Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month has been celebrated nationwide since the 1970s. Celebrations and traditions are held in May to honor the contributions of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities.
Asian American Pacific Islander heritage was first recognized nationally in 1977. Congress passed a bill designating the first 10 days of May as Pacific/Asian American Heritage Week.
It was not until 1990 that former President George H.W. Bush signed a law expanding the week to the entire month of May.
May was chosen as the official AAPI Heritage Month to celebrate the first Japanese immigrants to come to the U.S. in May 1843, according to the official Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month website.
The month also marks the completion of the first transcontinental railroad in May 1869, in which Chinese immigrants played a crucial role in building.
"The Chinese immigrants and Chinese labor were actually instrumental to cut through the Sierra Nevada mountain, and they practically built the most difficult part," Wei Li, a geography and Asian Pacific American Studies professor, said.
In 2021, former President Joe Biden signed an executive order establishing the White House Initiative on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders. The order included a government-wide plan to advance equity, justice and opportunity for AANHPI communities.
The order was revoked in 2025 by President Donald Trump as part of a set of executive actions that aimed to remove diversity, equity and inclusion in institutional language.
Li said it is important to her as a professor to teach the whole history to students to make them well-rounded citizens of the world.
"We are all part of this fabric, and we all need to know the history, irrespective about the bright history, shining history, as well as the dark history of our country, without knowing that, history will only repeat itself," Li said.
At ASU, student organizations continue to celebrate and share their culture during AAPI Heritage Month and year-round on campus.
The Asian/Asian Pacific American Students' Coalition is an umbrella organization that works with over 20 clubs. It works to foster community and spread awareness about Asian American and Pacific Islander communities.
Maya Bustos, an AAPASC intern and a freshman studying business, said the coalition allows students to share their culture and celebrate the diversity within it.
AAPASC celebrates AAPI Heritage Month during April because May is shortened due to the end of the semester, Bustos said.
WATCH: Video: AAPASC celebrates Asian and Asian Pacific Islanders at ASU
The organization hosts its signature event, CultureFest, annually at the beginning of April. The event hosts performances by the coalition's member organizations and nationally recognized AAPI headliners.
Rai Andaya, a senior studying marketing and AAPASC's director of marketing, said aura was the theme of this year's Culture Fest. They chose this theme to create a space for everyone and emphasize connections throughout the Pan-Asian and Pacific Islander community.
"The common denominator is that we as Asian Pacific Islanders come from a rich cultural background, and we want to meld that together," Andaya said.
READ MORE: How CultureFest uplifts Asian and Asian Pacific American students, culture on campus
It is important that the organization creates a space for younger students to share their culture and not feel excluded, Andaya said.
Ethan Yau, a freshman studying accountancy and an intern at AAPASC, said he has felt very welcomed in the organization as an Asian international student.
"AAPASC is an organization that really supports anyone, no matter your background, or where you came from, or your own beliefs," Yau said. "So I feel like that's very powerful, that it's a community that really supports just anyone."
Edited by Natalia Rodriguez, Jack McCarthy, Emilio Alvarado and Ellis Preston.
Reach the reporter at dbell39@asu.edu and follow @dhemibell on X.
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Dhemi Bell is a reporter on the community and culture desk and is in her second semester at The State Press.
