Why We Celebrate Asian Heritage Month in May

Honoring Manjiro Nakahama — A Story of Patience and Perseverance

Ancient Map of Manjiro Nakahama’s travels around the world.
(this Wikimedia image is of a work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author’s life plus 70 years or fewer).

May is Asian and Pacific Heritage Month. But where did this tradition come from? In the 1970s several proposals were made to Congress to officially recognize the many contributions that Asians have made to this country’s history. It was finally approved in 1978 when President Jimmy…