Culture and entertainment will combine on campus over the next few weeks as Asian Pacific American Heritage Month rocks into full swing at MSU.
Laura Min Mercer, co-president for the Asian Pacific American Student Organization, said it was incredible that on a calendar consisting of more than five weeks of programs, there are only a few blank days open.
"When I saw it, I was amazed at everyone's effort to put out programs to showcase Asian Pacific American stuff," the social relations senior said. "It shows how active the community really is."
This year's heritage month theme is "FAME: Furthering APAs in Media and Entertainment." Events include everything from rock concerts to film screenings with question-and-answer sessions with the directors and actors themselves.
Mercer said the theme was chosen because media and entertainment are seen as nontraditional fields for Asian Pacific Americans.
"We do a lot more than the typical stereotypes," she said, noting Asian Pacific Americans often are wrongly assumed to only be interested in math, science or medical fields.
"It's kind of keeping us in a place -the perpetual foreigner," she said.
Nationally, Asian Pacific Heritage Month is recognized in May, but APASO plans its events earlier during spring semester so that students still will be on campus to participate and learn.
"We're hoping we can really reach out and get people to come to more events," Mercer said. "We just want to showcase the positive aspects of Asian Pacific American people."
Within APASO, there are 13 affiliate groups that include the many different types of people who often are lumped into the category "Asian Pacific American." Each group contributed programs to the month's event calendar that showcase their individual cultural heritages.
"There's probably over 35 or 40 different distinct cultures that fall under the term 'Asian,'" said Dr. John Lee, a psychologist at MSU's Multi-Ethnic Counseling Center Alliance. "We're dealing with a very culturally diverse group."
Many said this month's educational opportunities will help not only to dispel common stereotypes in the media, but also to showcase the achievements of individuals who often go under the radar.
"Media does control a lot of what people think and say," international relations junior Rob Huber said. "This is an opportunity for us to turn the cameras around and say, 'Take a look at this aspect of American society that you never get to see.'"
