Celebrate Asian American & Pacific Month in Wheaton in May
Wheaton Public Library and the City of Wheaton are celebrating Asian American & Pacific Month in May by offering programs and book displays for all ages.
On Tuesday, May 18 at 6:30 p.m., the library and the city's community relations commission are co-sponsoring the panel discussion, "Stereotypes that Harm the Asian American Community."
People of Asian descent have seen a rise of overt anti-Asian hate and violence due to Anti-Asian rhetoric around COVID. Nearly 4,000 cases have been reported to Stop-AAPI Hate since March 2020. Many in the Asian American community have been attacked and assaulted, and killed as a result. Much of the hatred and violence emerges from long-standing stereotypes that have endured and prevailed over time. This panel discussion will discuss some of the factors that harm the Asian American community and what the community can do to help their Asian American neighbors. Attendees can register at www.wheatonlibrary.org for the Zoom webinar link.
On Thursday, May 27, the library is offering "Not Quite: Asian Americans and the 'Other' in the Era of the Pandemic" at 7 p.m.
Dr. Ada Cheng will give a performance where she explores several major themes: the meanings of home(land), racial profiling and the image of the perpetual foreigner, and anti-Asian racism under the pandemic. Dr. Cheng is a professor-turned-storyteller, solo performer, and storytelling show producer. She was a tenured professor in sociology at DePaul University from 2001-2016 when she resigned to pursue storytelling and performance full time. This event is presented in collaboration with Illinois Humanities. Illinois Humanities is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Illinois General Assembly through the Illinois Arts Council Agency, as well as by contributions from individuals, foundations and corporations. Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed by speakers, program participants, or audiences do not necessarily reflect those of the NEH, Illinois Humanities, IACA, our partnering organizations, or our funders.
Register at www.wheatonlibrary.org for Zoom webinar link.
The library is offering a program for kindergarten to sixth grade on "Kamishibai" at 4 p.m. Thursday, May 27. Learn about Kamishibai, a form of Japanese storytelling, over Zoom. They will read "Kamishibai Man" and work on projects. Registration required at www.wheatonlibrary.org.
For full list of AAPI events and book displays in Wheaton, visit the City of Wheaton's webpage: wheaton.il.us/aapimonth.
On Thursday, June 3, the community relations commission is hosting a book discussion on "The Spirit that Catches You and You Fall Down" by Anne Fadiman at 7 p.m.
It explores the clash between a small county hospital in California and a refugee family from Laos over the care of Lia Lee, a Hmong child diagnosed with severe epilepsy. Lia's parents and her doctors both wanted what was best for Lia, but the lack of understanding between them led to tragedy. Winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award for Nonfiction, the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Current Interest, and the Salon Book Award, Anne Fadiman's compassionate account of this cultural impasse is literary journalism at its finest. In partnership with DEI200. Facilitated by Dr. Sunny Sue Chang Jonas. Email rbautist12@gmail.com for zoom link info.
Recognized nationally in 1992, Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month is celebrated in the U.S. during the month of May. The month of May was chosen to commemorate the immigration of the first Japanese to the United States on May 7, 1843, and to mark the anniversary of the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad on May 10, 1869. The majority of the workers who laid the tracks were Chinese immigrants.