This May, we celebrate ... and resist

ASIAN American Pacific Islander Heritage Month will have a more serious tenor this year.

May is traditionally a month we take time to learn and celebrate our history and heritage, try out some of the old family recipies, young people learn the traditional dances and songs, but this year there is a sense of urgency that had been missing from previous observances of AAPI Heritage Month.

A website has been created to help Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders to express their opposition to the direction the country is moving. it was created by #AAPIsResist. 

#AAPIsResist is a coalition of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) national, local, and student organizations committed to strengthening our organizing and advocacy in resistance to the administration’s hateful, discriminatory, and harmful actions and its broader effects on our communities.

"During this year’s Asian Pacific American Heritage Month (APAHM) in May, we are celebrating Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) resistance, both past and present, in order to strengthen our commitment to achieving broader racial, environmental, economic, and social justice," states the website with suggestions and "how-to" advice on how to take your resistance to the next level.

From the incarceration of Japanese/Americans to the deportations of Southeast Asians to the uptick of hate violence against Muslim and perceived-to-be Muslim communities, we center APAHM as an important political moment to reflect on our communities’ ongoing resistance.

Much of the rise in hate incidents parallels the rise in white nationalism emboldened by the new administration in Washington which wants to turn back the clock on the progress made since the Franklin Roosvelt presidency. That includes discarding environmental protections, equal rights for communities of color, women and the LGBTQ issues and, some say, attacks to come on social security and Medicare.

"We are calling on AAPI organizations and individuals to take part in the #AAPIsResist Month of Action throughout APAHM to show that we are not afraid to stand up and speak out and that AAPIs are #NotYourModelMinority."