6 Asian American Pop Culture Contributions to Celebrate Beyond AAPI Month
As some may know, May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in the United States. Although Asian Americans make up a little over seven percent of the United States population, Asian American is a diverse term encompassing Asian Americans from all kinds of cultures from over 24 countries, and that’s only including the ones officially counted by the United States census.
The history behind the term “Asian American” is complicated, and doesn’t do justice to such a diverse and varied group of people. But in the centuries since Asian immigrants first arrived in the United States, people from numerous countries have left an indelible mark on American culture.
If this list is short, that's because Asian American art is still nascent. But if you want to look back on AAPI month and enjoy some great contributions to culture from AAPI artists, you can start with these.
A note before the list: we've done our best to highlight specifically Asian American media, which is distinct and unique from pop culture hits produced abroad, so don't expect to see films like 2019's Parasite – a brilliant South Korean movie, but not an Asian American one.
One recent Academy Award-winning picture that is 100% Asian American is Everything Everywhere All at Once. Directed by Daniels, this gonzo, multiverse adventure combines mind-bending sci-fi with a defiant story centered around a Chinese Asian American family. While it drew mass acclaim thanks to its go-for-broke action and eye-popping visuals, the film grapples with heavy themes of immigration. The American Dream never materalized for the Wong family, and furthermore the film also portrayed the stress that can develop between parents and their first-generation children as a result of
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