May was Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month. The Federal Asian Pacific American Council selected the theme for May 2026 to be “Power in Unity: Strengthening Communities Together,” a concept that has defined the Asian American and Pacific Islander diaspora in the U.S. 

Giselle Cunanan, a professor of Asian American and ethnic studies, said collective action and unity between AAPI and other marginalized groups continues to be a necessity to this day. As examples, Cunanan noted the collaboration between Mexican and Filipino farmworkers who fought for better working conditions in California farms in the early and mid 20th century. The coalition of Bay Area college activists in the 1960s are another example of collective action, as their organizing led to the creation of the first ethnic studies classes in the nation. 

“Oftentimes more than not, we like to make icons out of our heroes, right? But what we know from history is that it’s been a collective effort from multiple groups in the past,” Cunanan said. 

Sacramento State is federally designated as an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institution, which gives federal grants to universities to better support their marginalized students. Andrew Yang, the director of the Asian Pacific Islander Desi American (APIDA) Center, said the center’s creation in 2023 addresses the needs of AAPI students, both on campus and beyond. 

“Throughout my years here working in this center, I think one highlight is we’re a touchpoint for many community organizations in Sacramento,” Yang said. “There’s a lot of different Asian organizations in Sacramento, and they really want to connect with our students.”

The APIDA Center also hosts cultural celebrations from a large variety of ethnic and religious groups. With 21% of students at Sac State identifying as AAPI as of Spring 2026, Yang said the center’s celebrations have had a big impact across campus.  

“Some of these cultural events that we hold are a place to celebrate our students from those cultures, but also educate other students that may not be familiar to those events,” Yang said.  “We have over 7,000 APIDA students, over 35 different ethnic groups. It’s a large umbrella to cover and we need to make sure all our students are seen.”

William Gow, an associate professor in ethnic studies, organizes an art showcase for students titled “Stop The Hate.” Students from five classes create art, ranging from paintings, zines and short documentaries. Gow and other faculty funded the showcase with a Stop The Hate grant, created during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“What we’re trying to do here is through art and media, show the complexity of the Asian American experience,” Gow said.

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Along with showing the diversity in AAPI students, Gow also encourages the audience to examine AAPI stories that aren’t surface level. 

“I think oftentimes celebrations of Asian American Pacific Islander History Month can become like, simply cultural, and there’s certainly a place for a cultural celebration,” Gow said. “In the ethnic studies department, what we really want people to understand are the structures and kind of histories that have shaped who Asian American and Pacific Islanders are today.”

Catherine Moua, a 2025 Sac State alumna who got her bachelor’s degree in ethnic studies, shared similar sentiments to Gow. She said the university underestimates students’ interest in learning about other cultures.

“Oftentimes, when there’s celebrations, it’s just about food and nothing else,” Moua said. “I know it’s hard to bring students to things, but I think a lot of times people don’t realize that students, a lot of us yearn to learn.”

Moua said the general detachment from highlighting students of color in an in-depth way leads her to think of Sac State’s celebration of diversity as “performative.” 

“I think a lot of students of color kind of face that same idea where it’s like ‘Am I really represented on this campus?’” Moua said.

Anti-Asian violence during and after the COVID-19 pandemic continues to be a lingering issue according to Gow. From March 19, 2020 to February 28, 2021, there were nearly 3,800 reported cases of anti-Asian hate crimes. Asian communities, specifically Chinese communities, were associated with the spread of COVID-19. Gow said that this specific accusation ties back to the centuries-old stereotype of the “Yellow Peril,” which portrayed Chinese immigrants in the 1800s as spreading plague and other diseases.

“What’s interesting is that once you hit COVID-19, these exact same stereotypes popped up about the same ethnic group,” Gow said. “In the 19th century, it was an association with rats; in the 21st century, during the pandemic, Chinese people were associated with bats – animals that have this kind of, dirty connotation within the U.S. and Western kind of mindsets.”

The rise in anti-Asian hate crimes during the COVID-19 pandemic, along with the rise in deportations during the Trump administration, stand in contrast with the “model minority” myth about AAPI people. Gow said Asian people stereotyped as successful without protesting or government assistance hurts both other communities of color and AAPI people. 

“Many, many people do not meet this stereotype,” Gow said. “So there’s this high instance of mental health issues where people feel like they’re held to a standard which they cannot meet.”

Cunanan said the acronym representing AAPI itself leads to the overgeneralization and erasure of people, notably Pacific Islanders, people native to the islands of Oceania. The U.S. Census Bureau recognizes three regional groups: Polynesia, which includes the Hawaiian islands, Micronesia, and Melanesia, which includes the U.S. territory of Guam. In the Spring 2026 semester, there were an estimated 266 students who identify as Pacific Islander. Cunanan cites a 2015 article by Lisa Kahaleole Hall, that says by lumping in Pacific Islanders with Asian Americans, U.S. policy ignores data and issues specific to Pacific Islanders, who tend to have different concerns than Asian Americans. 

“I think we need to do right by Pacific Islanders and ask them what they need,” Cunanan said. “So that means Pacific Islanders having their own resources, and even Pacific Islander studies would be really useful.”

Classes end on May 21, but AAPI Heritage month continues for the Sac State community. Students who made documentaries for the art exhibit screened them during the 2026 Sacramento Asian Pacific Film Festival on Sunday, May 24.