Asian Pacific American Heritage Month is celebrated nationally during the month of May to commemorate the first immigrants who came from Japan on May 7, 1843. This month is celebrated in April at the University of Iowa and pays tribute to the contributions that generations of Asian and Pacific Islanders have made to American history, society, and culture.

2023 Theme

he theme for APAHM this year is “No Longer Invisible”. This theme was created by our friend, Jin Chang, who is also an archivist and a student at the University of Iowa. Jin has been working closely with the APACC to preserve the stories of the Asian American community within Iowa City and at the University of Iowa.  

"No Longer Invisible” is a tribute to the start of it all -- Twenty-four years ago, Dr. Dau-Shen Ju, a former counselor in the University Counseling Center, organized a talk titled, “Asian Americans: Am I Invisible?” which highlighted the lack of resources for Asian American students on campus. This presentation was the spark to Asian student organizing in 1998. The students who attended this presentation became a crucial part towards advocating for support in the AAPI community, and ultimately was the driving force towards the creation of the APACC. Without this presentation and student activism, the APACC would not be here celebrating its 20th anniversary today. 

2023 APAHM and 20th Anniversary

With this current theme, we are hosting a series of events that highlight and celebrate identities and spread awareness on social issues within the Asian and Asian American diaspora. For our 20th anniversary, we wanted to start some new events and projects including: our first APAHM Magazine, APAHM Concert, and APAHM Gala. We also wanted to celebrate our alumni through our Alumni Brunch and Panel. We will be kicking off our new events during this Alumni weekend, March 31st-April 1st.

In addition to these new events, we also will be hosting our annual series of events that center social justice, community building, and identity development. Please check out our media to find more information!

APAHM Media

To see updates about our events, as well as potential location changes and announcements, we strongly encourage you all to follow us on social media on Instagram and Facebook!

Additionally, click on this link for our Zoom backgrounds for APAHM.

APAHM and 20th Anniversary Contributions and Sponsors

Typically, the APACC APAHM Celebration is planned by the APACC Staff (one professional staff and 5-7 student staffers). With this big anniversary and institutional level event, we extended our planning to University of Iowa students, staff, and faculty, as well as all community members within Iowa City. This year is led by two Executive Directors that oversee the execution of this year’s celebration. They are supported by the MISSE team, 6 committee directors (our APACC student staff), and 10 committee members. We are extremely grateful for our APAHM planning team for their hard work and dedication during this planning process!

APAHM Committee

This celebration also would not have been possible without our amazing sponsors! These sponsors helped support us financially and through in kind donations. We are extremely grateful for these contributions, and we hope to continue collaborations with them outside of this sponsorship! Because of this sponsorship, we were able to fund our magazine, gala, concert, and alumni panel! We hope in the future we can continue these events as well.

APAHM 2023 Sponsors

 

Upcoming Events

APACC's APAHM Kickoff Event promotional image

APACC's APAHM Kickoff Event

Friday, March 31, 2023 12:00pm to 2:00pm
Asian Pacific American Cultural Center
The Asian Pacific American Cultural Center will be kicking off their first event for Asian Pacific American Heritage Month on March 31! Please join us as we will be providing lunch, giving tours, and releasing our FIRST APAHM Magazine!
APACC's APAHM Concert promotional image

APACC's APAHM Concert

Friday, March 31, 2023 7:00pm to 10:00pm
The APACC will be hosting it's first concert, On March 31 at the James Theater. This is a free entry event! Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Special artists include ELI, Mars Hojilla, Pictoria Vark, and Justin Park!
APACC's Alumni Brunch promotional image

APACC's Alumni Brunch

Saturday, April 1, 2023 11:00am to 12:00pm
Asian Pacific American Cultural Center
APACC will be providing a Brunch for students and alumni before the Alumni Panel. This is open to everybody that is interested in getting to know our alumni!
Stories of the LatinAsian Diaspora promotional image

Stories of the LatinAsian Diaspora

Thursday, April 13, 2023 7:00pm to 8:30pm
Asian Pacific American Cultural Center
Did you know that there was a large Chinese population that lived in a community underground in Mexicali, Mexico? Or that there are estimated to be over 6 million people of Asian descent who live in Latin America? Come join APACC and LNACC in learning how this came to be.
Middle East or West Asia? promotional image

Middle East or West Asia?

Friday, April 14, 2023 5:00pm to 6:30pm
Asian Pacific American Cultural Center
Come join us in welcoming the Middle Eastern and North African Student Association here at the APACC!! We would love to all share space together and talk about the Middle Eastern identity. Help us become an ever-improving home away from home. :)
Asian Accents in Comedy promotional image

Asian Accents in Comedy

Monday, April 17, 2023 6:00pm to 7:30pm
Asian Pacific American Cultural Center
Come discuss Asian accents in media and its use for comedic effect. We will talk about instances where the use of the accent is respectful and relevant vs. when it is used to further stereotypes.
Black and Asian Solidarity promotional image

Black and Asian Solidarity

Wednesday, April 19, 2023 6:30pm to 8:00pm
Asian Pacific American Cultural Center
The purpose of this event is to educate folks about the intersections of Black and Asian activism, as well as to uplift and center Black students when talking about Asian activism.
Billie and Emma Film Screening and Discussion  promotional image

Billie and Emma Film Screening and Discussion

Friday, April 21, 2023 7:00pm to 10:00pm
Asian Pacific American Cultural Center
The APACC will be doing a film screening of Billie and Emma.
 APACC Shadow Puppet Performance: The Legend of the White Snake promotional image

APACC Shadow Puppet Performance: The Legend of the White Snake

Saturday, April 22, 2023 10:30am
Iowa City Public Library
In celebration of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, in Iowa City Public Library's family storytime, the Asian Pacific American Cultural Center will bring the classic puppet show “Legend of the White Snake,”: a Chinese legend centered around a story between a man named Xu Xian and a snake spirit named Bai Suzhen. Join us to discover the power of Asian folk culture as you enjoy the fascinating show.
Environmental Justice for Indigenous Lands promotional image

Environmental Justice for Indigenous Lands

Tuesday, April 25, 2023 5:30pm to 7:00pm
Asian Pacific American Cultural Center
Considering Earth Day coming up, let’s learn about Pacific Islander and Native American practices that show care for the Earth. Help us implement some of these practices at the APACC and see what you can do in your own life!

Displaying events tagged as "Asian Pacific American Heritage Month"