Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month 2025

folklore_aapihm25.png

The Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month 2025 logo was designed by Oscar Chun '28
 

Each May, the Office of Pluralism and Leadership (OPAL) works with a student planning committee to host Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month (AAPIHM), a series of events focusing on Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) history, culture, and experiences. We aim to highlight stories from AAPI members who are less represented within the community, explore how one defines their own identities, and celebrate the unique beauty that comes from our holistic experiences. This year, the AAPIHM Student Planning Committee is hosting a variety of programs focusing on the theme of Folk/Lore.

Folk/Lore signifies our focus on the AAPI community at Dartmouth as a strong, expansive, and proud community on campus (Folk), while maintaining an emphasis on the stories, experiences, celebrations, and histories of the AAPI diaspora (Lore). We pay homage to the traditions, stories, and people who came before us, while also seeking to fervently push forward as a community. Folk/Lore seeks to recognize the expansiveness of the AAPI community - from transnational experience, traditional stories and mythology, to the ever-evolving Asian American culture and identities – and to the folklore that continues to develop each day. We emphasize that to be Asian and Asian American is, as Sojin Kim (2014) explains, a "disparate mash-up of behaviors and forms": A combination of cultural experiences, stories, histories, and interests that create the composite AAPI identity; an identity transcending borders. During AAPIHM, we urge the Dartmouth community to lean into this disparate, fluid nature, and expand our understandings of what it means to be AAPI, notably by hearing and emphasizing the stories of those on the margins within our community. We aspire for Folk/Lore to become another moment in our collective AAPI story.
 

More information for each event provided below

aapihm_calendar_34_x_22_in_1.png

aapihm_film_series.png

In collaboration with the Hopkins Center for the Arts
April 25 - May 31
Loew Auditorium, Black Family Visual Arts Center
$5+ unless otherwise noted

The Office of Pluralism and Leadership and the AAPIHM Student Planning Committee, in partnership with The Hopkins Center for the Arts, has a month of films to share with the Dartmouth community!

Friday, April 25 | 7:00 pm – Mickey 17
Sunday, April 27 | 4:30 pm – No Other Land
Wednesday, April 30 | 7:00 pm – Bazodee (free!)
Sunday, May 4 | 2:00 pm – We Were Dangerous
Sunday, May 11 | 2:00 pm – Look Back (with AAPI student short films)
Thurs. May 22 | 7:00 pm – Bitter Melon (free!)
Saturday, May 31 | 7:00 pm – The Wedding Banquet

Free tickets are available for the AAPIHM Film Series!
Email pan.asian.community@dartmouth.edu to request yours; tickets are distributed on a first come first serve basis.

Learn more about each film at http://dartgo.org/aapihmfilms

pasa_-_bazodee_movie_night_.png

Wednesday, April 30
6:00 pm pre-screening snacks & discussion | Nearburg Forum
7:00 pm film start | Loew Auditorium

Set in beautiful Trinidad and Tobago, Bazodee is a Bollywood-style Caribbean musical romantic comedy about being true to yourself and honest in love at all costs.

Enjoy snacks and conversation at the pre-screening, then head straight to the film! This screening is free of charge and a collaboration between the Caribbean Carnival and AAPIHM Student Planning Committees.

Presented by Hōkūpaʻa
Friday, May 1 | 2:00 pm
Collis Common Ground

Come join Hōkūpaʻa in celebration of lei day! String flower lei and eat yummy food while listening to the sounds of the Pacific!

Friday, May 1 | 8:00 pm
Kemeny Courtyard

Raaz, along with The Breakfast Club, Street Soul, Fusion, Dartmouth Classical Ballet Theater (DCBT), Soyeya, Sheba, and Sugarplum, are back to perform together during the annual spring dance showcase!
 

Friday, May 2 | 5:00 pm
Mass Row

We're creating a Night Market on Mass Row, featuring food and drinks from across the AAPI diaspora and exclusive AAPIHM merchandise, including t-shirts, stickers, and bandanas!

Did we mention there's a live DJ? Culturally relevant soundtracks provided by Anh-Ton Nguyen '26, AAPIHM Student Planning Committee Co-Chair!

Stop by to celebrate the start of Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month Planning Committee's events!

Sunday, May 4 | 12:00 noon
Collis Patio

The Korean Student Association and Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated - Theta Zeta Chapter are back with their annual Seoul Food event, honoring Black and Asian solidarity during the civil rights era and beyond!

aapihm25_zaina_arafat.png

Fireside Chat with Zaina Arafat
Tuesday, May 6 | 7:00 pm
Collis Common Ground
Livestream on YouTube: http://dartgo.org/aapihm25-zainaarafat

Book Reading: You Exist Too Much
Wednesday, May 7 | 7:00 pm
Still North Books and Bar
3 Allen Street, Hanover
Dartmouth students receive a complimentary non-alcoholic beverage with their Dartmouth ID

Join the AAPIHM 2025 Student Planning Committee in welcoming to campus Zaina Arafat, author of You Exist Too Much (Catapult, 2020)! Two nights, two chances to ask questions, meet and mingle, and get your book signed!
 
Both events are free and open to the public. Free copies of You Exist Too Much will be given to the first 50 Dartmouth students in attendance of each event (Dartmouth ID required). Additional copies available for purchase on site from Still North Books.

Zaina Arafat is an LGBTQ Arab-American fiction and nonfiction writer. She is the author of the novel, You Exist Too Much (Catapult, 2020), which won a 2021 Lambda Literary Award and was named Roxane Gay's favorite book of 2020. Her stories and essays have appeared in publications including The New York Times, Granta, The Believer, Virginia Quarterly Review, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, Harper's Bazaar, BuzzFeed, VICE, Guernica, Literary Hub and NPR. In recognition of her work, she was awarded the Arab Women/Migrants from the Middle East fellowship at Jack Jones Literary Arts and named a Champion of Pride by The Advocate.

