Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month - May 2023
This Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month we’re sharing films and books that spotlight the long running history, diversity, and influence of the AAPI community in American culture.
Films
Rising Against Asian Hate: One Day in March (2022) follows the aftermath of the March 2021 mass shootings in Atlanta, Georgia where members of the AAPI community tragically lost their lives. As family and friends of the victims gather to find solace, the film examines the vital need for increased laws and protections to help prevent future hate crimes toward marginalized communities. View this moving look into the unwavering determination of a community to feel safe and “break the silence” here.
Island of Warriors (2014) examines the present inequities faced by Pacific Islander military veterans living on the island and U.S. territory of Guam. As American citizens of historically marginalized communities, these remarkable veterans share their ongoing struggles to secure essential healthcare benefits and support from the county they bravely served. View here.
Pilgrimage (2006), Tad Nakamura’s 2006 short film follows the journey of two Japanese Americans in 1969 to locate one of the original U.S. concentration camps, Manzanar, where over 120,000 Japanese Americans were incarcerated from 1942-1945. The film serves as an empowering tribute to the original “pilgrims” who sought to rediscover and illuminate the sacred memory of their ancestors who were tragically oppressed by their own government. View here.
The Music of Strangers (2015): As a world-renown American cellist of Chinese heritage born in Paris, France, Yo-Yo Ma grew up in a musical family where he was encouraged to learn to play the cello at a very early age. In 1998 the acclaimed composer founded the Silk Road Ensemble with the vision of uniting creative musicians, artists, and storytellers to connect and reflect the broad diversity of cultures across the historic Eurasian trade routes known as the “Silk Road”. View this inspiring trek by an impassioned group of artists to forge new creative pathways here.
Resistance at Tule Lake (2017) by Japanese American filmmaker Konrad Aderer. This poignant film brings to light the courageous story of 12,000 Japanese Americans who stood up against mass incarceration by the U.S government during WWII. Through rarely seen archival footage and candid testimonies by survivors, the film contests the false historic narratives of a marginalized community who were mere passive loyalists by lifting the brave voices who rightfully protested for their freedom as American citizens. View here.
Curated and written by Joshua Windham
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Books
Red, white, and whole by Rajani LaRocca
Call number: PZ7.5.L357 Re 2021
Laxmi's mooch by Shelly Anand
Call number: PZ7.1.A5118 Lax 2021
Eyes that kiss in the corners by Joanna Ho
Call number: PZ7.1.H6 Ey 2021
Sato the rabbit by Yuki Ainoya
Call number: PZ7.1.A363 Sat 2021
The committed by Viet Thanh Nguyen.
Call number: PS3614.G97 C66 2021
Food culture in Japan by Michael Ashkenazi and Jeanne Jacob.
Call number: TX724.5.J3 A88 2003
Hawaiian wonder tales; illustrated by Jack Matthew.
Call number: PZ8.1.W566 Haw
Good talk: a memoir in conversations by Mira Jacob.
Call number: PS3610.A356415 Z46 2018
Interior Chinatown by Charles Yu.
Call number: PS3625.U15 I58 2020
Asian American women's popular literature: feminizing genres and neoliberal belonging by Pamela Thoma.
Call number: PS153.A84 T48 2014
Book list and display curated by Doxey Kamara. Graphic design by Anthony DelRosario
Published 5/1/2023
