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Why Do We Celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage Month?

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Yo-Yo Ma on the importance of telling each other our stories

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Nine Famous Asian and Pacific Islander Immigrants > The Immigrant Learning Center

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Immigrants from Asia and Pacific Islands are a diverse collection of more than 130 ethnic groups from a geographic area that spans 16 million square miles. Their dreams and talents are as diverse as they are and, despite the challenges and discrimination they have faced, they have made extraordinary contributions to the United States.

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Asian Pacific American Heritage Month 2023 | Stand Together

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I find the materials so engaging, relevant, and easy to understand - I now use iCivics as a central resource, and use the textbook as a supplemental tool. The games are invaluable for applying the concepts we learn in class. My seniors LOVE iCivics.

Lynna Landry , AP US History & Government / Economics Teacher and Department Chair, California

Related Resources

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This mini-lesson covers the basics of the Supreme Court's decision that determined the government acted constitutionally when it detained people of Japanese ancestry inside internment camps during World War II. Students learn what internment camps were, the background behind the government's decision to detain those of Japanese ancestry, and the reasons the government upheld that decision.

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I find the materials so engaging, relevant, and easy to understand - I now use iCivics as a central resource, and use the textbook as a supplemental tool. The games are invaluable for applying the concepts we learn in class. My seniors LOVE iCivics.

Lynna Landry , AP US History & Government / Economics Teacher and Department Chair, California

Related Resources

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This mini-lesson covers the basics of the Supreme Court's decision that determined the government acted constitutionally when it detained people of Japanese ancestry inside internment camps during World War II. Students learn what internment camps were, the background behind the government's decision to detain those of Japanese ancestry, and the reasons the government upheld that decision.

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I find the materials so engaging, relevant, and easy to understand - I now use iCivics as a central resource, and use the textbook as a supplemental tool. The games are invaluable for applying the concepts we learn in class. My seniors LOVE iCivics.

Lynna Landry , AP US History & Government / Economics Teacher and Department Chair, California

Related Resources

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This mini-lesson explores the Supreme Court's interpretation of the 14th Amendment's Citizenship Clause. Students learn about the difference between jus sanguinis and jus soli citizenship. They also learn about the Chinese Exclusion Act, analyze a historical political cartoon, and review the contents of the U.S. Naturalization Oath.

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In this video, students learn about the life of Patsy Takemoto Mink who became the first woman of color elected to Congress. In her 24 years as a Representative, Mink battled inequality by changing the laws.

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Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month 

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Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month 

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Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month 2022

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Smithsonian Learning Lab Teaching Resources

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Smithsonian Learning Lab Teaching Resources

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Search | Everything | Smithsonian Learning Lab

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The first major wave of Asian immigrants arrived at American shores in the mid-1800s and Asian Americans have since played a key role in U.S. history, while also facing discrimination and exclusion.

A diverse population, the nation's 20 million-plus Asian Americans have roots in more than 20 countries in Asia and India, according to the Pew Research Cente r, with Chinese, Indian, Filipino, Vietnamese, Korean and Japanese making up 85 percent of today's Asian American population. Here's a look at some of the notable milestones throughout Asian American history.

Gold Rush Lures New Wave of Immigrants

May 7, 1843: A 14-year-old fisherman named Manjiro becomes the first official U.S. Japanese immigrant after being adopted by American Capt. William Whitfield who rescued the boy and his crew after a shipwreck 300 miles from Japan's coast. Years later, Manjiro returned to his home country, where he was named a samurai and worked as a political emissary with the West.

Page Act, Chinese Exclusion Act Restrict Immigration

May 6, 1882: Facing hostile, and often violent treatment from locals, Chinese immigrants are targeted by Congress with the passage of the Chinese Exclusion Act, signed into law by President Chester Arthur. The act bans Chinese workers from entering the country and excludes Chinese immigrants from American citizenship. Every 10 years, Congress extends its provision until 1943, when World War II labor shortage pressure and increased anti-Japanese sentiment leads to its demise and Chinese immigrants are allowed to become naturalized citizens.

