History in the Making: Lao Americans & APA Heritage Month
Happy Asian-Pacific Islander American Heritage Month (APAHM) to all of Little Laos on the Prairie’s readers! What started as Asian-Pacific Heritage Week after President Carter signed House Joint Resolution 1007 in 1978 has since grown into a full month that explores, promotes, and displays Asian American culture, history, and social engagement across the US. Asian Pacific American Heritage Month is a time that grants many Asian Americans opportunities to hear about histories that they are generally left invisible otherwise. During APAHM, programs and events showcase the legacies of many notable Asian Americans. These legacies include those of Chinese and Japanese American activists who marched alongside the Black Panther Party in the 1960’s. Of the Filipino American farm-workers who organized alongside Cesar Chavez and forever changed the face of the US Labor Movement. Of the Chinese Americans who helped build the Transcontinental Railroad. Of Lucy Liu, John Cho, and Kal Penn, who made some of the first critical advances of Asian Americans in Hollywood. Of Kamala Harris, who became the first woman, the first Jamaican American, …