As an editor, she curated a portfolio of prose and poetry in response to the travel ban, as well as a Q & A series with Muslim writers for The Margins. She also served as the managing editor of VinePair, the largest online publication on wine news and culture, and as the culture editor for Xtra Magazine, an LGBTQ+-focused publication.

In an interview, Arafat was asked about things white people don't understand about being a queer person of color: "I think it could be easy for a white reader to think, "What's the big deal about being queer in 2020?" But it still is a big deal to many people of color. It can also be difficult for some communities to accept queerness because they see it as a further way of being marginalized, and out of love and concern they don't want members within their community to be more marginalized than they already are."

Arafat teaches creative writing at Barnard College. She has also taught at the University of Iowa, The School of the New York Times, the International Writing Program and Sackett Street Writers, as well as abroad in Jordan, Egypt and Eritrea, where she taught creative writing as part of a U.S. State Department/International Writing Program delegation. She has also led workshops for dreamers and DACA recipients through the Writer's Guild Initiative.  She holds an M.F.A. from Iowa and an M.A. from Columbia University. She lives in Brooklyn and is currently at work on a collection of essays. 

luau_hokupaa.png

Presented by Hokūpaʻa
Sunday, May 11 | 12:00 noon
Baker Lawn (rain location: West Gym in Lewinstein Athletic Center)

This year's luau theme celebrates the various lei of the Pacific. From the beloved wili style of lei poʻo, to the unique kui poepoe style worn along the chest, lei are found with every type of flower and foliage found across our flourishing paradise. Hōkūpaʻa, in our 2025 lūʻau, seeks to honor the connection we share with each other, through lei.

Note: Lūʻau is free, but the first 600 will receive food. Food tickets are first come, first served and tickets are obtained at the check-in tables.

choe_uram_generalphoto.jpg

In collaboration with the Hood Museum of Art
Wednesday, May 14 | 2:00 pm
Hood Museum

Join an artist talk with Choe U-Ram, a "Korean contemporary artist [who] has sought to establish a meaningful connection between machinery and art, imbuing his kinetic sculptures with history, narrative, and even personality."

Limited space! Email pan.asian.community@dartmouth.edu if interested in attending.

womeninreligion.png

In collaboration with OPAL Women and Gender Advising and The William Jewett Tucker Center
Wednesday, May 14 | 4:30 pm
Tucker Center

Come join us for our first fireside chat of the Women in Religion series, featuring Dr. Soyoung Suh. Dr. Suh is the advisor to the Christian organization Logos Community and Associate Professor of History and Middle Eastern Studies.

The Women in Religion series highlights the works, understandings, and empowerment that some women experience in religion. The significance of this program is it provides space for participants to learn from and engage with the overlap of women and faith as they navigate a marginalized identity or identities.

aafutures_panel.png

in collaboration with the Dartmouth Asian American Studies Collective (DAASC)
Tuesday, May 20 | 5:00 pm
Shabazz Mural Room

Hear from faculty members Dr. Eng-Beng Lim, Dr. Jodi Kim, and Dr. Josephine Ong in this collaborative Dartmouth Asian American Studies Collective and AAPIHM event, with sponsorship from Allen House!
 

Presented by the Thai Student Association
Friday, May 23 | 3:00PM
Mass Row

Every year, in celebration of the Thai New Year Festival – Songkran – we hope to bring the spirit of this vibrant tradition to campus by hosting a festive water fight. Songkran is widely known for its joyful water-splashing activities, symbolizing cleansing, renewal, and the welcoming of a fresh start.

pacculturenight.png

Friday, May 23 | 5:00 pm
Collis Common Ground

Inspired by the Dartmouth Asian Organization's (DAO) Culture Nights, the AAPIHM Pan Asian Community Culture Night highlights the expansiveness of Pan Asian culture and performance on Dartmouth's campus. Within the theme of Folk/Lore, we seek to pay homage and expand on previous Culture Nights, and discuss what represents Pan Asian culture on Dartmouth's campus today.

We welcome ALL students who feel connected to Pan Asian culture to perform at the Pan Asian Community Culture Night!

aapihm25_closing_karaoke.png

in collabroation with Collis After Dark
Friday, May 30 | 8:00 pm
One Wheelock

Join us for AAPIHM's closing event for a late night of singing, celebration, dumplings, and raffle prizes! Bring your (hopefully completed) sticker book for a chance to win super special prizes, too!

aapihm_calendar_34_x_22_in.png

• Co-Chair: Angelica '28
• Co-Chair: Anh-Ton Nguyen '26
• Alex Kim '28
• Angela Zhang '28
• Crystal Ye '27
• Grace Chang '28
• Ian Park '28
• James Li '28,
• Jessica Yu '25
• Justice Arai '28
• Lauren Zhu '27
• Lina Kim '28
• Oscar Chun '28
• Phoom Sirimangklanurak '28
• Ryan Zheng '28
• Vincent Castillo '28

Thank you to our sponsors: Office of Pluralism and Leadership (OPAL), Institutional Diversity and Equity (IDE), Special Programs and Events Committee (SPEC), Hopkins Center for the Arts, Leslie Center for the Humanities, Collis Center for Student Involvement, Still North Books and Bar, Allen House, Thayer School of Engineering, Tuck School of Business, School House, South House, Student Wellness Center, History Department, Department of Theater, Philosophy Department.