Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month

Why AAPI Heritage Month?

Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month is a month to celebrate and pay tribute to the many contributions generations of Asian and Pacific Americans have made to U.S. history, society and culture. The month of May was chosen to commemorate the arrival of the first Japanese immigrants to the U.S. on May 7, 1843, and to mark the anniversary of the completion of the transcontinental railroad on May 10, 1869. The majority of the workers who laid the tracks were Chinese immigrants. (Information from Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies and Library of Congress).

Scroll to the bottom of the page for downloadable resource lists and resource trackers.

As part of our Read Wider program we have downloadable resource lists and resource trackers.

Downloadable resource lists are full of books, movies, music, and online resources. Each list is carefully curated by our collection librarians to highlight own-voice stories, stories of struggle, and stories of strength.

Resource trackers for kids and teens or adults are a great way to record and highlight your favorite books, movies, music, and online resources for this month. Teens can choose to use the kids and teens or the adult resource tracker. Download a resource tracker at the bottom of the page, complete it, and join us for a discussion at the end of the month on new lessons learned and what actions could be taken in the future. By participating you will have the opportunity to support local businesses through gift card giveaways.

Who is considered AAPI?

Asian American or Pacific Islander is a broad term that encompasses most of the Asian continent and many of the Pacific islands. In the U.S we use these terms are a way to identify people from/descendants of people from Far East Asia, Southeast Asia, the Indian subcontinent (including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand, and Vietnam) and the Pacific Islands of Melanesia (New Guinea, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Fiji and the Solomon Islands), Micronesia (Marianas, Guam, Wake Island, Palau, Marshall Islands, Kiribati, Nauru and the Federated States of Micronesia) and Polynesia (New Zealand, Hawaiian Islands, Rotuma, Midway Islands, Samoa, American Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, Cook Islands, French Polynesia and Easter Island). For a full list of countries in Asia visit Nations Online.

Please note that people in Asia generally do not refer to themselves as Asian but identify as the country they are from. In the U.S. the term Asian American encompasses a multitude of Asian identities and cultures. The individual experience of Asian Americans can vary but the violence, racism, and dysphoria is a common experience among those who identify as Asian American or Pacific Islander. (Information from the Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, Census Bureau and Nations Online).

Supporting the AAPI community

Throughout 2020 and into 2021, there has been an increase in violence against Asian Americans Pacific Islanders. These awful and tragic events are triggering for community members, specifically our AAPI community members. To learn more about these events, report a hate incident/violence against AAPI community members, or take action, visit Stop AAPI Hate. For our AAPI community members who need extra support, visit Asian Mental Health Collective.

The Asian Pacific American Librarians Association (APALA) is another excellent resource. The APALA has put together a comprehensive resource document which includes anti-racist resources and links for legal help for AAPI community members. Lastly, we recommend checking out the USC Pacific Asia Museum. On this page, museum educators explain how the model minority myth is damaging to AAPI individuals and others. As always, the first place to start is with education!

Remember some of the best support is local support! Support local AAPI businesses, especially in these hard times.

Start reading with these recommendations.

Pitkin County Library staff has recommendations for kids, teens, and adults to help get you started on your reading journey! For more resources, check out our downloadable resource lists below.        

If you love to dance, start with our Pitkin County Library Spotify playlist...