Celebrated nationally in May, Syracuse University honors Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month in April while the campus community is still together. Join in on an exciting lineup of events hosted by the Office of Multicultural Affairs (OMA), student organizations and other departments across campus! Here is just a handful of ways to partake in the festivities:
1. Commemorate history in the making.
Kick back and enjoy free food at the AAPI Heritage Month Kickoff on Tuesday, April 2 at 6 p.m. in Bird Library 114. Watch a student-made documentary that explores the Denny’s Incident that occurred on April 11, 1997, and how it’s shaped student activism today. Following a discussion of this film, an Anti-Asian Hate Crime Exhibit of this incident will be on display in Bird Library for the month of April.
2. Expand career horizons.
On Tuesday, April 9 at 6 p.m. in Bird Library 114, OMA and the Office of Multicultural Advancement will be hosting its annual “Paving the Way Alumni Speaker Series” featuring Leo Wong ‘14, an accomplished graduate with a B.S. in Advertising from Newhouse. Learn how one Syracuse star went on to work at renowned advertising agencies such as Droga5, McCann Worldgroup, and Digitas in roles ranging from account management to diversity and inclusion.
3. Meet up-and-coming entertainers.
What does the Comedy Central stand-up comedian Joel Kim Booster, Crazy Rich Asians actor Ronny Chieng and Canadian television sitcom lead Simu Liu have in common? They’ll all be in Syracuse to share laughs and a great time with the community! Catch the celebrities up close at the AAPI Heritage Month Commemorative Event (Thursday, April 11 at 7 p.m. in Slocum 214), the Multicultural Greek Council’s Cultural Experience program (Saturday, April 13 at 5 pm in Watson Theater) and Asian Students In America’s Mr. Asia Male Pageant (Friday, April 19 at 7 p.m. in Grant Auditorium).
4. Preserve cultural heritage.
The South Asian American Digital Archive is hosting two back-to-back workshops at 4 pm on Tuesday, April 23 and 10 a.m. on Wednesday, April 24 in Bird Library 114 to educate community members in exploring archives as enablers of political urgency. Through an interactive workshop format, organizers will illustrate possibilities for archival disruption, and galvanize archivists to embrace activism during times of social crisis.
5. Build solidarity across communities.
Geena Rocero—Filipino American model, producer, and transgender advocate—will be delivering this year’s commemorative keynote address for Trans Week of Liberation on Thursday, March 28 at 7:30 p.m. in Slocum Hall 214. The Filipino Student Association will also host a program dedicated to dismantling colonial structures in mainstream American culture on Thursday, April 4 at 6 p.m. in Hall of Languages 500.
The full AAPI Heritage Month events calendar is available on the Office of Multicultural Affairs website, and live updates will be shared using the #CuseAAPIHM hashtag across social media.
Written by Bryan Dosono, PhD candidate School of Information Studies and Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month Planning Committee Co-Chair