Stories celebrating AAPI Heritage Month in Atlanta, Georgia

ATLANTA — Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month goes by many names.

Whether called AANHPI, AAPIDA (to include Desi Americans), or AAPI, the acronym serves to bring together multiple identities while striving to include the many ethnicities that have helped shape the United States and, more locally, , the Atlanta metropolitan area.

Despite the different terms coined to celebrate this heritage month, the mission remains the same: to recognize a group of people who share their culture as they strive to be the best version of themselves.

Celebrating the many identities that share the common thread of being AAPI means reaching beyond the monolith to see what history, customs, and diversity exist and recognizing the effort to create a sense of belonging.

This series of stories serves to amplify AAPI voices and share how people are overcoming these challenges to realize that they are greater than any obstacles they face and, ultimately, greater together.

To find out how to watch 11Alive’s AAPI Heritage Month special, Greater Together, click here.

March 16, 2021 is a tragic date that haunts Atlanta’s Asian American and Pacific Islander community. Since then, the community has worked to progress and heal.

Three years ago, eight people, including six Asian women, were killed in shootings at three spas in metro Atlanta. This sparked a resurgence of the Stop Asian Hate initiative. It is a movement that examines generational racism and racial injustice towards AAPI communities. Advocates say that to keep the momentum going, the initiative was also modified to include a conversation about healing and what that means for AAPI individuals.

Neima Abdulahi, 11Alive’s chief cultural correspondent, worked with photojournalist Mike Nicolas and spoke with mental health counselor Daun Kwag to understand what the healing journey might look like. Filmmaker Jeremy Thao provides insight into how solidarity can shape the conversation.

Read the full report here.

There is incredible diversity among the region’s Asian-American populations. Laotian, Vietnamese and Cambodian refugees arrived in Georgia after the Vietnam War and expanded their families in the decades that followed. Chinese Americans settled in Georgia after helping build the Augusta Canal. Then there’s the incredible array of universities in metro Atlanta that welcome international students and businesses, helping the local economy thrive. A drive on the cultural corridor that is Buford Highway or a tour of Atlanta’s Chinatown can offer perspective on how diversity within the metro’s AAPI community has changed the city’s landscape.

To help provide a sense of what it means to be an AAPI Georgian, 11Alive brought together five people to learn about their cultures through the lens of their lived experiences. 11Alive anchor Jonathan Martin moderated the conversation.

Meet the panelists:
Rayanne Williams
Justin Settah Rodriguez
Anar Parikh
Tai Nguyen
Victoria Register

Learn more about the panelists and watch their full conversation here.

In Georgia’s AAPI community, access to ballots is a critical issue every election season.

“This shouldn’t be a partisan issue,” said Cam Ashling, president of the Georgia chapter of the Asian-American Action Fund. “Everyone should want safe and secure voting, accessible to all eligible voters.”

What that looks like largely depends on grassroots efforts and which counties are willing to foot the bill to ensure AAPI Georgians have fair access to the ballot. With Asian Americans making up nearly 5% of Georgia’s population and becoming a rapidly growing voting bloc, advocates say AAPI voters could be key to winning races, especially in the swing state.

11Alive Politics Team Member Joe Ripley and Photojournalist Jefferson Cochran examine the scope of ballot access and what some people are doing to ensure eligible AAPI voters aren’t intimidated through the process.

Read the full report here.

Reading is a way to understand the world, but access to that understanding depends on the ability to read the words on the page.

In Chamblee, Georgia, there is a rare and precious haven where a different story is being written: Maomi Bookstore.

Owned by Yvonne Hou, who immigrated to the United States from Taiwan 30 years ago, Maomi Bookstore is a window between worlds. Nestled in Atlanta’s Chinatown, the store invites visitors to enter a culture of warmth and exploration.

“This bookstore is totally different from other regular bookstores,” Hou said.

Page Yang is a Sacramento native who brings his hip-hop flair and Hmong-American roots to the Atlanta dance scene. She graces the stage with top artists and choreography to express freedom through dance while giving back to the community by working with the National Black Arts Festival.

Chika Takai broke glass ceilings as the first woman and first Japanese to become a DJ for the Atlanta Hawks. First a dancer and now a self-proclaimed energetic artist, Takai says her Tokyo roots and culture fit her idea of ​​community, and she conveys that passion to the crowds.

11Alive’s Karys Belger and photojournalist Mike Nicolas spoke with both women to find out why they chose Atlanta as their professional hotbed and how they don’t let the A scene undermine their skills.

Watch videos celebrating Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month in the YouTube playlist below: