffWorks dot Com and is produced by Tyler Klang.
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