March 3, 1885: In the case Tape v. Hurley, California's Supreme Court rules that the state entitles "all children" access to public education. The case centers on Mamie Tape, then 8, an American-born daughter of Chinese immigrants whose family sued the San Francisco Board of Education for denying her admission because of her race.

White Coal Miners Target Chinese Workers

September 2, 1885: Angered that they're taking away "white" jobs, white coal miners attack Chinese laborers in the Wyoming territory during what comes to be known as the Rock Springs Massacre. Twenty-eight Chinese are killed, with 15 more injured by the mob, which also looted and set fire to all of the homes in the area's Chinatown. Federal troops are brought in to return Chinese miners, who had fled, to Rock Springs, and Congress eventually agrees to compensate the workers for their losses.

May 27-28, 1887: Seven white horse thieves ambush a group of Chinese miners who had set up camp along the Snake River in Oregon, murdering all 34 men and mutilating their bodies before dumping them in the river. Three members of the gang stand trial in the Hells Canyon Massacre, with one testifying for the state, and all are found not guilty by an all-white jury.

February 5, 1917: Congress passes the Immigration Act of 1917, which includes an "Asiatic Barred Zone," banning Chinese, Asian Indians, Burmese, Thai, Maylays and others. Japan is not on the list of those excluded, as prohibitions against immigrants from that country are already in place, nor is the Philippines, as it is a U.S. territory.

Japanese Internment

December 7, 1941: The Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor. Two months later, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, fearing Japanese immigrants or those with Japanese ancestry had taken part in planning the attack, issues an executive order that forces more than 120,000 Japanese Americans living on the West Coast into internment camps.

According to the National Archives, approximately 70,000 of those targeted are U.S. citizens, and no charges are made against any of them. Most lose their homes, businesses and belongings, and are held until the war ends. In 1988, President Ronald Reagan signs a law apologizing for the civil liberty injustice with the order to pay $20,000 to each person who had been incarcerated.

Asian-American Firsts in Congress

January 3, 1957: Dalip Saund of California is sworn in as a U.S. Representative, becoming the first Asian-American, first Indian American and first Sikh to serve in Congress. An immigrant from India, he became an American citizen in 1949, eventually earning a Ph.D. and being elected as a judge before serving three terms in the House. According to the U.S. House of Representatives History, Art & Archives, he was vocal on issues such as communism and civil rights, including desegregation. "The problem of man's injustice to man is a world problem," he said in response to the case in Little Rock, Arkansas. "Let one who is innocent and pure throw the first stone."

August 24, 1959: Born in Honolulu the son of poor Chinese immigrants, Hiram L. Fong is sworn in as Hawaii's first U.S. Senator, becoming the first Asian American elected to the chamber. The only Republican senator ever elected from the state, he defended President Richard Nixon's Vietnam policies, and, according to the U.S. House of Representatives History, Art & Archives, saw himself as an Asian American spokesman. "I feel sometimes they think I am their senator," he once said. "I try to interpret America to them and to interpret them to America."

January 4, 1965: U.S. Representative Patsy T. Mink of Hawaii is sworn in as the first Asian American woman, and first woman of color, to serve in Congress. A supporter of women's and civil rights and an advocate for education, children and labor unions, Mink opposed the Vietnam War, supported Head Start and the Women's Educational Equity Act and was a co-author and sponsor of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, outlawing sex discrimination in any education program or activity receiving federal funding. She also co-founds the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus in 1994.

Advances in Labor Rights

August 19, 1973: Martial arts movie Enter the Dragon premieres, three weeks after its action star, Bruce Lee, dies from an allergic reaction to pain medication in Hong Kong. In his first starring role in a Hollywood film, the box office hit cements Lee, born in 1940 in San Francisco and raised in Hong Kong, as a film icon.

