Asian and Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month (A, AANHPI), typically celebrated in May, commemorates the achievements and contributions of people of Asian Pacific Islander descent in the United States. The entire month of May was officially designated as Asian American Pacific Heritage Month in 1992. Mount Holyoke College commemorates A,AANHPI Month in April while students are still on campus and celebrates the diversity of the Asian diaspora that extends across the global community
The Asian Center for Empowerment collaborates with individuals and departments across the Mount Holyoke Community to celebrate A,AANHPI cultural diversity.
About the theme:
Asian and Pacific Islander diasporas across the Americas and the globe have long existed in strength, solidarity, care and joy. They persist against narratives and material violence that seek to confine them to orientalized imaginings of being submissive, apolitical, exotic or the cultural others.
This year’s theme, AGITASIAN, rejects these framings. It reclaims their collective agency to center the diaspora in its own collective power and interconnectedness. By wielding their own stories and survival strategies, these communities continue to thrive despite pressure, violence and suppression of the dominant cultural gaze.
By drawing on ancestral wisdom, lived experiences and artistic expressions, the diaspora creates a blueprint for collective liberation. AGITASIAN unsettles Western-centric perspectives by placing diasporic voices at the forefront. Through the power of storytelling and unified action, they subvert the narrative to tell a different story: one of a vibrant people committed to mutual care and the reimagining of a liberated future for all.
Sun, Apr 19, 2026 9am to 5:30pm
The 5PAN Conference Theme for this year is DIASPORA, MIGRATION, & RESISTANCE. What does resistance mean to you? How has migration affected our diaspora? How do diasporic communities resist,...
free
Sun, Apr 19, 2026 5pm to 9pm
Join us as we celebrate Pohela Boishakh, the Bengali New Year, with a vibrant and festive event embracing the rich traditions of Bengal through music, dance, art, and food. Experience the joy and...
Mon, Apr 20, 2026 11am to 1pm
Join the Cantonese Club for a lunch and learn on the vast Cantonese diaspora that exists within Asia and outside of it. We will be focusing on Cantonese labor history with Professor Richard Chu,...
Blanchard Great Room, , 50 College St, South Hadley, MA 01075, United States
Tue, Apr 21, 2026 9am to 4pm
This exhibition by the artist Jade Hoyer plays on how we conceive of interior and exterior spaces, of sweeping vistas and contained narratives. Light entering the Mount Holyoke College Botanic...
Tue, Apr 21, 2026 6pm to 8pm
Receipts Over Reposts: A Workshop on Moving from Passive Support to Active Accompliceship for AAANHPI & International Students. How to show up, speak up, and share the load in our global campus...
Thu, Apr 23, 2026 3:15pm to 4:30pm
Over 200,000 Brazilian migrants currently reside in Japan, constituting the fifth largest group of foreigners in the country. Most are Japanese Brazilians, or descendants of Japanese emigrants who...
Thu, Apr 23, 2026 4:30pm to 6pm
Artist talk & reception in the Botanic Garden with Jade Hoyer. Installation using handmade paper and Philippine weaving techniques. Image: Equinox /Solstice, handmade paper made from invasive...
Fri, Apr 24, 2026 12:30pm to 1:30pm
A community gathering to honor the Islamic tradition of Friday by prayer, sharing food, and socializing. Special emphasis of this event is on honoring the AAANHPI Heritage Month and the experiences...
Cassani Lounge (Shattuck Hall), 50 College St, South Hadley, MA 01075, United States
Tue, Apr 28, 2026 9am
This memoir tells the story of Curtis Chin’s time growing up as a gay Chinese American kid in 1980’s Detroit. Nineteen eighties Detroit was a volatile place to live, but above the fray stood a safe...
Tue, Apr 28, 2026 10:30am to 12pm
This session creates space for those who feel unmoored in their identity. It centers the experience of not having a single home, clear origin, or cohesive cultural narrative. It honors those whose...
Tue, Apr 28, 2026 1:30pm to 3pm
Receipts Over Reposts: A Workshop on Moving from Passive Support to Active Accompliceship for AAANHPI & International Students. How to show up, speak up, and share the load in our global campus...
Tue, Apr 28, 2026 2pm to 3pm
A mother and race scholar seeks to answer her daughter’s many questions about race and racism with an earnest exploration into race relations and affirmative action from the perspectives of Asian...
Virtual Event
free
