List of Resources and Activities to Learn More About the API Community

For APAH month, members of the BC API employee affinity group have put together a list of resources and activities to learn more about the API community. Please feel free to share these with your students, classes, family and community.

  1. Watch the upcoming PBS  two-part documentary about the Asian American community in this country on May 11, Monday, 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. and  May 12, Tuesday, 5 p.m. 8 p.m.: https://caamedia.org/blog/2020/04/13/asian-americans-documentary-series-will-broadcast-on-pbs-in-may/.
  2. Attend David Neiwert’s virtual presentation on May 15th, Friday, 1:00 p.m., “Strawberry Days: How Internment Destroyed a Japanese American Community.” https://studentweb.bellevuecollege.edu/apisa/2020/04/30/david-niewert-strawberry-days/
  3. Read an API publication, such as the International Examiner
  4. Read a book by an Asian American author to your children or for yourself. Please contact Nan Ma for the list: Nan.Ma@bellevuecollege.edu
  5. Support community businesses and restaurants in the International District 
  6. Encourage your students to complete the 2020 Census
  7. Participate in Walk for Rice to fight hunger in the API community
  8. Check out the Smithsonian’s Asian Pacific American Museum’s virtual exhibit “A Day in the Life of Asian Pacific America” and other virtual experiences.
  9. Follow the National Gallery of Art on Pinterest to see works of Asian American artists (https://www.pinterest.com/ngadc/works-by-asian-american-artists-from-the-collectio/)
  10. Support local PI LGBTQI communities
  11. Participate in the Virtual Pride ASIA Fest (May 24, 12-2pm)
  12. Support Hmong and Mien flower shop owners at Pike Place Market – Facebook / Form (order by May 6 to make it in time for Mother’s day) / Website
  13. When it reopens, visit the Wing Luke Asian Museum in the International District: https://www.wingluke.org/. Digital Wing Luke Museum https://digitalwingluke.org/
  14. Consider participating in the Minidoka Pilgrimage to visit Minidoka, where Japanese Americans from the Pacific Northwest were incarcerated during World War II: https://www.minidokapilgrimage.org/
  15. Virtually explore our national parks and places related to the history of our API ancestors. https://www.nps.gov/subjects/aapiheritage/places.htm
  16. Watch an API film. For example, The Half of It is released on Netflix tomorrow, May 1. The director Alice Wu also directed the critically acclaimed Saving Face in 2004, which is available on Vudu, Amazon Prime, YouTube.
  17. Sundown May 23-Sundown May 24 is Eid al-Fitr, the end of Ramadan. There are no events currently scheduled due to COVID-19, but even just reaching out to Muslim families to wish them Eid Mubarak, or donating to MAPS (Muslim Association of Puget Sound) for Eid gifts and dinner for needy families.
  18. Watch The Namesake, which captures much of the Indian-American experience (and has the wonderful late Irrfan Khan L )(currently available on Prime for a rental fee).
  19. Watch The Problem with Apu, which explores the issues with Indian-American representation in media (currently available on Prime for a fee)
  20. Watch any Bollywood, Kollywood, Tollywood film – there are tons on Netflix and Prime
  21. Donate to an API organization on Give Big Day (May 5-6)
  22. Support API Chaya, which supports survivors of DV in the API community
  23. Tasveer will be re-showing the 2020 Yoni Ki Baat (Vagina Monologues) on May 10 & 11. This is a great opportunity to hear stories from South Asian women.  
  24. Join API Heritage Month Celebration Livestream in the Seattle Center on Sun, May 3 from 12-1 pm (facebook.com/apiheritage/)
  25. Livestream the PBS docuseries on the Asian American community on May 11 & 12 (https://www.pbs.org/asianamericans)

This list was created by Nora Lance, Pavy Thao, Belle Nishioka, Nan Ma, and Leslie Lum.