March 28, 1979: President Jimmy Carter proclaims a week in May is to be designated Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week, which would be continued by Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. In 1990, Bush broadens the observance to cover the month of May and, in 1992, Congress passes a law permanently designating May as Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month. May is chosen in honor of the first official Japanese immigrant's arrival in the U.S. on May 7, 1843, and because May 10, 1869, marks the completion of the transcontinental railroad.

June 24, 1982: More than 20,000 garment workers, most of whom are female immigrants from China and Hong Kong, rally in New York's Chinatown after labor union negotiations stall. A second rally is held the next month, with a one-day strike taking place July 15, the largest in the history of Chinatown that ends with employers accepting the union's contract demands.

Asian Americans in Architecture, Film

October 2018: Director Jon M. Chu's Crazy Rich Asians breaks box office records, becoming North America's highest-earning romantic comedy in a decade. It's also the first Hollywood studio movie since 1993's Joy Luck Club starring an "all-Westernized Asian American cast," according to the Hollywood Reporter. Based on the novel by Kevin Kwan, the film, made for $30 million, has grossed more than $238 million.

July 21, 2000: President Bill Clinton swears in Norman Mineta as the U.S. secretary of commerce, making him the first Asian American to serve in a presidential cabinet. Mineta, a Japanese American who had been sent to a World War II internment camp in 1942, was the first Asian American mayor of a major city, San Jose, Calif., served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1975 to 1999 and, in 2001, was named transportation secretary under George W. Bush. Bush also appoints Elaine Chao secretary of labor, the first female Asian American to serve in a presidential cabinet. President Donald Trump names her secretary of transportation in 2017.

Sources

Key facts about Asian origin groups in the U.S., Pew Research Center

Asian and Pacific Islander Americans in Congress: First Arrivals, First Reactions, U.S. House of Representatives

Immigration and Relocation in U.S. History, Library of Congress

U.S. Immigration Station, Angel Island, National Park Service

Grapes Of Wrath: The Forgotten Filipinos Who Led A Farmworker Revolution, NPR

Japanese-American Internment During World War II, National Archives

Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month, Library of Congress

Fact Check

We strive for accuracy and fairness. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! HISTORY reviews and updates its content regularly to ensure it is complete and accurate.

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Asian American Timeline - Immigration, Achievements & Famous Firsts

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Asian immigrants have come to American shores since the mid-1800s, playing a significant role in U.S. history, but one that's rife with inequity and exclusion. See a timeline of key events.

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AANHPI Heritage Month History

June 30, 1977: The origin of AAPI Heritage Month dates back to the 95th Congress (1977-1978) when five joint resolutions were introduced proposing that a week in May be designated to commemorate the accomplishments of AAPIs. The House of Representatives introduced three joint resolutions (H.J.Res.540, H.J.Res.661, H.J.Res.753) to designate the first 10 days in May as "Pacific/Asian American Heritage Week" while Senator Daniel Inouye also introduced S.J.Res.72 in the Senate to designate the beginning of May as "Pacific/Asian American Heritage Week." A 4th joint resolution (H.J.Res.1007) was introduced in the House by Rep. Frank J. Horton and proposed designating 7 days in May beginning on May 4th as Asian/Pacific American Week. This joint resolution was passed by Congress and became Pub.L.95-419. This law directed the President to issue a proclamation designating the week beginning on May 4, 1979 as "Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week."

March 28, 1979: President Carter issued Proclamation 4650, the first presidential proclamation, for Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week. In this proclamation, President Carter spoke of the significant role Asian/Pacific Americans have played in the creation of a dynamic and pluralistic American society with their contributions to the sciences, arts, industry, government and commerce. Over the next ten years, Presidents Carter, Reagan and George H.W. Bush continued to annually issue proclamations designating a week in May as Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week.

May 7, 1990: President George H.W. Bush issued Presidential Proclamation 6130 designating May 1990 as the first "Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month."

