Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month

"Examine the origin, history and impact of the 1882 law that made it illegal for Chinese workers to come to America and for Chinese nationals already here ever to become U.S. citizens." From AVON

"This video recounts Filipino American history from the 1900s to the present, exploring many of the contributions that Filipinos have made to this society in fields such as agriculture, arts and politics. An important overview of the second largest Asian American ethnic group in the United States, IN NO ONE’S SHADOW paints a comprehensive overview of Filipino American history, tracing their rich and varied accomplishments and contributions to the United States." From AVON

"At a time when racist laws and shameful stereotyping limited the careers of ethnic minority actors, Anna May Wong broke down doors to become the first Chinese American movie star in history!" From AVON

"Folk musician Charlie Chin narrates this accessible introduction to an important part of Asian American history. Although over 10,000 Chinese immigrants helped build the western half of the Transcontinental Railroad, their crucial contribution was largely overlooked for almost an entire century. 'The Golden Spike' is the story of these forgotten workers with photographs, paintings and political cartoons from the period." From AVON

"''The marks we choose to wear are the clues to the mystery of ourselves...' Tracing back more than 2,000 years to the Pacific Islands, tattoo is an ancient art form that began as a rite of passage for Polynesians and has become a form of expression for people worldwide. Featuring traditional tattooing ceremonies, compelling interviews, and a breathtaking collection of tattoo body art, Skin Stories traces the roots of tattoo, highlighting individual stories and the evolution of cultural traditions in the Pacific." From AVON

This event from the Library of Congress "presents a critical but engaging exploration of the role of memory, experience and imagination in each author's writings against the backdrop of the Vietnam War and its aftermath, global migration, refugees, the diaspora, and life in America."

Blog for AAPI Data, a publisher of statistics on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders: community profiles, state statics, infographics and more can also be found at https://aapidata.com/

"American Folklife Center collections of Cambodians and Cambodian Americans document the diversity of their expressive culture." From the Library of Congress

"American Folklife Center collections documenting Chinese cultures represent the diversity of its expressive culture in China and the United States. Among its unique collections are documentation of various styles of Chinese opera theater; examples of traditional papercutting; videos of Chinese storytellers in Yangzhou, China; and documentation of a Chinese school in Texas done as part of the American Folklife Center's Ethnic Heritage and Language Schools in America Project." From the Library of Congress Folklife Center

"American Folklife Center collections documenting Japanese expressive culture in Japan and the United States represent the diversity of Japanese culture. Collections include ethnographic documentation of Japanese music and culture in Japan. The Chicago Ethic Arts Project and the Ethnic Heritage and Language Schools in America Project, which were American Folklife Center field projects, documented Japanese traditions in Chicago and California respectively. The Occupational Folklife Project collections include interviews with Japanese American potters who studied ceramics in Japan." From the Library of Congress Folklife Center

"American Folklife Center collections documenting Korean culture in Korea and the United States represent the diversity of its expressive culture. Among its unique collections are songs recorded by several Korean students in Washington, D.C. in 1896 by Alice C. Fletcher; recordings of Korean shamanic dance and music by Karl Signell; recordings of Korean folk and classical music by Lee Hye-gu. ... From the Library of Congress Folklife Center

"The American Folklife Center holds traditional arts documentation from the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) in the Bess Lomax Hawes collection. ..." From the Library of Congress Folklife Center

"According to the Library of Congress online presentation Belonging on and off the Battlefield: Asian Americans in the U.S. Military, roughly 35,000 Asian Americans served in the Vietnam War." From the Library of Congress, American Minority Groups in the Vietnam War.

