Asian Heritage Issue
Page 14 n THE ASIAN REPORTER
May 2, 2022
Heritage Month
events & screenings
Organizations and others are holding events in
celebration of Heritage Month. Some activities include:
“Oregon’s Nikkei: An American Story of Resilience”
Currently on view, 11am-3pm (Fri-Sun), Japanese American Museum of Oregon at the Naito
Center (411 NW Flanders St, Portland). View “Oregon’s Nikkei: An American Story of Resilience,”
an exhibit that highlights the discrimination, resilience, and identity of the Japanese-American
community in Oregon. The display begins in rural Oregon and the streets of Portland’s Japantown
where Japanese immigrants embraced American ideals. What they built was abruptly taken away
during World War II when people of Japanese descent were incarcerated in American internment
camps. From early immigration through current day, the exhibit explores the Japanese-American
experience and includes the rebuilding of communities and the ongoing fight for justice. For info, or
to purchase tickets, call (503) 224-1458 or visit <www.jamo.org>.
“Beyond the Gate: A Tale of Portland’s Historic Chinatowns”
Currently on view, 11am-3pm (Fri-Sun), Portland Chinatown Museum (127 NW Third Ave,
Portland). View “Beyond the Gate: A Tale of Portland’s Historic Chinatowns,” a display of rare
objects such as Chinese opera costumes, theatrical sets, bilingual text, audio-visual media, and
more that tell a sprawling transnational story of contact and trade between China and the west,
focusing on Portland’s Old Chinatown (1850-1905) and New Chinatown (1905-1950). For info, or to
purchase tickets, call (503) 224-0008 or visit <www.portlandchinatownmuseum.org>.
Roberta Wong: “Vincent”
Currently on view, 11am-3pm (Fri-Sun), Portland Chinatown Museum (127 NW Third Ave,
Portland). View “Vincent,” a display by Roberta Wong in memory of Vincent Chin, who was
murdered in 1982 in Detroit. The art installation was first on view in 2018 as part of the museum’s
“Descendent Threads” exhibit. For info, or to purchase tickets, call (503) 224-0008 or visit
<www.portlandchinatownmuseum.org>.
Cambodian Cultural Museum and Killing Fields Memorial
Currently on view, 10am-5pm (Wed-Sun), Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American
Experience (719 S King St, Seattle). View the Cambodian Killing Fields Memorial exhibit, a
collection of photographs and artwork that testifies to the atrocities of the Khmer Rouge holocaust
and honors the rich, enduring culture of the Cambodian people. For info, or to purchase tickets, call
(206) 623-5124 or visit <www.wingluke.org>.
“Be/Longing: Contemporary Asian Art”
Currently on view, 10am-5pm (Fri-Sun), Seattle Asian Art Museum (1400 E Prospect St, in
Volunteer Park, Seattle). View “Be/Longing: Contemporary Asian Art,” an exhibit featuring 12
artists who were born in different parts of Asia — Azerbaijan, Iran, India, Thailand, China, Korea,
and Japan — and have all spent time or moved outside of Asia. Their experiences as both insiders
and outsiders have compelled them to explore their Asian heritage from multiple perspectives.
Their works, as a result, are at once Asian and global, and comment on fundamental concerns of who
we are and where we belong. For info, call (206) 654-3100 or visit <www.seattleartmuseum.org>.
“Gerard Tsutakawa: Stories Shaped In Bronze”
Through May 8, 10am-5pm (Wed-Sun), Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American
Experience (719 S King St, Seattle). View “Gerard Tsutakawa: Stories Shaped In Bronze,” an
exhibit exploring the inspiration, design, and fabrication process of public sculptures created by
Seattle artist Gerard Tsutakawa. For info, or to purchase tickets, call (206) 623-5124 or visit
<www.wingluke.org>.
“Gifts from Japan: A Horticultural Tale Told through Botanical Art”
Through July 4, 10am-5:30pm (Wed-Mon), Portland Japanese Garden (611 SW Kingston Ave,
Portland). View “Gifts from Japan: A Horticultural Tale Told through Botanical Art,” a display
featuring a selection of botanical illustrations from The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and
Botanical Gardens, the Botanical Artists Guild of Southern California, and guest botanical artists
from Japan. The exhibit illuminates the unique origin stories of many flowers that are now widely
presumed as native to the United States. The artworks present a window into the Japanese-
American experience, as immigrant families cultivated gardens and helped naturalize well-known
flowers such as orchids, camellias, and irises. For info, or to purchase tickets, call (503) 223-1321 or
visit <www.japanesegarden.com>.