May 9, 1990: Congress passed Pub.L.101-283 which amended Pub.L.95-419. Pub.L.101-283 requested the President to issue a proclamation which expanded the observance of Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week to a month in May 1990. This law called on the people of the United States to observe Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month with "appropriate ceremonies, programs and activities."

May 14, 1991: Pub.L.102-42 was passed unanimously by Congress and signed by President George H.W. Bush. This law requested that the President proclaim May 1991 and May 1992 as "Asian/Pacific American Heritage Months." This law also recognized the significance of May 7th and May 10th in the history of Asian/Pacific Americans. May 7, 1843 is the date on which the first Japanese immigrants arrived in the United States while on May 10, 1869 the first transcontinental railroad in the United States was completed with significant contributions from Chinese pioneers.

October 23, 1992: Congress passed Pub.L.102-450 which permanently designated May of each year as "Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month." Pursuant to Pub. L. 102-450 Presidents Clinton, George W. Bush, Obama, and Trump have annually issued proclamations designating May as Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.

Read the 2022 Presidential Proclamation on Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month

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AANHPI Heritage Month History June 30, 1977: The origin of AAPI Heritage Month dates back to the 95th Congress (1977-1978) when five joint resolutions were introduced proposing that a week in May be designated to commemorate the accomplishments of AAPIs.

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Asian Pacific American Heritage Month 2023

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Asian Pacific American Heritage Month 2023

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May is Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month The Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Institution and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum join in paying tribute to the generations of Asian and Pacific Islanders who have enriched America's history and are instrumental in its future success.

Brought to you by:

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Asian Pacific American Heritage Month 2023

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Paying tribute to the generations of Asian and Pacific Islanders who have enriched America's history and are instrumental in its future success.

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Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month: MS Poems

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Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month: MS Poems

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To celebrate Asian / Pacific American Heritage Month in May-and the rich tradition of Asian / Pacific American poetry all year long-browse this selection of poems.
more asian / pacific american heritage month resources
" The Dream of Shoji" by Kimiko Hahn
How to say milk? How to say sand, snow, sow...

" Fire Dragon" by Sage Uʻilani Takehiro
Lao Ye sits at the edge of hala trees...

" Archipelagic" by R. A. Villanueva
Not vinegar. Not acid. Not...
asian / pacific american heritage month lesson plans

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asian/pacific american heritage month: poems for kids

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Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month: Poems for Kids

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Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month: Poems for Kids - Celebrating Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month the following selection of poems features poets like Chen Chen, Tina Chang, Li-Young Lee, Marilyn Chin, and more.

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Ever heard of a syair? What about twin cinema? While one of those poetic forms is ancient and one is brand new, they do have one thing in common: they were both created in Asia. In honor of Asian and Pacific American Heritage Month in the US, let's take a look at the vast array of forms in Asian and Pacific poetry.
[This post contains Amazon affiliate links. When you click on those links to make purchases,
Poetry Teatime receives compensation at no extra cost to you. Thank you!]
Before we dig into these poems, you can also celebrate Asian and Pacific American Heritage Month by checking out our previous highlights, including an Asian/Pacific Poetry Teatime, Japanese Teatime, and ways to celebrate the Lunar New Year with poetry. You can find out more about Japanese poetry here.

Today, we'll be exploring different types of Asian and Pacific poetry.

Some of the types of poetry trace back to ancient oral traditions, while others are new forms developed as recently as the 2000s. Some focus on specific rules and techniques, while others are centered on a particular theme.

So let's dive in!

Here are some of the different traditional and new forms of Asian and Pacific poetry.

Kōel (around Southeast Asia and the Pacific): In this three-line form, the first and last lines repeat vowel sounds (assonance) and the middle repeats consonants (alliteration). Together, the kōel sounds like birdsong. See a history of the form with examples here.

Syair (Malaysia): This is an epic form that tells tales of historical and mythic events, meant to be sung in front of an audience as well as written down. The pattern is four lines with AAAA rhymes. Find out more here.

