We’re Celebrating Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month at RIT! | April 2023
Yes, you’re right! Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month “officially” begins May 1st, but we’re celebrating early since the semester comes to a close in May.
The Division of Diversity and Inclusion’s kickoff last week in Fireside Lounge included a number of interactive stations where you could play Asian cultural games, draw Anime and color in culturally relevant coloring books and the Wallace Library Archive staff helped people record personal narratives about their Asian and Asian American experiences at RIT.
From an off-site Asian Food Tour to the chance to view and discuss Asian American films, there’s been a lot to do in just the first week and the celebration continues. Here’s a look at what’s happening the rest of the month:
April 13: Trans/Migrations: Journeys in Gender, Art, Architecture and Comics, 3:30-5pm in Liberal Arts Hall 1251, Stan McKenzie Commons. ASL interpreters must be requested via Access Services. Bishakh Som, a 2021 Lambda Literary Award winner for Best LGBTQ Comics, has focused their work on being trans and South Asian while expanding the vocabulary of comics and its formal boundaries.
April 14: Sandeep Das and HUM Ensemble, 7:30-9pm in Ingle Auditorium. ASL interpreters must be requested via Access Services. Grammy-winning Tabla Maestro Sandeep Das brings the renowned HUM Ensemble to RIT for Delhi to Shiraz, a musical celebration of the shared heritage of India and Persia.
April 19: The AAPI Mixer, 6pm-8pm in Gracie's dining hall located in Grace Watson Hall. The Division of Diversity and Inclusion will host a new tradition of gathering and celebrating our East Asian, South Asian, Asian American and Pacific Islander staff, students, faculty and alumni together for food, networking and conversation. ASL interpreters have been requested. Register via RIT Events.
Sponsors for specific Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month events vary but include the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Department of History, Department of Modern Languages and Cultures, Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program and Diversity Education.
Be sure to check your email each week for the Division of Diversity and Inclusion’s Asian American Pacific Islander Difference Maker Series. This month we feature three outstanding RIT faculty and staff members you should know.