Asian Pacific American Heritage Month

Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Slider

During the month of May, Asian Pacific American Heritage Month is a celebration of Asians and Pacific Islanders in the United States. A rather broad term, Asian/Pacific encompasses all of the Asian continent and the Pacific islands of Melanesia (New Guinea, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Fiji and the Solomon Islands), Micronesia (Marianas, Guam, Wake Island, Palau, Marshall Islands, Kiribati, Nauru and the Federated States of Micronesia) and Polynesia (New Zealand, Hawaiian Islands, Rotuma, Midway Islands, Samoa, American Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, Cook Islands, French Polynesia and Easter Island). In this month, we shed light on the multitude of mental health experiences within Asian and Pacific Islander communities.

Featured Organizations

The National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Association (NAAPIMHA) promotes the mental health and well being of the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities. Since its founding, NAAPIMHA strives to raise awareness of the role of mental health in an individual’s health and well-being, especially in Asian American Pacific Islander communities throughout the country. For more information, visit their home page.

On May 28, 2021, President Joe Biden signed Executive Order 14031, "Advancing Equity, Justice, and Opportunity for Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders," to establish the White House Initiative on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (WHIAANHPI) and deliver on his commitment to reinstate and reinvigorate this historic Initiative. In January 2023, the initiative released a strategy to promote safety and equity for Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities. For more information, visit their home page.


MHTTC Products

EPLC | Understanding and Treating Psychosis and Other Mental Illnesses in the Context of Asian Cultures and Anti-Asian Racism | New England MHTTC

For many Asian Americans, Asian cultures have shaped their explanatory models of health including mental health. In this event, Dr. Fan provided a brief analysis on how Asian religious and philosophical traditions affect the understanding, clinical manifestation and treatment-seeking behaviors of people with psychotic disorders and other mental illnesses. In addition, the mental health toll of anti-Asian racism and being a “model minority” will be presented.


Providing Culturally Relevant Crisis Services During COVID-19 (Part 3): Culturally Responsive Factors to Consider for the Hmong Population | Great Lakes MHTTC

Racially-motivated attacks related to the COVID-19 pandemic add additional stress for Asian American communities, including Hmong communities. Dr. Pang Foua Yang Rhodes will discuss how cultural values, historical trauma, and acculturation may influence how Hmong individuals and communities respond to large scale crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic. 


Ripple Effects: The Impact of Anti-AAPI Violence on Asian American and Pacific Islander Behavioral Health Providers in California | Pacific Southwest MHTTC

This brief synthesizes insights, reflections, and recommendations from a series of listening sessions held with Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) behavioral health providers in California from March to May 2021. Providers shared how the current environment of anti-AAPI violence impacts them personally, affects their relationships with family and friends, and diminishes their sense of belonging in the broader community.


Shining a Light on API Mental Health in the Time of COVID-19 | Pacific Southwest MHTTC

In honor of May as both Asian Pacific American Heritage Month and Mental Health Awareness Month, this national round table discusses the mental health impact of COVID-19 on API communities. While we must address the serious problems our communities are facing, it is also important to celebrate who we are as APIs - this, too, is mental health.


Stigma, Shame, & Self | Podcast | Northwest MHTTC

In celebration of May as Mental Health Awareness Month and National Asian Pacific Islander History & Heritage Month, Aleks Martin surprised their audience via Northwest MHTTC with guests Boya Hua and Dr. Hieu Pham. This month’s learning goals are to identify the social impact of stigma and shame on the “self”, and to identify tools to overcome the suffering and silence.


Tending to Anti-Asian Racialized Trauma Through Decolonial, Collective Healing | South Southwest MHTTC

As anti-Asian violence continues on over a year since COVID-19 began, many Asian diasporic communities are living under fear and distress. Together, we’ll dive deep into understanding the ways that colonialism, scapegoating, the model minority myth, and fetishization perpetuate harm. From a decolonizing lens, we’ll explore ways to rehumanize, reconnect, reclaim, and reimagine mental health care for Communities of Color on Turtle Island.


The Mental Health of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Communities in the Time of COVID: It's Time for Bold Action | Pacific Southwest MHTTC and MHTTC Network Coordinating Office

This three-part virtual roundtable addresses the impact of historical and present day trauma and social injustice on their mental health, provides self-care strategies, and identifies long term community engagement strategies to address the mental health of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities.


Articles of Interest:


Other Organizations Offering Awareness Resources for the Asian and Pacific Communities:

Asian American Psychological Association

Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum

HHS Office of Minority Mental Health (OMH)

Mental Health America (MHA)

National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI)

National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN)

National Network to Eliminate Disparities in Behavioral Health (NNED)

SAMHSA Office of Behavioral Health Equity (OBHE)

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