Haiku (Japan): A traditional Japanese form about a moment in nature, written in lines of five-seven-five syllables. We have an entire post about this vivid and brief style of Japanese poetry, along with lots of book suggestions. Check it out right here!

Lục bát (Vietnam): This form is based on arrangements of "sharp" and "flat" tones using the six tones in Vietnamese as well as end rhymes. While it's difficult to describe in English, this example on Wikipedia will give you a taste.

Yadu (Myanmar): Also called Burmese climbing rhyme, this type of poem has rhymes that move from the end of the first line to the middle of the next, with a new end rhyme that moves to the middle, and so on. The interlocking rhymes usually refer to the changing seasons. See a visual representation of this form here.

Sijo (Korea): Similar to a haiku, the sijo is a three-line poem with 14-16 syllables per line. The first line introduces the subject, the second line either develops or "turns" the subject so you look at it from another angle, and the third line provides the final twist. See more here at the Poetry Foundation.

Pantun (Indonesia): Four lines of equal length rhyming ABAB. The first two lines are the "shadow," usually a proverb, riddle, or question, while the last two lines are the "meaning," which gives the literal answer to the riddle. Read more here.

Kural (India and Sri Lanka): This is a type of ancient Tamil poetry with just two lines: four words in the first line, and three in the second line. See an example in English here.

Environmental poetry (Pacific islands): Several islands in the Pacific were used as nuclear bomb and weapons test sites in WWII, with lasting consequences including unexploded missiles still there today. Many poets in this region explore these dangers, including this simple and heartbreaking poem by Soul Vang told from the point of view of one of these bombs.

Twin Cinema (Singapore): Invented in 2010, this form is composed in two columns that can be read separately (up and down) or together (side to side). Each reading gives a different meaning to the poem. Learn more here.

Found//Fount Sonnets (Singapore): Developed in 2017, this form is a mix of "found" poetry and formal sonnets. Choose a piece of writing (an article, newspaper, novel, anything!) and circle every seventh word until you have 14 words total. Each line of your fourteen-line sonnet needs to include one of the words you circled, in the order you circled them. Typically, these sonnets don't use a set rhyme or rhythm. Find out more here.

Now that you've explored a few different types of poetry, why not try out one of these forms for yourself? Challenge yourself to try something new and different in your writing today!

Be sure to share what you've learned with us here!

While we have many more reading suggestions in the articles mentioned above, you can check out these books for more poetry to read and celebrate Asian and Pacific poetry.

A Thousand Peaks: Poems from China, by Siyu Liu and Orel Protopopescu

Twist: Yoga Poems, by Janet Wong

The Trip Back Home, by Janet Wong

Tap Dancing on the Roof: Sijo (Poems), by Linda Sue Park

Maples in the Mist: Poems for Children from the Tang Dynasty, by Minfong Ho

Inside Out and Back Again, by Thanhha Lai (a verse novel)

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Ever heard of a syair? What about twin cinema? While one of those poetic forms is ancient and one is brand new, they do have one thing in common: they were both created in Asia. In honor of Asian and Pacific American Heritage Month in the US, let's take a look at the vast array of forms in Asian and Pacific poetry.

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"On Discovery" Maxine Hong Kingston (Reading Comprehension Exercise)

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"On Discovery" Maxine Hong Kingston (Reading Comprehension Exercise)

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God knows what got into her head. She abruptly broke her stride and slipped into Shandar Cloth Store. Then she opened the door of the show window and, deftly, removing the lovely mannequin, stood herself in the plastic dummy's place and assumed its pose.

It was evening. The street was packed with people, but they were so preoccupied as they went their way that none of them noticed what she had just done.

Why did she do it? She probably didn't know that herself. True, she was something of a daredevil in her childhood. But now she was a grown young woman, a college student, smart, sophisticated, urbane. Even the most daring boys at the college got cold feet walking with her. What she'd just done, well, it just happened. It was entirely unpremeditated.

