Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage (AAPI) Month is an annual celebration that recognizes the historical and cultural contributions of people of Asian and Pacific Islander descent to the United States. AAPI Heritage Month 2025 takes place from Thursday, May 1 to Saturday, May 31.
- Origins of AAPI Heritage Month
The effort to officially recognize Asian American and Pacific Islander contributions to the United States began in the late 1970s, and took over 10 years to make it a permanent month-long celebration.
In 1977, New York representative Frank Horton introduced House Joint Resolution 540, which proposed proclaiming the first 10 days of May as Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week. Hawaii Senator Daniel Inouye introduced a similar joint resolution the same year. When the resolutions did not pass, representative Horton introduced House Joint Resolution 1007 the following year, which requested the president to proclaim a week during the first 10 days of May starting in 1979, including May 7 and 10, as Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week.
After the House and the Senate passed the Resolution, President Jimmy Carter signed it into Public Law 95-419 on October 5, 1978. From 1980 to 1990, each president passed annual proclamations for Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week. In 1990, Congress expanded the observance from a week to a month. May was annually designated as Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month in 1992 under the George H. W. Bush administration with the passing of Public Law 102-450. Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month was renamed as AAPI Heritage Month in 2009. (source: History.com)
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NOTE: On January 20, 2025, President Donald Trump revoked Executive Order 14031, which had re-established the Initiative under the Biden Administration, leading to WHIAANHPI's closure.