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Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month at Sendero

05/31/2022

by Kathryn Harrington and Jennica Shah

AAPI Month began in 1978 as a time to commemorate and celebrate the achievements, influence, and contributions of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) throughout the United States. Initially designated as a week of celebration each May, Congress passed a resolution in 1990 to expand the observance to the full month of May.

Throughout May, employees at Sendero engaged in conversations and learning opportunities that shed light on the experience of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the professional world. In addition, Sendero’s DEI Committee helped facilitate conversations to dispel stigmas and myths that impact these communities daily.

Analyst Kathryn Harrington and Associate Jennica Shah reflect on the importance of AAPI Month in Sendero’s latest blog post:

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What is Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Month?

The achievements, challenges, and people of the AAPI community are an integral part of American history and cultural landscape. Although these stories aren’t commonly taught, AAPI Month, celebrated annually during May, is an opportunity for all of us to:

• Learn and remember AAPI history
• Acknowledge the challenges faced by the AAPI community in the past and the present
• Appreciate the contributions AAPI have made to American culture and society
• Celebrate the diversity that lies within the AAPI community

Diversity within the AAPI community

The term AAPI, more widely recognized within the last decade, is used primarily to identify a major racial group within the United States, consisting of over 24 million people. While it is important to recognize the AAPI community as a significant, influential group within the United States, it is also important to acknowledge the diversity that lies within it.

AAPI includes people and cultures from the entire Asian continent (including but not limited to East, Southeast, and South Asia), the Pacific Islands (Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia), as well as the Hawaiian Islands. The communities that fall under the term AAPI have ties to over 10 different religions, 100 ethnic groups, and 2000 languages.

As we celebrate AAPI Month, we must make a point to appreciate the diversity within the community, and recognize that due to the diversity, the experiences and challenges within the community vary greatly.

How does Sendero celebrate AAPI Month?

This May, the AAPI Month Committee, under Sendero’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee, arranged several activities in honor of AAPI Heritage Month. Infographics, email flyers, and presentations, all helped engage employees and provide further resources.

The main event hosted by the DEI committee was a luncheon called “Asian American & Pacific Islander Celebration.” The luncheon was live-streamed via Teams and was held in person in both the Houston and Dallas offices to include as many employees as possible. Senderoans gathered in-person to enjoy cuisine from different parts of Asia, including banh mi, vegetable samosas, lo mein, and a variety of snacks and drinks.

In addition to trying different cuisines, the luncheon allowed Sendero to support the local AAPI community by catering food from local restaurants.

While attendees enjoyed their lunch, presenters spoke on a variety of topics, including AAPI history, the harm of the model minority myth, and the importance of mental health awareness within the AAPI community. Following the presentation, the speakers held a Q&A and engaged with the audience in open discussions.

Overall, the AAPI luncheon at Sendero was an exciting experience and resulted in a great turnout. Employees were given the chance to try new things, learn about and discuss significant AAPI topics, and most importantly, show their support for the AAPI community.

Ways for Companies to Celebrate AAPI Month

With an increase in the workforce returning to the office, companies must be aware of current events and provide a supportive space for their AAPI employees. AAPI Month goes beyond awareness, and it is imperative to provide resources that help employees feel heard and safe.

To support their AAPI employees, companies should be open to providing educational spaces for employees to learn from each other. Since the AAPI community is very diverse, it is also important to understand the unique experiences that make up AAPI. To do so, companies should consider:

• Fostering an inclusive company culture by offering employee training promoting diversity
• Creating internal support groups to offer a safe space for open conversation about AAPI history, experiences, and current events
• Showing support by catering from local AAPI restaurants, promoting local AAPI businesses, and sharing AAPI-created content (such as literature, films, etc.)

AAPI month is one of the newest cultural heritage months in American history, and with recent current events, it is more important than ever to support the AAPI community. We encourage everyone to continue researching and learning about the history and current experiences of the AAPI community beyond only the month of May.

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