Standing in the show window she felt a strange sense of comfort wash over her. She was now, after all, a part of this bustling marketplace. She could also look closely at the place, the whole of it, standing in just one spot, without having to move. Walking as one of the crowd or while shopping, she never felt herself a part of the life around her-the buoyant, strident life, full of vigor and excitement.

Her tense body gradually became unstrung, and an unprovoked smile came to her lips. She quite liked it-standing with one foot slightly forward, the hem of her sari going over her head and then dropping down to wrap itself around the joint of her right elbow. She looked positively ravishing. She could stand in her new posture forever, she thought, overcome by a sudden impulse, although her knees had already begun to ache from the pressure.

She was just considering easing up on her heels a bit when her eyes caught sight of a peasant who suddenly cut through the crowd on the sidewalk and came over to the show window and began gawking at her with eyes at once full of lust and wonder. His eyes seemed to say-Incredible! These craftsmen can be so skilful! How they make statues that look like real people!

It was good the glass panel stood between them, otherwise the country bumpkin would certainly have ventured to touch her.

The peasant perhaps wanted to linger on for a while, but the scouring glances of the passersby forced him to move on. As soon as he had moved away, she relaxed her feet a little. Even shook them a bit. But now her lips began to feel dry. "Just a little while longer," she told her lips under her breath, "and then I'll take you to a restaurant and treat you to a glass of ice water, followed by a steaming cup of some finely brewed tea." Her thirst let up a bit and she slipped back into her former pose.

She certainly had no wish to exhibit herself like this to the pedestrians. Perhaps the thought had never even entered her mind. Rather, it pleased her to think that she was now a full participant in the teeming life around her. It was a strange feeling. She had never experienced it before.

"Oh God!"-the expression came from the lips of two college girls-"how lifelike!"

Their voices, travelling along the glass panels and filtering through the holes in the steel strips holding the frame, came upon her softly, as if from a great distance.

The two girls gawked at her with admiration as they exchanged a few words among themselves, while she looked at them with tenderness. She was happy, incredibly happy. No one had looked at her with such appreciation before, at least not in her presence. Like a kind and caring queen receiving the adulation of her subjects, she sustained her regal pose until the girls had once again melted into the crowd and disappeared from view.

"Let's see who comes next?" she thought to herself.

Her feet had again started to protest. This time around, though, she sent them a warning, a rather stern one: Scoundrels, stay put! Can't you wait even a little? She wouldn't care a hoot about their protest, she decided.

She was still congratulating herself on her firm resolve when she caught sight of a cop who had just separated from the crowd and after taking a pinch of chewing tobacco from a box he held was rubbing it with his thumb. The moment he saw her, his hand stopped dead, his mouth fell open, and his eyes widened. She stared at the cop sweetly. The cop's eyelashes began to flap frantically; he rubbed the tobacco hastily and stuffing it between his lower lip and teeth practically stuck his eyes against the glass of the show window.

She was overcome by a powerful urge to laugh, but managed to stop herself with the greatest difficulty. Suddenly her feet began to itch uncontrollably. There was even a slight, involuntary tremble. But the cop thought it was a mere illusion, or the effect of the tobacco.

The cop stared at her for a long time. He would withdraw a little, then come back and inspect her closely. This went on for so long that she began to tire. Is the idiot going to leave at all, she wondered? She was feeling uncomfortable. She knew she couldn't go on standing in that pose. All the same, she also knew that she was safe inside the show window. Where would she find such a sanctuary outside?

Thank God the cop finally decided to leave, and she drew a breath of relief, loosened her hands and feet, straightened up her tense back, indeed even massaged it a bit. Night was approaching and the crowd had thinned down to a few swift-footed pedestrians.

Soon it will grow dark, she thought. She'd better get out of here while there was still some light. The fabric store must be emptying out. Somebody might see her getting out of the show window. She'd have to be very careful . . . and fast. And yet there was such comfort inside the show window! How she wallowed in that pleasure! Another ten minutes? Why not . . .