"This guide serves as a point of entry for researchers seeking materials in multiple formats on Asian American/Pacific Islander studies and related resources at the Library of Congress. The types of resources covered in this guide range from special collections containing photographs, diary entries, and recorded interviews to monographs, reference works, and serials. ..." From the Library of Congress, Asian American and Pacific Islander Materials: A Resource Guide

"Your one-stop information resource and overview of the historical, demographic, political, and cultural issues that make up today's diverse Asian American community. You can think of Asian-Nation as an online version of 'Asian Americans 101.'" From the website

"he 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." From the website

"n the spring of 1942, just months after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, more than 100,000 residents of Japanese ancestry were forcefully evicted by the army from their homes in Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona and Alaska, and sent to nearby temporary assembly centers. From there they were sent by trains to American-style concentration camps at remote inland sites where many people spent the remainder of the war. This exhibit tells the story of Seattle's Japanese American community in the spring and summer of 1942 and their four month sojourn at the Puyallup Assembly Center known as 'Camp Harmony.'"

"Primary documents that tell the story of ethnic groups along the Columbia River Basin (encompassing areas of Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Wyoming, Utah and and British Columbia)."

From the Online Archive of California, The Chinese in California, 1850-1925 illustrates through images and primary source documents, the 19th and 20th Century Chinese immigration experience.

Site documents and archives oral histories and photos from Japanese Americans who were incarcerated during World War II. Nonprofit organization has a mission to educate, preserve, collaborate and inspire action for equity.

"This guide is a starting point for researchers seeking materials in multiple formats on Filipino-Americans and related resources at the Library of Congress. The types of items covered here range from special collections containing photographs and diary entries to monographs, reference works, serials, and newspapers." From the Library of Congress, Filipino-American Materials: A Resource Guide

"Join The Met in celebrating the history, culture, and achievements of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) who have contributed to the arts." From the website

A collection of resources relating to Hmong and Southeast Asian history, culture, language and current events based in Saint Paul, Minnesota

"The Japanese American Relocation Digital Archives (JARDA) contains thousands of primary sources documenting Japanese American internment."

"The Japanese American Evacuation and Resettlement Study (JERS) was a research project initiated in 1942 at the University of California, Berkeley. It aimed to document and examine the mass internment of Japanese Americans by embedding Nisei social science students recruited from the Berkeley campus into selected internment sites." From the website

"As the national repository of Japanese American history, JANM creates groundbreaking historical and arts exhibitions, educational public programs, award-winning documentaries, and innovative curriculum that illuminate the stories and the rich cultural heritage of people of Japanese ancestry in the United States."

From the Washington State University Digital Archives.

From the USC Digital Library

Index to the Library of Congress Research Guides

Contains documents and records created by the United States Federal government on various topics including family records, US military records, or immigration.

"Provides access to two significant newspapers which tell the story of Japanese immigration and Japanese American community life in Seattle and beyond, from 1902 to 1950, and continuing to the present day."

"We explore the diverse experiences and opinions of Asian Americans and immigrants of Asian origin with in-depth surveys and other research. Our work focuses on capturing the attitudes and experiences reflecting the diverse cultures and origins represented in the Asian population living in the U.S., around topics like identity, the economy, politics and social mobility." From the website

Links to books and government documents related to the Spanish-American War and the U.S. involvement with the Philippines from the University of Michigan Special Collections Research Center.

"This archive offers a window into the story of South Asian immigrants from the Punjab region in north India to California since the turn of the twentieth century. ...The Archive is the fruit of a collaboration between the University of California, Davis Middle East/South Asia Studies and Yuba City’s Punjabi American Heritage Society.

SEAAdoc is an educational resource of the 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

"The Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center brings history, art and culture to you through innovative museum experiences and digital initiatives." From the website

"SAADA uses the power of stories to create belonging for 5.4+ million South Asian Americans." From the website

From the University of California, Irvine, "The Archive's collection is broad and interdisciplinary in documenting the social, cultural, religious, political, and economic life of members of the Cambodian, Hmong, Laotian, and Vietnamese diaspora."

"This site, developed around the course materials for Robert Brigham's first-year seminar on the Vietnam War at Vassar College, offers visitors an opportunity to examine some of those sources, including numerous official documents. Brigham was one of the first American scholars given access to Hanoi’s archives on the war. Included here are his translations of some of the Hanoi documents, offered for examination and study."