“Embodied Change: South Asian Art Across Time”
Through July 10, 10am-5pm (Fri-Sun), Seattle Asian Art Museum (1400 E Prospect St, in
Volunteer Park, Seattle). View “Embodied Change: South Asian Art Across Time,” an exhibit
featuring 16 artists. Spanning a period from the third millennium B.C.E. to today, the works in the
display offer metamorphic and compelling images of the human body. Many of the artists —
including Adeela Suleman, Humaira Abid, Naiza Khan, and Malavika Rajnarayan, among others
— utilize female and feminized forms in a myriad of ways: as an object of veneration, as a mode of
self-representation, and to question the safety of public spaces. For info, call (206) 654-3100 or visit
<www.seattleartmuseum.org>.
“Na Omi Judy Shintani: Dream Refuge for Children Imprisoned”
Through Sep 4, 11am-3pm (Fri-Sun), Japanese American Museum of Oregon at the Naito Center
(411 NW Flanders St, Portland). View “Na Omi Judy Shintani: Dream Refuge for Children
Imprisoned,” an installation exploring the trauma experienced by children who have been
incarcerated. For the display, Shintani has arranged cots, life-sized drawings of children, space
blankets, and woven fabrics into a circular formation in the museum, creating a sacred space for
listening to the stories of those imprisoned. The piece draws parallels between Japanese-American
children held during World War II, Native-American children who were denied their culture at
Continued on page 15
Give
blood.
A Proclamation on Asian American,
Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander
Heritage Month, 2022
During Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage
Month, our Nation recognizes the innumerable contributions, vibrant cultures,
and rich heritage of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders
(AA and NHPIs). As some of the fastest-growing racial and ethnic groups in the
Nation, AA and NHPI communities represent a multitude of ethnicities,
languages, and experiences that enrich America and strengthen our Union.
AA and NHPIs have long played an essential role in writing the American
story. From serving our country in uniform, advocating for civil rights, starting
new businesses, and winning Olympic medals, the contributions of the AA and
NHPI community touch the lives of Americans every day. AA and NHPIs serve
with distinction at the highest levels of Federal, State, and local government. I
am proud to have Vice President Kamala Harris, the first person of South Asian
descent to serve as Vice President, and Katherine Tai, the first Asian American
United States Trade Representative, in my Administration.
As we celebrate AA and NHPI communities, we must also redouble our
commitment to combatting the surge of anti-Asian hate crimes. The First Lady
and I shared the Nation’s outrage as we witnessed these crimes increase by 339
percent last year compared to the year before in cities across America. Many
other incidents of anti-Asian bias, xenophobia, and harassment that surfaced
throughout the COVID-19 pandemic were not even reported. We cannot allow
these horrific acts to continue threatening the safety of AA and NHPI Americans
— especially women, girls, and the elderly. These acts are wrong; they are
un-American; and they must stop.
In my first week in office, I directed all executive departments and agencies to
combat xenophobia, hate, and discrimination against AA and NHPI
communities. I also signed into law last May the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act to
provide law enforcement with resources to identify, investigate, and report hate
crimes and ensure that hate crimes information is more accessible to AA and
NHPI communities.
As we work to ensure that hatred has no safe harbor in America’s future, we
must confront shameful chapters in our history. That is why, for example, I
signed into law the Amache National Historic Site Act — to memorialize the
10,000 Japanese Americans who were unjustly imprisoned at Amache during
World War II. And we will continue to root out racial injustices of our past and
advance equity for all Americans as we move forward.
Toward that aim, my Administration is making long-overdue investments in
AA and NHPI communities. I reestablished and expanded the President’s
Advisory Commission and the White House Initiative on Asian Americans,
Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders. The American Rescue Plan helped
reduce poverty among AA and NHPI families by approximately 26 percent. We
have increased access to capital, training, and counselling for AA and NHPI
entrepreneurs so their businesses can thrive. We are also working to ensure that
healthcare resources are available to AA and NHPI communities. And we are
rebuilding our immigration system so everyone is treated fairly and humanely
— including AA and NHPI communities.
This month, we celebrate our fellow Americans from AA and NHPI
communities and pay tribute to all they have done to help fulfill the promise of
America for all. Together, let us recommit ourselves to building a country in
which every American — regardless of who they are, where they come from, or
what they look like — has an equal opportunity to thrive.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United
States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and
the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim May 2022 as Asian American,
Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. I call upon all
Americans to learn more about the history of AA and NHPIs, and to observe this
month with appropriate programs and activities.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-ninth day
of April, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-two, and of the Inde-
pendence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-sixth.
— JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.
Become an online reader!
To schedule a blood
donation call
1-800-G IVE-LIFE or
visit HelpSaveALife.org.
Visit <www.asianreporter.com> and click on the
“Online Paper (PDF)” link to download our last two issues.