She was still mulling over this when she spotted her girlfriend Sheyama on the sidewalk. Right away she sprang into her former pose and held her breath. Sheyama threw an inattentive look in her direction and because her thoughts were elsewhere, the danger, luckily, was averted. The thought that some of her acquaintances might spot her here had not occurred to her until Sheyama came along. This was precisely the time when her older brother returned from work, she recalled with horror. He's already suffering from a heart ailment. What if he saw the family's "honor" exposed so shamelessly out on the street? Wouldn't he drop dead?

Two boys appeared in her field of vision. They were returning from school, their satchels glued to their backs. They looked with zesty curiosity and pasted their faces-eyes and all-flat against the glass. "Hey, she's real," the voice of one of the boys entered her ear faintly. Once again she wanted to laugh.

"Idiot, it's plastic," the other boy said. "Whoever uses a live model?"

"But she looks so real. Seems she'd open her mouth and start speaking any moment."

"That's because of the evening. In proper light, you'd see."

"Hi!" the boy said as he winked at her mischievously.

The other one broke into a gale of laughter. Then he too waved at her and said "Bye!" and the two walked out of her field of vision.

As soon as they were gone, she suddenly began to laugh, but just as suddenly, became very nervous.

A young man was looking at her with perplexed eyes from across the glass. When their eyes met, he smiled. She smiled back, if only to hide her trepidation. She quickly grabbed the plastic dummy, and tried to install it, pretending to be one of the store clerks.

The youth's eyes were still riveted on her.

Arranging the sari around the mannequin she looked at the youth from the corner of her eye to see who he was looking at. His eyes lingered briefly at the plastic figure, then bounced off it and became glued to her.

She backed up, supremely confident, opened the door to the show window and walked out.

None of the store attendants saw her leave, or if they did, she was so agile and so fast that they couldn't figure out what had happened. The doorman didn't notice, as he was busy talking to one of the sales clerks.

Confidently she strode away, briskly but lightly, happy and satisfied. As though she'd just unloaded the entire pestering weight of her body and soul. After she had walked away some distance, she turned around and looked back. The youth was still staring at her, perhaps with wonder.

She quickly turned down another street.

Translation of "Poze," from Yaad Basere (Delhi: Takhleeqkaar, 1990). Translation copyright 2010 by Muhammad Umar Memon. All rights reserved.

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God knows what got into her head. She abruptly broke her stride and slipped into Shandar Cloth Store. Then she opened the door of the show window and, deftly, removing the lovely mannequin, stood herself in the plastic dummy's place and assumed its pose. It was evening.

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Summary: May is Asian Pacific American Heritage month, so NWP has collected these resources and lesson plans from NWP teacher-consultants and other sources to support learning about Asian Pacific American history and current issues.
Listen and watch this multimedia presentation by a fourth-grade class about the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II. More ›
The month of May was chosen for Asian Pacific American Heritage Month to commemorate the immigration of the first Japanese to the United States in May 1843 and to mark the anniversary of the transcontinental railroad, completed on May 10, 1869. The majority of workers who laid the tracks were Chinese immigrants.

In 1992 the official designation of May as Asian Pacific American Heritage Month was signed into law.

NWP teacher-consultants have written about Asian Pacific American students and taught Asian American history in innovative ways. Below are some resources in which they share their insights.

Also listed are numerous resources to help plan lessons and find essay contests for students. If you have other resources to share, please send suggestions to nwp@nwp.org.

NWP Resources

Time is Not on our Side: Literacy and Literature for High School Language Learners
Given that teachers often have too much to teach, and too little time, Dana Dusbiber suggests an alternative approach to teaching literature for secondary English language learning students. "In my classroom were Mien and Hmong students from Laos and Thailand," she writes. "As I learned about their lives-what their travels and family relationships and cultural practices had taught them about life, literacy and learning-I knew that I needed this background knowledge if I was to be their teacher."

