Every May in the United States is recognized as Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. On May 4th, the city of Fremont held its second annual celebration of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month to enhance understanding and cooperation among the various Asian Pacific communities.
Hundreds of people attended the celebration, where community representatives from Taiwan, India, Vietnam, Thailand, Korea, Japan, Uyghur, Myanmar, the Philippines, and more showcased traditional cultural performances. The diverse array of performances, including dance, singing, traditional music instrument playing, captivated the audience.
The Mayor of Fremont, Lily Mei, highlighted that Fremont is one of the largest land area cities in the U.S. with a significant Asian population. Organizing the Asian Pacific Heritage Month celebration is a way to bring together friends from various Asian Pacific ethnicities and demonstrate that all ethnicities are an integral part of the community.
One of the organizers, Mr. Hu from the Hong Kong Community Center, expressed that besides connecting with the American Hong Kong community, they also aim to integrate into American society, which led to the initiation of the Asian Pacific Heritage Month event last year.
The Northern California Taiwan Association is currently running a postcard signing campaign advocating for Taiwan’s inclusion in the World Health Organization. They set up a booth during the event to collect signatures.
President Zhang Zhengbang expressed hope for support from friends of different ethnicities for Taiwan’s WHO membership. He estimated gathering thousands of signatures before the WHO Geneva conference.
Susan, a Chinese American who has been living in the U.S. for over 20 years, attended the event with her husband and son. She discovered the event online and found it interesting, especially suitable for children and family participation.
Mrs. Hong, along with her Caucasian son-in-law and grandson, joined the Asian Pacific Heritage Month event for the first time. Despite the rainy weather, she admired the event, particularly enjoying the dynamic performance from South Korea.
The event was co-hosted by the Bay Area Hong Kong Community Center and the Federation of Indian Association – Festival of Globe. Elected officials from Fremont, including Vice Mayor Shao Yang, Fremont Unified School District Board Member Zhang Yajing, and elected officials from the Indian community, attended the event.
The performances featured a diverse range of acts from different regions, such as Cantonese pop music from a Hong Kong band, Taiwanese fan dance, Japanese taiko drumming, Chinese yangqin, Chinese martial arts, traditional dances from Korea, Vietnam, the Philippines, Myanmar, Thailand, as well as Bollywood dances from India. Additionally, there were game activities from Hong Kong and South Korea.