Book Review: The Latehomecomer: A Hmong Family Memoir, by Kao Kalia Yang
Lynn Jacobs, a teacher-consultant with the Northern California Writing Project, finds this account of Hmong history and culture to be special because of the vivid and personal picture it presents of the Hmong people to outsiders.

Wikis Foster Scaffolded Collaboration When Teaching Farewell to Manzanar
Sarah Hunt-Barron, a South Carolina teacher-consultant, documents the use of wikis to foster collaborative, project-based learning about Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston's Farewell to Manzanar, a memoir about the Japanese American internment during World War II.

Other Resources

Center for Asian American Media
The Educational Distribution service of the Center for Asian American Media offers a lengthy list of high-quality works by and about Asian Pacific Americans, for use by colleges, universities, and K-12 schools. Accompanying study guides and websites are available.

Asian Pacific American Writers and Book Lists

Writing Contests

Related Resource Topics

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Resources for Teaching Asian Pacific American Heritage Month

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Summary: May is Asian Pacific American Heritage month, so NWP has collected these resources and lesson plans from NWP teacher-consultants and other sources to support learning about Asian Pacific American history and current issues. Listen and watch this multimedia presentation by a fourth-grade class about the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II.

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Asian American Authors
Contains links to a list of works by Asian American authors compiled by the librarians of the Harold Washington Library Center and to the Asian Americans Writers' Workshop. The Asian American Writers' Workshop is a national not-for-profit arts organization devoted to the creating, publishing, developing and disseminating of creative writing by Asian Americans. There are links to works by Asian American writers for young adults as well as to individual authors like Gish Jen, Ha Jin, Jhumpa Lahiri, Amy Tan, and Gus Lee.

Asian American Literature: Res ources for Research
This site contains refereed journals, suggested scholarly books, Asian American bookstores and publishers, Asian American Studies programs, and non-academic sites dealing with Asian American issues.

Asian American Voices in Poetry
A collection of poets and articles exploring Asian American culture from the Poetry Foundation.

Asian American Writers
Contains brief biographies of noted Asian American writers and links to articles, interviews and book reviews.

Asian American Writers Workshop
The Asian American Writers Workshop is devoted to creating, publishing, developing and disseminating creative writing by Asian Americans.

Asian Nation
This site explores the the historical, political, demographic, and cultural issues of the Asian American community

Calisphere: Asian Americans
This site is part of the California Cultures Project and provides free access to unique and historically important artifacts for research, teaching, and curious exploration.

Documenting the Southeast Asian American Experience
SEAADoc is an educational resource of Southeast Asian Archive at the UC Irvine Libraries focusing on post-1975 refugees and immigrants from Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam and the communities they have developed in the United States.

Filipino American Literature
This page from Emory University gives a brief description of Filipino American literature highlighting the major themes and works of fiction and poetry with links to related sites.

South Asian American Digital Archive
SAADA documents, preserves, and shares stories of South Asian Americans.

South Asian Women Writers Bibliography
This site lists writings of fiction and non-fiction by Asian Americans and links to reviews of their works where possible.

Voice of the Shuttle - Asian American Writers
Voice of the Shuttle is an excellent site for information on minority literatures. The section on Asian Pacific American literatures includes general resources in Asian American literature, resources for K-12 teachers, and links to Asian American Writers broken down by Asian American Women Writers of Color, Asian American Autobiography, authors by name and by racial/ethnic background with links to Chinese American, Filipina American, Indian American, Japanese American, and Korean American.

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SCSU Hilton C. Buley Library: Asian American Literature: Internet Resources

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Asian American Authors Contains links to a list of works by Asian American authors compiled by the librarians of the Harold Washington Library Center and to the Asian Americans Writers' Workshop. The Asian American Writers' Workshop is a national not-for-profit arts organization devoted to the creating, publishing, developing and disseminating of creative writing by Asian Americans.